Beggars in The Street

A few weeks ago I was walking home from a night out at a salsa club. It was fun, of course, but I had to leave early due to the fact that I was teaching online that night. Walking through Cape Town city centre at night alone isn't the safest thing to do, but nothing bad had happened to me doing so prior to that night (except getting mugged during the World Cup last year). The best thing to do is keep your head up, look forward, and try to act confident so that nobody bothers you.

This time, it didn't work.

A woman of indeterminable age approached me and started asking for money. Of course I said no, because 1) I had no money with me (specifically to avoid giving it away to people I didn't know), and 2) she was coloured, and with Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) in South Africa, this person had a better chance of getting a job than I, a white foreigner, had. Maybe taking my degree into account the situation is not so, but do you see my point?

Even though I said no, she asked again. I said no again, politely, but still she continued to ask, and eventually began demanding my money. I kept walking, but she started to follow me. I got annoyed and started walking more quickly, but I couldn't shake her off. I tried to tell her that if I had money, I probably would have taken a taxi, but she didn't seem to understand, and explained to me how she was pregnant. Still, my answer was "no".

Eventually I got to a main road where there seemed to be an invisible barrier that only I could pass through, so she swore at me and turned to face the opposite direction. I would say it was a strange experience, but it's not at all uncommon in South Africa.

My advice? Take a taxi.

Phrases:

a night out - having fun at night, usually in a social situation, i.e. at a bar, pub, or nightclub.

prior to - before

to get/be mugged - to have someone forcibly take your money and/or belongings (often involving the use of weapons).

give away - give something for free or as a gift.

coloured - South African politically correct term for a person of non-white and non-black ancestry (in other countries the term 'mixed race' may sometimes be used).

take something into account - consider something

do you see my point? - do you understand what I mean?

shake off - get rid of (somebody/something that is following you).

to swear - to curse/use swear words or vulgar language.