After hitting the sack at some crazy hour on Friday, I forced myself out of bed for a 6AM mission to Cape Town. Nights and mornings are particularly cold here, making getting out of bed incredibly difficult. After picking up the other volunteers, we made our way to the bus stop – disappointed to see our bus pass before us. Unsure about proceedings, we asked the people hanging around to figure out what time the next one was at. African time applies to a lot of things, and unfortunately Saturday showed us just how much it applies to their public transport. Every single person we asked gave us a different time to expect the bus, which eventually arrived around half an hour later.

The bus was packed, with a very strange layout similar to an Aeroplane. Instead of different levels and multiple doors, this is just one long vessel with 4 seats, an aisle, and 2 seat rows. So looking to the right after paying R21.50 (~£2) was quite a shock, with some 60 faces staring straight at you. We made our way to the few free seats at the back, observing how wrapped-up the people were for a chill we’re more than used to.

We arrived at Cape Town in around an hour – not bad seeing as we’d been told it could take up to two. Immediately noticing the FIFA Fanfest next to the station, we knew where we’d spend the end of the day. We started our day in an ‘eco’ café on Long Street. When I saw that they did Mango Lassi, I had to try it. It was disgusting; I got them to change it for a smoothie. Who puts cinnamon, cardamom and other spices in a Lassi?!

Exploring the streets, we found some cool shops. I particularly liked the African Music Store, for one thing they played awesome music and sell some funky stuff. “In Woolworths do you think everything’s made of wool?” We then made a trip to Green Market Square. After buying a few souvenirs, I quickly become bored of shopping – UK or not! We had lunch in a cool bar/restaurant, the shop front decorated with powerful graffiti. Ah, Chocolate Brownie milkshake (with actual brownie chunks) whilst watching the Korea vs. Greece game, yum.

We watched the Nigeria vs. Argentina game at the FIFA Fanfest. Security was crazy, being searched twice and forced to dispose of food and drink, it was similar to getting into the country! Claims that the World Cup has made the city ‘unsafe’ (PF2’s reason for our ridiculous curfews and weekend stay over ban) can easily be refuted by the number of Police and Security personnel on the streets – something we hardly saw when first getting here. That’s not to say that I believe Police or Security make a place ‘safe’, often the contrary, but it is certainly something they’d go by. Having said that I’ve found the Police here to be much less intimidating then those in the UK – despite the fact that they carry firearms. In part, that may be due in to boosted confidence whilst travelling, but a more friendly African way is reflected regardless.

The World Cup has highlighted obsessive corporate sponsorship with everywhere you look being covered by one of a few big brands. Coca Cola have gone further than ever, I’ve never been sicker of seeing that logo. At the Fanfest they had a huge tent, with promotions everywhere and sales through the roof. They sold the bottles without the tops, so it all had to be consumed inside, and they refused to give cups – so you couldn’t share. I was horrified to see the Sun (yes, that crap from the UK) have a Bus in Cape Town, they gave out free England flags with their branding, as well as horns. After someone saw the English girls I was with and asked “Are they Page 3 girls?” (No, not a compliment), I felt less comfortable, furthered by the desire for photos from numerous people from different nations. I asked how they felt being token white girls, they were perfectly happy.

The actual game was fun, another great atmosphere with people representing all nations. The place is awesome, with Table Mountain (with the ‘Table Cloth’ cloud descended upon it) in the background, when it got dark the mountain was lit up. I met a friend for the first time there, something I’ve become increasingly accustomed to! If anyone tells you that a camera zoomed in on me and I was on the screen for ages and did some ridiculously embarassing dance, it’s not true!

I disappeared for a while to pray at ‘Palm Tree Mosque’ on Long Street. It was strange having to ring a bell to get into the Mosque. The interior was really nice, though surprisingly few people came for the Maghrib prayer.
We got a late bus back to Mamre, in time to watch the England vs. USA game with the rest of the group. As usual, England performed as England do. The rest looked on in disappointment, I grinned, looking forward to more decent games.