Wine, cheese and the Congolese

The weekend really flew by! I was able to get out to the wine region and experience the delicious fruits of the beautiful estates. The area was strikingly similar to the wine country of Northern California, especially Sonoma. From the four estates we visited, I really liked the Pinotages and they also do the cabs well. I had salami and a burger that had been flavored by the Pinotage which were both really good. We also went by the community center which has a program that ensures that the people living in and around the winelands are given proper social services. It was a great day and then last night I went to a a live music club called Rafikis with an Irishman and an Aussie which was fun but it felt like we were back in America and not in Africa. The city center of Cape Town is so Western but then there is a stark difference in the surrounds. The disparity is really unbelievable. I'm anxious to get out to the creches tomorrow and get working. Today I tried walking around for awhile but aside from the bad weather, it was really quiet and most shops were closed so I didn't feel like I should go very far on my own. I do really like where I'm staying since I get to meet people from all over (lots of Dutch and Aussie) and the other night I had a long conversation with Congolese guy who had been a soldier for 15 years which I would have never guessed from his quiet mannerisms. He's here working to take care of his family, including his parents and siblings. It was so interesting to hear his story as he went from a place of prestige (he was actually well known by high-up political leaders like Mbeki and Mugabe) and then to come here to work the security night shift 6 days a week.It was also striking how blase we was about how close he was to being killed so many times but I guess that's from being a trained soldier. There are a lot of people from all over Africa working here and I can see how it would create tension but I thankful that the xenophobic violence hasn't really affected Cape Town.