Cape Town - Week 3

So, I finally got a job! Well, sort of… I am now an official freelance photographer for the Cape Times (the 2nd most distributed paper in Cape Town). A friend of a friend of a friend of my mother’s bridge group put me in contact with a reporter at the Times, who contacted me to do some shots with her on a feature for the paper: Cupcakes. Yes, cupcakes. Thus, for about 2.5 hours on Tuesday, I traveled around Cape Town, visiting about 4 different bakeries, taking pictures of cupcakes, bakers, and of course, more cupcakes. Did I get paid? Well, sort of… I got some free cupcakes! 5 in total. And of course, my name will be featured along with the pictures in Tuesday’s “Food” section of the paper. If my pictures are a success, I can look forward to future potential shoots including such topics as: Bare Walls, Old Batteries, and of course, Dirt (can’t wait for that one!). But in all honesty, it really was a great experience, and I look forward to working my way up to photographing the 2010 World Cup (almost there!)

Aside from mastering my knowledge in pastries, I also went to my first ever cricket match on Thursday. It was a double-header featuring Australia vs Sri Lanka and Pakistan vs Bangladesh (Bangla Bangla Bangladesh, Bangladesh!). Attending the match as a solo spectator, I sat on the grass of “Newlands Cricket Grounds” (regarded as the most beautiful cricket grounds in the world), for about 6 hours, watching what felt like a lifetime of cricket. Just to give an idea of the differences between American sporting events and South African ones, the cost difference between everything is amazing:

1 Ticket (equivalent of a World Series Wild Card game) = $8
22 Ounce Beer = $1.50
Foot-long hot dog (well not really a hot dog, but looked like one) = $0.75

I could’ve spent all day there, until of course sun stroke began to settle in, and the numbness of my ass was too overwhelming to deal with anymore. Either way, I had a great time, and look forward to more games in the future… well, far distant future. Unfortunately South Africa was eliminated from the tournament on Thursday night, so I have now dedicated my full attention back to Rugby. Go Boks!

Aside from cupcakes and cricket, I did a bit of synagogue/shul/temple hopping this week for the Jewish holidays (happy new year to all!) I have been to three in all, although the one in Camps Bay is probably the most scenic, as it overlooks the ocean from high above the hilltops. Much better than the view of Washtenaw Ave back home in Ann Arbor. Overall, it was a much different experience, with women sitting separately from the men. And of course, with the different tunes to songs accompanying the already-incomprehensible-hebrew-language, I more or less stood there for hours on end in utter confusion. But, at least my sins have been atoned for!

Since there is not much else to beef up my week (and most likely weeks to come), I have decided to start incorporating a weekly section to each of these blogs:


“Learn me something something about South Africa.”

This Week's Topic: Words & Phrases

Although South Africa is technically an English speaking country (although Afrikaans, Xhosa and Zulu are spoken more often – English is 6th on the list), many English words are quite foreign, or have differing meanings from back in the States. For those of you who grew up with me, many of these words unknowingly became a part of my daily vocabulary, as my parents have maintained their roots quite well. Anyhow, let the list begin:

Word	Translation	Example
Robot	Traffic Light	"Make a right at the robot"
Boot/Bonnet	Trunk/Hood	"I'll stick you in the boot if you don't shut up!
Cubby Hole	Glove Compartment	"I'll stick you in the cubby hole if you don't shut up!"
Hectic	Crazy	"Man that game was hectic"
Man	?	Pretty much a word that accompanies most sentences (see above). Or to reiterate a point. "No man! I said i'm not giving a bloody Yank my phone number!"
Bloody	?	Another filler word. Maybe the polite replacement for "f*cking?" :)
Lekker (leh-kah)	Great, really good	"It would be realy lekker if they would show a bloody college football game on TV here."
Howzit	What's up?	"Howzit?" (great example, I know)
Brotha	?	Pretty much your name to anyone who doesn't know it
Dodgy	Sketchy	"That dark alley looks pretty dodgy. Lets go see what's down there..." (that one is for you Mom). :)
Biscuit	Cookie	ok... these examples are getting a bit pointless
Braii	Barbeque	still pointless...
Just Now	Soon, Eventually, Never	"I'll give you a call just now... ?"
Shame	?	A filler word that seems to accompany emotional-type sentences. "Oh shame man, we can only pay you with cupcakes"
(click noise)	?	? - still trying to figure this one out

Onto the pics...

	"Newlands Cricket Grounds" -- and the fact that there is a SAB Miller brewery in the background makes it just that much more amazing
	Cricket batter
	Cricket bowler... aka pitcher
	Probably the most entertaining part of the tournament. Whenever there was a baseball-equivalent of a double, triple, home run or out, a techno song would come on, and the dancing would begin. :)
	A cupcake!
	More cupcakes!
	Oh my! Even MORE cupcakes!
	A baker decorating... what else?! CUPCAKES!
	And of course, what is one of my posts without a scenic shot of Cape Town?

Next Week: Monday is a national holiday = National Braii Day (equivalent of corporate-sponsored holidays like Sweetest Day (Hallmark), but this one is sponsored by a grocery store (Pick N Pay)… besides that, I have no clue…