Long Street-Cape Town

Cape Town (Afrikaans: Kaapstad [ˈkɑːpstɐt]; Xhosa: iKapa) is the second-most populated city in South Africa after Johannesburg, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality. The city is famous for its harbour as well as its natural setting in the Cape floral kingdom, as well as for such well-known landmarks as Table Mountain and Cape Point. Cape Town is also Africa's most popular tourist destination.

Located on the shore of Table Bay, Cape Town was originally developed by the Dutch East India Company as a victualling (supply) station for Dutch ships sailing to Eastern Africa, India, and the Far East. Jan van Riebeeck's arrival on 6 April 1652 established the first permanent European settlement in South Africa. Cape Town quickly outgrew its original purpose as the first European outpost at the Castle of Good Hope, becoming the economic and cultural hub of the Cape Colony. Until the Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the development of Johannesburg, Cape Town was the largest city in South Africa. Today it is one of the most multicultural cities in the world, reflecting its role as a major destination for immigrants and expatriates to South Africa. As of 2011^[update] the metropolitan region had an estimated population of 3.74 million.

Long Street is a major street located in the City Bowl section of Cape Town, South Africa. It is famous as a bohemian hang out and the street is lined with many book stores, various ethnic restaurants and bars. Restaurants include African restaurants such as Zula, and Indian restaurants such as Masala Dosa. Long Street exhibits a diversified culture and attracts tourists from all over the world. It also has a number of youth hostels which provide accommodation to an international roster of guests. Several theatres which showed anti-apartheid plays were located on the street during the 1970s and 1980s, although most have now closed and been replaced by restaurants or stores.

Architecturally it is noted for its Victorian buildings with wrought iron balconies. These were featured in an article in an edition of the annual publication The Saturday Book.

The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger (and now defunct) Cape Province. Prior to the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910, it was called the Cape Colony (see the History of Cape Colony).