nice South Africans... and the top five freak list

Back in the mid-80s, a TV show called Spitting Image put out a single called I've never met a nice South African. It was to protest Apartheid; here is an analysis of the song.

Well... we found quite the opposite of the song title. The people of South Africa are great. They are friendly - almost everyone, black or white, smiled and said hello to you as you passed them on the street, or if people were sitting on a bench and saw you walking by, they would wave. That kind of thing. Shop owners were polite and usually helpful, and never breathing down your neck all the time like in the US or Asia (well, my only reference is Thailand). It was easy to strike up interesting conversations with almost anyone, and at the same time most people seemed to respect others' space and weren't overly nosy in the questions they may have asked you.

Of course, every place has its freaks, for better or for worse. The ones we encountered during our trip were pretty "harmless" compared to what I have to deal with in Oslo sometimes. Interaction with these freaks was minimal. We just observed ;-)

Now onto the list...

1. At an Engen petrol station in Hout Bay, there was this guy leaning over his car. He had a motorcycle gang-type beard, pierced ears, and his arms were completely covered with tattoos. When he stood up, he exposed another interesting feature. Tits. Big tits too. And we're not talking mighty manboobs, but proper lady tits. With visible nipples. It would have been nice to take a picture of him. He probably would have shot us though...



2. During a township tour, we visited the township witch doctor. Um... uh... right... fascinating...



3. At the café at Jonkershoek, we were peacefully eating our lunch when this guy came up to me and gave me a little purple flower. He said that Mother Nature told him to give me the flower, because the purple matched my t-shirt. Charming. It actually made me smile a bit :-)



4. While eating at Krugmann's Grill at the Waterfront, on the second floor, we watched as a couple came into the restaurant from the first floor, pushing a shopping cart full of food. Uh?



5. The freaky turkey at the Stellenbosch Village Museum. He was strutting around like he owned the place... *gobble* *gobble* *gobble* :-)