6/6/09I finally got to sleep in this am. I literally can’t remember the last time I was able to do that. Every weekend has been jam packed this past month. I wouldn’t change a moment of it. I’ve done so many great things and hey, I’ll sleep when I’m dead, but it was nice to relax.
Sarah went on the connect sponsored “wacky wine” camping trip weekend, and Lucy is still in Zimbabwe for work. With the place to myself, I got out of bed at my leisure and went about my morning. Doug phoned just before noon and we made a plan to get my car sorted out. He also invited me to see a play at Camp’s Bay Theatre that evening with him and his Dad. I thought it sounded like the sweetest idea, and was excited to see a South African play. That’s something I love to do back home and had wanted to check out the scene here.
Doug and I rocked up at Simon’s to check on the bug. Because it was nighttime, I hadn’t realized the previous night that he lives practically in the parking lot of RCCH! The beetle didn’t start at all. The boys looked at her for a moment before we all decided not to play around with her. I called my rental guy and he made his way over. While we waited, we had tea and relaxed at Simon’s. His neighbors popped by, his girlfriend (or “Cherry” as they say) also stopped by with her 2 year old daughter. They were both adorable. Doug chased the little girl around until he was out of breath. She of course, thought he was the best thing since sippy cups. He was plodding around like a goon, giving us all a good laugh. When he finally stopped, he stood by us and said, “That’s how I normally run, too.”
Turns out the bug needed a new battery and had disconnected a few (apparently very important) wires. I attribute that to the bumpy road I stalled out on. Once she was road ready, and our tea cups were empty, Doug and I made an on-the-spot plan to drive to Muizenburg. He really gets a kick out of my car and was anxious to give me some more proper driving lessons. I let him drive there. He was like a little boy in a dune buggy. We had such a laugh driving to the beach. The car just caters to entertainment, it feels like driving a go-cart at a sketchy amusement park. Oh and the horn! Hah! That might be the most tickling sound I’ve ever heard. Ehver! 
At Muizenburg we parked by the ocean, a populated sort of boardwalk, and got some lunch. Doug told me that Muizenburg beach is where everyone goes to learn how to surf. And that means EVERYONE. I’ve never seen so many surfers on one beach. We ate a place called Knead. I had a tasty feta, butternut squash and pumpkin seed salad, while Doug had some South African chicken curry bunny something.
With full bellies, we walked the length of the beach. This beach is made famous by its brightly colored guest houses that line the sand. They are small, boxy, houses raised on pillars used as changing rooms and storage areas for the multitude of surfers and beach goers. The primary colors, sun, sand and ocean make them the most fantastic photograph subjects. We explored a little more before retreating back to the bug. It was now my turn to drive. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous. I felt much more comfortable with her everyday, but still not entirely confident, and I was in a new area…a high traffic area. However, I realize that the only way to get good at something is to practice, and the only way to practice is to just jump right in and do it. Doug’s mechanism for teaching was to put his foot over mine and the clutch. He felt awful stepping on my foot and apologized each time, but it was the best thing anyone could have done. After about 3 pull-aways and some helpful hints (like beetles need to be revved a lot) the experience of driving my beetle became and entirely different one. Suddenly the ride was smooth, easy, and NOT stressful. Doug and I implemented the “visiualization” technique. At each stop light I would visualize the perfect clutch release, and it worked!
Once back in Cape Town, I headed back to my place to change for the show. Doug’s father, Gordon and I met up at Doug’s house and headed to Camp’s Bay. I hadn’t been to Camp’s Bay since everyone left. Looking at the view (my most favorite one), took me back to a time in Cape Town that not only seemed ages ago, but worlds apart. My Cape Town experience can be divided up into completely separate people, experiences, and personal lessons. The first lesson I learned was about finding what I loved most about life; being able to help others and really making a change. I also learned about culture and sociology. Not only at the hospital and in the city, but among my group of friends. Cape Town is spewing with diversity…and so are my friends.
I am only in the beginning of my third, and probably final, stage of my Cape Town experience. It’s very much about myself; what I want out of life, and what I can contribute to RCCH. I am fully and officially immersed in South African culture. I hang out with Doug and his friends almost everyday. I am eating and drinking at local places, hanging out in different houses, driving and learning the roads, and am surrounded completely by natives, instead of foreigners. I am exposed to things most tourists aren’t. Driving through Camp’s Bay and the Waterfront with Doug and his father, I saw that this month’s Camp’s Bay and waterfont were completely different than my first month’s Camp’s Bay and waterfront. The waterfront actually made me a little disgusted. It seemed nauseatingly touristy. I remembered my first day there, I thought it was absolutely fabulous.
The play was great. It was called, The Insatiables, and it was about a feud between three male friends competing for CEO of a company. They were now middle aged men, having been friends since grade school (they call it “standard” –standard 8, standard 9). They spend their childhood scheming ways to make money and defying corrupt authority. There were only 3 characters. Two of the guy friends and their therapist. They were presenting there case before a judge. The play was mainly flashbacks and story telling. It was clever, witty, and entertaining. It was a good thing I was seeing the play at this stage of my trip. The language and culture was so completely South African that there was no way I could have followed the story in my first month of being here.
After the play we had a light dinner at Camp's Bay before heading back to Doug’s. I think I’ve won Gordon over and made up for the weary traveler that met him at the base of Table Mountain a couple weeks ago. Doug and I went to a local bar near his house called, “Home.” I find this such a clever name for a bar...We stayed for one drink before calling it a night. One thing that’s great about driving a manual car is that it keeps me awake at night. No matter how tired I’ve been the last few nights, I’m as awake as I’ve ever been when driving that car.
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