The New Year has just come and gone and in Cape Town that 
means that Tweede Nuwejaar (Second New Year) has also just come and gone. Tweede Nuwejaar is when the people from Bo-Kaap don their shiny clothes, paint their faces, pick up their instruments and march around the streets of Cape Town to celebrate the new year. It’s a tradition dating back to the slave days of the early Cape settlement and is proudly upheld by Bo-Kaap residents every year.
As you might have guessed from the introduction, Bo-Kaap has its beginnings in slavery, when the Dutch imported slaves from all over Africa, Asia, Indonesia and Malaysia. The people became known as the Cape Malays and have since become famous for their marvellously unique culture and character, which are largely based on Muslim beliefs.
Bo-Kaap is in the centre of Cape Town, right at the foot of Signal Hill. You’ll know it when you see it because the houses are brightly coloured and tightly packed together. The streets are also cobbled instead of tarred. The people are extraordinarily friendly and always keen to welcome tourists to their neighbourhood.
One of the best ways to experience the culture and mingle with the people is to go to the monthly food and craft market. It takes place on the first Saturday of every month (as a rule) and is held at the Schotschekloof Civic Centre, Upper Wale Street. The highlight of the market is the food. Cape Malay food is world renowned for its spicy flavour, particularly its curries and samoosas (spicy savoury pastries).
Another not-to-be-missed stop is the Bo-Kaap Museum, which you’ll find at 71 Wale Street. It’s a small house that is nearly 250 years old. It currently represents a typically 19th century house of the area and features several permanent exhibitions, such as Pattern of Beauty, which contains artifacts and various art forms that depict the spiritual and religious history of Bo-Kaap; and New Year Carnival and the Alibama, which looks at the history of the Tweede Nuwejaar carnival.
Finally, you might want to visit some of the famous mosques in Bo-Kaap, such as Auwal Mosque, the first mosque ever built in South Africa. It’s at 34 Dorp Street. The Palm Tree Mosque is the second oldest mosque in Bo-Kaap and Jamia Mosque on Lower Chiappini Street is the first mosque in Bo-Kaap that was granted land specifically for a mosque site. It is the biggest mosque in the area.
Hire a car in Cape Town and drive to the Bo-Kaap by all means, but keep your walking shoes on because the best way to experience the neighbourhood is by foot.
(Image by neiljs, CC by 2.0, via Flickr)
