I went with friends to Khayelitsha for coffee via train. The idea, organised by metrorail and cape town tourism was for promoting township tours. It was tourism with a difference. The township tours I've previously seen are a great eye opener not only for tourists, but also for many locals, of the way of life in some of our townships. This initiative is also a great way promote our local businesses and developing pride in our own work and not just that of foreign business.
Bookings were made via quicket.co.za and we were instructed to meet at Cape Town Train Station at 8:30am. The train was a business class train so very comfortable and clean inside. The 30 minute express ride, skipped all stops and headed straight for Khayelitsha station.
Once there we walked through the local markets to get the the "Department of Coffee", our main destination.
We then ordered our hot drinks, coffee or a variant of it for most, and hot chocolate for me, accompanied with a muffin, which was included in our ticket purchase.
There was local musicians, rappers and dancers doing there thing close by so while we waited for the rest of the township tour we enjoyed their performances. As the rugby was (Bokke vs All blacks) on we found that there was nearby pub which we rushed to. Sharing a quart of Black Label in true township style amongst 4 guys, we watched South Africa lose to New Zealand. The atmosphere in the pub was awesome and I was really surprised to see the rugby 'gees' going on.
We then filed into a taxi and went out to lookout hill, he supposed highest point on the Cape Flats. There after we went for a drive through Khayelitsha, the driver pointing out all the famous spots.
On return to the Department of Coffee we then went to the nearby markets in search of some food. The markets were rife with meat being openly displayed, including pigs head, intestines etc. The uncleanliness of the meat was what saddened me most. This could not be a conducive environment for meat storage and surely this would lead to many sicknesses for them. Having found a fruit and veg stall, that's where I bought my food where most others indulged in boerewors rolls and chips.
The time was then 2pm and time to get back onto the train which would take us back to Cape Town Station.
A good experience, nothing life changing but these types of experiences are essential so that we can get out of our little shell that we call life. It helps empathising with the less fortunate and breaking down those boundaries that are still very prevalent in our communities.
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