Day Two in Cape Town

Sunday in South Africa was quite nice.

(Minus, of course, my two friends Mucus and Flem that have made their way from my nose to my lungs.)

Months ago, I signed up for a Cape Malay cooking adventure, and I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a hit or a miss (you never quite know when you choose SAS trips), but it turned out to be a huge win!

“Malay” is a blanket term used in South Africa to describe any peoples from South or Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Malaysia…to name just a few countries) brought over as slaves during the spice trade, and who are primarily Muslim.

During the apartheid, the Malay people were assigned their own quarter or district of town, and were forbidden to paint their houses. Once the apartheid ended, families in the neighborhood began to paint their homes all kinds of bright colors to mark special events like a wedding or a birth.

Today the neighborhood looks like an easter basket of sorts, with each house painted a different taffy colored hue.

We walked around the Malay district for awhile, taking in deep breaths of turmeric-scented air. And as for the highlight of my day, we got to go into the home of a local for a cooking lesson. There is a small South African tourist agency that has contracted with different women in the Malay community who, by hosting small groups for in-home cooking classes, are empowered to contribute to the financial well being of their families.

Hamida is a wife and mother to three girls (a gender combo I’m partial to myself) ages 13, 9, and 4. She told us that she got bored of mundane housewife tasks, and decided that she wanted to host international students and teach Malay cooking.

We all chatted about Ramadan and rugby and our thresholds for onion chopping, while attempting to fold samosas just as Hamida had instructed us.

After our fill of chicken curry and samosas and chili bites and “twist sisters” (which is like a South African spice doughnut), we said our farewells and headed back to the waterfront.

For the evening, my friend Lila (this girl truly should be the textbook definition of lovely) and I had some much needed conversation and (for very different reasons) shed a few much-needed tears, while sipping our not-needed but profusely enjoyed pots of red tea.

A day of warm scents, full flavors, and a new (and already dear) friend is a day I’ll take anytime.

Love. Anna