Iziko Bo-Kaap Museum

As I was at my hotel at 1430h, it was important to get some fresh air and stay active until a reasonable bedtime. Walked about 15 minutes to Bo-Kaap and popped into this small three room museum that detailed the history of the district.

Bo-Kaap with its brightly coloured homes and cobblestoned streets was formerly known as the Malay Quarter, and is the oldest surviving residential neighborhood in Cape Town According to the South African Heritage Resources Agency, the area contains the largest concentration of pre-1850 architecture in South Africa.

The origins date back to the 1760s when numerous rental houses were built and leased to slaves. These individuals, known as Cape Malays, were brought from the Dutch East Indies including Malaysia and Indonesia to work in the Cape. The area was allowed to remain Muslim during apartheid and today is a very multicultural neighbourhood, and almost 60%% of its population identify as Muslim.

The museum is housed in a historic building that was once the home of a wealthy Muslim family in the early 19th century.Read more