Bo-Kaap ladies offer us homeless food to die for

Homeless person Danny Oosthuizen will be writing a daily column for the duration of #TheDignityProject.

Homeless person Danny Oosthuizen will be writing a daily column for the duration of #TheDignityProject.

Published Apr 18, 2016

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The Cape Argus has launched a new collaborative editorial initiative called #TheDignityProject – a 15-part daily series about the homeless people of Cape Town. Homeless person Danny Oosthuizen will be writing a daily column for the duration of the project. Read the fifth entry in Danny’s Diary below ...

Cape Town - If all else fails, run to the Bo-Kaap! I have met the most loving and caring people there. When times are very tough, I would go for a “skarrel” there. The old ladies are so kind and the food to die for. Real authentic Cape Malay cooking.

And one gets to know so much about the history, the people and the Struggle, told first-hand by people who grew up there. A lesson in history that is often overlooked.

Also read:  What is #TheDignityProject?

The food trend in and around the Kloof Street area has become very health-oriented. Think goat’s milk, various “powerfoods” and “superfoods” and seeds that make me want to chirp-chirp!

Gluten-free chocolate cake… sweetie, take it from me honey: I want to scoff butter and double cream. I’d rather die from eating oversized slices of Death by Chocolate than get run over by a trolley full of seeds because the lady pushing it was so skinny she couldn’t control it.

I went to the library to Google “goji berries”. My goodness! I’d rather have an apple, thank you.

I am awaiting my healthy glow after I found half a jar of honey that came all the way from New Zealand!

The Taj Hotel donated some toiletries to the Carpenter’s Shop. We’re talking sheer lux here! I could not drag myself out of the shower. My skin felt like silk. My hair had this glow. My mood was light. One day – I am dreaming big here, so work with me – I will overnight at the Taj. And then I can die. Because I will be in heaven!

On a sad note: on and around the Grand Parade, women run hair extension businesses. Often, the fibres they use end up blown into the street and this becomes entangled around the feet of pigeons and doves. It stops the circulation and the feet literally rot right off.

This touches me deeply and makes me mad! False hair, lashes and nails… I am about to sign you up for recycling! You are turning my hood into a dumping ground!

Cape Argus

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