It’s unusually damp and grey for a January afternoon in Cape Town, but Michael is hoping to catch a ride from Constantia to inch closer to finding a place to sleep tonight.
Public transport is less frequent on a Sunday, and he is short on cash.
It starts to rain, and the droplets slowly start to seep through his best suit. His hat also starts to weigh heavy on his head. He decides to remove his jacket, as it’s strangely humid for Cape Town.
Michael has taken a bus from his home in Mhlanga, for a job interview at an air carrier in the Cape. He’s in his 50s, but willing to work, and needs the money. He has left his wife at home.
The job pays well enough, but its physical labour; he will need a safe and comfortable place to stay while he saves his money.
Money. He needs R 150 to pay for the shelter in Gugulethu. This money will secure his stay until he begins work at the airline in February. But he doesn’t have it.
He stands on the roadside in leafy Constantia. The rain gently pats his clothes. It bonds with his white shirt. Now it resembles the grey sky. Its midday and he hopes to catch a ride.
A silver Toyota pulls up, and his hope rises slightly.
He tells the driver that he needs to get to Mossel Bay, and could hitchhike there from Somerset West. He says that he knows someone in Mossel Bay who may have the R 150 he needs to secure his stay at a shelter in Gugulethu, but he doesn’t have his phone number.
Michael explains that Zulus always help their own. And he knows a few Zulus in Mossel Bay. The driver of the Toyota says he can only take him as far as Muizenberg. He is grateful.
There are Zulu petrol attendants in Muizenberg. They may be able to help him out with the R 150 he needs.
But he’d have to find a way from Muizenberg to the shelter. The owner is keeping his suitcase, so at least he can travel lightly while he depends on the good will of others.
The ride passes Blue Route Mall, and he decides that this is where he will part ways with the driver. Michael hopes to find his people. The driver gives him some cash, and his hope rises again. Just a few more rands, and he’ll be able to sleep safe and dry this evening.