Bo Kaap, Cape Town
The great thing about being part of the last generation of letter writers is that today, along with my perpetually packed inbox , is that I still have all the actual postcards tucked away neatly in a box in my cupboard. After spending eight years writing to each other as pen pals from across the world I finally had the chance of meeting Tahir (@tahirmohamed) for the first time in person and it was nothing short of phenomenal.
With just under three hours together - before jet setting back to Johannesburg. It didn't take much convincing before Tahir talked me into a quick guided tour of Bo-Kaap; one of Cape Town's most colourful suburbs. Situated at the foot of Signal Hill, Bo-Kaap is the spiritual home of the Cape's Muslim community. Many of the residents are descendants of slaves from Malaysia, Indonesia and various African countries from the 16th and 17th centuries. These houses are well worth a visit from both a historical as well as an aesthetically point of view!
Photography: Tahir Mohamed
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Tahir Mohamed
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Tahir Mohamed
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Li-Chi Pan
Photography: Sarah Cheng
Address
71 Wale St, Cape Town, 8001, South Africa
In an attempt to retain the grand, historic public rooms of the 1860s and 1920s - of which the Café Royal was famed for - these Grade II listed spaces have been carefully restored.
I had the pleasure of staying here for two nights - come and see my photo diary and what I got up to.