Cape Town: Part I

--Well, here I am in Cape Town, South Africa, and so far all the hype about it being one of the most beautiful cities on earth is true! It's a strange mix of Dutch architecture and language (Afrikaans developed out of Dutch), British driving-style (I've almost gotten myself killed twice today, not too bad!), Indian/Malay spice, and Khoi-san culture in a semi-tropical setting. Imagine palm trees, Dutch homes, the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and a gorgeous mountain stuck right in the middle of a city and you have a good idea of what I'm experiencing.
--All of this awe is tempered by the presence of third-world poverty abutting against first-world housing and lifestyle. When you drive from the airport into the central-southern suburbs (I'm staying in a fantastic B&B in Rondebosch: Oakvale Lodge) on the main highway (N2) you drive right through the heart of the Cape Flats. Here there are nothing but shantytowns as far as the eye can see. Tin and cardboard shacks with no running water, heat, or electricity. Very grim. In striking contrast, if you drive another 2 kilometers you will hit some of the wealthiest areas in Cape Town. Gorgeous gabled homes with Jaguars and Mercedes parked in the driveways. Of course, all of this is surrounded by enough barb wire, high walls, and security systems to make the US/Mexico border or a California maximum-security prison look about as safe as a Wal Mart parking lot in Compton.
--You also have to place this into the historical context of the Western Cape and its role in Apartheid. Cape Town might be one of the most liberal cities as far as the (white) gay community, or (white) women are concerned, but it was also the birthplace of Apartheid. You can still feel and see the aftermath of apartheid in the segregation of white suburbs from poorer 'coloured' and 'black' areas (e.g. Cape Flats). I went on a three hour tour of Robben Island (off of Cape Town), where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for a good part of 25-years and to say it's an eye-opening experience would the understatement of the century. The last time I felt the essence of so much human pain and desperation in one place is when I visited Elmina Castle (a slave castle on the coast of Ghana). Human suffering is embedded in the walls. The irony is that in both cases (Robben Island and Elmina) these places are located in beautiful tropical settings. How Nelson Mandela managed to come out of this experience, forgive his captors, and reconcile a whole nation is a testament to the man's greatness.
--Tomorrow I'm off to Stellenbosch, Paarl, and the Cape peninsula (Cape of Good Hope). More later!