CT @ Design Indaba Week – Blissville all over again.
When I heard there was a female pilot steering our fruity flight to Cape Town I should have known it was going to be a week with a bitter-sweet difference. I absolutely love going to the Mother City for a visit, some of my best connections live in ‘blissville’ – in this instance they proved to be thoroughly divine inexhaustive distractions dragging me down the paths of Long and Kloof street to mountain oblivion…
As the plane hit the runway at the recently expanded and earily quiet CT airport, the shocked cries of fellow passengers woke me from my jozi ratrace and deadline reverie – I was dangerously bouncing down the tar into one of the most beautiful cities on earth and ready to lap up every moment.
It really helps having “out there” friends who know who’s who and what’s vying on and all… especially when you can’t afford the real Design Indaba experience and you’re totally fronting and hanging out pretending to be in Cape Town for the shplindaba when you know it’s for so much more than that.
See our CT and Design Indaba pics here.
We started off the sejour with a suprise turn at the Terenzo Hair Dressing school in the City Bowl where we were cajoled into being models for some nervous students. It just happened to clash with the “must be at” presentation by Brian Eno at the Michaelis art school we were supposed to be attending, but our dedication to supporting the aspirations and dreams of young South African hair dressers meant we opted for the pamper session instead… Damn. The Terenzo school is housed in an awesome building with the latest in equipment and facilities – fabulara -darl ….
Big generalised Observation about Cape Town Number One – Cape Townians have better architectural, design and general aesthetic taste than the rest of the country. Gross generalisation that may be, but just look around you at most of the beaauuutiful architecture of Joburg’s overrun Tuscan suburbs and you will have to agree. Even the RDP houses in Cape Town have style . Have you tried to find some affordable fabulous furniture that doesn’t come from the somewhat ‘tres beaucoup imali’ Tonic or boutiques at 44 Stanley in Jozi? Not really possible…But CT is heaving with great local design. (PS: if you’d like to contest this, please give us addresses of where to find good local products for good prices for our good life.)
During our stay in Cape Town, and yes it was Design Indaba week, we enjoyed some of the most fabulous design work from great local talent that made us seriously consider maxxxxxing the credit card again just when we were recovering from Dec’s excess. Looking all bouffoned up with our fresh smelling locks moving dramatically in the wind, we moved onto the next installment of our foray – the Murj exhibition showcasing industrial furniture design from the Aylward brothers of Bredaarsdorp on show at the wonderfully titled “What if the World” exhibition space. Again, proof that art spaces don’t have to be showy, snotty or elaborate – What if the World is essentially an empty +/-40m2 room with arty types sipping on R5 red wine out of plastic cups on the pavement. Nice.
Big generalised Observation about Cape Town Number Two. Beauty is Everywhere. Whether it’s a grotty industrial area or a lonely road, the vista’s and landscapes of Cape Town are truly impressive… At one stage I wasn’t sure if it was my Prada shades (earned through having no view and working in moneyfied Jozi – we all have our price) colouring in the electric sparkling turquoise waves on the west coast of the city or perhaps a mirage caused by the over-indulgence of the night before – it was neither. It’s just like that. Sparklingly tuquoise blue. Mooi ne… And don’t forget the Jeep covered in jewels we saw in the city – eish! See our pics here.
And like a striking child (we all know them), Cape Town can be a little self-involved, relying on her looks to get her through life, but hey – it takes all kinds of cities to make a nation, imagine if cities were all the same? But we do know who has the real character don’t we. Nudge Nudge Wink Wink.
A bit of sea and sun does the world of good to a landlocked city slicker and so does drinking cocktails with superb people at the Sand Pit in Camp’s Bay on a Friday afternoon – it certainly makes one green with envy to not be living in the windy city. And of course the people watching opportunities abound in good weather.
Big generalised Observation Number Three: Most Black People You meet in Cape Town are foreigners. And there’s nothing wrong with that… we were just wondering where exactly our Xhosa peeps were hanging out and we’re disappointed to have to concede to the pessimists and admit that despite our idealistic world view, it’s a fact. But that said, our feeling post the trip was that Cape Town is a cosmopolitan city of the world and not really claimed by any one culture or race… Moslems, Malays, Africans, Indians, Congloese, Sudanese, Chinese, Japanese, Germans, Dutch, Xhosa’s, Whiteys, Coloured peeps, you name it, the melting pot is bubbling over and everyone is hanging out together. We’re not sure how well they all get on below the surface, but there was such a chilled atmosphere in the air and it’s not Durbs so we can’t blame it on poison so who knows what’s happening in the MC chambers. Any thoughts???
We don’t want to go into this topic right now as it requires a lot more thought, research and knowledge than we have time for, but let it be said that if you are a foreign visitor into foreign African (as in not from South Africa) men, or ladies for that matter, make sure to hang out in the dodgy Joburg bar (yes I got homesick – big mistake) after midnight. Buff dark young men in expensive perfumes hover suspiciously in corners waiting for a foreign kill- when they see a dollar or euro sign in socks and sandals approaching, they move in like a pack of lions on the hunt- deftly talking their way into a personal space and presenting the fat girl with such slick compliments in such a sexy French Congolese accent that you feel 18 again and throw caution and your travel allowance to the wind vibes. For real.
And we report this in the nicest way possible, our experience at Joburg bar shocked us silly leaving us in no doubt that there’s a whole nother side to CT tourism that involves pale Heidi’s seeking out some serious Afro Booty and money being no object and most certainly exchanged for a bit of holiday fun. Before we get accused of all kinds of horrors, let’s just say that bees to honey ain’t seen this kind of desperation since “My Masai Fantasy 4”. Sad but true – lets just hope that everyone’s a winner in the situation.
Back to design, it was our first visit to the Design Indaba and not having heard great stories from the last few years (you know who you are) we decided to only go to the exhibit. We’re out of time and need to sum it up – our favourites had to be the forest-scene wall paper dudes, Justin Plunkett’s Mooj, Phethile’s incredible stool/table/chair combination, the ONE SMALL SEED magazine stand, the Visi mag balloons, THE iRON fIST stand, the 3-second condom and the bouncing ball fashion ramp experience. We’ll hopefully be profiling all of them soonest….All in all it was superb and inspiring and well worth fronting for.
Our favourite venue had to be the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock (we think) that reminds us a lot of our very own 44 Stanley Rd but yet again, pipping our style at the post – we also loved Zula Bar in Long St and loved loved loved the Sons of Trout Reunion at the Mercury Lounge. YumYum.
Big Generalised Observation NUMBER four. Damn but PROPERTY is unaffordable in Slaapies.
We love Cape Town and wish her luck as she forges forth with her very own identity and style, she’s not Jozi and never wanted to be and that’s ok. We say “see CT as your personal African land of bliss, milk, struggle and honey and make the most of what she has to offer” – the rest of the world and their Swedish girlfriend’s doing it already!
So let’s stop moaning bout CT and wanting it to be a city it isn’t, accept it for the cosmopolitan world city that it is, keep Jozi as our truly African city and get down there and take it over !
Oh and one more thing, if you get the young female pilot on Mango – it’s for real (’bout time) and so are her shocking landings – bitter-sweet. BUt you GO GIRL!!!
