October 30, Thursday. First thing after breakfast this morning, we said goodbye to the Mount Nelson Hotel and transferred to the Taj where the Blue Train has offered us a complimentary night's stay. Of course, our room was still occupied, so we merely started the check-in process, left our bags, and took their shuttle to the Waterfront. Our excursion for the day is a visit to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were held during apartheid. The trip over was an hour long ferry boat ride across some heavily rolling high seas. Frankly, it seemed interminable, so unlike the prisoners, we were happy to finally arrive. Robben Island has served many purposes since the 1600s. It was used as a prison several times, but also as a leper colony back when they had such things, and even as a military base during the Second World War. Today it is a museum, commemorating the triumph of the human spirit over oppression. It was dedicated by then president Nelson Mandela only a few years after his release following 28 years of incarceration there. 

Today's visit was a good follow-up to yesterday's walking tour. The island is windswept, the prison buildings are grim reminders of an ugly chapter in this nation's history, but there are some surprises, starting with the excellent view of Cape Town. I hadn't thought about staff housing, but there is actually an area known as The Village where prison guards, medical or military personnel, or today's museum workers and their families live. There are churches, a rather grim Clubhouse, an elementary school, and a fair number of decent houses, each with a large water tank attached. All children living on the island today commute by ferry to school, not just high schoolers as in former years. Despite this effort at normalcy, the island is isolated and grim--not a place where anyone would would want to live, even free. I can't begin to imagine the despair prisoners must have felt here. 

The Iconic symbol of Robben Island is four vertical paint lines. The first is completely undifferentiated, the second nearly the same. The third is starting to look vaguely human, and the last is a person clearly celebrating freedom and a return to normal life. The message of this place is the message of the Holocaust. We must never forget the evil men have done to their fellows and sternly guard against a return of oppression. This is the only justification I can think of for war, and only then if there is no alternative. But Robben Island reminds us of the fragile importance of human rights all over the world. 

The leper cemetery 

It's a long, choppy swim to Cape Town for escaping prisoners

Daily prison rations

Nelson Mandela's cell where he lived for 28 years

We were happy to return to Cape Town on the ferry after our visit to Robben Island. We were even happy to enjoy our new hotel room at the Taj.

Only a man would design a hotel room with a picture window 

looking into the bathroom!