Sent Feb. 10, 2003 from Cape Town

a) CRICKET. As of the 8th, the World Cup of Cricket is
being played in Cape Town.

b) SO. AFRICA. I had a long  chat with a white South
African.  He assured me that the whites and blacks respect
each other, that what is happening in Zimbabwe  is very
unlikely to happen in So. Africa.  By the way, there are 9
major African tribes represented in So. Africa, PLUS the
so-called Coloreds, incl. the Bushman.  English, Afrikaans,
plus the 9 tribal dialects are all recognized as official
languages.

c) US vs. IRAQ. By the way, most of the people are also
against our policy about Iraq, also because they all know
that for years Israel itself has NOT been observing many UN
resolutions affecting it, getting away with this policy
only thru American backing.  In other words, as much as
people dislike Saddam, they like America even less.  This
has been the consistent view we heard on this trip, so much
so that on several occasions both Tom and I announced that
we did NOT vote for Bush, that neither one of us wants a
war with Iraq.

c) ZIMBABWE. About the time I arrived here, there was
a train accident in Zimbabwe in which 47 people were killed.
At least one So. African bus company said they will take as
far as BULAWAYO, but they cannot guarantee a safe
connection from there to Victoria Falls.  Well, there goes
my Zimbabwe plans...

2. CAPE TOWN. This is one of the most beautiful cities on
earth by geographic layout.  For Americans, imagine
Boulder, Colorado or SEDONA, Arizona, with their mountains
and red rocks. Then add an ocean to the remaining three
sides of them, the shorelines a mix of the rocky La Jolla
shores and quaint Mission Beach-like beaches of San Diego. 
Homes on the foothills rise up to a certain level.  Beyond
that, the higher elevation, up to where cliffs start, is
all devoted to a botanical garden.  How imaginative.  There
are several  other very valuable parcels like this also
near the ocean allocated to the public only.  Nice!

I want to correct my comment about this place being
lifeless.  Ashanti Lodge (hostel) is located at retirement
home-like neighborhood.  I moved out from there and took
another hostel nearby: ZEBRA CROSSING.  It is not as jazzy
as Ashanti, but much nicer and in a better and livelier
street near the Post, Internet, cafes, etc.  And people
staying here are much more mature and learned. The two
girls working there (Susan, a Cancer, and Anne) are more
helpful than several supposedly tour guides at Ashanti. 
The view of the Table Mountain from the garden is almost as
nice as from Ashanti; it costs 50R ($6), instead of 80R for
Ashanti; they will NOT pick you up for free, but do send
Backpacker Pickup for 90R.

a) You can do Cape of Good Hope on your own in a rental
car, or do with an organized all-day tour for 235R ($31). 
Better do it as a tour.  You get much more out of it.

2) NORTHERN TOUR BY RENTAL CAR. I rented a car for 4
days--used it only 3--thru ZEBRA CROSSING for 196R ($25)
per day: new car, no mileage, 5500R deductible, otherwise
fully covered--for 260R ($33) you can have 1500R
deductible.  They brought the car to Zebra's.  I took route
N7--changes in Namibia--north thru STEINBOK, turned east to
the KALAHARI, arrived in UPINGTON in N. Cape, continued
100km east to WITSAND Natural Reserve, tracked back to the
beginning of Rt27  west of Upington, turned south there,
some 400+km until that road met N7 south 300km north of
Cape Town. (Most of the time I was the only person around
for miles/hours at many of the places I passed.)

a) 3000km DRIVING: Northern CAPE, the NAMIB, KALAHARI,
WESTERN CAPE (below Northern Cape; there is also Eastern
Cape I will pass thru next).  Well, I got my bottles of
sand of each the NAMIB and the KALAHARI deserts.  This
leaves only 1 I am missing: the GOBI in Central Asia.  The
Namib and Kalahari are huge sand dunes, Namib supposedly
the highest in the world.  I am sure the dunes--on top of
mountains of sand--in Saudi Arabia would contest this
claim, but you get the picture.  And think crimson-red
color and VERY HOT. The entire North Cape, the part of So.
Africa right below NAMIBIA and BOTSWANA, too is one huge
desert, and an almost an exact duplicate of the American
Southwest.  Indeed, drive anywhere from western Texas to
Colorado and imagine yourself also in Northern Cape in So.
Africa, but for some subtle differences: 1) WEAVER
bird nests the size of a small tent dangling from telephone
posts--smaller ones from trees--2) grape being raised in
the desert starting about 200km west of Upington--there is a
small river there--which you are unlikely to see in USA in
the desert.

The vistas in So. African (Northern Cape) desert are
unbelievable.  If Montana is our Big Sky country, this
qualifies as Open-Horizon, period.  You can see almost
limitless miles in all directions, along very rugged
landscape, often adorned like our Monument Valley, and
escarpments.  Returning south on Rt.27 thru BRANDVLEI,
about 300km north of Cape Town, you enter the WESTERN CAPE
province.  The desert scene around you for miles and hours
changes to nothing less than our Colorado at its best,
yellow, golden, beige fields, as far as the eye can see,
replacing the aspen of Colorado in the fall.  The drive is
between 2 mountain escarpments, desert-like hills on both
sides, lush green cultivated lands in between, with a few
lakes, a reservoir, and a huge dam too.  All thru these
3,000km, the heat was oven-hot, relentless.

R27 joins N7 going south and the Table Mountain is fully
visible some 25 miles away, the city clearly visible at
about 18 miles.  The view is gorgeous, why Cape Town
strikes you as does Rio de Janeiro with its unusual
geography.

On my way back, the oil tank began leaking oil; I had to
park the car and spend the night at a guest-room in the
back of the BP gas station in a place called BRANDVLEI in
North Cape, 550km northeast from Cape Town. population 600,
200 whites, 400 blacks, farmers not counted.  Everyone was
very friendly, helpful, hospitable.

The car was from Alamo/National.  The initial contact to
was difficult, but indeed they sent a car by 8am the next
morning.  IF THIS HAPPENS TO YOU: 1) BE SURE to have a CELL
PHONE, in case you are in the bon docks and there is no
telephone.  (People will stop for you and take you to the
nearest civilization, but have a cell anyway.) 2) Get a
PHONE CARD, if you are at a station.  Lots of people--both
at Emergency and Rental Office--will ask you the same
questions, before help is sent.  (CALL BOTH offices so they
know your status, call again to confirm, GET Names, Tel
Numbers.)  3) If overnight, call again in the morn to make
sure everyone knows your situation, that help is indeed on
the way.  If you arranged the car thru your hostel, call and
let them know too.  (Some of these places are really
boondocks with no one around for miles, hours: HAVE BOTTLES
OF WATER; you dont know how hot hot can get; I know from
Saudi Arabia.)  4) In small towns, blacks too are helpful,
BUT is you can get in touch with a white family/person, let
them know your situation.  Good luck.