As I sit through what are (apparently) some of the roughest waters we may sail through during this entire voyage, I’m fondly reminiscing about my time in Cape Town, South Africa. To put it simply, I loved it. From day one, I thought of how much I would love to stay longer and even considered some of the logistics of moving to this magical city. Though it was incredibly cosmopolitan, being in the midst of Table Mountain always reminded you that wilderness was just a hop-and-skip away. Cape Town is very Western, much more than any other port we’ve visited, but there was the constant reminder that you were in a place that was very different and very African. The resonant clicks of the Xhosa language being spoken all around you and the images of the “Big 5” animals on the bank notes the stand out in my mind. There were also the things that were distinctively South African that made me smile like Nelson Mandela’s face on everything and the plethora of cultures that comprise of this “Rainbow Nation.”
In the six days I spent in Cape Town, I was able to do such a wide array of things that you could only do in a place like this. From getting hit on by a man at a gay club who swore he knew me to nearly passing out while hiking Table Mountain only a few hours later, I can proudly say that I did a lot. Once again, I avoided a lot of the normal tourist traps; I didn’t go to Kruger or Boulders Beach or Robben’s Island. Of course, I would have loved to go to lose places as well, but I thoroughly enjoyed spending my time trolling Long Street during both day and night, meeting musicians in Gugulethu, and wine tasting in the vineyards of Paarl with my anthropology professor for class credit.
I can still say that I definitely played it safe here in Cape Town. Like I said, it was the most Western port we’ve visited, and it was a sight for sore eyes. I can’t say I didn’t shop at the V&A Waterfront which looked like every mall in America. I can’t say I didn’t go partying at the incredibly bumpin’ Camps Bay. I can’t say that I didn’t eat Chinese food and pizza. Honestly, it felt a lot like New York with better weather, more interesting-looking people with sexier accents, and a hell of a lot cheaper.
But then you remember that you’re in South Africa. You begin to see the contrasts all around. Nature seems to cradle the city like a mother does her child. Right outside of the most ritzy neighborhoods are the townships full of some of the poorest people in all of the country. You think of the disparity between the rich and the poor. This gap, as determined by equations like the Gini Coefficient, is the highest in South Africa, and Cape Town is where this is most evident. And this makes you begin to rethink your experiences.
As we all indulged in nice meals and excessive shopping, there was someone down the road who could only dream of those things. As we talked about how cheap everything was, there was someone nearby begging for change that we disregarded without worry. You can’t help but feel a little guilty.
Don’t get me wrong, Cape Town, by far, was one of my favorite places I’ve ever had the chance to visit. It felt like home. But perhaps it’s that exact feeling which irks me. It shouldn’t have felt like home. I wish I felt a little more uncomfortable. And I definitely blame myself for not seeking those uncomfortable situations out. However, I don’t regret what I ended up doing because all of those experiences were still very enlightening.
If you were expecting more of a play-by-play of the things I did in Cape Town, you’ll (hopefully) be getting that some time in the next few days before I get to Mauritius. This banter was more about my reflection on this past port. I kinda just had to put my thoughts out there. I didn’t want to be depressing because I would hate to make it seem like my time in South Africa was for naught. I had such a wonderful time, I hope to fill you in on everything really soon.
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