South Africa: A beauty torn by History
"We learn from history that we don't learn from history.” Desmond Tutu
South Africa is now a trendy destination. Not actually really original in my choices of travels (I have to admit that), I too succumbed to the temptation of the ocean views and safaris... but History was waiting for me around the corner and hit me as soon as I landed in Cape Town. There, the beauty of the country sharply contrasts with the ugly face of the social reality. It has been a travel made of tears of joy and tears of sadness.
Some of the colorful houses in the Bo-Kaap neighborhood.
As you may know, Cape Town is ranked among the top five of most dangerous cities in the world. I will not go into much detail to explain why it is so, but rather display the consequences it has in a touristic point of view. Just have in mind that extreme poverty and hardship are usually the main causes for criminality, and you have a rather good sense of why South Africa, and Cape Town in particular, has such high crime rates. If we focus on the impact on tourism (though it is far from being the most import point to be raised), this means that tourists are highly encouraged to avoid certain parts of the city and find themselves confined in small areas. These areas are then obviously touristic, very expensive, extremely distant from local culture, and not so interesting as a matter of fact. A few points of interests are however worth being raised and will convince you to stay in Cape Town not more than three or four days.
First, the Bo-Kaap neighborhood, historically known as the "Malay quarter", is not only interesting for its brightly colored houses that delight the eyes, but also for its History. In the 17th Century, the Dutch, led by Jan de Waal, colonized the Cape. The autochthonous people living there resisted the Dutch, who needed to bring slaves from Malaysia, Indonesia and Africa. The colons built and leased small houses on the slope of Signal Hill to their slaves, hence the name of the neighborhood. The majority of these people living in this area were Muslims, reason why you can see some mosques in the streets. Initially a multicultural and working-class area, it has now gone through intense gentrification and lost its initial features.
First, the Bo-Kaap neighborhood, historically known as the "Malay quarter", is not only interesting for its brightly colored houses that delight the eyes, but also for its History. In the 17th Century, the Dutch, led by Jan de Waal, colonized the Cape. The autochthonous people living there resisted the Dutch, who needed to bring slaves from Malaysia, Indonesia and Africa. The colons built and leased small houses on the slope of Signal Hill to their slaves, hence the name of the neighborhood. The majority of these people living in this area were Muslims, reason why you can see some mosques in the streets. Initially a multicultural and working-class area, it has now gone through intense gentrification and lost its initial features.
View of the city from Table Mountain. The mountain Lion's Head can be seen on the left.
If you want to breath and take a step back from the urban reality of Cape Town, you can take the aerial cable car that will bring you to the top of Table Mountain. From there, the view is simply breathtaking (so not sure your urge to breath will be fulfilled, no puns initially wanted...). You can see how far the city stretches from the Ocean to the feet of the three mountains - Lion's Head on the left, Table Mountain where you are and Signal Hill on the right. No wonder why the Dutch put everything in their power to steal this land from the people who already lived there. Not much to say more on this visit, except that it is without a doubt a must-do but be aware that the queue to the cable car is insane; you better get up very early in the morning if you don't want to spend two hours waiting in the sun.
District 6 and its graffiti.
Probably the most instructive and important visit to do in Cape Town is a walking tour about the Apartheid. Street artists have immortalize some heroic figures and moments in the fight against racial segregation in graffiti that you can admire in District 6, among others. This area is the perfect example of a still open wound from Apartheid. Initially highly cosmopolitan, the government decided in 1966 that District 6 had to be a residential area for Whites only, in order to suppress any interracial interaction. Two years later, they expelled and "relocated" not less than 60.000 people from their homes to townships, where most of them still live in horrible conditions. Their houses got destroyed. Up to now, the majority of the zone has not outreached the stage of wasteland. This is just one of the hundreds examples of consequences of the Apartheid still palpable on the streets. The walking tour will take you to numerous places where History still vibrates around you.
From there, we got on a road-trip on the famous Garden Route, from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth. I will not share any of the photographs nor comments on places we visited along the way. The reasons are simple. Although the sightseeing was pleasant, this experience did not bring to me what I expected in South Africa and I felt profoundly not at ease during this trip. First, the architecture and atmosphere strangely resemble Australia's. Second, I found myself as a White, sleeping in expensive hotels and spending money in restaurants only held by Whites, but served my Blacks. You cannot escape this social configuration. Beside that, between each city, one comes across townships on the side of the road, stretching for kilometers and kilometers. You do not even dare imagine living in these conditions, under a merciless sun in sheet-metal "houses". I was literally shocked and deeply shaken to see how social inequalities are still based on race. And I, as a White tourist, was inevitably part of it. So, please let's skip this part and directly go to the Blyde River Canyon, which was one of the most beautiful natural sight I have ever seen in my life.
From there, we got on a road-trip on the famous Garden Route, from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth. I will not share any of the photographs nor comments on places we visited along the way. The reasons are simple. Although the sightseeing was pleasant, this experience did not bring to me what I expected in South Africa and I felt profoundly not at ease during this trip. First, the architecture and atmosphere strangely resemble Australia's. Second, I found myself as a White, sleeping in expensive hotels and spending money in restaurants only held by Whites, but served my Blacks. You cannot escape this social configuration. Beside that, between each city, one comes across townships on the side of the road, stretching for kilometers and kilometers. You do not even dare imagine living in these conditions, under a merciless sun in sheet-metal "houses". I was literally shocked and deeply shaken to see how social inequalities are still based on race. And I, as a White tourist, was inevitably part of it. So, please let's skip this part and directly go to the Blyde River Canyon, which was one of the most beautiful natural sight I have ever seen in my life.
Breathtaking view on the Blyde River Canyon, with the Three Rondawels in the distance.
More than Cape Town, more than the safaris, more than the Garden Route, the Blyde River Canyon was for me the heart of this journey in South Africa. As I mentioned in another blog, as a Swiss girl, landscapes abroad need some very special features to move me. This one definitely hit me. On our way to the Kruger National Park, we stopped on the Panorama Route in the province of Mpumalanga. After a nice hike in the forest, we ended up on top of a rock, facing this glorious beauty. In the distance, you can see three rounded rocks: they are called the Three Rondawels, in reference to this typical construction in southern Africa. They seem to bring tenderness to this craggy landscape. I had to sit there for more than an hour to fully embed what I was seeing. In other words, make sure to go on the Panorama Route if you happen to be in South Africa. Beside this view on the Blyde River Canyon, you can stop to other places such as God's Window, Hazyview, or Bourke's Luck Potholes.
One of my regrets in this country, as you might have felt, was not to be able to extract myself from the touristic beacons. If I have the chance to go back, I would definitely allocate some time to the villages we quickly went through on our way from Johannesburg to Kruger Park. I had not read anything about them while preparing this trip and found it frustrating to skip this important part of the country. I don't know how to put it and not sound like a Tintin in Congo, but these villages were how I imagined South African villages. Full of colors, people in the streets selling fruits and chickens, surrounded by a peaceful and verdant scenery. The atmospheres and ways of living seem so far away from the coastal life of Cape Town or the urban frenzy in Johannesburg. Also, no Whites to be seen... I am not even sure tourists are common there and if there are any "touristic infrastructure", but it would be worth trying.
Of course, you will come across small cities on the road with hotels, stores, and sightseeing, but these are not the places I am talking about. I am sorry I cannot tell you more about this part of the country, but I will make sure to make up for it if I ever go back to South Africa.
Of course, you will come across small cities on the road with hotels, stores, and sightseeing, but these are not the places I am talking about. I am sorry I cannot tell you more about this part of the country, but I will make sure to make up for it if I ever go back to South Africa.
Last but not least, as good tourists, we ended our trip in the Kruger National Park doing safaris for a few days. Basically, there are two options : go on safaris on your own (with your rented car) but you will have to stay on the artificial roads and bear the possible traffic jam it causes; or pay a guide who will take you (and maybe a few other tourists) on a tour away from the crowd. We tried both and the second was definitely more interesting. I also felt we respected more the animals in this option, although they don't really seem bothered by our presence in any way.
What can I say about this experience? Where do I start? It is impressive to spot a fight between to gigantic giraffes ; it is really moving to see baby rhinoceros knowing that our children will maybe not be able to see any ; families of elephants bring joy to any lucky observer as they play in the mud ; the chanting of a lion in heat raises gooseflesh ; baby hyenas and warthogs are astonishingly cute... I could go on for a while, trust me. Seeing these animals in their natural habitat and not in documentaries or in a zoo is beyond than moving. Some of them, well too many of them, face the threat of extinction and this is heartbreaking. At the end of a day of safari, I always felt a mixture of gratitude and sadness after meeting these beautiful beings... It was however encouraging to speak with our guide and see the amazing efforts and love many people put to protect them and raise public awareness.
What can I say about this experience? Where do I start? It is impressive to spot a fight between to gigantic giraffes ; it is really moving to see baby rhinoceros knowing that our children will maybe not be able to see any ; families of elephants bring joy to any lucky observer as they play in the mud ; the chanting of a lion in heat raises gooseflesh ; baby hyenas and warthogs are astonishingly cute... I could go on for a while, trust me. Seeing these animals in their natural habitat and not in documentaries or in a zoo is beyond than moving. Some of them, well too many of them, face the threat of extinction and this is heartbreaking. At the end of a day of safari, I always felt a mixture of gratitude and sadness after meeting these beautiful beings... It was however encouraging to speak with our guide and see the amazing efforts and love many people put to protect them and raise public awareness.
