A Dash of Independence!

Did you know that a seaside community on the Cape Peninsula once declared itself to be a republic?! The idea began in the 1980s as a charity drive, to distinguish the town of Hout Bay and drive up tourism. "Passports" were produced and the resulting publicity did indeed attract more visitors then - and now.   

Hout Bay is situated "behind" Table Mountain and was originally settled by hunter-gatherer San and Khoi people. After the Dutch landed at the Cape in 1652, the heavily-forested valley became a source of timber for ship repairs and the building of the Castle of Good Hope. The stunning setting soon attracted more residents and a town grew up. Fishing became a key industry and today the vibrant community still holds the unique character that once made it consider independence. Surrounded by mountains and sea, there are few routes in and out of the valley so perhaps it was not such a wild idea after all? You can still buy a souvenir passport... rumour has it that some intrepid soul even travelled abroad on one - but perhaps that is an urban myth. 

In my novel, The Girl from Simon's Bay, Louise Ahrendts does not visit Hout Bay but she sees it in the distance. After her family has been evicted from nearby Simon's Town under apartheid, she goes to Noordhoek beach to reflect on her altered life. Beyond the vast expanse of sand and the churning sea rises the famous Sentinel peak (behind me in the photo) and, if she stared hard enough, the lights of Hout Bay.
My breath faltered from its normal involuntary rhythm. 
I closed my eyes to the shadowy beach and lay back on the cool, yielding sand. 
Independence for Louise will be a daily struggle...