We went for a walk on the beach this morning, did laundry at Lisa’s, and took a couple of naps. We stayed late at the Mug and Bean in a huge shopping mall nearby that had Wi-Fi so we could catch up on work.
It is absolutely amazing how much a South African shopping mall is indistinguishable from an American mall. There were considerably more whites than blacks at the mall and mostly they stay segregated, but not always. There seem to be a few integrated couples but they are mostly made up of older white men with very young and pretty black women. I’m not quite sure what these relationships are about. The Mug and Bean we hung out in tonight was next to the 10-plex movie theater so we got to watch all the teen-age interaction. There is an amazing amount of really beautiful, white South African girls. They dress exactly like 16-year-olds in Any-mall, America. Bob and I also have noted that these women, from 16 to 60, have larger than average breast, at least in comparison to American women, and they are surely mostly real. Bob plans to continue his sociological study of this phenomenon. He has also suggested he may need to do a photographic study as a way of authenticating his theory and I’m sure many others would appreciate these efforts.
Internet access is a bit less developed than we had expected, especially since Cape Town is such a big city. We can only imagine what the rest of the country will be like, but starting tomorrow (Friday) I plan to update my OutsideTheBoxx website once a week with photos and journal entries on the ADVENTURE page of the site.
Aside from high speed Internet being about 5 years behind the States, the rest of South Africa, as represented by Cape Town, which is all I’ve seen thus far, seems to be so similar to any big city in America that it barely feels like I’ve left home. Although they drive on the opposite side of the road than in the US, the roads themselves are in better condition overall, than American Roads. They have gas stations, and signal lights and parking lots, and all the same type of stores. There is even a chain of natural wood furniture stores here called “Oregon Furniture”. People dress pretty much the same, all the same music plays on the radio, even the food is pretty similar.
There are a few differences:
1.There is less litter than in big American cities.
2.There are wonderful, clean, public restrooms (toilets) everywhere. This is so important for someone like me with TBS (tiny bladder syndrome). The toilets in the malls have slate floors and walls, or are in some way more aesthetically pleasing than many bathrooms in nice homes in the State. The bathrooms are very clean and big with diaper changing stations, and event the toilets at the beach areas have paper.
3.There are parking lot attendants who are rarely actually needed to assist you but they do anyway, waving you into a free spot or helping direct you in backing out of your slot. For us they just got in the way. If they actually do provide some assistance we give them a tip.
4.You always tip the gas station attendant who fills your car for you.
5.There are plentiful “freelance” car security people. It seems if you can find an orange reflector vest you’ve basically got a job. We seldom tipped anyone but if you stay parked in one place long enough then you tip them for making sure your car stays safe. The rule is, the longer you stay parked and the seedier the neighborhood, the more you tip.
6.Although I always feel perfectly safe, I am often the only white person walking around the neighborhood whether for exercise or to do a bit of shopping. The blacks walk a lot and take cabs and busses. Whites rarely go anywhere without their cars.
7.For the most part, the autos in Africa are tiny. Lots of VW Golfs and Mini Coopers. There is even a tiny little Mercedes that is shaped a lot like the SUV Mercedes. Gas is expensive and these small cars make so much sense. About 10% of the cars are large sedans, mostly Mercedes and fancy cars. About 5% are huge SUV’s that are obviously safari type vehicles. Our Sani falls into this category, though we are on a surfing safari (sorry, I couldn’t help myself).
8.More people smoke cigarettes here. Not as much as the Asians, about on par I’d say as the Europeans. I do hope the rest of the world follows this American trend so that tobacco smoking because politically and socially incorrect.
9.Although there are plenty of good roads in SA, there intersections don’t make any sense. They are accident traps if you ask me. Also, many traffic laws are disregarded when it suits ones needs. They do have lots of traffic circles here and most of the people know how to use them, unlike in Bend. However, most people drive super fast and there are lots more accidents.
10.Herbal teas are hard to come by, even in the many health food stores, and they’ve never heard of a Netty (Neti) Pot (I’ve been trying to buy one here). Though I imagine most readers of this journal haven’t either (Google it and even view its use on YouTube. It’s kind of a yoga thing). However, they drink black, English tea a lot, with cream and sugar, just the way I like it.
If Table Mountain weren’t always within easy reach of my eyes, I’d swear I’d never left the US, now that I’m actually getting over the jet lag that is. I’m disappointed in the familiarity of the place for the most part, though it has been easy and comforting during trying times. I guess I was expecting the smells and sights and noise and filth associated with my other travels to third world countries. I also expected to see a vibrant and unique culture, colorful clothes, and giraffes in the suburban streets. I have learned that, for one thing, giraffes have never been in these southern reaches of South Africa, and that Cape Town is as first-world as any other cosmopolitan city. Unlike Baja where we couldn’t find a single washcloth, one can get designer towels of every color, shape and size in the home stores that are just like Linens ‘N Things, or Bed, Bath, and Beyond. There are grocery stores like Safeway, others like Trader Joes. People eat a lot of meat here, and salads aren’t as popular as I’d like, and they call non-sparkling water “still” water. But you can drink the water right out of the tap and far many people waste plastic and other resources drinking bottled water, just like in the States. However, if you order coffee it will be instant, unless you specify “filtered” coffee, then it will be fresh ground. And you can get a double skinny latte Grande mocha frappe thingy at all the corner coffee houses, such as the Mug and Bean.