Part of living anywhere new is getting used to the public transportation system. I tackled it in Los Angeles, in New York City and now in Cape Town. I have not figured all of it out yet, but I have learned a bit over the past week!
Cars are ubiquitous here, but there are two special quirks: locals drive on the left side of road, and almost all the cars are stick-shifts! Unlike today's automatic cars, manual stick shift cars need to have their gears changed by the driver depending on how he or she plans to move the car. So whenever you hop into an Uber or taxi, you will often feel yourself being jostled as the driver changes gears! South Africa is also a coastal city, so there are plenty of boats that are used for ferrying and business shipments.
There is a main bus system in Cape Town that drops people at specified stops. Interestingly enough, there is a an unofficial "minibus" that has an impromptu way of operating, and one that maybe raises safety concerns. The minibus goes along main roads and the driver yells at people that they want to pick up. According to the locals I have talked to, the minibuses are safe, but according to my program directors, we should not take them.
There is also a public train system, which comedians joke that people pack into like canned salmons.
