South Africa Day 6: Exploring A Shanty Town & A Mountain All In One Day
The morning was spent walking through some of Cape Town's most desolate townships.
The 1st "homes" I saw.
The inside of a home. This bed was shared by 4 children.
The main church.
It was impossible to comprehend the level of poverty and violence that exists within them. It is estimated that 1 in 2 African's (around 315 million people) live on under $1 a day. All I saw was shack upon shack with 10-15 people living in each one. I asked my guide how people could have any hope in life living in this situation. He then taught me about the African philosophy ubuntu which is about "humaneness" and caring for each other. "This gives the people strength to survive," he said and continued with, "people are people through other people." I thought that was such an eloquent statement!
The following photos were taken in one of the shanty town's I visited. The name escapes me now, but I feel the photos are really powerful as despite the dire surroundings the children appear to be radiating with happiness.
That sign could not be more true!
In the afternoon, Sarah and I decided to bravely climb Table Mountain despite having only slept 3 hours the previous night. The mountain gets its name frombeing completely flat-topped. It is 1,073 meters tall and lies in thecenter of the city.
The view of Cape Town from the base of the mountain.
The sign greeting us before our hike. We did not heed the warning about
leaving enough time to climb down the mountain, as we began our hike
about 5 hours before it would be dark outside.
Unfortunately, I had forgotten to bring tennisshoes with me to Africa, so I had to borrow a pair that were the wrongsize. I was not going to let that stop me from climbing the mountain,but I did suffer consequences in the form of huge blisters.
The following photos take you on my journey up to the summit...
I made it!!!
The 4 hour (painful) hike was one of my mostproudest accomplishments and the view was simply, for lack of a better word, breathtaking.
Since Icould barely walk at the top, we opted to take the cable car back downthe mountain. Though we did not have much of an option, as the sun was quickly setting.
Famished from the climb, we found a quiet Mexican restaurant to regain our energy and to digest our experiences of the day.
The 1st "homes" I saw.
The inside of a home. This bed was shared by 4 children.
The main church.
It was impossible to comprehend the level of poverty and violence that exists within them. It is estimated that 1 in 2 African's (around 315 million people) live on under $1 a day. All I saw was shack upon shack with 10-15 people living in each one. I asked my guide how people could have any hope in life living in this situation. He then taught me about the African philosophy ubuntu which is about "humaneness" and caring for each other. "This gives the people strength to survive," he said and continued with, "people are people through other people." I thought that was such an eloquent statement!
The following photos were taken in one of the shanty town's I visited. The name escapes me now, but I feel the photos are really powerful as despite the dire surroundings the children appear to be radiating with happiness.
leaving enough time to climb down the mountain, as we began our hike
about 5 hours before it would be dark outside.
Unfortunately, I had forgotten to bring tennisshoes with me to Africa, so I had to borrow a pair that were the wrongsize. I was not going to let that stop me from climbing the mountain,but I did suffer consequences in the form of huge blisters.
The following photos take you on my journey up to the summit...
The 4 hour (painful) hike was one of my mostproudest accomplishments and the view was simply, for lack of a better word, breathtaking.
Since Icould barely walk at the top, we opted to take the cable car back downthe mountain. Though we did not have much of an option, as the sun was quickly setting.
Famished from the climb, we found a quiet Mexican restaurant to regain our energy and to digest our experiences of the day.
It is always interesting seeing what outside people have to say about your own home town. Glad you enjoyed it and hope you make it back some time too. There is lots to be done here....
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What an eyeopening experience.
Your pictures are gorgeous and congratulations on your climb!
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