Author Archives: Paul
The cow was cool – but a left arrow?
Spaceships and moo-cows
Glass not diamonds
No stopping on event days!
Imagine what it would be like for residents if people were allowed to park wherever they pleased. The roads are often so narrow that it would be impossible for residents (and perhaps more importantly, emergency vehicles) to navigate the streets in the hours surrounding an event.
Cape Town sewers!
Tired of climbing stairs?
Pretty red bougainvillea
Telephone poles – far too many wires
Telephone wires in most older suburbs and parts of the city still lie above ground, mounted on poles like this one. Several years ago Telkom, our (often regarded as infamous) land telecommunications provider, started using underground cables to in new development areas. I'm guessing that they're more durable and serviceable. Some day telephone poles like these, with their busy nest of wires, will be a distant part of history - much like candle-powered lamp posts.
2012 Fair Cape Downhill Challenge #2
Something that surprised me was the number of woman who I saw competing in the event. Skateboarding, and specifically downhill racing, is traditionally such a guy thing that it's to be expected that one would find almost exclusively guys competing. But it really does seem as though a good number of woman in Cape Town are getting into the sport!
I'd really like to see more woman take part, so if you're keen, visit SAGRA's website for more information or contact me and I'll put you in contact with a few pros. They'll have you racing in no time! :)
Skateboards of the 2012 Fair Cape Downhill Challenge
Sunday's action starts with practice runs between 09h30 and 13h00 with the race starting at 14h00. If you think downhill skateboarding may be your thing, stop by the event - I suspect you'll be convinced. :)
EDIT: See my follow-up article and more pics here.
An English Pointer
Startled kitty-cat
A skinny white cat
Please stand here
Windhoek Lager
Oh, and by the way, nope, that wasn't my bottle! :)
Into the gutter, down the drain
Fortunately it looks as though these drains have a bar to prevent such objects finding themselves meters below the ground in the storm-water drainage system. :)
Heavy umbrellas
Green things
H8M Fire hydrant close by!
Based on a few comments and an email it seems that consensus is that the sign indicates that there's a fire hydrant 8 meters (or, as in yesterday's post, 28 feet) from the lamp post. In retrospect, based on the shape of the sign I guess should have been obvious. :)
An H28FT lamp post sign
I've been wondering what the sign really means. I wondered if H28FT perhaps indicates the lamp post's height - but why? So, like any web-savvy person would do I did an image search for H28FT and found... ladders. How very strange, and yet possibly appropriate.
Do you know what these signs are/were used for? Do they perhaps indicate the height that the crane, used when changing light bulbs, should pick the workmen up to reach the light fixture?
Steep streets
Ugly barbed wire
Perhaps government should introduce a new public holiday called Clean City Day, a day when everybody is compelled to spend at least two hours cleaning litter from public places.
See this article about last year's Clean Up day in Johannesburg, organised by Pickitup. Imagine this on a national scale!
The stairs are closed – you can’t sue us!
Don't you just hate that society has become so opportunistic that we're forced to spend money on signs that state the obvious to indemnify us in case somebody does something silly and decides to sue us because we never warned them? Sure, there are many cases when signs are absolutely necessary - but often they're just a waste of money.
It’s a cactus
Parked cars and narrow roads
Fortunately Kerry-Anne and I live in a suburb that was built when 1000 square metre plots and super-wide roads were the norm. I'd hate to live in modern security estates with their narrow roads and uniform housing.
Sidewalks, pavements, and roads
In South Africa we'd call the place where pedestrians walk a pavement whereas Americans would call it a sidewalk. What makes it even more confusing when South Africans and Americans converse is that Americans use the word pavement to mean road! So, my American friends, when a South African traffic officer asks you to walk on the pavement - really, he's not meaning in the road. Promise. ;)
2012 Cape Town Pride festival
The Pride festival will move from venue to venue each day from 2 until 11 March and funds raised at the event will be donated to the Pride Shelter Trust, an organisation that helps gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual people by providing them with short-term shelter in times of crisis.
If you would like to support the initiative, or if you're simply keen on 10 days of fun, check out the itinerary, grab a friend, and have some fun!
A lifeguard stands watch
Read more about the Clifton Surf Lifesaving Club, whose members watch over this beach, and the non-profit organisation Lifesaving Western Provice. Perhaps once you have you'll even consider becoming a sponsor. :)
The shot everyone had to get
