Today I bid Totseens (goodbye  in Afrikaans!) to Cape Town after 4 incredible weeks in one of the most incredible places I have ever visited having met so many incredible people.

Meeting fellow travellers is a very counter-intuitive process. In the ‘real world’ when you meet a new person you might see them monthly or perhaps weekly and then over the months and years you form a friendship which will hopefully survive for the rest of your lives.

When you are traveling however it is the opposite. For a few weeks you see each other intensely for up to 12 hours a day and share almost everything about yourself as you enjoy the most incredible experiences and end up disclosing inner most thoughts that you don’t even discuss with your close friends back then.

I have done so many activities here that are so far out of my comfort zone because of being with people who I had only met a few days previously. I cannot ever imagine going to skydiving if it wasn’t for the people I was with convincing me to go, I cannot have imagined wanting to go look at a cave which turned out to be Chatmans Peak which was the most beautiful sight I have seen in Cape Town and wouldn’t have thought going to a Museum about District 6 would have been worth my time.

Every single time my pre-conceptions were proven wrong and I find it remarkable how you can be pushed out of your comfort zone by people you have only just met and what an incredible experience that can be. In philosophical lyrics of the Reverend and the Makers if you aren’t living on the edge you are taking up too much room!

And then just when you solidify this unbreakable bond either you or they move on and you will likely never see them again.

It has been an invigorating experience to meet both locals and travellers and I have learnt a huge amount about different cultures but it definitely has an emotional impact on you having to say goodbye to so many people so often.

My first few weeks in South Africa were spent almost exclusively with fellow travellers doing a variety of tourist attractions. As beautiful as these were I have to say it was my final fortnight when I got more involved in the local community and talking to more locals that I enjoyed the most.

Any discussion about the beauty of Cape Town has to be tempered with the inequalities that blight the city and reflecting that it is only tourists and the wealthy that can really appreciate it. It’s interesting in that much of the natural beauty is based around the mountains and coastline which in theory should be accessible by all but of course as well as transportation cost it is having the time and exposure to these sights that most just do not have.

Cape Town has certainly been different to the ‘rainbow nation’ PR image of a nation of perfect racial harmony but it is the contradictions that make it so captivating. From the unbelievable beauty to the ugly inequality; the fear of crime to the untapped generosity and kindness of the locals; the incredibly westernised centre to the areas which appear untouched in decades.

It is the first place I’ve visited that I am certain I will return to one day.

All of these experiences were dwarfed by my time teaching in a local primary school but having had a very moving last day there yesterday I am not emotionally ready to discuss that yet!