TobySouth Africa—Cape Town included—is a complicated place. It is complex, fraught with tension and not particularly safe. It is fascinating, for this half-anthropologist, half-writer (and […]
Category: Africa
My 9 Favorite South African Words & Phrases (so far)
This guy knows what I’m talking about. Just a short one for today, as I want to spend the remainder of my day off out […]
Minibus Freedom: On Risk and Reward
Stand-Up Paddleboarding (well, kneel-up paddleboarding) in Smitswinkel Bay. “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t…” The sun beats down on my left […]
Post-Apartheid South Africa and “Post-Racism” America
A totally irrelevant picture of Clifton Beach at sundown—Camps Bay, sundown. Yes, there is an analogy to be made here. Excuse me friends, I’m going […]
High Security
The view from my patio, Hout Bay, Cape Town. Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa “You need to watch that the gate closes to make […]
Next Up, Cape Town: Meeting the Voice of Intuition
Chapman’s Peak, near one of my possible next homes. The flights are booked. Philadelphia —> NYC —> Amsterdam —> Helsinki. Short pause. Helsinki —> London […]
I Might Really Miss This Place
A rainbow came out especially for my “picture-taking day.” As I prepare to leave Zanzibar (Nungwi, more specifically; East Africa, more broadly), the place that […]
In Zanzibar. Paradise has Cracks. (Poem)
In Zanzibar Fruit falls from trees– Like shimmering coins– And is trampled underfoot. No one wants to sell it When tourist dollars Taste so much […]
The Importance of a Quest
Today, I spent an hour looking for soap. Not just any soap (those who know me will know how picky I am about my soap… […]