Leave Part 1: Cape Town

I have been back in Afghanistan for about a month now and thought it was about time I caught y'all up on my leave in South Africa. After leaving Trier via Frankfurt I was on my way south, but first had to stop over in London. It saved me a few bucks and I was able to pick up a couple of South African plug adaptors - they have their own unique outlets in SA. I also had dinner in Gordon Ramsey's restaurant at Heathrow's Terminal 5. It is called Plane Food and the fish I had there was very good. This was also the first day I was allowed to drink like an adult so I had a very nice half bottle of Viognier.

That left only the flight to Cape Town - all 11.5 hours of it. It was a Boeing 777, so it was comfortable enough. I had an aisle seat and an amiable seatmate. I watched 5 movies on the way down - I can't sleep on planes. Soon we were landing at the airport in Cape Town and the adventure began.

I chose to stay right downtown on Strand Street so I would not need a car. I checked in and headed out to see the sights. I wandered into Greenmarket Square and sat down for a glass of chilled South African wine with lunch. Now those of you who are Dragoons should avert their eyes at this point as I decided to have springbok salad for lunch. Springboks, for those of you that aren't Dragoons, are small antelope-like animals that are native to South Africa. The springbok was chosen by the Royal Canadian Dragoons for their regimental crest - hence the warning. It was in fact delicious and I highly recommend eating Canadian regimental hat badge animals, though as the beaver features heavily on many Canadian badges perhaps caution on that front is in order. Back to Cape Town. It is a very beautiful city sited between Table Mountain and the sea. Temperate all year round (compared with the interior) it has amazing beaches and is a short drive from the famous wine regions of the Cape. The rest of that first day was spent wandering the pedestrian mall along St Georges Street and the Company Gardens. These were vegetable gardens set up by the Dutch East Indies Company to supply their ships during stopovers. They are now a magnificent urban garden in the heart of the city.

I decided to take one of those hop-on-hop-off bus tours on one of my days in town as it would hit all the major sites. It dropped me at the cable car that goes to the top of Table Mountain and after waiting in line for a long while I made it to the top. The views were spectacular; you could almost see down to the Cape of Good Hope. I did not see any of the famous dassies, which are big guinea pig like animals whose closest relative is the elephant - according to the guide books. That day was topped off by a walk round the Victoria and Alfred waterfront, a recently-restored shopping and restaurant area. I also met a friend of a friend who is also in the battlefield tour business and in the Army Reserve. He gave me some good tips on touring the Boer War battlefields and invited me to attend the military part of the opening of the South African parliament, scheduled for the next day. The only catch was I had to wear a suit. So the next day it was off to Woolworth's. I did not hold out much hope as I am hard to fit, but lo and behold an off the rack tan summer suit was mine for a mere $140. Later that day I met up with the military contingent at the Castle. The Fort, or Castle as Cape Towners call it, was built by the Dutch in the late 17th century and is now very much like the Citadel in Quebec City. It is a historical site and the armoury for two Reserve units: the Cape Town Rifles (Duke of Edinburgh's Own) and the Cape Town Highlanders.

The next day I walked to other parts of the city including B0-Kap and District 6. Bo-Kap is the old Cape Malay district and the centre of Muslim culture in Cape Town. It is known for its colourful houses and the very lively parade that occurs every January 2nd. That was the only day the slaves had off during the year so they made the most of it and partied hearty. An unusual aspect of the parade are the minstrel bands that take part. The story is that the CSS Alabama, a Confederate commerce raider of the US Civil War, docked in Cape Town in the early 1860's and the black musicians on board held concerts for the locals. This has morphed into the minstrel bands of today. District 6 has a sadder history as this is a part of Cape Town that was levelled during the apartheid era to make room for white families. What had been a culturally diverse area became a wasteland - the only buildings not knocked down were the churches. Even today most of the area is undeveloped and grassy lots dominate. On the edge of the district is the District 6 Museum that tries to tell the history of the destruction of the neighbourhood through the stories of its former residents.

My last day of tourism in Cape Town was spent visiting Robben Island. This is prison island on which Nelson Mandela was held for much of his 28 years in jail. It is visited by millions of people every year so to avoid the crowds I took the early boat - 0900 hrs - and spent the morning there. Once the 20 minute ferry ride is over (much like the Wolfe Island ferry - which is avery fine ferry - but faster and more comfy with fewer trailers of cattle) you arrive at the dock and are driven around the island to see the various sites. Other famous South Africans in the struggle against apartheid were held there at various times, but the main draw is Nelson Mandela's cell. Once at the prison the guides are changed and a former prisoner takes us through the cells. Our guide served 14 years on Robben Island for agitating against apartheid. Mandela's cell is very small and is the only one with furniture. From a gunner viewpoint he island also has several very cool 9.2" coastal guns that are being restored for vistits in the future. My morning on the island was followed by an afternoon shopping at the waterfront.

All too soon my time in Cape Town was at an end and I was off to the wine country - Stellenbosch.