Bloemfontein, No Longer Home
You all want to know about South Africa, don’t you? What’s the life there like? The food?
We all know that Africa in general is not portrayed in the best or brightest light apart from their music industry product commonly known on the global markets as ‘Afrobeats’.
Let’s just burst your bubble and say that Africa is not all that is broadcasted over the news networks as generally being associated with poverty. Africa tends to be a very rich land, with many resources and infrastructure to say the least.
Now that you have been introduced to our topic; Africa, more specifically South Africa, we are going to continue our journey with StonedwithCupid who had the pleasure of visiting Bloemfontein, South Africa.
“StonedwithCupid” is a lifestyle!
It is the encapsulation of many ways of life for Akeem, the founder. The “Stoned” represents the indulgence in life's pleasures and “Cupid” deals with the things one loves. (Cupid is a cherub that generally symbolizes infatuation, you know...just in case you didn’t know). Together it means to indulge in things one loves or likes.
The brand is unfortunately mistaken for drug usage because of its name and thus has been perceived to promote drug culture but this is in fact very far from the truth.
Since deciding to be a full time creative, StonedwithCupid has spent most of his time immersed in things he likes either as a consumer or as a creator and when given the opportunity, he jumped on the plane and went to Bloemfontein.
Below you can read about some of the things you probably didn’t know about visiting South Africa. You may want to consider not going during winter...unless you like the cold.
Bloemfontein, No Longer Home
Climate & Scenery
Greeted by the biting cold, kissed by the moist countryside air
No mosquitoes or other insects to make you swear,
Unsure if the land that I arrived upon was alien,
Or if I was the alien on the land.
No longer home, I felt it!
The tropical skies, a distant world
The roads were wider, the buildings taller,
The cars were newer, the skylines higher,
the air much thinner.
No longer home, I saw it!
Cuisine & Delicacies
Bloemfontein, a few thousand feet above the sea,
Bloemfontein, you were no home to me.
The food was foreign. You offered me meat,
In the world I know, nothing could compete.
No longer home, I glanced at it!
Kudu, Springbok, Biltong, unknown to me
They didn’t tell me that biltong was coarse and chewy like beef jerky.
All types of fish, sheep, goat and guinea birds too,
They were all part of the delicacies on the list of things that I didn’t know I had to-do.
No longer home, I tasted it!
Drinks & Memories
Wash it all down with a really smooth lager,
South African renowned liquor, wine and Black Label Beer,
was enough to make any man stagger.
Next, they told me to try a local cider.
No longer home, I sipped on it!
Savanna Premium Light,
It was surely a delight.
Swallowed it down in two gulps, it was out of sight.
Refreshed thoroughly, tongue I had to bite.
No longer home, I drank it!
Fast food joints,
with food seasoned “on point”.
Debonairs, specialising in pizzas with assorted cheeses and meats
Steers, for the typical burger, salad, chicken and chips and any junk food to eat.
No longer home, I ate it!
They wet my palette with spicy-sweet flavour
Took it all in, call it “savoured”.
Not even Alzheimer’s can make me forget,
that taste that needs to be remembered, my needs; met.
No longer home, I devoured it!
Wildlife & Discoveries
Far from the forests, plains and sanctuaries
Confronted nonetheless with African biodiversity
A peaceful coexistence, humans and beasts
Kudu, deer, zebras, ostriches, giraffes and wildebeests, a sight to see, to say the least..
No longer home, I observed it!
Naval Hill, a protected space with an observatory at its peak,
Nelson Mandela stood there looking over the hills, seeing farmlands and city blocks, giving his speech
Taking in Bloemfontein in all its hidden glory,
The perfect marriage of countryside and urbanisation, ends this story.
No longer home, I experienced it!
〜as interpreted by Arthur Idyllic Voyages〜
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