Thus far I've been in South Africa for about 12 weeks. I arrived in July to begin my studies, but for various reasons (the main one being the manner in which my Philosophy MA has stalled), I left for India at the beginning of September and only arrived back in Cape Town in the middle of December after 10 weeks in India, a week and a half in Chamanculo (Maputo), a week in Swaziland, and a couple days in Durban. So to start now means there are a few 'back issues' waiting in the wings. Hopefully that means that I won't run out of material any time soon.
Like many large metropolises, Cape Town itself is quite small. London, for example is only a few blocks, whereas Greater London is a massive sprawl. If you say 'I live in London', people who know anything about the place will push you for details since (as far as know) 'London' itself consists of a handful of gated properties and rich shops. Cape Town proper is the downtown, often called the City Bowl because it is basically flanked on one side by Table Mountain and on the other by the Atlantic Ocean. UCT, for example, is actually in Rondebosch, not Cape Town.
But the main point of interest is that the greater Cape Town is the way it is because of the fallout from apartheid and the egregious racism and segregation that resulted from it. During the apartheid years, people were told where they could and could not live, and hence most communities fall into one of three broad categories, which reflect the three races: 'white', 'coloured', and 'black'. Since the fall of apartheid, and the fall of some of the red tape that prevented 'mixing', the situation has changed somewhat, but for the most part history and the family ties that come with it have dictated the present with respect to this (maybe historical materialism isn't so far-fetched?). In most cases, the 'look' and 'feel' reflect the economic status of the corresponding race. Most 'white' neighbourhoods are fairly upmarket, and a lot have large estates surrounded by high walls and/or electric fences. Many of the 'black' neighbourhoods are simply a massive sprawl of shanties and huts built from whatever materials are available: many 'houses' consist largely of corrugated metal and cement blocks. From what I know, the government struck on a novel idea when trying to deal with the shortage of proper houses: give people shipping containers to live in, and so I have seen some of those as well. 'Coloured' neighbourhoods, depending on the one in question, usually fall somewhere in between: 'normal' houses and apartments, but less upkeep and infrastructure; maybe a bit like Harlem or Brooklyn (though I've never been).
But the main problem is, of course, crime and conflict: there is a general feel that the whites blame the blacks because their desperate situation causes them to take desperate measures; such as purse-snatching, car-jacking, burglaries, muggings, etc. In contrast to this, the black blame the whites because their situation has come about through colonization, economic inequality, and segregation. And then the coloureds are again somewhere in the middle: blaming both sides for various things and never really trusting either.
During the first phase of my time in Cape Town, I believed most of the stories about how dangerous Cape Town was, and so I lived in Rondebosch (a 'white' community next to the university) and seldom strayed too far away. But since then, my time in Johannesburg (where I just said 'fuck it' and spent most of my days trolling around Hillbrow in the inner city), and my time living in Chamanculo have emboldened me to the idea that, to a large extent, surviving in South Africa is not much different than surviving anywhere else: you mind your own business and try not to take too many risks like walking alone at night. The main difference is the consequences are often more drastic than in other places, and there is always the threat of random violence if you are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. But my point is that since I arrived back in Cape Town, various events led to me winding up in Elsiesriver for these past six weeks (I'm moving to Observatory, which is basically 'student central' at the beginning of February, which is in a few days). Elsies is a coloured neighbourhood, and definitely one of the more notorious coloured neighbourhoods in Cape Town. That is, the fact that it is a coloured neighbourhood doesn't make it dangerous, the fact that it is Elsiesriver makes it dangerous. People I have met have told me that I must 'be careful' in Cape Town, then when I tell them I've been staying in Elsiesriver with no problems, oftentimes a look of shock registers on their face and they say something to the effect of "if you can survive in Elsies, you can survive anywhere."
Like many large metropolises, Cape Town itself is quite small. London, for example is only a few blocks, whereas Greater London is a massive sprawl. If you say 'I live in London', people who know anything about the place will push you for details since (as far as know) 'London' itself consists of a handful of gated properties and rich shops. Cape Town proper is the downtown, often called the City Bowl because it is basically flanked on one side by Table Mountain and on the other by the Atlantic Ocean. UCT, for example, is actually in Rondebosch, not Cape Town.
But the main point of interest is that the greater Cape Town is the way it is because of the fallout from apartheid and the egregious racism and segregation that resulted from it. During the apartheid years, people were told where they could and could not live, and hence most communities fall into one of three broad categories, which reflect the three races: 'white', 'coloured', and 'black'. Since the fall of apartheid, and the fall of some of the red tape that prevented 'mixing', the situation has changed somewhat, but for the most part history and the family ties that come with it have dictated the present with respect to this (maybe historical materialism isn't so far-fetched?). In most cases, the 'look' and 'feel' reflect the economic status of the corresponding race. Most 'white' neighbourhoods are fairly upmarket, and a lot have large estates surrounded by high walls and/or electric fences. Many of the 'black' neighbourhoods are simply a massive sprawl of shanties and huts built from whatever materials are available: many 'houses' consist largely of corrugated metal and cement blocks. From what I know, the government struck on a novel idea when trying to deal with the shortage of proper houses: give people shipping containers to live in, and so I have seen some of those as well. 'Coloured' neighbourhoods, depending on the one in question, usually fall somewhere in between: 'normal' houses and apartments, but less upkeep and infrastructure; maybe a bit like Harlem or Brooklyn (though I've never been).
But the main problem is, of course, crime and conflict: there is a general feel that the whites blame the blacks because their desperate situation causes them to take desperate measures; such as purse-snatching, car-jacking, burglaries, muggings, etc. In contrast to this, the black blame the whites because their situation has come about through colonization, economic inequality, and segregation. And then the coloureds are again somewhere in the middle: blaming both sides for various things and never really trusting either.
During the first phase of my time in Cape Town, I believed most of the stories about how dangerous Cape Town was, and so I lived in Rondebosch (a 'white' community next to the university) and seldom strayed too far away. But since then, my time in Johannesburg (where I just said 'fuck it' and spent most of my days trolling around Hillbrow in the inner city), and my time living in Chamanculo have emboldened me to the idea that, to a large extent, surviving in South Africa is not much different than surviving anywhere else: you mind your own business and try not to take too many risks like walking alone at night. The main difference is the consequences are often more drastic than in other places, and there is always the threat of random violence if you are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. But my point is that since I arrived back in Cape Town, various events led to me winding up in Elsiesriver for these past six weeks (I'm moving to Observatory, which is basically 'student central' at the beginning of February, which is in a few days). Elsies is a coloured neighbourhood, and definitely one of the more notorious coloured neighbourhoods in Cape Town. That is, the fact that it is a coloured neighbourhood doesn't make it dangerous, the fact that it is Elsiesriver makes it dangerous. People I have met have told me that I must 'be careful' in Cape Town, then when I tell them I've been staying in Elsiesriver with no problems, oftentimes a look of shock registers on their face and they say something to the effect of "if you can survive in Elsies, you can survive anywhere."
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