Ah, Cape Town

One landscape of Cape Town

I forgot how much I love this city. Sitting in my window seat on the British Airways flight this afternoon, the sight of Cape Town coming into view simply took my breath away. It has a remarkably striking topography, especially from the air — blue/green and white curving coastline offset by large, jagged mountains stroked by wispy clouds. Standing on Table Mountain you are literally standing in a cloud.

But I realized something as I was driven from the airport into the city. I’ve spent exactly one week in South Africa and had not yet seen an African “slum,” or “township,” or whatever you want to call them. A place where as far as the eye can see, makeshift, one-room shacks constructed from metal scraps of varying sizes, colors, and shapes dot the landscape, crushed next to each other so that the concept of a “yard” or even a “road” is unthinkable.

I’ve seen hundreds of such places, in every African country I’ve visited. And South Africa is certaintly not lacking in supply of these townships. The difference is, certain places in South Africa give the illusion that such places do not exist here. For example, on the road from the airport in Johannesburg to Pretoria, you see only fields and rolling hills. And in at least the areas of Pretoria where I have been, there are beautiful homes everywhere.

So it’s not difficult to understand that, despite having seen these places so many times before, I was still shocked by the sight of a township driving into Cape Town today. For the first time in a long time my heart and my mind felt something other than bland resignation toward the sight. I was ANGRY. Bile literally rose in my throat as we drove past. I wanted to speak to the driver (a white Cape Townian) about the sheer ludicrosity of such places still existing in this modern city, this entire country - but I held my tongue, as tensions here among the races are still extremely high.

But I can’t keep the image out of my mind. Many of the poor in America live in squalid conditions – but for the most part they have solid roofs over their heads. Even the homeless often have shelters where they can sleep safely and have a good meal – and programs that can help get them back on their feet – if they so choose. That’s the big difference between here and there – the people living in the townships have no choice, no real hope for anything better. I almost feel that the people living in villages or shantytowns in some of the less developed African countries have it better – because at least they don’t have to see the First World driving past their shacks and sunning themselves on the white beaches of Cape Town every day.

I apologize for the rant – I’ll stop here. For I recognize my hypocrisy. What have I done to help the situation? Sure I’m working for the CDC in Africa. But you’ve seen where I’m living. And the sight of the Cape Town township did not prevent me from enjoying a fantastic sushi dinner later that evening and relishing in my luxurious guesthouse. I wish I could find a solution to my hypocrisy, but that will have to wait for another day.