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Jan. 6, 2008

We started our day with a tour of the botanical gardens, the slave museum, and the surrounding area. The gardens used to be a vegetable garden used by the Dutch settlers, primarily for trade. The slave museum used to be a slave lodge for those who tended the gardens. It was a sad and interesting museum because we could see interesting parallels to American history. The African Museum had many interesting displays about life in RSA--rich history, vegetation, and a vast array of sea creatures and wildlife. That afternoon we took the famous Susan Krueger ferry to Robben Island and the former prison that held Nelson Mandela as well as other political prisoners. We were led on our tour by a former prisoner who told us how the prisoners would work the lime quarry and discuss politics, education, and their hopes for South Africa after apartheid.