Today is the first day of the conference that brought Eric and Ramona halfway around the world. We started the morning down on the street, fetching a cup of coffee. Based on the distance from the University of Cape Town, it seemed as if an Uber would be the easiest way to get to the conference. Eric dialed up our ride and we were on our way in minutes.
The drive took us to the east, out of the city center where we've been for the last few days. The roads rose slightly, just beginning to climb into the foothills at the base of the mountain. Our driver, Ahmed, was very cheery and natural, talking quite about the local weather patterns and what to expect from Table Mountain during our stay. As a Cape Town native, he knew just the building that Eric and Ramona needed to get to, so he smoothly navigated around campus and brought us right to the appropriate door.
We took a brief stroll around campus, taking a moment to get a view of the city. Bidding Eric and Ramona farewell, I took a few minutes to walk around campus to see what I could find. I was looking for a campus bookstore, to perhaps buy a t-shirt. I worked my way to the student union and found the bookstore, but alas, the t-shirts weren't really to my liking. With that chore completed, what now? Wander aimlessly? Take a tour? I flew all the way to South Africa and left the charger for my Fitbit Charge HR. Ramona's band for her Fitbit Alta had also broken as well. I thought, "why not find replacements"? So, I quickly Google'd the local mall and started my walk.
About 10 minutes later, I found Riverdale Mall, located near the UCT campus. Entering the mall, I struggled to find a directory or map. After circling aimless for a bit, I found two unmanned information counters. I followed the nearest escalator up, and found a few tech shops. Neither of them carried what I was looking for. At a shop around the corner, a young man pointed out another store that might have what I needed, so we walked across the mall to a new section I hadn't entered. Sadly enough, they didn't carry them. Bidding the young man farewell, I returned to Google, in search of more ideas. After an exhaustive search, I saw postings from a wilderness outfitter store near V&A Waterfront (where we visited yesterday), so I set off in that direction. With Google Map pointing out a 50-minute walk, I hailed and Uber and we proceeded to the waterfront.
The Waterfront mall was considerably bigger. This time, the information desk was manned and I was quickly pointed to my destination. And, alas, still no Fitbit bands or charger! Out of ideas. it was finally time for lunch, so I grabbed a quick bit at the Waterfront food stalls we'd eaten at the day before, and I started my walk back to the flat.
Another Uber ride would have been nice, but I figured I'd walk back to the flat. The afternoon sun shifted behind the buildings, so it was nice and comfortable. In about a half hour, I was back at the flat. Ramona and I had booked a massage later that afternoon, so it was a nice change to take a break and wind down for the evening.
Our massage was a great getaway - a chance to decompress. The allure of nachos called to her, so I headed across the street to pickup an order of chicken nachos with avocado. A word to the wise: if you like carry out (called 'takeaway' abroad), plan accordingly! Many restaurants don't post their menus online. You have to discover what delivery service they use (Orderin, MrD, etc.) and visit their websites instead to figure out what you can order and what you can have delivered. Ramona tried and found this out only after significant effort.
Dinner finished, Eric and Ramona shifted to conversations about work and their program at the university. I drifted to getting caught up on work email, as it was late afternoon back home. Tomorrow would be another day at the conference and I had very little on my plate.
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