The scenic beauty of Muizenberg and False Bay have long inspired its local writers, and the Muizenberg Literary Heritage Festival offers visitors a glimpse into the unique history of these regions and their links to the bay’s love of surfing.

Held at Rhodes Cottage, Main Road on Saturday 26 September and runs from 09:00 to 16:30, with individual sessions starting at R50, it will feature a number of authors, who will explain what inspires them to write about this bay and the diverse community that blossomed along its shores over the years.

Annual event

This year’s line-up features novelists, poets, researchers and a cartoonist

The festival is an annual event organised by Muizenberg Heritage, which focuses on the chronicling of the Muizenberg area and its historical aspects. .

“Our beautiful mixed-use multi-cultural space — amid the mountain, sea and wetland — allows writers to experience and imagine encounters of many kinds,” author Michael Cope explained.

He will talk about his latest novel, The Fall of Ugarit, which explores memory and place, inspired by his chance meetings and conversations in Muizenberg.

Many writers living in the area moved here from other parts of the country, including Johannesburg, according to Muizenberg Heritage member Sue Stewart. Daily Maverick cartoonist Carlos Amato loves drawing in Muizenberg.

He said: “Muizenberg seems to point towards Cape Town’s better self and the city it could yet become: a place that is open, authentic, eccentric and democratic.”

Poet Mike Alfred’s anthology Cape Continua records his fresh sensory experiences on arriving here and being captivated by the mountains and sea.

Inspired poetry

The sea is of course a continuous inspiration, and while some have researched the history of tidal pools and surfing others have written poetry inspired by the beaches and tidal pools.

“Muizenberg is where I learnt to surf, in my middle years,” said Melissa Volker, author of Chasing Waves — the Rise of Women’s Surfing in South Africa.

The first time I made it to the backline I saw the world from a new perspective, and I continue to be struck by how beautiful it is, looking back across the water to the mountains beyond.

False Bay has taught me that we are stronger than we think.

Included in the lunch-time poetry panel is Sahra Ryklief, who will read two descriptive poems about Dalebrook tidal pool; she said the serenity of her regular beach rituals during peak season pale into insignificance compared to daily proximity to these resources, not to mention the sheer joy of being able to witness the communal sharing of the tidal pools.

For more information on the website www. Muizenbergheritage.com and tickets are available at https://www.quicket.co.za/organisers/75147-muizenberg-

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