A Day at the Parade

In Cape Town, there is an annual tradition at the start of the year – a full day street parade. When we got there, we realized it was a whole lot more than a few marching bands and dancers. The magic started with asking a gentleman about the flavour of his potato chips.

Amid a number of suggestions circulating about what to do in Cape Town, I made a note about a street parade. It took a little bit of research but I found the event’s facebook page, which had a full video about the route, as well as a mention of a ‘Golden Circle’. It seemed that you could be in a special area to see the parade, if you bought a ticket for 100 rand ($6.90US). A secure area sounded good to me given a) I wasn’t interested in camping on a sidewalk for a prime spot, and b) I was nervous about pickpockets roaming behind me on a sidewalk while I was distracted by the parade. So we bought tickets. And around 11:30am on the first Saturday of January, we made our way down to the main parade grounds.

The history of the parade is as complicated as the history of the country. The best I pieced together was that in the era of slavery in South Africa, the big celebration by the Dutch was New Years, and on the following day, January 2, the slaves were given the day off and they had their own celebrations. Slavery was abolished in South Africa in 1834, but these celebrations continued, and around 1887 they became a carnival bringing minstrels from all over the region to celebrate together. Each community was identified through the colourful costumes, music, and dancing styles. Over the decades, the event developed into a parade, though its location and scale has varied, and it was dormant some years as well. During apartheid there were many obstacles but they found venues for it, and kept it alive. And since 1989, today’s version of the parade has been fully embraced again on the streets of Cape Town, and it is organized by the Kaapse Klopse Karnival Association. Communities are still identified by particular colours and costumes, and the array of patterns and sounds creates quite a celebration!

This year there was a religious conflict with January 2, so with what I can only imagine was a huge collective effort, the event was moved specifically to a Saturday, and thus drew a big crowd and a huge buzz of energy.

We didn’t have camping chairs, but we were armed with some cheap yoga mats as we got our golden (yellow) wrist bands and joined the cluster of people finding spots under the shade of a thankfully large tree. That is where I turned to the comfortably seated older gentleman next to me, and looking for some way to connect, I went with – is that a good flavour of potato chips?

He kindly extended his bag to me to try one. They were indeed a nice take on a BBQ chip. And then he introduced us to his wife, and then his brother, and then his sister-in-law – this was a local family outing they did every year! His wife offered us some of her homemade snacks, including samosas. Like many grandmother figures, she did not take a polite ‘no’ for an answer when trying to feed people, even random strangers just sharing the shade. She then basically adopted us for the afternoon, making sure we felt welcomed and had a good time.

When the emcee of the stage show started talking with people in the crowd, she was the one who got his attention to come meet the traveler from Canada. (I was on the big screen later too, when he checked in with the crowd and asked if ‘Canada’ was still there.)
When the big talent was going to be on stage, she was the one who told us to move closer for a front row view and lent us an umbrella for shade.
When organizers handed out umbrellas to the crowd, she was the one reaching over the barrier grabbing them and distributing them.
When the Mayor of Cape Town was on the other side of the parade route, she was the one to get his attention to make sure he came around. (Yes, I wound up meeting the Mayor and having my photo taken with him!)
When the stage show ended, but the parade still hadn’t begun, she was the one who explained that everything was on hold for Muslim prayer time.
When the parade was starting, she was the one who found us a corner spot on some steps, under a tent.
When we got thirsty, she was the one who told me I had to get the ginger beer. (It was indeed the perfect refreshment.)
When I was picked out of the crowd to receive a parasol from one of the parading minstrels, she was the one who treated it as a high honour.

In short, she was a force of nature! And I was so grateful for everything she did. Without her, it wouldn’t have been anywhere near the amazing experience it was.

A few other people we met included the following:

A local woman who was excited to be attending for the first time, because usually it was on a work day.
Two young women who used to be in the parade, and were now enjoying being spectators and cheering for their friends.
An entire three generation family from a community about an hour away, ready to cheer for a niece.
A Cape Town City Councilmember, wearing a New York Yankees hat, that he bought on the street in Cape Town.
A Cape Town local, wearing an Oakland Raiders hat, that he bought in Oakland when he went to San Francisco for a conference.
A couple of professors from University of California, Davis, on sabbatical, traveling with their ten year old son.

We did actually see the parade too! There seemed to be a recurring pattern as a group streamed by:

They put their youngest and cutest kids up front, all in costumes and face paint, with some simple choreography. Totally adorable.
Then they had a dance troupe, sometimes with tambourines.
Then, there was a cluster of men; some dancing, some strutting, some strolling, some with elaborately painted bald heads, often making faces and extending their tongues to get reactions from the spectators – so weird but I couldn’t look away?!
Then, there was a marching band, with varying ratios of instruments and levels of choreography.
Then, the ‘sweep’ team, of slower moving elders and various family members (and possibly their bus driver?)

The costumes were all vivid, bright colours, and exuded celebration. The music always had a catchy beat that you wanted to get up and move to. It was truly a mobile neighbourhood party.

As much as we were welcomed and treated as family, by 3:30pm we realized we were lightweights. The parade had only been going for 2 hours at that point, and about 6-8 groups had come by. (In the heat and socializing, I lost count.) But there were apparently over fifty – yes 50 – groups expected to walk the route, and some of the groups were impressively over 1,500 people. While the Golden Circle, the emcee, and the stage, suggested a fairly modern and organized event, the pace of the parade remained traditional and thus entirely up to the groups themselves. And it seemed they liked having large gaps in between so their music didn’t overlap. And, as was explained to us a second time, there were pauses for every Muslim prayer time. This gig was going to run until at least 9pm!!

After staying “for one more”, we hugged goodbye to all of our new friends, and thanked them for making it such a special afternoon.

Take-away? If you talk with the stranger next to you, you might have a pretty amazing afternoon.

Here are a few videos of the action I hope you enjoy!