What to Expect From Living in Cape Town
Why would anyone go and live in Cape Town? Simply because Cape Town has it all: beaches, mountains, gardens, adventure trips, wildlife, wine, awesome braai, and an amazing nightlife.
In this post, I’m going to try to answer most of the questions that friends have asked me for tips on living in Cape Town. Most of these are related to maintaining the quality of life one enjoys in their homeland.
What to Expect From Living in Cape Town
Is Cape Town safe?
As you might already be expecting, my answer to this question is: “ABSOLUTELY!”. However, many potential visitors give up on traveling around South Africa even before discovering the amazing things to do out there due to the stereotypical idea that the place is dangerous.
Why is this the case? For one thing, popular areas are often protected by security guards. However, you shouldn’t be scared to simply walk around town. Before the World Cup in 2010, security increased enormously.
Cultural Differences in South Africa
I think a lot of tourists aren’t aware of certain cultural differences in South Africa and this can often cause needless fear. For instance, when parking your car on the street you’ll probably meet a lot of poor men asking you for money in exchange for looking after your car. A lot of tourists freak out without understanding that these people are completely harmless and you’re not obligated to give them any money.
Public Transportation in Cape Town
If you’re willing to take the minibus you need to have 2 things in mind:
- You can never be sure that the bus is going where it claims it’s going.
- When the bus comes, you simply have to wave to make it stop for you. Even if you’re on the other side of the street the bus might jump in the middle of traffic and stop so that you can safely walk across the street.
Once you set your mind to it, you can actually have a lot of fun riding Capetonian minibusses. The minibusses even have a TV screen inside (I was amazed by that!) and despite the crowded environment, everyone seems to be pretty happy.
South African minibusses remind me a lot of Mexico City buses because the rules are pretty much the same in both. However, in Cape Town there is a special procedure if you’re sitting in the front seat of the minibus. The driver is busy driving and therefore needs help to collect the money.
The person sitting in the front seat collects the money from every passenger, counts it, and manages the whole ride. My advice: if you’re not good at math, don’t sit there!
Remember that drivers are super nice, a few times I was actually dropped off literally in front of my doorstep because the bus driver had a good day and dropped all of the remaining passengers at their final destinations.
Apart from the minibusses, Cape Town has a number of new red buses. In order to get on board, you need to purchase a special card available at every bigger supermarket.
Cost of living in Cape Town
The costs of living in Cape Town is considered to be 65% cheaper than in London/UK and 62% cheaper than in New York/USA. Renting an apartment is definitely the most expensive (and hardest) part of the Cape Town experience.
I was lucky enough to get a long-term deal at a guesthouse, but for a simple room in a shared house you might end up paying between R4000 and R5500.
On the other hand, eating out is cheaper than cooking at home, so I was doing this pretty much every second day.
Working in Cape Town as an expat
Before I moved to Cape Town I was searching for expats’ opinions on how life was and I found this piece:
“The downside is doing business here or working here.The pace is slooooooooooooow. The attitude to sticking to deadlines, and answering emails is the equivalent of a hippy looking at you through a dope haze, shrugging and saying: “Meh” before taking another puff.”
The funny thing is that he’s actually right. The downtown area is full of people during their lunch break (a very long break) and people seem quite relaxed about it.
Does every household in South Africa have a maid?
In Cape Town, most working households have at least one maid. No, it’s not a person paid per hour that comes with a long list of things they won’t do (like in England). In Cape Town, a lot of middle-class houses have a person all day every day.
You can also easily get a nanny, gardener or handyman without breaking the bank. Some of the maids live with their employers as well, much like in Mexico.
Visas to South Africa
Most people from Western countries don’t need a tourist visa to visit for up to 3 months. However, that’s the only easy part of going to South Africa. I’m not going to lie and say that organizing a work visa, student visa, or simply an extension of a tourist visa is easy because it’s not.
A student visa is slightly more difficult to obtain, but not impossible. Another option is also an investment visa that will grant you permanent residency.
