Only in Cape Town

1.    When passing on the highway in a car (I only state this because there are more human Frogger contestants on the FREEWAY than any other place I’ve ever visited), you flash your hazards as a sign of “thank you” and/or “you’re welcome”

2.    You can order a “Game of the Day Skewer,” and no, this is not a fun activity, it is multiple animals dead and cooked on one skewer. My brother got one while out to dinner last week (thank goodness I was not there) the waiter told him it was W.I.S.K.  Wildebeest, Impala, Springbok, Kudu. No words.

3.    Everything has thorns in Africa. We spent the weekend in Bontebak National Park where the acacia was full of EVIL thorns, the grass had crazy thistles, the aloe had huge spikes…I’d say this flora does not work together, it’s every plant for itself.

4.    It is spring right now!!! (I guess this goes against my title, please substitute “southern hemisphere” for “Cape Town”) There were baby everything we saw: Bontebak (a beautiful white-faced antelope), Cape zebras (!!!), baboons (!!!) ok those are the only babies I saw, but we saw more stuff, tortoise, beetles, Blue cranes, tons of other birds, ostrich, cows and sheep.

5.    I am a specie-ist! Our South African friend, Sam, accused me of being specieist after I objected to the fact that people eat elephants. I mean, elephants are possibly the THE CUTEST ANIMAL in the kingdom. Should we be eating animals? Probably not. But if we are already eating them, shouldn’t we avoid the cute ones like elephants? OF COURSE:)

6.    Baboons are not as cute as I previously believed. I am good at judging and maybe I just prefer a baboon with a protective barrier between it and me. But we encountered about 30 baboons in the middle of the freeway and almost hit a baby:( Kind of like deer in America. Only like cute monkeys with GIANT teeth, little to no fear of cars/people, and red behinds.

7.    No alcohol on Sundays. We tried to wine taste on our way home. Winery closed. Also, liquor cannot be sold at grocery stores or liquor stores on Sundays. Ironically, the one near Mike and Em with a license to sell on Sundays is in the Muslim district.

8.    No Daylight Savings Time. Currently we are 9 hours ahead of California. As of November 6, we will be 10.

9.    Blankets are provided at outdoor venues. Have no fear. I had dinner on the Waterfront on Wednesday night and while there are heat lamps, a fleece blanket is also on the back of each chair for warmth during dining. Necessary? No. Awesome? Yes.

10. There are a zillion languages. It’s remarkable. Literally, that’s why I’m remarking here now. Signs are in a four languages and I’d venture to guess that almost 100% of the native South Africans speak 2+ languages. Good thing Spanish is useful here…(that’s sarcasm, I know it’s hard to gauge electronically).