| Learn the local customs of Cape Town. Tips and photos posted by real travelers and Cape Town locals. Cape Town Map |
 | Cape Town Local Customs | Tips 1 - 10 of 67 |  |
 CAPE MINSTRELS. by PEE-WEELeave a Comment
|
Visiting Cape Town?
Read reviews about Cape Town Hotels
Real Reviews from Real VirtualTourist Members.
 OPERA. by PEE-WEE
Started in 1999 as an experiment, the Singathon has become an annual tradition providing a load of fun for professional and amateur soloists, choral groups, children`s choirs who donate their voices for the day. CTO`s own choral groups and Sanlam Studio singers are also there to ensure the singing never stops. If you are in Cape Town on this day, take a break from your morning meanders to experience this joyous event for yourself. I'm usually not an Opera fan, but these songs and performances were truly heart-moving. I couldn't stop listen to it! Leave a Comment
|
 Show them how its done daddy by jo104
The sausage is called borewors which is a spicied sausage coiled into a round. Sosaties are cubes of meat & vegetables on a stick. Chops & chicken are also pretty common. People do fish in tin foil (although I'm not a lover of fish)
South Africans make a day of having a braai & the goodness is in the eating - hungry just typing this Leave a Comment
|
 "Coon" Carnival by glennkasner
With its origin apparently as a holiday for slaves during the early days of the Cape of Good Hope, the tradition continues today and is celebrated by troops of colourful minstrels or "coons" as they were more commonly known. Leave a Comment
|
 by glennkasner
The terrain is now open to the public to see the daily firing of the noon gun, this particular gun has been replaced by a similar one, the two now standing side by side.
Soon after the English occupation of the Cape in 1795, the Dutch guns were removed from Imhoff Battery at the Castle and replaced by the latest English 18 pounders.
A time signal has been fired by one of these guns since 1806.
With the advent of the "galvanic telegraph" it became possible to trigger a gun remotely and since 1864 the noon gun has been accurately fired from the master clock of the oldest timekeeper in the country, the South African Astronomical Observatory as it is still being fired today.
As Cape Town developed and grew, the noise of the gun became too loud and violent for the city centre and the guns were moved up to signal hill's Lion Battery from where they are still fired today. The first signal fired from here was on the 4th of August 1902. These same guns are still in use today and the 2 guns used are the oldest guns in daily use in the world. Leave a Comment
|
 | |  |
Visiting Cape Town?
Read reviews about Cape Town Hotels
Real Reviews from Real VirtualTourist Members.
Every Year the Cape Coons march in the streets of Cape , I guess here you`ll get to see all the local people here.
I have collected some info on them which you can checkout for interest sake.
Coon Carnival CEO Mr. Melvyn Mathews (picture at left) of the Hip Hop All Stars (previously The Penny Pinchers All Stars) who was responsible for the organisation of the 2003 road march confirmed this view. “This carnival is getting big and big sponsors are starting to throw good money at us and we cannot afford the image of gangsterism to ruin the coon carnival... It’s now become one of Cape Town’s major tourist attraction’s and we (the minstrels board and the city of Cape Town) are working very hard at improving our image so we can even take on the Rio Carnival... Yes we had problems in the past, you even photographed some of them. But if you look at this years carnival then you can see that we are succeeding and that with our big plans for 2004 we’re taking this to a higher level, never seen before” said Mathews.
Melvyn Mathews (54) is an authority on the Cape Town Coon carnival and has been a part of it since he was two years old. For more information, Mathews can be contacted in Cape Town at telephone numbers +27 83 733 8522 or +27 21 593 1888 Leave a Comment
|
| | |
 Out in the field by Jenniflower
The boys are taken away from their village and go and live in the bush together for a few days. They partake in traditional bush dances, one being the 'Amakwetha', paint their bodies with a white clay substance and wear headdresses.
www.siyabona.com has some lovely detail about exactly what happens at one of these gatherings. Definitely worth a read! Leave a Comment
|
People in Africa are generally more physical with one another. They do not have the same concept of a need for personal space as westerners do. This physical closeness has some positives, one being mum carrying baby on her back with a blanket tucked securely beneath the baby and tied around mums waist. This is a cultural thing too of course, as prams are not available as they are in the west. I personally like this for a baby. Baby feels mums heartbeat and its more comforting, even if your pram (buggy) happens to be a cool 4x4 haha
Another aspect of their community is friendship. They are very community-orientated, people are readily accepted into their homes to share meals with them (albeit them being meagre anyway), and friends are easily made. They help each other a lot and work well in a community.
Selfishness is not a word that seems to fit into their clicking vocabulary :) Leave a Comment
|
| | |
 Learning from the locals by Jenniflower
When I had my handmade paper manufacturing business in the Cape, many of my employees were Xhosa, and we would spend many a day trying to teach other how to speak the others' language :) Needless to say, their English was ALOT better than my 'clicking' Xhosa!
Fond memories indeed... Leave a Comment
|
 Hout Bay by Jenniflower
Just a tip? Boat A might be selling a large snoek for R30... the next boat will come in, selling their snoek for R25 and the next for R20... each one marks the other down. Al the fish is pretty much the same in quality and size... so shop around! Go home and cook it in the oven or, even better, have a snoek braai! Mmmm :) Leave a Comment
|
|
More Cape Town Travel Deals Cape Town Accomodation
Book Online or have our Experts plan your stay! Great Rooms & rates Holiday in Cape Town
Speak to someone who's been there! Experience award winning service Hotel Deals
Compare Fare Prices, Find Deals & More. Make Decisions w/Bing™ Travel Sponsored Links - Fountains Hotel
St George’s Mall, Cape Town - Mountain Manor Guest House
17 Breda Street Gardens, Cape Town - The Gregorian on the Sea Cape Town
128 Beach Road Melkbostrand, Cape Town - Romney Park Luxury Suites & Wellness Centre
Corner of Hill Road & Romney Road, Green Point, Cape Town - Cape Town Lodge
101 Buitengracht Street, Cape Town - Victoria And Alfred Hotel
On The Waterfront Pierhead P.O. Box 50050, Cape Town - Protea Hotel Tyger Valley
Hendrik Verwoerd Drive Jip De Jager off-ramp Exit 20, Cape Town - Southern Sun Cape Sun
Strand St, Cape Town - Winkfield House
36 Scholtz Road, Cape Town - Lady Hamilton
10 Union St Gardens, Cape Town - The Lodge at Atlantic Beach
100 Fairway Drive, Atlantic Beach Golf Estate, Cape Town - Guesthouse Escape Cape Town
163 Main Road Green Point, Cape Town - City Lodge V & A Waterfront Cape Town
Cnr Dock And Alfred Roads P O Box 6025, Roggebaai, Cape Town - Fahrenheit Resorts
72B KloofNek Road, Cape Town - Winchester Mansions Hotel
221 Beach Road Sea Point, Cape Town
|
