Andrea and Stacy's Visit

I cannot believe how quickly the last 10 days have past! Andrea and Stacy left today back to the States.

Their visit included wine tasting (imagine that), hiking both Lion's Head and Table Mountain, a quick

(we're talking real quick) trip down a flight of stairs, drum lessons, the parade welcoming the Springboks and the Webb Ellis Cup to Cape Town, as well as plenty of Cape Town attractions they visited while I worked...

The winning of the World Cup initiated conversations regarding South African unity and the post-apartheid culture and progress since '94. The Springboks actually won the Rugby World Cup in '95 as well, when the finals were played in South Africa (closely following the end of many international sanctions).
(the parade was in front of city hall, where Nelson Mandela first spoke following his release in '90.)

Specifically, the media brought to light the irony that the '07 team is just as 'white' as the '95 team. In April, the head of the sports committee in the South African parliament even threatened to withhold the passports of the Springbok team because the squad did not reflect transformation sufficiently. He obviously gave in and was seen in Paris in a Springbok Jersey.

One morning, the public radio had people calling in to share their opinion on requirements to have a team that's racially representative of South Africa and whether a multiracial and a winning team were exclusive. The Afrikaans people (of Dutch descent), in general, are built big and thick and usually take the positions in the scrum. There are less positions on the team for smaller, faster players (if any, these are the positions here played by non-whites).

Another challenge the Springboks (and the country) face is that while schools were (and still are in many areas) so recently segregated, few non-Afrikaans play rugby growing up causing a limit to both talent and interest at the college. It's all fascinating to me here; the good news is that the competitive teams that feed the Springbok roster have improved beyond the all-white teams of the past.

Catch up...

So, I fell off the blogging wagon but I'm going to try to jump back on... To get caught up, here's the last 2 months in a nutshell. I was home in San Francisco for two weeks before returning to Cape Town for our next phase of work. I was in Cape Town for 3 weeks and spent the weekends wine tasting (first picture taken in Franschhoek), hiking (second picture taken of False Bay), and finally visiting Robben Island.

Robben Island was staggering – think Alcatraz for political prisoners. The ‘guides’ are ex- political prisoners or ex-warders (guards) themselves and share their personal stories. I’m reading Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom and it is fascinating living in and visiting places he’s written about. It amazes to me to hear about and to read the ways of apartheid knowing it all occurred in my lifetime. The second picture reveals how even in prison the food rations were based on race. The tour was a very moving experience and better shared in person – pictures will have to suffice for now. I took this last picture looking down at Robben Island on my last flight back into Cape Town.

Then I went home again for 2 weeks (perfect timing for Fleet Week but a little heavy on the overnight flights in a short period of time).

One flight was made a little more interesting than the rest - if only passengers could still visit the cockpit enroute! I returned to Cape Town last week and should be avoiding flights for at least a few more weeks...

The weather has finally turned and it’s beautiful here. Light in the mornings before work and in the evenings after work – it’s fabulous. Last weekend, we went to Muizenberg for the annual kite festival and for a walk on the beach.

Muizenberg is where I go surfing but it was only on this trip when I learned more about the shark spotting program. This picture is taken from where the 'spotter' sits on the mountain with binoculars and is apparently able to see the sharks. The next is of the hut on the beach with the key to the different shark flags. What bothered me the most is that there is a flag that is put up after it’s been at least 2 hours since the last sighting; I think I’d almost prefer that the ‘shark spotted’ flag wave a little longer??

We then drove back into Cape Town to watch the rugby match with some folks and we had strong represent- ation of both South Africans and Brits (of course, I was wearing green). Cape Town came alive; I can only imagine when they won the '95 tournament in South Africa!

Anyway, another week down. It's great having Andrea and Stacy here. Bring on more excuses for going out and exploring the city.