Leaving Capetown :_(

I have only spent 5 days here but by the end of it Capetown became home if only briefly. I have to admit the first evening was slightly intimidating as I moved in on a Saturday night when it was already dark and all the street people were out and about. After getting accosted for money six times in as many minutes I took refuge in the hostel, however after discussing with a few people it became very simple to deal with this.

My general rule is never give out money for two reasons. First it encourages such behaviour as a way to get cash, and secondly it does nothing to help the overall situation of the poverty these people are in. There was a very nice solution in that if I am asked for money I will first explain that I do not give out money under any circumstance but if I have an apple or bottle of juice that is always offered and in every single case has been accepted with incredible gratitude. Thanks Karina for that wee tip!

On my last night in Capetown, two friends Pedro and Claude were about to go home so I finally went out for the huge piss up I had been avoiding thus far! They were laughing as we went down the street because every few metres another guy would greet me by name in the exuberant way that they do here. Those who dont know my name generally refer to me as 'Liverpool' (surprise surprise) and I have to say the street guys that loiter near the backpacker hostel will be missed as much as many others I have met.

On another note I decided to walk up Table Mountain with JB. We took a taxi to the cable car station and started the two and a half hour walk up. The beginning was hard work as we were in the sun and it must have been about 1pm. After a while we hit the shade of the Plattekloof gorge cliffs and eventually made it to the top. I went a bit photo crazy with the cool lizards and the view was impressive to say the least.

One unexpected highlight was spotting Dassies lounging on the rocks at the top. The first one I saw appeared dead until I eventually saw his nose twitch. There were some very cool birds but I was too slow to get them with the camera. We then wussed out and took the cable car down to head straight to the shop to get supplies for the big cook up we needed!

Love Capetown and wish I could stay longer but every day brings more suggestions of where to go. Off to Knysna next using the Bazbus as it takes people directly to the hostels they choose. This mode of transport should get me to Port Elizabeth at least before I move on to another method of getting around.