Walk to Work

We are fortunate to be within walking distance of the UCT campus, and since we both work in that area (Jim in ‘upper campus’ in the Center for Open Learning, and Jul next to ‘middle campus’ at 2 Way Travel), we are privileged – as we see it! – to enjoy the 15-20 walking commute.

Here are a couple of photos from some sights along the way: our street (Alma Road) and what we see when we step out our front gate and head out in the morning:

the new “Alma Café” down the road...

our neighborhood metro train stop – we go through the tunnel under the tracks and continue up the hill to campus...

at Lower Campus, Jim gets on the campus shuttle and rides up the hill to his office (saves about 15 min of walking). Jul keeps walking though, up to the 2 Way Travel Office on Middle Campus...

A drive to Montagu

We recently spent a weekend in Montagu, a neat little town in the mountains about two hours from Cape Town. A lovely drive - and incredible geology!

Super 14 Rugby

One of the major professional rugby tournaments in South Africa includes teams from three countries: Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Between the three, there are 14 squads, so the league is called ‘Super 14’.


As rugby is one of the most popular sports in this country (the others being cricket and soccer), we wanted to experience it live with some friends. Since the game we chose was an evening match, we invited the others over for an early dinner beforehand. What started as a party of 4 grew to a crowd of 15! We made loads of pasta while others supplied the bread, salad and drinks. After supper we headed over to the stadium, located just a 5 minute drive from our flat. Despite the rain pouring down during the game and soaking the fans, it was a very fun event! The highlight of the game (other than seeing a stadium vendor selling “hot choc” from a large plastic container carried on his back and dispensed through a hose at his side) was when the home team, the Stormers, scored a tri by blocking the opposing team’s kick, then recovering the ball and racing it over the end line – right in front of our seats! (A tri is worth five points and is equivalent to a touchdown in American football)

High School Rugby

Rugby is one of the two most popular sports in South Africa (the other being cricket). The Rugby World Cup was just getting underway when we first arrived in South Africa in June, 2007. Friends helped us to get a handle of the game’s rules as we cheered the Springboks on to victory – they brought home the gold trophy with a win over England in the final.

Just as many boys in the U.S. grow up playing one or several of the typical American sports – basketball, soccer, baseball, and football – the same is true in this country, except that rugby and cricket are the sports of choice. However, on the high school level it seems that rugby is the more popular of the two. For example, the school pictured here has 21 teams!

A friend of ours coaches one of the teams at Rondebosch Boys High School, located just a kilometer from us. So on a recent Saturday morning we walked down to RBHS for the first game of the rugby season. Unfortunately they did not emerge victorious, but it was great fun to breathe in the autumn air and join with hundreds of others in urging on 22 youngsters as they bashed into each other sans pads, helmets, or any other protective gear (Yikes! When I put it like that, it’s a rather scary thought…although I doubt American football is much safer, even with its added padding). I always loved autumn in the U.S., for that brought both the beautiful colors and crisp air of the season but also football. While it is an adjustment to experience autumn in April, I won’t have a problem appreciating this staple of the South African sporting landscape.

Surprised? YES!

(admittedly, this post is over two weeks late due to our difficulties with internet access…but here it is anyway!)

It was early afternoon on Wednesday when I (Jul), arriving home from work, rounded the corner of our apartment block and headed up the steps to our front door. Suddenly I drew up short and my heart was arrested as I saw a sleeping body laying on a duffel bag immediately in front of our door. But then in a split second, the person awoke, raised her head and our eyes met – Rachel? Rachel! How…?!

Yes, she surprised us for a five day visit, en route from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe (visiting Craig’s current ministry) back to Kampala, Uganda, via Johannesburg. Without telling us her plans, she moved her flight to Kampala back five days and found a cheap ticket down to Cape Town.* So we were totally amazed to see her and be able to spend a few precious days together, celebrating her recent engagement and ‘mourning’ her forthcoming departure from Fort Portal (UG). Though the weather was quite wintry and cold (especially inside our flat, since we’ve yet to get a space heater and indoor heating doesn’t exist here – thank goodness for the new blanket we just purchased), we enjoyed cooking together, sharing stories and photos and laughs, going to church, a short hike up to Rhodes Memorial, lunch at the Waterfront, and several episodes of ‘The Amazing Race’ on dvd. Hopefully we will be together again at Christmas time – and next time with ALL the Hawkins siblings together!

*for those of you not looking at a map of Africa, Johannesburg is south of Bulawayo – a 15 hour bus ride – and the airport from which flights depart South Africa for Uganda. Cape Town, however, is a 2-hour flight southwest from Jo-burg, so Rachel had to get on a plane and go out of her way to see us. Upon leaving us, she flew back to Jo-burg, then on to Kampala, then took a bus home to Fort Portal the following day. Now that’s a long trip! And now…go look it up on a map!