Back in Africa - Part III - Cape Town

Sar's back in Africa and so it must be time for a new blog post! I arrived Cape Town, South Africa last Friday night for 8 days of uninterrupted fun, adventure, and bro-ing out with Selcuk and Rashad.

The boys are set up in a great apartment less than five minutes from the bottom of the University of Cape Town (built on a massive hill so lower campus is still 5+ minutes and 1 bajillion feet in elevation from upper campus). The apartment is spacious but since they have very little stuff, it looks as though they're squatters and there is plenty of room for my mess.

Friday Night/Saturday
I arrived late on Friday night so we took it easy, going out for chicken at the local fast-food joint and then relaxing at the apartment. I awoke on Saturday to the sun streaming through the windows and this view (picture above). You can see upper campus UCT is the building highest up on the hill. We grabbed a quick bite at Cocoa Wah Wah, conventiently named for us Pton folk and possibly my favorite breakfast place of all-time, and off we went for a day of wine tasting. We drove 45 minutes outside of Cape Town to Franschoek, basically the Napa Valley of Africa. Our first stop was Winery #1 - Haute Cabriere winery, a gorgeous compound with flowers in bloom, a helicopter landing pad (for us but the chopper was in the shop), and a wedding reception to boot. Specializing in sparkling wine (they had some fancier non-champagne name for it), the four varieties we sampled were the perfect way to wake up. I didn't take notes on the specific varieties for I'm sure these would all be out of my price range in the US, but I certainly savored the petite bubbles on my palate as they exploded into a cacophony of delicious flavors - this is a direct quote from the cellar master (with artistic license on my part). One red wine and one port later, the three of us were on our way to hapiness with still two more wineries to go!

Winery #2 - L'Ormarins
If my retirement farm resembles this compound in any way, shape, or form, I'll be very happy. A classic car museum, winery, and 150 thoroughbred racehorses dot this gorgeous expanse. While Al, the driver, waited in the car, we three boys were ferried from reception to the wine tasting complex where we sat on a private veranda surrounded by gorgeous flowers while our private tasting host graciously served us 7 glasses of the water of the gods. Nary a bad one in the batch and the three kings reveled in our luxurious escape from reality. But alas, there was more wine to be drunk and the sun doesn't wait, so we were off to...

Winery #3 - Boschendal
This final stop was more of a tasting and less of the luxurious experience (poor us). We sat down at an outdoor table, mind you under an incredible oak tree, picked five wines to try and polished them off with great pleasure. By this time we were feeling a little loose and unfortunately Al had to pick someone up at the airport, so we headed back to Cape Town.

Total Cost - Under $10

Al dropped us off at "The Waterfront," which is a complex of stores, restaurants, amphitheaters, etc...on the waterfront. We treated ourselves to a massive steak dinner, because the day had been so difficult, and quickly felt a food coma coming on. We went to the apartment and promptly passed out for 30 min (me) - 3 hrs (selcuk). Rashad and I went for walk while Selcuk dozed and it was great to catch up on life in the southern hemisphere. We finally roused Chuck in time to make it to a party at one of the big American houses (22 college students...'nuff said). While it was fun, I spent most of the night catching up with Pton friends and fighting off jet-lag. We walked home and hit the hay.

Sunday
We slept in until 11 and then met Colin and Janaye for a yummy breakfast. Quick note on food in Cape Town - Almost every place is unbelievably delicious and cheap but not fast. at all. Our 2 hr breakfast delayed our beach excursion but we made up for it with enthusiasm once we reached Muizenberg beach. It was packed (gorgeous, warm, sunny Sunday afternoon..go figure), but we quickly found a spot for Rashad to tan. I checked the water with my toe. Bad Idea. Cold is a partial description. Very cold would be more apt. It made me think twice about going surfing with Chuck but you only live once. So we rented wetsuits and longboards and paddled out into the surf. Based on previous experience I knew what to expect and after 1.5 hrs, my worst fears were confirmed - I am a sub-par to very poor surfer. I can stand up for a bit before gracefully diving/falling into the ocean, but I also got my world rocked by Poseidon at least twice. I am not Johnny Utah (see the movie Point Break). Battered but not broken, Selcuk and I took a long walk on the beach while Rashad continued to work on his tan; again, great to catch up with old friends. We lunched at five, met up with a bunch of other study-abroad students, and caught a train back to Rondebosch. We shared a romantic three-way Italian dinner and then Selcuk and I joined Colin and Janaye for some South African jazz at a cafe near the apartment. We returned home by 10:30 and Rashad and I watched L.A. Confidential while Selcuk fell asleep in Rashad's lap. Cute.

Monday
The view of Table Mountain is enough to get me out of bed in the morning. It is striking every time I see it. Rashad and I had breakfast at Cocoa Wah Wah - great french toast - while Selcuk was in class. I walked him up the neverending hill to class and then sat on the steps that dominate center campus for 20 minutes watching the students pass by. The sheer number of unknown faces feels significantly different from Princeton. But with gorgeous weather, a great view of the city, and easy classes, different isn’t bad. Some fellow Princetonians spotted me sketchily sitting on the stairs by myself and came to join. We chatted for a bit and then parted to continue the day. Chuck finished class and we took a small minibus (a la Addis), to downtown CT. We sat next to a guy who is visiting his brother, who is also studying abroad. Our area of town is crawling with students and has a very fun, young feel. Unfortunately we arrived at the same time as a light drizzle and thus got a little wet walking to the District Six Museum. To make a long story short and do a total injustice to the topic, District Six was an area of “slums” for poor black and ‘coloured’ workers in the heart of Cape Town. In the 1960’s, the government began a brutal campaign of eviction, demolition, and cruelty in order to reorganize the city. The museum was a great tribute to the area with many poignant, personal stories on display. One of the coolest features is a map of District Six on the gallery floor that former residents have filled in with signatures in the location of their former residences. The exhibits evoked memories of Hurricane Katrina and the destruction of the Lower Ninth Ward in N.O. (although obviously different in scope, mechanism, and motivation). After the museum, Selcuk and I grabbed some burgers for lunch and then walked around the downtown area and the amazing botanical gardens. One can’t help but be amazed by the colorful flowers in bloom all over the city and especially in the gardens. It has been a real treat to spend so much one-on-one time with both Rashad and Selcuk in a way that is rarely possible even back at school. We then went back to the apartment and picked up the third member for dinner at a local steakhouse. I had a tasty Ostrich fillet and we all walked away satisfied. Selcuk and I bonded over suffering through a terrible movie (Sex Drive? – if you haven’t seen it, don’t). Tomorrow will include some school work and then another beach with Chuck in the afternoon (but probably no surfing).

Time is flying by and there are still a few things on my list of desired activities:
~Visit Robben’s Island
~Go horseback riding on the beach
~Dinner+laser tag with the pton crew
~other activities that I can’t mention because my mom may read this…

This city is amazing and being here definitely gives me a small taste of what I missed by not coming. I made the right decision to stay at Princeton this semester, 100% no doubt about it, but being here I know that I would have loved this as well. Everything happens for a reason and I am thankful that I’ve been able to come join my boys for this short interlude before our last hurrah next year.