Christmas in Cape Town

Overseas visitors have a hard time imagining a sunny, hot Christmas, but an African take on festivities can be refreshing.

Carols at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and the Company Gardens in Cape Town on 18 December are old favourites. This year Carols by Candlelight will be held at Kirstenbosch from 13 to 16 December. The carols begin at 20:00, but gates open at 17:00 so you can claim a patch of grass and enjoy a picnic while the kids run around in the gardens until night falls.

Everything takes on a special mood as hundreds of candles are lit and everyone joins in the singing. Call 021 419 1881 for carols in the Company Gardens and 021 799 8783 for Kirstenbosch Gardens.

Bring in 2008, Mother City Style

Cape Town's Pink Lady is just the hostess for a New Year's Eve celebration: the grande dame of hotels, she knows how to put it on in style.

The Mount Nelson Hotel has three venues for a New Year's Eve bash with loads of glitz and glamour. The functions range from casual to cocktail and formal so decide what you're in the mood for (and, with tickets ranging from R225 to R1 650pp, what suits your pocket) and bring 2008 in stylishly.

Maintain your festive mood by watching the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival. Masters at keeping the vibe upbeat and festive well into the new year, the parade consists of troupes of singers and musicians in colourful satin uniforms. With their tasselled parasols and banjo tunes they charm the streets of Cape Town in a fiercely contested drive to outperform each other.

Known colloquially as the 'Coon Carnival' ('coon' referring to a minstrel), the event goes back to the 19th century when minstrel entertainers on American cruise ships stopped off in Cape Town. Their sound and style was incorporated into the New Year festivals of the newly-freed Malay slaves.

Join the crowds lining the streets of Cape Town on 2 January. The carnival starts at 9am but takes a while to thread its happily clamorous way along.

Party Like You Wished You Could

Each year come December, Cape Town is rocked by the Mother City Queer Project party. This huge event attracts about 5 000 people, many of whom are overseas visitors.

Hosted by and held for - but not restricted to - the gay community, MCQP is a flamboyant, outrageous party where the costumes, revelry and hairdos are set firmly in the realm of the superlative.

MCQP this year will take the form of a week-long festival culminating in the traditional party on 22 December.

The theme is MCQP Matric Dance - Back to School. A matric dance is the South African equivalent of a high school prom, and the idea is to give every guest the chance, at last, to take their ideal date to that three-parts excitement, one-part excruciatingly embarrassing rite of adolescence.

In keeping with the theme, the festival's fund-raising drives will benefit educational programmes. Find out more at www.mcqp.co.za or buy tickets at www.ticketconnection.co.za, www.ticketbitch.co.za and various outlets around Cape Town.

If that doesn't appeal but you still fancy a spectacular night out, you've got to try Madame Zingara's Theatre of Dreams. Set in an authentic, vintage circus tent, it's a dinner and a show in one over-the-top package.

The Theatre of Dreams' new show runs from 7 until 22 December and again from 3 January until the end of March 2008. Tickets cost from R320pp. Call the box office on 021 426-2458 or 0861 MADAME or visit www.madamezingara.com.

Enjoy Cultural Cape Town

Evening concerts at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens are another summer must. Get there early to bag yourself a parking spot (don't underestimate the popularity of these events), pack a picnic and chill out in a spectacular setting to the sounds of your favourite local band, or the odd international act.

You'll find the summer concert programme on www.nbi.ac.za. The line-up includes Christmas Carols and a New Year's Eve concert.

Another outdoor venue is the Maynardville theatre where each summer sees the cast of a Shakespearan play taking to the boards. This summer it will be The Merchant of Venice while Sunday evenings are for the ballet Gisele.

Tickets can be bought at Computicket outlets (you'll find one at the V&A Mall).

Cape Town for Sports Fans

If you're a yachting enthusiast, the Mother City's a good place to be over summer when it sees the Volvo Ocean Race Stopover between December and January. The V&A Waterfront is the scene for all the action.

Sports fans and clothes horses alike look forward to the J&B Met - a day of fashion, glamour, entertainment, gossip ... oh, and horse racing. Taking place on 26 January 2008, the event is held at Kenilworth Race Course. Find out more at www.jbmet.co.za.

If you're a participant rather than a spectator, the Cape also hosts the infamous 106km Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour on 9 March 2008. All 35 000 places for locals sold out within 25 days so now you can only bag a spot if you're an international competitor.

Another huge local sports event is the 56km Two Oceans Marathon to be run on 22 March 2008. It's tough but scenic and has been called 'the world's most beautiful marathon'. Tell that to your legs when they've got another 16km to go!

Article © Copyright 2007 Go2Africa.

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