Zayd Minty’s ‘Creative Cape Town’ Walking Tour
Start your tour at St Andrew’s Square on the corner of Buitengracht Street and Somerset Road, a welcome oasis between the city and Green Point to rest and contemplate the roots of our city. The square commemorates Cape Town’s history of slavery and was designed by acclaimed architect Lucien le Grange. The ossuary and Interpretation Centre will eventually house the bones of slaves recently found in Prestwich Street.
Walk up Buitengracht to Rose Street and into the historic Bo-Kaap. Admire the colourful houses and many minarets of mosques that dot this largely Muslim neighbourhood. Near the corner of Shortmarket and Rose streets are two exceptional organisations: the MonkeyBiz retail shop and Streetwires open craft studio provide some of the best in local crafts. The well-known Carol Boyes also has her functional art business at this intersection.
As you walk past Heritage Square on Shortmarket, remember it was a unique creative development that turned these historic buildings into the popular restaurant and shopping site it is today. To your right is St Stephen’s, another connection to our slave history, and the first theatre in South Africa, having opened in 1801.
As you cross Bree Street, you’ll see Bright House (a local furniture design store) to your right and further along the road, the Photographers’ Gallery ZA, one of a cluster of important galleries dealing in contemporary art in the central city and Woodstock, which is fast becoming Cape Town’s most exciting creative hub. South African art is selling like hot cakes internationally.
That fabulous dinner theatre On Broadway is across the road in a big, blue building which has housed many a club in its earlier days. It hosts some top performers so be sure to make a booking.
When you reach Long Street, pause to ponder its popularity as a ‘creative street’ and mark it for a visit, or a repeat visit. This is where you’ll find the edgy young energy that drives Cape Town’s creative milieu. Peruse shopping gems such as the Pan African Market, Clarke’s Bookshop (a must for bibliophiles), the fashion store MeMeMe (run by artist Doreen Southwood) and the African Music Store as well as great eateries, bars and cafes such as Fork, Portobello, Mesopotamia, Masala Dosa, Mr Pickwicks, Neighbourhood, Royale, Julep, Joburg, and Lolas.
For late-night revelry there are brilliant live music venues and clubs like Zula Bar and Fiction. The rooms of the Daddy Long Legs hotel were designed by different artists, making it a good spot to spend the night after a busy club crawl (that’s if you’re lucky enough to get a booking).
Continue down Shortmarket Street and past Greenmarket Square, where you can haggle for crafts and clothing from South Africa and Africa, or stop at the Townhouse Museum to view some art. Have a cappuccino at one of the many cafes and restaurants adjoining this important square, one of the main sites of the earliest commercial activity in colonial Cape Town and now a much-loved, pedestrian-friendly haven.
Crossing Adderley Street into Darling Street, you’ll pass two relatively new residential developments, Cartwrights Corner and Mutual Heights. Both have been instrumental in bringing residents back into the central city. The latter is a great development that respects the Art Deco magnificence of what was once the continent’s tallest building.
You are now entering what is planned as a cultural precinct for the city, which will include parts of the East City, the Company’s Garden and the Labia Theatre on Orange Street. On your left you will come to the historic Grand Parade where soldiers have marched since 1652 and which today boasts the oldest market (more than 100 years) in South Africa. The Grand Parade is due for a major upgrade over the next few months in preparation for 2010. The magnificent City Hall across the road is planned as a premier music venue by 2010. The busy central library will move to a newly renovated home at the Drill Hall next door.
Darling Street is the site of numerous colourful processions throughout the year, most dramatically on ‘Tweede Nuwe Jaar’ when the streets are taken over by the ‘Klopse’ bands during the annual Minstrel Carnival, now in its centenary year.
On the corner of Buitengracht Street is the Castle of Good Hope, the oldest building in the country, which hosts an open studio for artists, The Good Hope Studios. Take in the Castle’s history and visit the studio. You can even buy art directly from artists.
Walk up Buitengracht towards the mountain and you’ll arrive at the poetically beautiful District Six Museum. You’ll pass the museum’s new development – the old Sacks Futeran complex, aimed at serving the returning community of District Six – as well as the historic Granary building planned as a creative industries hub.
From the museum take Albertus Street east. If you look carefully you will notice that a host of creative industries have moved into the area – fashion designers, photographers, architects, filmmakers and graphic designers –reflecting the growing symbolic industries in our city.
Turn right and pass the trendy new live music venue The Assembly where you can catch alternative and electro music on most nights.
At 75 on Harrington is the Cape Craft and Design Institute. Pick up some great gifts or go upstairs to the Fab Lab to see how technology can transform the design of craft objects.
Walk down Harrington and stop for a Portuguese steak at the ever popular Dias Tavern on the corner of Harrington and Caledon. To end your tour, walk back to Darling and turn right, walking until you come to Distrix Cafe. Have a drink in the rock garden, admire the graffiti art of Faith and Falco and, if you’re lucky, catch some live music. Next door is a school started by Abdullah Ibrahim, the musical legend from the Mother City whose famous song ‘Mannenberg’ has become an internationally recognised jazz standard.
Zayd Minty is the co-ordinator of Creative Cape Town, a programme of the Cape Town Partnership that uses culture to promote a more diverse, vibrant central city.
To join a walking tour of the city, contact the Cape Town Partnership by logging on to www.capetownpartnership.co.za.