Facing The Music

I’m currently bundled up in my room in what used to be Alex’s blanket. I say what-used-to-be because Alex and Kristine are somewhere over the Atlantic ocean right now asleep from Ambien or watching their last few episodes of the OC on Alex’s computer. I miss them terribly and they haven’t even been gone for 24 hours. I know, I know, I'll see them soon but without them here, the end of my semester abroad is very, very real. My house is empty and although it was already cold before they left, it has been a bit more brisk without them here. If I keep talking about this, I’ll probably start crying in my empty, cold house and we can’t have any of that.

I was going to write about our trip up to Namibia but I’m not quite ready for it yet, so all you get is that picture.  Instead I’m going to share something I have been putting together since January- a playlist of songs that will forever remind me of Cape Town.  Each song has some significance to life here, a life that has flown by and one that is oh-too quickly saying farewell.

Cape Town South Africa 2010 Playlist

Best Days- Matt White: Alex and I played this too loudly on our computers almost every morning for close to two months. Everyday was the best day.

1901- Phoenix

Make You Feel My Love- Adele: Kristine and Alex can both tell you that I listened to Adele a lot, maybe too much. It took Alex and I two days, upping my iTunes play count on the song, to figure out who originally sang this one. It wins.

Battle Studies Album- John Mayer 

Fidelity- Feist: The last song Sarah, our neighbor, and I listened to before she left.

Strawberry Swing- Coldplay: Re-realized my love for Coldplay because of this song. It was always on my studying playlists.

Beautiful Mess- Jason Mraz

Sold My Soul- Goldfish: Goldfish is a band from Cape Town that we actually went to see back in January. They make a lot of good music but this song is one that I heard the most. They are a perfect example of music that Capetonians love and I’ll miss hearing them back in the U.S.

Wouldn’t It Be Loverly- My Fair Lady: Some of you may know that I have a secret love for musicals, this is one of my favorites and a song I found myself singing even when I wasn’t listening to the music, particularly when I was walking to and from our house.

Little Secrets- Passion Pit

I Got A Feelin'- Black Eyed Peas: A staple song for getting excited for just about anything but on one night in particular this song came on the radio in a cab on our way to a club called Tiger Tiger.  As we sang along with the driver, I asked him if he liked the Black Eyed Peas. He looked confused and corrected me saying, "No, this is the Tiger Tiger song." He was right, Tiger Tiger is gunna be a good night.

For Emma- Bon Iver

Baby- Justin Bieber: The girls that I tutored loved Justin Bieber, a lot. Whenever I hear this song I think of them immediately and how we sang our hearts out every week to it.

Wavin’ Flag- K’naan: We have been hearing this for quite some time, pumping us up for the World Cup and it still hasn’t gotten old. Well not yet anyway.  If you are around Kristine when it is playing, you are in for a treat.

Memories- David Guetta & Kid Cudi: I think we heard this song every time we went out. Memories is right.

California- Phantom Planet and I’ll Be There For You- The Remembrants: I put these songs together because they are the intro songs to two shows that we will always associate with Cape Town and 154 Station Rd.

Empire State of Mind- Jay-Z & Alicia Keys

Chasing Pirates- Norah Jones: Love her. Love this song. As of right now I’ve played it 30 times in Cape Town. Is that an obsession? Maybe.

Train Song- Ben Gibbard & Feist

Animal- Miike Snow: I downloaded a bunch of music the weekend Kristine and Alex went on the Garden Route and I worked for endless hours on a paper. This song was one of them and ended up being a favorite.


With friends leaving everday, my last week in Cape Town will for sure be a bittersweet one. Maybe a Namibia post will appear tomorrow. Maybe.

Met liefde van Afrika,
Callie