Cape Town: The Last Day

Today was the last of four jam-packed days in Cape Town. I started with the Sex and Slaves in the City tour, put on by Cape Town Walks. It was a riot! The two guides are actors and they take you on a two hour historic walk and explain the sites and the history through songs, dance, and funny poems, acting it out all the while. We learnt how slavery started here (lots of Malay slaves, which is a big influence in their food), how slaves could be free (become Christian - a Christian wouldn't keep another Christian enslaved - or marry a settler or escape), how slavery ended (after it ended in Europe....Europeans would bring their now illegal slaves here to be sold), and about the neighborhoods the freed slaves lived in and the missions that supported a lot of them. Super entertaining and very interesting. We stopped at the Bo Kaap neighborhood with very colorful houses, St Stevens Church which was the church for ex slaves and coloured people after the end of slavery and named for St Steven because the whites were so unhappy with the slaves getting it they stoned it like St Steven was stoned, Heritage Square, the Slave Church which was the church that supported different missions before slavery ended, the Castle of Good Hope which was really pretty but I forget what it was for, and the Slave Lodge where lots of slaves lived....in addition to tons of little stops like the flower market.

The next activity was my hike up Table Mountain. By the end of it I wished I hadn't just walked for two hours before! I met my guide Gavin and we drove to the bottom of the mountain, starting at 400m above sea level. We then embarked on a very steep climb for two hours, basically solid stairs made out of rocks. Very little flat places. We ultimately reached the top, which is 1060m I believe. I have no idea if this is at all a big climb or not, but I assure you my legs think it is quite impressive. I was so glad Gavin brought me an extra Powerade - my bottle of water was definitely not enough! The climb was very beautiful as was the view from the top. You can actually walk across the whole top of the "table" and see views on both sides. The whole way up you have a view of the city if you look back, which made rest breaks very pretty. After the hellish 1am climb up Adam's Peak in Sri Lanka I knew I could do almost anything, but this was a close second in terms of big vertical steps. Totally worth it and felt great at the top, but the last 15 minutes were pretty rough!! We took the cable car down...which was very cool because it has a rotating floor so you get 360 views on the way down. It was a lot faster than the hike up! The weather was just perfect, and the views were spectacular, but the iPad didn't make the trip, so photos will have to wait. Nothing I could find online does it justice!

Everyone should be happy to know that I bought myself a sleeping bag today, so won't freeze to death in Namibia. The girl I met from Calgary said she was freezing there, and I will take her as the authority on cold! Meeting her (Shannon) and her co-travelers tonight for the best burgers in Cape Town (giving up my mission of more Cape Malay food for friends) and a fun last night in Cape Town!