The Fairest Cape in the Circumference of the Whole World

Now I can sit here and try to describe how beautiful and amazing Cape Town is, but I'll leave it to the professional writers. But simply said it truly is beautiful. Table Mountain, the waterfront, the colorful buildings, the architecture - spectacular. I'm staying with several other PCVs on Long Street, a thriving avenue with lots of cool shops, eclectic restaurants and opportunities for night life. Which is pretty exciting considering we usually become pumpkins at dark. So far, we've been spending our days walking around town, stumbling upon charming spots like a famous bakery, the District Six museum and the botanical gardens.
For as wonderful as Cape Town is, the karaoke leaves much to be desired. My friends and I ventured to a local bar to partake in the festivities; it's been 11 months since I last took to the stage so I was quite excited. But it's different here. Same equipment, most of the same songs. However, instead of the usual getting a mike in your hand and just having fun, probably making an idiot of yourself, the singers here in South Africa take it very seriously, choosing ballads to display their vocal prowess. We got up for a heartfelt rendition of "Since U Been Gone" and they did not choose us again. I was offended. But apparently gay bars have pretty high standards as opposed to the basement of the Travelodge. Who knew?
Yesterday, my friends and I took a wine tour through Stellenbosch, a nearby wine region. South Africa has some ambrosial wine, especially the reds as the warmer climate produces an excellent red grape. I didn't know much about wine before, but I got to taste a wide variety from several wineries in the region. Delicious wines, along with beautiful scenery: vineyards in the valley cupped by stunning mountains. We stayed in the town of Stellenbosch which is very quaint, comfortable and stunning. An incredibly pleasant stay.
Back in Cape Town. Went to the aquarium today on the waterfront. Honestly a little underwhelming. But anything that wasn't a great white leaping out the water to crunch a seal was bound to be. The ships in the marina were massive and the shopping quite posh.
It's amazing the disparity between the city center/waterfront and the outskirts of town. By the marina, one can shop at Gucci and a ten minute drive down the highway, one can see the townships of tight, tin shacks lining the road. I suppose that occurs all around the world, but for whatever reason it struck me here.
One more day here then back to village life in Lesotho. I'm pretty confident in saying this has been one of my best vacations ever.