Voices of the City is a new, weekly feature that spotlights the everyday lives of our citizens, living and working in the city. By asking the same five questions to all our interviewees, we discover not only how our experiences of differ, but also what we share. It is a daunting task to try and capture the diverse experiences of our city’s inhabitants, but we feel that it is a worthy, and necessary, endeavor, in order to better understand the present and future of our city. This week we hear from Anja van der Spuy, a social media manager at The Publishing Partnership in the CBD. Anja is originally from Paarl and studied at the Red & Yellow in Cape Town. She tells us that her blog, Glitz and Grammar is her ‘space to let my freak flag fly.’ Anja loves leopard-print, social media, dogs and carbs.
Question: What about Cape Town inspires you the most?
Answer: During my first years in Cape Town I was incredibly inspired by the people. I wasn’t used to seeing so many tattoos and bold hairstyles! I have a lot of respect for self-expression, so it was awesome to me to see so many people doing their own thing.
Now I find myself being inspired by the vibe in CBD during lunchtime. The buskers set the soundtrack while everyone just forgets about their work stress for an hour or two. I love it!
Q: Do you have a secret space or place that you enjoy in the city?
A: I have such a soft spot for the city lights, so for me any place with a view of the lights is awesome.
Q: What was the last exciting event you attended in the city?
A: I go to a lot of beauty and fashion events in Cape Town, but the coolest proudly Capetonian event I attended this year was the Cape Town Carnival. What a vibe! I was blown away by the amount of love and effort that went into the costumes and floats.
Q: What frustrates you about the city?
A: The trains! I don’t understand why Metrorail’s infrastructure is so terrible when so many people rely on the trains to get to work. I take the Boland Business Express, which is Cape Town’s version of the Gautrain. The train is lovely and clean, but it still depends on Metrorail’s railways – so the state of the train means nothing if it’s late due to cable theft or broken links.
Q: You can have dinner with one person living or dead. Who is it and why?
A: I know a lot of people would expect me to say Anna Wintour here, but to be honest – she TERRIFIES me. She’d definitely judge my eating habits!
I’d love to have lunch with Lana Del Rey. I find her absolutely fascinating – she’s one of those rare women who genuinely couldn’t care less what other people think of her. I want her to teach me her ways!
You can follow Anja on Twitter: @AnjaWintour
Check out our website next week for the next Voices of the City interview.