Cape Town's historic and picturesque Muslim QuarterBo-Kaap is one of Cape Town's oldest and most atmospheric areas. Situated on Signal Hill not far from the Houses of Parliament, Bo-Kaap was the original Malay Quarter of the city.
The brightly-painted 19th century houses are the residences of the descendants of "Cape Malays" - slaves brought over from Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Malaysia by the Dutch in the 16th and 17th centuries. Around 10,000 people, mostly Muslims, live in the area.
Wale Street, Bo Kaap, Cape Town, South AfricaBo-Kaap includes South Africa's first mosque - the Auwal Mosque at 39 Dorp Street - and the Bo-Kaap Museum (Tel: 021 481 3939) at 71 Wale Street.
The Bo-Kaap Museum displays the the lifestyle and possessions of a nineteenth-century Muslim family.
The house was once the residence of the Turkish scholar Abu Bakr Effendi who came to South Africa at the request of the British in 1862 to work among the Muslim community.
© CAPE TOWN ROUTES UNLIMITEDBo-Kaap is best seen as part of a tour rather than wandered alone.
Walk along Wale Street west towards Signal Hill from the Houses of Parliament across Buitengragt.
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