I am making the MSP-CPT run a few times over the next next. In August I will be there for 7 days. Any suggestions of what I should see\do?

I am thinking about bringing my spouse in November. We are mixed race (she White, I'm Black) and in our 40's. We want to do the Garden\Wine Route and stay in B&Bs. What are the issues we might encounter?

Great question, ewj... I asked the reservations folks at Chitwa Chitwa the same thing before we went. We're a mixed-race latino/white gay male couple, but we never got a sideways glance, either in Jo'burg/Cape Town or in the bush. The Garden Route is more rural, and we didn't go, but I get the sense that you'll be OK if you stay on the well-traveled routes.

What people did notice about us far more -- black, white, and "colored" (South Africa's old apartheid-era term for Indians, Malaysians, and other non-black non-Europeans) -- was that we were American. And they all wanted to remind us how lucky we were to live in the United States.

As to what to do in Cape Town & around South Africa, there's lots of posts elsewhere in this forum. Enjoy your travels!

David

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AIM: RutherfordMurray

My boyfriend and I were in Capetown and Joburg last year (we are also a mixed couple) and there were absolutely no problems. South Africans seemed more amused by the fact that we were speaking French the entire time together (he's from West Africa)!! He had some real concerns before coming, but he really enjoyed the experience.

That said, I do recall that the lonely planet mentioned a rural town on the cape that was considered "conservative" (although I'm not exactly certain what that may mean), we never ended up going there. I would read up in lonely planet on some of the towns you'd like to stay in just to see what they say.

I'm sure after your first few trips there you'll get more of an idea of how things are, and I bet you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Have a great time.