South Africa, standard. : Bo-Kaap & Birthdays

I am back from my very quick and last minute trip to New York. I am also now the resident of a brand new, BEAUTIFUL studio apartment in Chelsea and then I got to come back to South Africa. I am the luckiest.

Besides dealing with the crazy jet lag and getting back into the rhythm of things, it's been a quite couple of weeks in Cape Town. Lots of time has been spent exploring beautiful neighborhoods like Bo-Kaap, Sea Point, Green Point and Hout Bay. Every neighborhood in Cape Town has a unique and special feel, part of this is the culture of the city and part of this is a hangover left by the Apartheid. Neighborhoods tend to be highly segregated which isn't all that unique and is something experienced in New York or other big cities, but not to this extent. This past weekend Brennan (the birthday girl), Colleen and I explored a neighborhood called Bo-Kaap. Technically Bo-Kaap was known as a township, however it seems much more like a neighborhood to me. Literally up the hill from down town, entering Bo-Kaap is like entering a different world, no longer among the skyscrapers of downtown, Bo-Kaap is filled with hilly cobblestone streets lined with brightly colored homes. Within the packed streets and stucco houses is a strong 'Cape Maylay' population. These are the residents of Cape Town that make up a large part of the muslim portion of the city and contribute to the diverse south-east asian influences in the food here.

The buildings are brightly colored, the streets small and winding, reminding me of San Francisco. We climbed a hill and ended up in a small muslim cemetery with an incredible view of the city (granted, I have yet to find a place in Cape Town that doesn't have some sort of incredible view). Our afternoon of exploring the neighborhood ended in stoping at a local corner store to pick up spices and ingredients for dinner. We had a birthday braai (South African style BBQ), filled with peri-peri chicken and steak, a crazy delicious curry lentil soup and ended with some sweet desserts and birthday dancing. Another weekend of adventure, exploring, reflection and friendship in Cape Town. I wouldn't have wanted to spend it any other way.

More updates soon.