Red, orange, yellow, green ...

Brightening my day: Bo Kaap Houses in Cape Town. Lions Head in the background. Thrilled to hear that Cape Town is World Design Capital 2014. According to the website, "this prestigious status is designated biennially by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID) to cities that are dedicated to using design for social, cultural and economic development."

Local colour

A lovely clear day after yesterday's rain. This is Wale Street in the Bo Kaap area of Cape Town -Lion's Head popping up over these colourful old houses. Many Muslims and freed slaves settled here after the abolition of slavery in what was known as Waalendorp (as it was developed by Jan de Waal in the 1760s - hence the name Wale Street or Waal Straat today). The ancestors of the majority of the Muslims in the Cape arrived from 1658 onwards as slaves, political exiles and convicts from East Africa and South East Asia (India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka).
Under the lunatic administration of the Apartheid government, the Bo Kaap area was declared an exclusive residential area for "Cape Muslims" under the Group Areas Act of 1950 and people of other religions and ethnicity were forced to leave. Today it is one of the few neighbourhoods with a predominantly working class population that continues to exist near a city centre, although that is rapidly changing as the super wealthy move in to this breathtakingly beautiful corner of Cape Town.

Holy places

Another wild and stormy day in Cape Town. We went for a windy walk on Lion's Head, and looked down on one of Cape Town's Kramats (holy places) far below. Apparently there is a ring of Kramats that encircle Cape Town, keeping her safe from natural disasters. I went to see the Kramat and was invited in by some other visitors who had come to pay their respects to Sheikh Mohammed Hassen Ghaibie Shah, a very holy man and a follower of the famous Sheikh Yusuf (who is regarded as the father of the South African Muslim community) who was buried here in the late 1600s. I took my shoes off, and went in to see the grave. A charming old man called Saheer gave me a piece of material to put over my head, and when we came out again, had a most interesting chat about other Kramats in this area. The photo above shows the road from Lion's Head to Signal Hill with Table Bay in the background looking rather stormy. The Kramat is clearly visible about half way along the road. Today is 10/10/10 and an auspicious day for Climate Action. I was going to join a clean-up the beach walk but as it is now pouring with rain, I will pass on that and just remember to switch off the heater and the lights tonight to do my bit for climate action! More Scenic Sundays.

Lion's Head

L is for Lion's Head - Cape Town's crouching feline that guards the city. This view shows the head and the rump - otherwise known as Signal Hill (that still blasts off an old canon at 12 noon every day.) You can also see the infamous Robben Island in the background.
You can also see the cable car coming up towards us - the lower cable station far below.
This view does not really show the mountain looking like a lion - the view from the sea is more convincing. It must have been named by early sailors into Cape Town. The Khoekhoe people who were living here when the early settlers arrived in the fifteenth century called Lion's Head Kuru-Gxan which means “emerging egg”.

For more ABC Wednesday posts, click the L

One free creature to another

Walking the road by Marieke Prinsloo-Rowe is an 18-piece series of bronze sculptures on the promenade at Sea Point that tells the story of a girl who longs to fly. After a chance encounter with a dragonfly, she lives her dream. The sculpture is shown with Lion's Head in the background.

I always use my own photos, but today is an exception and I have posted a photo taken by Wendy Yeowart, a regular visitor to Cape Town, who is an acquaintance of the artist and told me all about the sculptures - really worth a visit!