It has never bothered me that I don't have a television here; it's never seemed important, and in truth, it's very liberating to have less of a reliance on the comforts of the tube. That goes until I cannot watch the final round of the Masters beyond minute internet clips. I was lucky enough to be in a local sports bar that was showing the Thursday round, but beyond that lucky break, I guess I'll have to rely on the good old internet for my updates. I'm hoping for the current leader Trevor Immelman to win. He's South African!
When you're not distracted by CNN or Man vs Wild reruns, you find some pretty amazing stuff to do. This past weekend has been one of my favorites here, so far. Friday night was spent at a popular local restaurant/bar called Mama Africa, where I had some really good Zimbabwean chicken dish in a peanut butter sauce. Delicious. I mean, peanut butter?! How could it not be? Mama Africa is also well known for its live music. The night we went, there was a marimba band playing, which sounded really cool. Think "Under the Sea" in The Little Mermaid.
Saturday, yesterday, was a ridiculous day. It's not often that you get to pet cheetahs and go on wine tastings within the same afternoon. We went to Spier vineyards in Stellenbosch, about a half an hour outside of town. It's the most idyllic place- manicured rows of vines in patches of differing greens, sitting lazily on low and rolling hills. Spier was immaculate- the complex was designed around a lake full of swans, and there was plenty of open grass to picnic and relax on. 
We first went to the cheetah preserve on the premises, which was founded as a means of protecting cheetahs and educating people about them. I got to pet Enigma, a three-year old male cheetah who was pretty sleepy and adorable. Evan, Josh, and Amy pet the 11-month-old cheetah cubs, which was about the cutest thing I think I've ever seen.
After visiting the cheetahs we went to Spier's deli and bought some deli stuff to make sandwiches with. I had been missing a proper deli sandwich, and I have to say it was one of my favorite lunches to date. The scenery was beautiful, and the weather could not have been more conducive to a relaxed afternoon spent outside. We did a tasting of Spier's wines after lunch and reveled in the fact that 10 rand buys a tasting of Spier's select wines. I have to say it wasn't my favorite wine, but I wasn't complaining as I sat underneath the shady veranda, glass in hand.
I felt sleepy on the short trip home, and ended up having a relaxed night in my apartment, reading a great book called A City Imagined. The book is a series of essays written by authors, poets, actors, professors, and other people who have lived in Cape Town. It's amazing to read an essay and to know the places that the author mentions, having been there and knowing its implications. The topics of the essays are as different as the authors writing them, ranging from an essay on Main Road, the oldest road in Cape Town and the one I live on, to getting lost in the Newlands forest at the base of Table Mountain, to performing in the local theatre. The coolest thing about it is that the editor of the book is actually lecturing in my literature class this week, so I can't wait to hear what he has to say about it.
This morning, I awoke to a knock at my door around 10am. My friends Evan and Paul were waiting outside my door, backpacks at the ready, coming to get me for a hike in Kalk Bay. We took the train to Kalk Bay, one of the series of towns along the beaches of False Bay. If I were to live in Cape Town for the rest of my life, I would live in an earthy wooden house in the hills above Kalk Bay. Primarily for its laid-back and bohemian approach to life, but also for its breathtaking views of the Indian Ocean, this little alcove has become one of our favorite places in the whole of Cape Town. Paul, Evan, our friend Lydia and I explored the mountains behind the town, following a very well marked hiking trail that led to a type of ampitheatre amidst rocky outcrops at the top.
The crazy thing is, once you reach a certain elevation, the condensed clouds become difficult to see though, and you hike through a cool, incredible haziness. We came across this little sitting area on our way up, surrounded by mossy vines.
It was a breathtaking hike, and I'm so glad to have gone, especially after my relatively lazy day at Spier the day before.
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