Hostel 33: a portal to the past
Explore unique historical artefacts amid shisanyamas and Afropop
A road sign with a museum icon used to beckon from the roadside outside Lwandle (“the sea” in isiXhosa), a township near Strand Beach on the False Bay coast of the Western Cape. Until now, I have joined the stream of motorists whooshing past the sign on the N2, our sights set on Sir Lowry’s Pass and its cantilevered traverse through the Hottentots Holland mountains.
It is only after reading a slim book — Hostels, Homes, Museum: memorialising migrant labour pasts in Lwandle, South Africa by Noëleen Murray and Leslie Witz — that I learn where the road sign leads and decide to follow its call. However, when I reach the turn-off after a 50km drive from Cape Town, the museum sign is no longer there — repeatedly replaced and stolen, it turns out — and I must proceed without its guidance into the aptly named Onverwacht Road...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.