Locks on the go

I just finished a wonderful visit to Cape Town in South Africa.  This was a business trip, but I had to squeeze in some fun.  I have an adventurous palate and had a great time trying out some weird and wonderful dishes.  There are a gazilion types of  restaurants to choose from in Cape Town and I did try quite a few different types.

This is a dish with Kudu and Springbok (two types of Antelope) and Ostrich.  The white thing is called Pap. Some people call it polenta and in Jamaica we call it "Turn Corn Meal".  This was a truly delicious meal.









The next unusual thing that I tried was crocodile.  I was definitely not sure that I would like this, so I decided to try just a small amount, so I ordered a crocodile kebab.  It was really very, very tasty.

I was really surprised that being in Africa, I didn't see more natural hairstyles.  Most of the black women had relaxed hair, wigs and weaves.  Imagine my absolute delight one evening when I went out to dinner with a colleague and his wife. When I met the wife for the first time and I saw her head of gorgeous traditional locks, I almost fell out of my seat with excitement. I was dying to ask her about her hair, but I didn't want to be impolite.  At the appropriate time in the evening I complimented her hair, and it turns out that she was just as excited to see my hair.  She didn't know what it was - twists? Glued on hair?  When I told her it was sisterlocks, and it was my own hair, she was even more curious.  So I explained to her how it was done and I gave her a demo on one of my loose locks, using my fingers.  She asked me to send her pictures of my hair.  She is a dermatologist, and is quite distressed at the huge amount of hair damage and hair loss that she sees in her patients who relax their hair.

My locks did very, very well on the trip.  Here are a couple of pictures. Along my journey, I stopped off in London to visit with relatives, and again, my hair created quite a stir among my aunts and cousins. They all want to have my hairstyle.  They all hesitated though, when I told them that it is permanent. Nope, can't undo them!!

Here I am at the Victoria and Albert Waterfront.

Here I am with my new friend in her stall at the Pan African Market.  If you are ever in Cape Town and you want some authentic African art, crafts, masks, etc. then this is the place to check out. I got some really nice batiks, tablecloths and necklaces from her.  And I haggled with her and got what I thought were some great bargains.

I couldn't resist posing beside this big fellow.

Just a sampling of the hundreds of masks from which to choose.

I am freezing here during an early morning walk with giraffes on a safari.