10.25

The reason for being morose yesterday was due to a series of unfortunate events that made up the day. The sun was finally out after days of rain and we decided to head to the beach. We arrived and the wind was so strong that we couldn’t stay long, the sand was blowing up everywhere. We left and I convinced Matt to find the print shop that I’d been wanting to go to for days now. We hadn’t realized that it was in a part of town you just do not go into. As we approached the area near “The Wheel”, our uneasiness increased. People stared at us, people began to follow us a bit. We were heckled. We made a wrong turn down an alley and a group of boys were banging on cans and yelling at us. It is in those situations where the only thing you can do is divert your eyes. Luckily they didn’t storm after us, but it they easily could have. In those situations, your safety is no longer in your hands. We sat and rested for awhile, seeking solace in the gym of all places. For us the gym is a safe space, a space you pay a high price for and a space that does not allow poverty inside its doors. Now, please don’t misunderstand me. Not all poverty breeds violence but poverty does sometimes hold hands with violence. And for people mistaken as tourists, this can be alarming.

After leaving, on our way back to hostel, a very aggressive, dirty and heavily tattooed man followed us. He had tattoos and was interested in mine, repeatedly asking where I got mine and how much I paid for it. He was very close to Matt, practically on top of him and trying to reach around him to get to me. We didn’t want to stop to engage him in conversation, it’s sometimes in those instances that you are robbed and attacked, so we kept moving at had to yell at him and cross the street. It was frightening. We finally got inside and crashed out because of the anxiety.

However, I must add that I did hear from Sizani about setting up appointments for the shoots which is terribly exciting! And I received a bottle of South African Merlot for my birthday from an artist who was staying in the hostel, Jethro. He is terribly sweet and unconventional and I’m sorry that he left so soon after someone here called him “dodgy” and he decided the energy was bad. Shame.