In August 2010, I traveled to Cape Town accompanied by my wife, Malka, daughter, Limor,and son-in-law, Haggai. It was a family visit to see my mother, Freda Klein, who for health reasons, was unable to attend my daughter’s wedding. It was great seeing her and the rest of my family,sister,Hilary, husband Ralph and my nieces Belinda and Gaynor with their young children and respective spouses, David and Richard. In between we took time out to show my daughter and her husband the beauty of Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula with its rich natural heritage. The scenes speak for themselves. The summit of Table Mountain with its incredible views of Cape Town is amazing.
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World Cup Preview of this great city. I was lucky enough to visit for a 4 day whirlwind trip in early May 2010, and put together this scenic and atmospheric recollection.

Projects Abroad Human Rights 2 Week Special in Cape Town, South Africa. Footage includes some of Cape Town’s beautiful scenery, wildlife, townships & volunteers. The children are at ‘Where Rainbows Meet’, a training and development foundation based in Vrygrond, the oldest informal settlement in Western Cape. Learn more about them here: whererainbowsmeet.org.za From the Projects Abroad website: (www.projects-abroad.org “Projects Abroad is the leading volunteer abroad organization. We offer a diverse range of international service projects, plus the opportunity to become part of one of our volunteer communities abroad. Our continuous presence overseas and unparalleled in-country support from our international staff ensure that your experience will be far more worthwhile and genuine than those of the average tourist.” Music is “Wavin’ Flag” by K’naan.

The BKM Neighbourhood watch — www.bkmwatch.org.za — coordinated a candlelight vigil on Tuesday 13 April 2010 from 6.30pm. Local residents congregated at the Ladies Mile Circle. Residents voiced their abhorrence of crime and stood together in the candlelight vigil as a demonstration of unity in their demand for a crime-free suburb and country. Residents brought lanterns, candles or torches, joining each other to form a symbol of peace. This candle light vigil coincided with the anniversary of the date of the murder of Jane van Zyl, a BKM resident. This vigil was to commemorate not only the wonderful Jane, but also all other persons murdered and those who have been victims of crime throughout our beautiful land. 5000 homes in the BKM area each received a pamphlet with a symbolic candle one week prior to the Vigil. There was an unprecedented presence of SAPS, Metro, Traffic, EMT and other law enforcement agencies and related role players including private security service providers. BKM coordinated similar candlelight vigils in other suburbs — to remember those that had lost their lives to crime – as a statement of unity by residents – as an act of hope. NWatches that did a vigil on the same night as a show of solidarity for a safer South Africa included: Houtbay, Camps Bay, Kloof Street, Tamboerskloof, City Bowl, Observatory, Constantia Hills, Tokai, Nova Constantia, Durbanville, Seawinds, Strandfontein, Stellenbosch, Plumstead, Constantia, Nova Constantia, Tokai …
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This is the fifth video in the series to promote responsible tourism in South Africa. From our first destination, Cape Town. We continue our walking tour with a local friend and tour guide (Siviwe Mbinda) for walking tour around Langa – the first black township in Cape Town. We get to see how the resourceful locals have coped with the effects of climate change in thier communities, we visit a local sheep’s head restaurant, Siwive explains how the community is benefiting from the influx of tourism in the township and we witness the kids from the Happy Feet Dance Group perform their spectacular version of the Gumboot Dance! Along the journey, we will also provide our message and discovery, including some useful tips and advice for tourists who are planning on traveling to South Africa, and how they may become more responsible on the road in reducing their impact. Follow the Mynatour team on their exciting trip around South Africa – 6000kms in 28 days. mynatour.org/diary Visiting places such as Cape Town, Albertinia, Lions Head, Langa, Durban, Johannesburg, Soweto, Fair Trade Tourism South Africa, Saint Lucia, Port Elizabeth, Kruger National Park, Table Mountain National Park, Wild Coast, Port St. Johns, Panorama Route, Garden Route, Guineafowl, Timbavati, Graskop, Western Cape, Zululand, Swaziland, Manzini, East London, Cintsa, Cintsa West, Cape St. Lucia, St. Lucia Marine Sanctuary, St. Lucia, St. Lucia Wetland Park, Cape Vidal, Blyde Ricer In collaboration with Fair Trade …
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This 39 minute documentary gives an overview of the Lausanne Movement’s Cape Town 2010 Congress held in October 2010. A short version (14 minutes) is also available at www.youtube.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Windsurfing in Cape Town, South Africa… all footage is from the last couple of weeks in feb/march 2010. I was injured for most of jan/feb so it was good to finally get back on the water before going home. Try not to laugh at the lowest double attempt ever!! haha..

Even though tickets for all eight World Cup™ games to be played at the city’s new 68 000 seat stadium have been reserved, FIFA said that a few tickets may still be released for sale to the public.

“Tickets for these games might still come back (in small quantities) to the public sales in the future,” FIFA said in a statement.

For updates on the availability of World Cup™ matches, click here.

The final phase of ticket sales on Thursday 15 April 2010 saw huge demand across the country, with just over 100 000 tickets sold within the first day. The last remaining tickets for Cape Town matches were snapped up on a first-come, first-served basis within a day.

The opening of the 11 FIFA Ticketing Centres across the country also means that fans can now collect tickets reserved and paid for during previous ticket sales phases.

Fans will need to produce their ID/passport, FIFA Original Ticket Confirmation, and proof of residence (such as telephone/ utility account) for Category four tickets, which are reserved for South Africans only.

Cape Town’s official FIFA Ticketing Centre is at The Spearhead, 42 Hans Strijdom Avenue, Foreshore, and is open from 09:00 to 18:00 seven days a week.

A FIFA Ticket Terminal will also be located at Cape Town International Airport from 7 June to 11 July 2010.

Tickets are not issued by the host city, and all queries relating to games and tickets must be directed to FIFA.

FIFA hotline number: 083 123 2010
FIFA enquiries: enquiries@2010fwctc.co.za or visit www.fifa.com/201.

Interested parties are invited to one of the following City of Cape Town briefing sessions to find out more about 2010 event sites and application and selection procedures:

• CCDI Offices, 75 Harrington Street, Cape Town: 29 April, 10:00 – 12:00
• Goodwood Library Hall, cnr McDonald, Voortrekker and Church Streets, Goodwood: 30 April, 10:00 – 12:00
• Crush Room, 5th floor, Cape Town Civic Centre, Cape Town: 5 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Lookout Hill, cnr Mew Way and Spine Road, Khayelitsha: 5 May, 14:00 – 16:00
• Guga’Sthebe Cultural Centre, Washington Street, Langa: 6 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Fish Hoek Civic Centre, Central Circle, Recreation Road, Fish Hoek: 6 May, 14:00 – 16:00
• Somerset West Hall, 91 Main Street, Somerset West (Next to Standard Bank): 7 May, 10:00 – 12:00
• Thusong Centre, cnr AZ Berman and Kilimanjaro, Tafelsig, Mitchells Plain: 7 May, 14:00 – 16:00

All applications will be subject to a selection process to ensure that products to be sold:

• do not infringe on the FIFA trademarks and rights protection programme
• do not include brands of official sponsors, or their competitors
• are handmade in the Western Cape
• are appropriate for the target market, and are of good quality

In addition, successful participants will need to:

• attend a compulsory briefing and training session in the first week of June
• sign a contract with the event organisers
• pay a fee for the hire of retail space within event sites to the respective event organisers
• subject their products to quality testing by a panel from the Cape Craft and Design Institute

Application forms may be obtained from and returned to the Cape Craft and Design Institute, which will manage this process on behalf of the City. Forms are available at the briefing sessions. Completed applications must be e-mailed to thandeka.tyatyantsi@ccdi.org.za or preferably delivered, with samples, to Cape Craft & Design Institute, 75 Harrington Street, Cape Town (tel: 021 461 1488). Application forms and samples must be submitted by 12:00 on 12 May 2010.

“It’s just an amazing stadium, and all the teams who play in Cape Town, will play in a perfect place.”

Without wanting to be biased regarding other host cities, he said Cape Town is “one of the most beautiful in the country”.

He was visiting the city’s 68 000 seater stadium as part of the FIFA Local Organising Committee “state of readiness” roadshow of 2010 World Cup™ facilities in South Africa on Monday, 1 March 2010.

Valcke addressed 125 national and international journalists, along with Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato, and Head of the Local Organising Committee, Dr Danny Jordaan.

Valcke added that the Cape Town Stadium rye grass pitch will be treated as a benchmark for all other new World Cup stadiums.

The visit came one day ahead of the official 100 days until kickoff. Celebratory events were held countrywide.

The City of Cape Town celebrated this milestone with a media event at Signal Hill to launch the official 2010 FIFA World Cup™ coin, which has been specially created in honour of the tournament. Mayor Dan Plato kicked off a soccer ball to mark the occasion.

The City has also urged Capetonians to wear soccer shirts or jerseys in support of this occasion.

Valcke said that South Africa’s preparations for the World Cup™ were largely on track, and the country as a whole is 80% ready to host the tournament.

Curious residents and visitors to the city who were not able to attend one of the successful test events held at the new facility can now for the first time visit the new 68 000-seat stadium, which will host eight 2010 FIFA World Cup™ matches.

The Cape Town Stadium Visitor Centre opened on 9 February, and is open on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Hour-long tours commence at 10:00, 12:00 and 14:00. Prices are R30 for adults, and R15 for pensioners and children.

School tours are also available, at R10 per child.

The tours are run by the operators of the stadium, SAIL STADEFRANCE.

The tour of the stadium includes the stands, players’ changing rooms, VIP/hospitality area and prison cell. Access to the pitch is, however, not permitted.

The first signed soccer and rugby ball brought in the stadium also feature.

Directions: From the new raised Green Point traffic circle, take the entrance closest to McDonalds, and park near the site of the old stadium. Enter via the entrance on Granger Bay Boulevard at entrance C onto the podium.

For more information, call 021 430 7346.

Thembinkosi Siganda, the City’s Director: Economic and Human Development, explains the City’s strategy: “The City provides funding and strategic guidance to sector bodies (special purpose vehicles that have been established by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape in conjunction with the City) to facilitate industry development through sector specific interventions. These interventions are intended to enhance sustainable growth and competitiveness in identified sectors, which contribute to the city’s economy. The City is collaborating with these sector bodies to market Cape Town as a competitive destination ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ opportunities.”

These sector bodies, which include the Cape Film Commission (CFC), Cape Town Boat Building and Technology Initiative, Business Process enabling South Africa (BPeSA) Western Cape, Cape Town Tourism, Oil & Gas, the Cape Information and Technology Initiative, and the Western Cape Investment & Trade Promotion Agency (Wesgro), submit reports on a quarterly basis to the City. These reports highlight the activities they have undertaken to promote the priority sectors.

In the latest reports covering the period October to December 2009, the CFC reported that they had, during this period, provided strategic and logistical support to Cape Media Services to, amongst others, maximise media exposure for Cape Town and deliver efficient media support services. Cape Media Services was launched in partnership with the City and the Provincial Government of the Western Cape.

The CFC in conjunction with Cape Media Services showcased their production services and locations available for filming during the World Broadcasters meeting in December at the CTICC. This meeting was attended by at least 400 broadcasters from across the world. By doing this, the CFC has successfully managed to convince the BBC to base its main studio in Cape Town prior to and during the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. This means that they will showcase Cape Town to at least 200 million viewers. The BBC will procure services from local production companies and other related broadcast services.

The CFC also provided content to Cape Town TV and FIFA TV to showcase sport, arts and culture on the Cape Flats and took various broadcast delegations on tours of Cape Town. This has been undertaken in order to market the city’s readiness for the World Cup and beyond.

The Cape Craft and Design Institute (CCDI) has been promoting 2010 products made by local crafters for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

The CCDI participated in the Small Business Week, the Soccerex 2009 Expo and the December Long Street Final Draw Festival to showcase 2010 related products. In addition, the CCDI achieved media coverage by being interviewed on local and international media. This world-wide media exposure has been providing valuable marketing opportunities for locally produced soccer inspired products and their creators.

Apart from engaging with various stakeholders, the CCDI also focussed on preparing craft producers and informing them of FIFA guidelines by holding briefing sessions in the rural areas in the Stellenbosch and Eden District Municipalities and producing a monthly newsletter on 2010 updates.

Wesgro has been promoting the Western Cape as a lucrative destination of global business with exhibitions at Soccerex 2009 in Johannesburg, the World Economic Forum at the CTICC as well as hosting a 2010 themed investor breakfast at the CTICC in addition to participating in the annual ICT exhibition in the CTICC.

Wesgro has not only been focussing on attracting investors, but has also been extending invitations to non-accredited journalists to visit the Western Cape during the 2010 World FIFA Cup™. This is done with the view of showcasing priority sectors as well as 2010 initiatives to the world.

Raising awareness around the City’s readiness for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ is also one of Wesgro’s priorities, which is why they have been working towards publishing the ‘Invest in Western Cape’ publication. This will feature the City’s marketing collateral and is scheduled to be launched in March this year.

Cape Information & Technology Initiative (CITI) during this period has also been instrumental in marketing Cape Town’s readiness for the World Cup. CITI attended the Third Global Forum on Business Incubation in Brazil in October 2009, where they marketed the City’s 2010 readiness. CITI has also continued running the City’s 2010 readiness DVD at the Bandwith Barn premises.

“It is not only the tourist industry that will benefit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup™. The eyes of the world will be focused on South Africa during the year which enables our promotional bodies to better market the Cape Town brand. In addition, people with business interests will be among the visitors coming to Cape Town to watch the games which provides local businesses with the chance to showcase their products and services as well as to establish contacts for more long term relationships. It is the responsibility of the various sector support bodies to be the conduit to help local businesses access the business opportunities that will result from holding the world’s greatest soccer tournament in our country,” says Alderman Felicity Purchase, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Development and Tourism.

Cape Town motorists are going to have to suffer short-term pain for long-term gain, we explained, as we all endure a series of planned roadworks aimed at significantly improving the city’s transport infrastructure ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

And now it’s 2010 – almost two years later. And that short-term pain was not only nowhere near as painful as we feared it would be, but now it’s over, at least for those of us who got used to squeezing through Hospital Bend.

The new routes – inbound and outbound – will be opened in two phases during March 2010, but finishing work will continue for about a month afterwards.

Bertie Byker, Head: Operations Integration, Roads & Stormwater, reminds us that one of the most important elements of the work was the accommodation of traffic. “Road users were hardly inconvenienced during construction,” he says, “and everything, the sequence of execution, available work areas and methods of construction (using overhead gantries) was determined for road users’ convenience.

“The only times that lanes were closed or restricted was during nighttime off-peaks.”

Hospital Bend is an important link between the CBD and airport as well as the residential area of Khayelitsha.

The Hospital Bend Interchange upgrade included the following key elements:

• Rhodes Drive (M3) inbound was widened on the left-hand side, creating an extra lane before the N2 merge
• A pre-selection lane from the M3 (inbound) to Hospital Bend was created, which included the widening of the bridge over Settlers Way and upgrading of the M3 to N2 outbound loop all on new alignments
• The N2 inbound was provided with an extra lane (third lane) and the vertical re-alignment of the N2 underneath the bridge to provide an acceptable vertical clearance
• Hospital Bend to M3 outbound lane was widened
• A new overpass bridge for Anzio Road on-ramp towards Cape Town
• A new pre-selection lane from Upper De Waal Drive (M3) to Hospital Bend (outbound) was constructed, which included new bridge across the westbound (inbound) carriageway
• Upgraded signage, barrier walls and other guard rails
• Resurfacing, new street lights, upgrading of the stormwater system, and landscaping within the road reserve

The total project budget was R263 million (excluding VAT), and it is expected that the work will be completed soon, within budget and on time.

The following Gallows Hill facilities will be the most severely affected over the three-month period between 1 May and 31 July 2010:

• The Vehicle Testing Station (VTS)
• The Driving Licence Testing Centre’s (DLTC) ‘test track’
• The ‘driver test routes’
• The learner’s licence classes
• The public parking facility

All Gallows Hills driving licence competency tests and vehicle roadworthy tests will be suspended during this period due to the closure of the VTS and test track. Learner’s licence classes will also be suspended from mid-June 2010 to mid-July 2010. Residents are therefore encouraged to use any of the City’s 17 other DLTCs during this three month period. For a complete list, click here.

Gallows Hill DLTC will, however, be open for a limited number of transactions such as card renewals, card collections, appointments and payment of traffic fines.

Every effort will be made to have the new Fish Hoek DLTC fully operational by May 2010 to help cope with the expected increase in driving licence competency tests.

Additional testing officers will be made available at Parow, Milnerton and Bellville DLTCs to assist with the expected increase in the number of competency tests that will be channelled to these testing centres.

Martin Pollack

The match, which is hosted by the City of Cape Town and sponsored by Virgin Active, will be between Premier Soccer League giants Santos and Ajax Cape Town. All available Twenty thousand tickets have already been sold.

“The Cape Town Stadium Soccer Festival affords us the chance to celebrate the ingenuity of the team behind the magnificent Cape Town Stadium, as well as the rich traditions of Cape Town football in the match between Ajax Cape Town and Santos,” says Ross Faragher-Thomas, Managing Director of Virgin Active, the official sponsor of the Cape Town Soccer Festival.

“The Cape Town Stadium is a venue that should make all South Africans proud, not just those from the mother city, and we at Virgin Active are delighted to play our part in this most historic of occasions.

“We know that this event will be well supported by the people of Cape Town, who are passionate about their football, but also their achievements as a city, and we look forward to enjoying the day of celebration with them.” The schedule for the day is:

• 14:00 Gates open Roving podium entertainment
• 15:20 Official blessing of the field and opening of the stadium
• 15:30 Musical performance by Freshly Ground
• 16:00 Ajax Cape Town vs Santos game 1st half
• 16:45 Vuvuzela orchestra performance
• 17:00 Ajax Cape Town vs Santos game 2nd half
• 17:45 Final whistle
• 17:55 Official trophy ceremony
• 19:00 Gates close

The match is being used as an opportunity for the operators of the stadium, SAIL STADEFRANCE to test the stadium’s systems and processes by slowly building-up to the full 68 000 capacity in a number of different games before the 2010 FIFA World CupTM event.

Tickets were available from Computicket and cost between R30 and R50. Parking tickets, of which 3 000 were for sale, were priced at R20, and were only available from Computicket. Fans will not be able to buy match tickets or parking tickets at the stadium on the day.

The City of Cape Town will be providing a free shuttle service from the Civic Centre in Hertzog Boulevard to the stadium and back. To use this facility, all fans need do is present their match tickets.

A helpline has been set up for those who require additional information on the event and can be reached on 021 487 6800.

Martin Pollack