This too shall pass. The future of tourism

On October 1st South Africa reopened for international tourists, with the exception of countries deemed to be high risk. On September 30th the list was released by the government and almost every country in the world was on it, so it was the illusion of progress more than anything else but at least it’s a step in the right direction.

Tourism globally have been hit hard, if major airlines like Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia are in trouble then small tour companies and businesses like Cape Convoy are doomed, like the last Polar bear, on the last ice cap, waiting for it to melt

Or are they?

There are 2 sides to this. On one hand it’s very sad to see everything you have worked hard for and worked towards get stripped away to nothing. I don’t have any buses or tour guides anymore, the money has run out and after 6 months of lockdown, my lights have been turned off by a situation bigger than me and beyond my control. Strangely, it is because of those reasons that I feel reasonably calm. Perhaps the feeling of being in control was always an illusion and all Covid 19 has done has brought home the hard, uncomfortable truth that anything can be taken from you at anytime, without any warning. People who are sick understand this, becoming unwell is never part of any plans we may have, nor is losing a loved one or a million other things that life can throw at you

So Cape Convoy is now just me and a website. I have gone full circle, back to where I started. Just like Ace in the movie Casino! And you know, it’s not that bad! The thing about life is that it goes on, Cape Convoy goes on. I am personally in the position where there is nothing more than can be taken from me (professionally speaking) and I am OK, it’s really not that bad. It could be called rock bottom but as JK Rowling said, rock bottom is a solid foundation to build from, I think of Kipling, in his magnificent poem ‘If’

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
    And treat those two impostors just the same;   
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
    Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
    And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

I still love being a guide, I still love Cape Town and I am going to hit the ground running again in 2021, if Cape Convoy makes it or not, I don’t know (although I suspect it will) but I know I will always be able to give great tours!

What does the future of Tourism globally hold? no idea mate although I do feel I am on the right continent. Africa’s star is rising and there is so so much here. I can’t think of any reason why people would ever want to stop visiting

This global change that is happening and that we maybe lucky, or unlucky enough to be living through will pass eventually. It is bigger than us. We must surrender to it, accept it and become one with it because we have no choice. At least that’s the way I see it

Stiff upper lip

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Me and my Octopus

On the 7th of March of this year, just before the world went into a Covid induced tailspin, I got married. It was a great day, great weather and I was marrying the woman I love. It does not get any better than that chum!

Although it can and did get better, because we had a unexpected guest. An Octopus!

We were married in Kalk Bay in the Western Cape at stunning old house that I used to live in and now live in again (in a flat attached to the house) I am not sure how old the house is but I do know that in 1910 a British Lord build a tidal pool so he could take his disabled daughter swimming. The house is on the rock, right on the water on the False Bay coastline. For my money it’s the best place to live, or just be, in Cape Town.

Roberto and me. In my fantasy, this is us. In reality I saw her twice for a few seconds then she got eaten

The tidal pool attracts lots of different types of marine life as you would expect, but sadly none last to long in there as the locals soon spot them and take then out. I have seen fish, large and small Starfish (even a pink one like Patrick from Spongebob) and we have even had a Cape Fur Seal in there and on my wedding day, we had an Octopus.

I heard excitement and walked to the steps that lead down to the pool, and then the Octopus, a big brown one, started climbing up the steps to see me! I mean this guy came up 3 or 4 steps and we had a moment. He was waving his tentacles around and I was smitten. Then he went back into the water

Kalk Bay Tidal Pool in False Bay

I called him Roberto and it was the best thing ever. Getting married was awesome and so was this. Evelyn who has lived and worked at the house forever and who is very well known told me that he had been there for a while, she also told me she had eaten some of her babies.

Right, kill the motor dude.

I made Evelyn promise me that that she would not eat Roberto. It could be her wedding gift to me and she agreed. She did warn me though that the locals were aware that Roberto was there.

Then I knew that the game was up

See, Roberto was really big. Times are hard. That Octopus is worth at least R200 to the locals or even just a decent meal. The bottom line was that Roberto was money, a lot of money to a lot of people.

I saw him once or twice after that. Then he disappeared. I like to like she swam out to the open sea, found another boyfriend and had a nice happy family and who knows, maybe she did. People are often in the tidal pool looking for sea food or anything they can sell or eat. I would do the same if my situation demanded it. It’s not a criticism, it’s just life.

Roberto will always be my friend though and I will never forget her. She came to my wedding and that made me very happy. She will live forever

2020 & Beyond

Hello all, I hope that life is being kind and that you are finding a way through the new world we all find ourselves in. The new normal is not exactly great is it? Gloves, masks, no school, no sound of children’s laughter, no sport, pubs or hugs! When times are tough I always think of it as the weather. Good bad or indifferent, it passes. Everything is ultimately fleeting and Covid 19 will be no different. Acceptance is the key and I feel that we should not waste this opportunity to come out the other side of this thing a kinder, nicer, fairer world.

Tourism globally has been smashed and the job losses will be awful. In Cape Town we have had one of the strictest lock downs in the world. No exercise and a smoking and drinking ban although all that seems to have achieved is make the black market thrive. Every smoker I know is still smoking but I digress..

I am re-training in another field but Cape Convoy will go on and I will run the tours. Cape Convoy is now just me and a website. I have no buses or cars anymore. They have all gone. I will rent them as needed. The sector is just too vulnerable to invest long term in and I doubt this will be the last pandemic. I hope this causes  humanity to have a re think about how we treat our animal brothers and sisters. If nothing else this proves we are all connected and live in a connected world. There is also little difference in Asian wet markets and the factory farming in a western city. It’s not sustainable and its cruel. We are destroying the natural world that rely on for out own survival.

On a more cheerful note, I have made the best of it Meditating every day, exercising, learning Spanish, walking my dogs and online training. I have also started to take a few bookings for April 2021 so that is great news. I don’t have any fear in my heart. Everything happens for a reason and as the Buddhists say. Every grain of sand is in it’s perfect place. Anyone who is struggling should do themselves a huge act of kindness and read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. A very important book and I also suggest watching his You Tube videos. He has helped me enormously in my life and can do the same for you

I made a small video to try to drum up a bit of interest in the tours for 2021. Any action is often better than no action. Cape Convoy will survive, it has too much heart and soul. As Shakespeare said in his play As you like it “This poor virgin isn’t much to look at, sir, but she’s mine”

Wishing you and your family good health and good fortune

Your Pal

Rob