Style: Some observations and things I have learned about this place so far.

• Clothing: Girls at UCT wear flats most of the time, I have seen very few high heels on campus (or in town). Maybe it’s the big hill they have to climb to get to campus. The girls wear “flowy” clothing and short skirts and shorts. Often, girls dress as though they had a time warp to the late 1080’s and early 1990’s. Whenever the wind blows, you think you’re gonna get a glimpse of something naughty, but you never do! They do not generally emphasize their breasts. Guys seem to take more clothing risks, such as wearing more colors (pink, day-glo yellow, etc.), different casual styles (surfer, etc.) and wear flip flops. 

Exhibit A: 1980's or 90's? Note the shoes, rolled up shorts, shirt falling off one shoulder, the hair, and the purse.

• Shoes: Most shoes are sandals and are thin, flat, and have no arch support- which is a problem for me as I am an old woman with the “Princess and the Pea” syndrome (I feel every bump and rock). The women love to wear bejeweled and beaded shoes and often have calluses and corns on their toes. Not many wear tekkies, or tennis shoes, which is what I traditionally live in most of the time. I might have to start branching out… You will also often see young people, mostly lighter skinned, walking barefoot on the sidewalks and into grocery stores. I keep wondering why they choose to do it- is it cool?

Exhibit B: Flat shoes and flowy dress. Image source from "Embracing Style", a blog about SA style.

• Heads: Out in the community I see more hats on women here and some women have short hair; female UCT students do not seem to choose short hair styles or pixie cuts (I have only seen two).

• Clothing stores: Pick N’ Pay Clothing is marketed similarly as to Old Navy, which they do not have here. One of the brands they sell is in the store is Cherokee. The Gap does not have its own store, but it has several racks in an overpriced department store called Stuttafords. Esprite is alive and well here, even though the brand was discontinued in the states (at least in Tucson) over a decade ago. There are some stores that you would recognize, such as Build-A-Bear Workshop, Timberland, Billabong, Guess, Claire’s, Levi’s. There are stores here called called SissyBoy, Metrosexual, and Mr. Price. There are designer stores at the Waterfront and at Canal Walk that you would not find in Tucson, such as Louis Vuitton, Mango, Armani, Jimmy Choo, Burberry, Gucci, Pringle, and Max Mara.

Song of the Post, inspired by the clothing and theme of this song: Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae.