Hello, all! Since my last several updates have been more “official” reviews of my actual internship work / pertinent refugee issues, I thought I would take this entry to discuss a few of the incredible leisurely experiences I’ve had as of late…….That is the beautifully disgusting quality so characteristic of South Africa. Whereas my daytime work is comparable to international development jobs one might experience in other African nations, Latin America, or to my parents’ dismay, Bangladesh, during nights and weekends I am free to indulge in all the “cush” touristy opportunities that this area also has to offer: outdoor summer concerts, wine tastings, just about every extreme support one could imagine, and Euro-style bars and cafés. What makes these activities both interesting and guilty are the fissures between the two worlds.
Example: There is an area not too far away from here known as St. George’s Mall. It’s a pedestrian throughway with stone streets, oodles of cafés, stylish boutiques, and outdoor atmosphere. More than any other area I have seen here in Cape Town, it looks and feels like you are in Europe. There are even a few fountains and French-style kiosks / street monuments. Yet, there are also loads of informal stalls, beggars, and “African” proletarians serving the establishments. In fact, it almost feels like the “new” Europe of immigrants more than either the romantically conceptualized versions of Europe or Africa. And beggars in this country are RESILIENT….let me tell you. They will come right up to your table where you are sitting and assuredly ask for money. If you are walking down the street, they will approach you in the same manner without taking no for an answer. If you ignore them, they follow you the entire distance continuously hollering at you. If you say “Sorry” forcefully and pick up your pace, they will pick up their pace right along with you instead of taking the hint. Thank goodness I am doing something “helpful towards humanity” during the daytime or I would feel QUITE guilty for not giving the beggars any money. I apologize that this paragraph is littered with “quotation marks;” I just feel like I am walking on eggshells in explaining some of these topics so briefly.
That was a bit of a tangent anyways. So back to my activities! I have made TWO different excursions out into the proximal winelands thus far. That equals approximately 9 different wineries and probably 40-some samples of wine varieties. Wine culture is so amazing. I can’t fathom anything more relaxing than an afternoon of casual wine sipping set against the faint, nearly stationary sway of the vines and the jovial pulsation of rays overhead. That sounded forcibly poetic, but I tried to use the exact words of what I sensed despite their sub-par linguistic affect. In fact the calm I had imagined for trip 1 was fleeting at best. We moved from winery to winery by bike, and after stop 3 (which was actually a brandy distillery) surmounted a gradual, but deadly incline. Around 100 degrees F coupled with the brandy I literally almost passed out at the top. Great that there was water! A very pleasant if not exhausting day. Winery trip 2 was by car and FAR more relaxing. Winery 1 was over the top impressive architecturally and sit into a hill of vines: quite the unusual topographical setting for winegrowing but the aesthetics were stunning! A free tasting to top it off. Number 2 felt like a hole-in-the-wall stop in Provence, sporting the name “Le Pommier” (Appletree) to top it off! Casual. Very different from the other place but also enjoyable. Stop 3 was probably the most “authentic” South African winery, as the architecture fit into the Cape Colonial style and the setting more barebones “we make wines here” as opposed to the “there is wine here, but look at this fabulous façade and setting foremost!” Stop 4 was probably a bit of a mix between all of the above.
HOLD on. I am writing this on the roof of my apartment complex early on a Friday evening, and I just heard jazz music start playing from down the street. So much of the South African lifestyle is chill and enjoyable. I can’t tell where this music is stemming from really, but I can hear it rather clearly. At first I thought it was a protest coming from the Parliament (1.5 blocks away, so we hear them a regular amount) but it doesn’t appear to be so. I actually have to head to the laundrette before it closes for the evening. I think I will try to walk down the street and into there without shoes. Shoes are optional at most in this country, and I’ve been dying to try this myself. I’ve been here over 1.5 months; it’s about time! I will update the rest of this entry “just now” (South African English for sometime in the next few hours……if I ever get to it.)
No comments:
Post a Comment