Cape Town is a multicultural place. The Thai Buddhist Meditation Centre seen in the picture can be found corner High Level and Glengariff Roads.
Muslims believe Cape Town fits into a holy triangle. There are a series of Kramats where saints are buried. These are the located on the borders of this triangle. Two of the Kramats can be found just off Signal Hill Road.
In Woodstock is a Greek Orthodox Church. And the beautiful St Georges Cathedral is near The Company Gardens. It has become synonymous with it’s defiance during the dark years in South Africa.
The Company Gardens were set up to provide provisions for the ships that passed through Cape Town. There are plenty museums to explore in the gardens and the cutest squirrels dash about.
Go to – My Holidays and Trips – at the top of this page to read about other places we have visited. Or just click on – this link.
Flights up north are finally being resumed. At last the skies are deemed to be safe after ash and smoke had spewed from the unpronounceable volcano in Iceland. Local flights were unaffected but flights to and from the northern hemisphere were grounded.
We don’t have volcanoes in South Africa. The odd tropical storm brews up in the Indian Ocean. Storms that produce massive waves occur toward the Cape coast and lash boats at sea. That coastline is littered with shipwrecks.
But we are a water scarce country so drought is an ongoing problem and sometimes conversely floods. Every now and again we have bush fires especially on the mountains.
Our biggest problems here are health ones. Sadly diseases such as TB, Malaria and AIDS claim lives regularly. Sub Saharan Africa has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world.
South Africa has 29 Blue Flag beaches. The two closest to Green Point are Camps Bay Beach and Clifton’s 4th Beach. Clifton has a series of coves which are called 1st Beach, 2nd Beach, 3rd Beach and 4th Beach. You walk down a lot of stairs to get to those coves so make sure you don’t pack too big a bag. Coming back up all those stairs may prove a challenge. Our nude beach is a bit further along towards Llandudno and is called Sandy Bay. You can see the wrecks of the Antipolis and the Romelia out that way. Alcohol is not permitted on our beaches.
In the picture is a Biltong Bar. Biltong is a local delicacy. It is a cured, dried meat. I am going to admit that as a vegetarian of 30 years now, the only time I ever wish I ate meat is when there is biltong around. I am immune to the smell of a roast or a BBQ but biltong still smells good to me. Locals take their biltong very seriously. It comes in game or regular meats and it can be wetter or drier. The spices vary considerably and the length the meat has aged all affect the flavour and thus individual preference.
Go to – My Holidays and Trips – at the top of this page to read about other places we have visited. Or just click on – this link.
Do we boo our players? In the case of Matthew Booth the boos coming from the crowd are actually supporters calling him by his name – Booth.
What is happening with our boys? They are in Germany right now getting used to the cold and feeling not just a little pressure to perform.
Back home we are all getting into the spirit of things. Retailers are putting up flags and staff are wearing the green and gold Springbok colours. Vuvuzelas in rainbow shades are being packed out in bulk. Heaven help us!
Even the women’s magazines are getting in on things with pictures of some seriously fit looking soccer players heading this way. And people are beginning to arrive. Dignitaries, media, players, family, etc …The fans will be the last ones to come to South Africa for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
Yesterday Soccer World Cup tickets became available to locals over the counter. This is Africa. Not everyone has a laptop or access to a PC.
One of our local banks was the vendor and queues miles long quickly formed as fans lined up way before sunrise to buy tickets.
One male fan apparently died while waiting to make a purchase. It’s believed of natural causes.
Those who didn’t get tickets yesterday are back today with cooler boxes and portable chairs hoping to get luckier today.
Each day we tick off is one more day closer to this Soccer World Cup. I overhear people talking all day long about where they will be or asking who is going. The big question is how many visitors will come?
Go to – My Holidays and Trips – at the top of this page to read about other places we have visited. Or just click on – this link.
With the advent of the New South Africa came a brand new constitution and legislation. Much time and effort was put into getting us off to a great start and so South Africa has some of the most fair and progressive laws in the world. Same sex marriages, polygamy and polyandry are permitted here.
Our president Jacob Zuma is a proud polygamist and has three wives and 20 children at present. Our neighbour, King Mswati 3rd of Swaziland, is ahead of him with 6 wives and over 20 children.
The president of Dubai, Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum lists a senior wife, a junior wife and 19 children. He is reputed to have wives in between the two that are mentioned. In America Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormons, had a few dozen wives.
King Solomon and many others in the bible had a good few wives too. In Asia a second “wife” is taken as a concubine.
The good news – it’s all OK here in South Africa. And we don’t discriminate, woman are free to join in and have multiple husbands too. Now how many countries can say that?
Go to – My Holidays and Trips – at the top of this page to read about other places we have visited. Or just click on – this link.
