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My City: Kirsten Keun

Cape Town: Freelance tour and horse safari guide

Nov 21, 2009 11:24 PM | By Tiara Walters

'If you gave me money, I'd invest in field guides: diplomats for the zebra, the giraffe, the elephant, the lion and the whale'


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I am ... in sympathy with nature. This comes from my parents. My father taught survival skills to young people and my mother was a music teacher so I've been exposed to music, which is a part of nature, from a young age. We hear music everywhere in nature.

Where and when were you born? In the Soutpansberg, on April 10 1976. The northern part of our country, the bushveld, the shoulder of the Kalahari - that whole dry, rugged place where you find big elephants and big baobabs - is very holy to me.

How long have you been living in Cape Town? For about a year. I was attracted by the tourism opportunities and the horsey and surfing cultures.

Who do you share your house with? My girlfriend, Linda Maré, and I moved to Sea Point together. We met in Snor City [Pretoria] about two years ago. We don't have any pets, although I had a dog once. She was eaten by lions while I was working in a game reserve.

How did you get into your career? I've always had a wanderlust and have never been able to see myself as an engineer or doctor, although in 1995 I did a stint as a clerk in President FW de Klerk's office. I saw a Bible and a packet of Winston cigarettes on the same table, which I thought made for interesting politics. I did a hunting course, but I don't work as a "PH" today.

What's that? A professional hunter - the real rough ranger. Ouens wat dinge kan doodskiet. Hulle is hectic [Guys who can shoot things. They're hectic]. I soon discovered I didn't want to be a professional hunter. I'll still kill something if I'm well and truly hungry, but for a trophy? I don't think so.

What's your favourite building in Cape Town? My house in Sea Point. I love sitting on my stoep, looking at Robben Island.

How do you get around? On horseback, my mountain bike or my 1995 Golf.

Cape Town drivers are ... I was recently in an accident and it was probably 30% my mistake and 70% the Capetonian's. Of course, she pointed out my GP numberplate and said: "I know these streets," and my response was, "So don't act as though you work them."

What's Cape Town's most overrated attraction? The restaurants. In Joburg and Pretoria the average waiter is extremely friendly and I'm not convinced we always get that same service here.

What's the most memorable moment you've had in Cape Town? I surf a lot so I think it was that swell at the end of winter 2008.

What books are you reading? The Ancestor's Tale by Richard Dawkins.

If you could move one of the world's landmarks to Cape Town, what would it be? The Kruger National Park. The sensation you get from standing in front of a big elephant is hard to duplicate anywhere else.

If you inherited R100-million, what would you do with it? In the movie Blow, there's a line where a drug dealer's father says to him: "Money is not real." Somehow that's always been an excuse for me not to make too much of it. If you gave me R100-million, I would keep R1-million and invest the rest in training more field guides: diplomats for the zebra, the giraffe, the elephant, the lion and the whale.

How would you like to die? At a vulture restaurant. It's a good way to return to nature.

Cape Town has taught me that ... city life is not so bad.

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