Cape Town's 300-acre Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, "where the city meets the sea" as the tagline goes, is unabashedly built for tourists. I wonder, by who and at what cost? Ads for helicopter rides, scuba diving, whale watching, catamaran sailing, private boat parties and every other tour you can think of are plastered across every … Continue reading Snapshot: What’s missing from Cape Town’s charming waterfront?
French Pressed
Day 6: The winding journey to to Cape Town, and women’s experiences of the TRC
After a night at the Aquila Game Reserve, we took a meandering route back to Cape Town, through the "Karoo" – a semi-desert region. The road ran through valleys formed between massive mountains, dripping head to toe with waterfalls from the recent downpour. At times, the road hugged these giants and our charter bus teetered … Continue reading Day 6: The winding journey to to Cape Town, and women’s experiences of the TRC
Snapshot: Did I mention we had Iftar at a mosque?
More food. I didn't realize it going in, but a good portion of this journey was about food. I'm exaggerating. But I do think the best conversations are had around food, and therefore is an important thing to document. And fine, as delicious as it was, the food was perhaps a smaller detail compared to … Continue reading Snapshot: Did I mention we had Iftar at a mosque?
Day 5: Cape Town, a sign from above
First, a note: I'm back in Atlanta! Clearly, I was not able to follow through on my goal of blogging every day. The trip was more exhausting than I had anticipated, not just because of jetlag but also because our days were filled to the brim – we were constantly on the move from sun up … Continue reading Day 5: Cape Town, a sign from above
Day 4: How do we remember?
I think this trip may be generating more questions than answers. One of the fundamental questions that we came to South Africa with was about how people remember history, specifically in the form of memorials. So, we went to a memorial called the Voortrekker Monument. This monument sits atop a massive hill just outside of … Continue reading Day 4: How do we remember?
Snapshot: Work on the Cape Town waterfront
I only had a few minutes to chat with a woman who was working at the Robinson Droogdok (dry-dock). Leonora Wilmore explained that the ship was Russian and was there for repairs. I could see as many as a dozen people working on the exterior and on the deck. She said many more were inside … Continue reading Snapshot: Work on the Cape Town waterfront
Day 3, Part 2: Back to Soweto
I had an additional, entirely noteworthy food experience yesterday. But first, a quick moment to reflect back on Soweto. During our afternoon in Soweto, we learned about a black South African boy named Hector Pieterson. He was shot and killed by police when he was 12 years old. He was murdered in his home town … Continue reading Day 3, Part 2: Back to Soweto
Day 3: Food, food, food
A lot happened yesterday. Impossible to tell it all in a single blog post before rushing to breakfast before we have to get back on the bus. So, let me just tell you about the food. The FOOD! At most restaurants where we've eaten, the menus have contained a mix of your standard burgers, Mexican-inspired … Continue reading Day 3: Food, food, food
Day 2, Part 2: Jozi in photos
From the bus. University of Witwatersrand has a very nice campus. Origins Center. Constitution Hill, the "Old Fort" and prisons. Originally built as a fort by former President Paul Kruger to protect the city of Johannesburg, it was later turned into a prison. The exhibits drove home the point that the injustice of apartheid was … Continue reading Day 2, Part 2: Jozi in photos
Day 2: Three things
We only covered a few things today – the origin story of the entire human race, a critical analysis of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a tour of Jozi's old prisons and a crash course in the rule of law in South Africa at the Constitutional Court. I realized halfway through the day that the … Continue reading Day 2: Three things
