wow

is pretty much the only word that comes to mind. Look at my map ... omigod, we've crossed the ocean! Coming into the Cape Town harbor around 6:30 this morning:















they weren't kidding when they said the approach was beautiful. Table Mountain (the flat topped mountain in the photos above) often has cloud-cover over it which is referred to as a "tablecloth". This morning, though, the sky was clear. The city is nestled just in front to the left, between the mountains and the harbor.

After the (literally) awesome entrance into the harbor, I went back to my cabin and took a nap. I stayed up wayyyy too late last night in the faculty/staff lounge & I knew that the early awakening would be bad. Then breakfast, a shower, the diplomatic briefing, and an address by Ibrahim Rasool, the Premier of Cape Town. The diplomatic briefings (I'm told & proven by experience thus far) vary significantly in quality, but this morning was quite excellent. The Premier was really enjoyable and the event was of course enhanced by the presence of the Archbishop and his wife, Leah, who boarded this morning to meet up with her husband after about a month (I've been gone a month!). They were unbearably cute:









Then, Robin & I disembarked and walked around the waterfront a bit. Seals hangin' out by the ship:



for all the croc-loving folk out there:



and then there was an art & architectural tour. We first went to a stunningly colorful Muslim neighborhood. The residents of Bo-Kaap are mostly descended from slaves who were imported to the Cape by the Dutch during the the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. (http://www.bokaap.co.za/attractions/history.html)







From there, we drove to St. Georges Cathedral, which is Gothic with Muslim influences.



There is a beautiful Rose stained glasses window:



and a labyrinth which a bunch of us walked:



and the seat of the Archbishop. Tutu led freedom marches from this site.



We walked from there up past the Dutch-East India Company gardens, the Parliament, the President's residence when he visits Cape Town, the Library, and the synagogue (both of which I hope to return to). The synagogue is closed to tourists today & tomorrow for Shabbat. I may (or more likely, may not) get up to go to services tomorrow morning.



Then we went to the South African Museum, where they had a great rock art exhibit going on:



and the Africa Gold Museum, which was kind of cool. Jewelry & ornaments and such.



These knives were used for circumcision:



And on the way back to the ship, the road to nowhere:



the guide said there are several stories. Among them, 1) they ran out of money, and 2) there was a construction error and it would cost too much to fix. She said advertising companies often do commercials up there because they can shoot a highway scene without having to pay to get roads closed. I thought this was all pretty funny!

And finally, Robin & Gloria & Sherri & I had a lovely dinner on the waterfront. Not at all an African restaurant, but very pleasant nonetheless. We sat outside and ate good seafood and, after a very full day, it was a very enjoyable ending. Certainly, South Africa has a complex and troubled history. Judyie and the Archbishop and the Premier and the other foreign service diplomats we heard this morning, they all have said: look for the miracle in this city ... listen for it ... feel the miracle .... We've been here less than 24 hours. I could totally live in Cape Town.