Bo-Kaap Neighborhood, Cape Town, South Africa
S 33° 55.288 E 018° 24.904
34H E 261037 N 6243541
Bo-Kaap is a highly desired stop on any tourist's visit to Cape Town!
Waymark Code: WMJ81N
Location: Western Cape, South Africa
Date Posted: 10/08/2013
Views: 8
Bo-Kaap refers to the neighborhood roughly bounded by Strand Street to the north, Buitengracht to the east and Carisbrook to the South; the words translate to "upper Cape Town", and it is a location with a controversial past. It was the home to a large number of slave families, brought to Cape Town by the Dutch East India Company from Malyasia, Indonesia, Suriname and other places. It was fairly isolated in "personality", developing a character refered to locally as Cape Malay, which refers not only to the colorful paint on the homes, but also the spicy food, the lively colors worn by the residents, and the cheerful attitude of the neighborhood.
During apartheid, many of the neighborhoods in Cape Town that had formerly been the neighborhoods for the descendents of the slaves were razed, but this one escaped that fate, and in the recent decades the neighborhood has become fashionable again, with "yuppies" moving in to renovate and restore the area. The brightly colored Bo-Kaap area is a big tourist attraction today. Travel agencies frequently include a walking tour of the Bo-Kaap neighborhood on their "must-do" list for tourists.
A great place to begin your walking tour of the Bo-Kaap neighborhood is the Bo-Kaap Museum at 71 Wale Street (admission price applies, refer to their website: (
visit link) Here you will learn about the history of the original residents of the neighborhood and be able to experience the furnishings of the slave period. The museum was established in what is considered the oldest surviving Bo-Kaap home, having been built in 1763.
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