June 24, 2013
This past weekend was
my last full weekend in South Africa and I spent it checking off the last few
things on my list of all that I wanted to do and see while in Cape Town. On Friday night, we began the evening with
dinner at Canal Walk Mall, the largest mall in the southern hemisphere. After Canal Walk, we met up with a group of
students from the University of Cape Town and we jolled (partied) Cape Town
style at the Tiger Tiger night club.
Tiger Tiger is located near the UCT campus and it was packed with
students from about 10pm to 4am, and for those who went to KU, the people and
the atmosphere was a mix between the Hawk Boom Boom Room and the Cave! If there is one thing that I learned while in
Cape Town, it’s that the people know how to party, and one of the best parts of
Friday, other than the cheap or free drinks because we were the “cute American
girls”, was the people watching!! Friday
night was definitely a good time and I’m so glad I got to experience a real
Cape Town college party.
Cape Town Jol!
On Saturday, we spent
the morning souvenir shopping at the Pan African Market, and then we took a
ferry out to Robben Island, the home of the prison where Nelson Mandela spent
18 years of his life. There are parts of
Robben Island that are absolutely beautiful, but the part of the island where
the prison is located is another story.
The tour of the prison was definitely a sobering experience. Our tour guide was an ex political prisoner,
a former member of the African National Congress who was imprisoned for six
years for fighting for the rights of his people. The conditions inside the prison were
brutal. The kennels for the guard dogs
were larger than the cells for the prisoners, and the prisoners spent long days
working in the limestone quarries. I’m
so glad I got the opportunity to see Robben Island and the prison before
leaving South Africa because it represents the tremendous amount of struggle
that took place in the fight for freedom.
Nelson Mandela's Prison Cell
View of the Maximum Security Prison
Sunday morning, we
visited the Hout Bay Harbor Market.
Harbor Market was very similar to Old Biscuit Mill, which we visited
last Saturday. There was live music,
lots of shopping booths, and lots of food and drink. I probably had my best meal in South Africa
while at the market. I had a Gemsbok
burger (Gemsbok is a type of antelope) with cheese, tomato, caramelized onions,
avocado, and pesto sauce on a ciabatta roll, and it was amazing!! After the market, we finished off the day at
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. Even though
it is currently wintertime in South Africa, the gardens were lush and green and
several flowers were still in bloom. We
have seen a lot of beautiful scenery while in South Africa, but the scenery of
the gardens was equally as beautiful, just in a different way.
Harbor Market
Botanical Gardens
Even though I would
really like another four weeks to experience the Cape Town and the Western
Cape, I feel like I made the best of my time here and got the opportunity to
experience a lot of what this beautiful country has to offer!
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