The Cape Town suburb of Woodstock is one of the oldest suburbs in Cape Town. Years back, before the sea was forced back to where it is now, Woodstock used to be a seaside suburb... in fact, my dad remembers swimming at Woodstock beach!

Many Capetonians don't know this, but for some reason (unlike the well-known District Six area) Woodstock escaped the apartheid era's segregation laws. Somehow it remained an area where Caucasian, African, Coloured and Asians could live side-by-side.

Naturally, given the apartheid times and industrialisation the area became run down and dilapidated. Crime increased, and the Woodstock became an undesirable area. In the late 1990s the government started an urban renewal program to uplift the area. Now, 15 years on, while the streets and many buildings are still terribly run down, many businesses have opened in the area, young people have started buying and renovating homes, and much of Cape Town's middle- and upper-class have started frequenting places like The Old Biscuit Mill and The Woodstock Foundry.

While I certainly wouldn't suggest you wander at times when the streets are quiet, take some time to walk the Woodstock streets on a Saturday morning - there are plenty of interesting and unusual things to see.