So you have planned to spend your vacation in Cape Town. Everything has been well taken care of: your accommodation, tickets and your luggage, but you forgot to plan your activities during your stay. With all the historic sites and beautiful scenery, I’m pretty sure you’ll find plenty to do. However, you may want to start by reliving the life of Nelson Mandela.

Having reached the incredible age of 93 years on Monday July 18, 2011, this living legend surprises us with the story of his life. He was born in 1918 in Transkei, Eastern Cape Town, where in his early childhood he was called Rohilalah. It was a name given to him by the tribe, which literally means “troublemaker.” Later, his teacher gave him the name Nelson, an English name, when he finally went to school.

People say that what made Nelson Mandela the great leader he is today is his genes and the long period of incarceration he endured on Robben Island, roughly seven miles off the coast of Cape Town.

Mandela spent 18 years in prison. His cell was only 5 square meters and what made matters worse is the inadequate clothing and horrible sleeping conditions: he slept on a thin straw mat lying on the floor.

However, in the early 1970s, things changed a bit for the better: Inmates were given the opportunity to study. Without thinking twice, Nelson Mandela seized that opportunity not only for the purpose of learning but also to combat the feeling of being isolated away from family and the harsh life he had to live in prison. However, while there, he demonstrated his leadership skills by going to great lengths to bridge the gap between the jailers and the prisoners.

You can go to Robben Island by taking a ferry at the Nelson Mandela Gateway located on the V&A Waterfront, right in front of Clocktower. It will be a wonderful past experience for you to cross Table Bay and enjoy an emotionally heartfelt tour given by former political prisoners.

It is undoubtedly public knowledge that Nelson Mandela became the first South African president elected in a democratic election. However, it is not so popular how everything happened and the events that led to that success. Strolling through the historic streets of Cape Town will give you the opportunity to learn the early history of the city from the Dutch and British settlers to the rise of slavery and the rise and fall of the apartheid era.

In 2010, the United Nations created Mandela Day, which was celebrated again on Monday for his 93rd birthday. South Africans around the world greeted the day with great enthusiasm and took the time to commemorate Mandela’s extraordinary work since 1994.

The festivities began the weekend before in Cape Town, where an auction for a special piece of art was held. This artwork is made from the handprints and autographs of 67 international celebrities. These handprints and photographs were creatively woven together to form the pattern and colors of the South African flag.

Nelson Mandela has spent 67 years serving not only his country and his community, but also the world at large. And to commemorate this, at exactly 8:05 a.m. on Monday, July 18, South Africans were asked to participate in singing the Happy Birthday song and to spend 67 minutes of their time doing something good for their community.