Halfpom

Meerkats & lions.....these are a few of my favourite things...

You are supposed to be humming this to the tune from 'The Sound of Music'....no seriously, I'd be worried if you were! After what seems like 5 minutes asleep, there is a knock at the door & a cheery greeting...how does he manage to sound so awake???

We're off to see the meerkats this morning.....along with elephant family groups, they are one of my favorite animals to watch....and you'd better take a large memory card as these little creatures are very photogenic...they're not particularly partial to early mornings either especially when it's as cold as it was that morning....after a 20 minute drive in an open vehicle we are trying to massage the circulation back into our faces. The vehicle is kitted out with blankets & hot water bottles on chilly mornings but this doesn't help your exposed bits....and we wondered why Marco was bundled up like a Michelin man....clearly done this before... 

On arrival at the site we quietly climb off the vehicle & position ourselves close to the burrow....one by one, they slowly emerge into the early morning sunlight...

They're a bit like their human counterparts - some are morning meerkats & are bright eyed & bushy tailed while others have clearly been burning the midnight oil & just can't wake up...

 
Fortunately this survival thing is a team effort at Meerkat Manor...attention...all eyes left - warning call....

There is a lot of housekeeping to be done before the group sets off for the day - looks like full scale renovations are in order today.....either that or they are planning to emigrate to Australia via the back door...

  

And then there's always the little one who is braver than the rest...

I nearly forgot Gary & Barry.....they watch each others backs...

Reluctantly we drag ourselves away from these endearing little creatures & set off on the prowl for the famous black maned Kalahari lion......they're making it easy for the tracker today....pug marks right in the middle of the road....even a novice like me could spot it...

We follow the road for a short while, turn a corner & there right in front of us lies the whole family......

Relaxing after last nights meal of gemsbok, the remains of which is still lying near the road in case one of them feels like a snack later....just look how full their little bellies are....just about dragging on the ground..

The male was pretty impressive....all the more so when he is jogging along the road towards you!! The lions here are all much larger than anything I have seen in other areas....& I've seen quite a few lions in my time.....

 

 

First sundowner....

After a quick trip to your room to explore & freshen up it is back to the main area for another snack - this time afternoon tea before your game drive...

And then off into the reserve - the scenery is just beautiful at the moment - apparently they have had 3 years of good rains and you can see it in the condition of the veld and the animals are sleek & well fed..

After 2 nights here guests also leave looking a little sleeker......next stop sundowners....oh well, if I must....Gara's first in line for his G&T while Marco & Johannes work hard to keep up with demand....

Sunsets in arid areas are always spectacular - this photo, in particular, reminds me of Damaraland in Namibia....the landscape looks very similar in appearance in the dusk...

  A perfect ending to our first day at Tswalu....

Tswalu....

Last week I was lucky enough to find myself staying at Tswalu for 2 nights, which is situated in the southern Kalahari - if I remember correctly they are approximately 60 kms (or was it 80 kms) from the Botswana border to the north, 200 kms from the Namibian border to the west and 200kms from the Orange River to the south - so a long way from anywhere. It is a magical area that has photographers - amateur & pro alike - reaching for their camera's. The adventure starts at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport at the Anglo American hangar......no scheduled flights for passengers to Tswalu....oh no, it is private all the way - thank you very much!!  

The thing that tickled me the most was that the plane taxi's to the perimeter fence looking out on to the runways.....then someone then presses a switch & then the fence slowly rolls back allowing direct access to the runway....just like your remote controlled gate at home - is that great or what? If you look closely you can just about see my hand luggage (in silver) in the hold - somehow & don't ask me how my hand luggage acquired a name (& a personality) en route to Tswalu so now she shall forever more be known as Betsy...

We stayed at the Motse which was just perfect....here are a few pics of the lodge & the room (although room is not quite the right word to describe the accommodation....below the main area with pool deck..    

 

 
In the background you can see the 'rooms' set at various intervals in the indigenous gardens for guaranteed privacy.

I loved the use of indigenous flora here.....the plants are so beautiful in their own way & most importantly of all, perfectly adapted to the harsh conditions experienced in this part of the world - very hot in summer & bitterly cold in winter.

 

   
 
  

Please excuse the quality of some of these photo's - they were taken at about 6:30 in the morning on the way to coffee & muffins before our early morning game drives so not as vibrant as those taken later in the afternoon...they keep you quite busy here so I wasn't feeling particularly frisky either at that time of the morning....

As mentioned earlier I think 'room' is a gross misnomer for this gorgeous accommodation - why, in the UK you would happily accommodate a family of four or five in this amount of space. In Africa this generous proportion houses one or two people at most.....bliss. For me one of the most luxurious features of the rooms was the fireplace in the bedroom.....the nights can get very chilly in winter in these parts.....what a wonderful treat to come back from dinner & find a fire cheerily burning in the grate with an enormous stack of wood next to it to keep it going all night if you can keep awake. I've added it to the list of things I NEED in my dream home....when I eventually get round to building it......

   
 
Just loved the subtle colours here - echoing the distinctive red Kalahari sand, the dry grasses & the sky outside your window.....which apparently was just what designer Boyd Ferguson intended..

Seriously you could quite easily move in & never leave...

Love at first sight.....Hugo..

I defy you not to have had the same reaction with this little face looking up at you....

Hugo is a 4 month old Australian shepherd dog (miniature).....his colouring is blue merle...a serious case of cuteness!!!

Sunday lunch...

On Sunday,we were out at the new..ish Eden on the Bay to celebrate a family birthday at Ciao Baby Cucina. When you have to please several generations it can be quite difficult to find a suitable restaurant but this one does the trick and here's why......before you even get to the restaurant there are all manner of distractions...

Sadly his ride wasn't going anywhere - poor lamb - one of these days he's going to start wondering why everything he wants is 'all gone' or 'broken'. A few steps further on and everyone who owned a Harley Davidson motorbike in Cape Town had converged on the seafront.....boys (big & small) happy...tick...

 
Now for the little girl....she'd come with her money...ready to spend & thankfully the bubble balls were operational. Think hamster wheel on water and you have the idea....there she goes...

And then 10 minutes of this...

and a lot of this.....

 
Under no circumstances should this be attempted after a big lunch at CBC....the consequences would not be pretty!!!! One little girl happy......tick!!

As for the older 'girls' in the party - easily pleased - just a good lunch in pleasant surroundings that we didn't have to cook & we're happy!!
  

african sunsets - continuing theme...

Popped down to the beach on Saturday evening - how nice to be able to say that!! I was hoping to get some pictures of the kite surfers but unfortunately (depending on who you are) there wasn't a great deal of wind so just 2 or 3 solitary guys doing their thing....

 
There is Robben Island just at the back with the lighthouse lights on already...my favourite time of the day..wrapped up warmly, windswept, with toes in the sand & hopefully a sundowner in hand...it doesn't get any better than this!

Mixed bag...

A bit of a mixed bag in today's post....  

This is a pic of the new (pink) platter I bought last weekend - it's going to compliment & lighten the formality of my blue & white dinner service which doesn't have platters anyway....I really love it and might have to get some more along the same theme - see I have my next one all picked out already....

 Also went to the Artscape theatre this past Sunday....I still want to call it the Nico but it hasn't been that for years....to see Pieter Tourien's new production of Grease - The Musical. It was fabulous....really enjoyed it...the acting, dancing, costumes & sets were all amazing. There wasn't a spare seat in the house which was encouraging. Do get there if you can. 

And lastly....a round of applause.....for the Department of Home Affairs. I applied for a renewal of my passport at Wynberg on the 12th of March and received a text on the 25th of March to say that it was ready for collection....2 WEEKS....that is impressive no matter which country you live in!!! I collected it yesterday, took me 5 minutes & yes, it was all correct. The building that houses the Wynberg Dept of Home Affairs might have seen better days but they certainly have a system going there - everyone was extremely helpful and knew exactly where to herd you next & it only took me 2 hours to apply for a passport & ID book from start to finish.....well done!!

Toilet humour...

Up the West Coast this weekend & came across this signage for ladies & gents facilities which made me smile....not terribly clear, I would say, especially if one is in a bit of a hurry....

Which reminds me of another one I spotted on my travels around Kwazulu Natal a year or two back - if my memory serves me correctly this one is at Rocktail Beach Camp....I'm thinking children would find this one a little difficult....

As you can see I'm easily amused & now that I have a digital camera nothing is too small or too insignificant to be recorded for posterity....I think I may have hit on the theme for my blog!

Sunday breakfast...

Weekends are the ideal time to meet up with friends and family.....everyone (including me) is just so darn busy during the week that we barely have time to breathe let alone anything else. But weekends are different..the clock seems to tick a bit more slowly and a bit of me time is on the cards. This weekend, while all the keen cyclists were gamely tackling the annual Argus Cycle Race our family sensibly met up at the newly refurbished Petits Fours in Bloubergstrand for a leisurely breakfast & a catch up...

Those classic photo's of Table Mountain that you see in all the coffee table picture books are always taken from this side of Table Bay...I took this photo outside the restaurant.....that ozony ocean smell is uniquely Capetonian...

 
On this particular morning we introduced the youngest member of the family to the joys of the cappuccino...only in his case, being 21 months old, it was a babyccino which is essentially a small cup of frothed milk with a bit of chocolate powder sprinkled on top....just so that he didn't feel left out...

Well, he was so pleased with himself you would have thought we'd given him a van load of toys & it kept him occupied for hours....what can I say, he's a natural.....don't you just love the bit of froth on the upper lip...

 
Loads of yummy looking cakes & pastries kept making their way from the kitchen to the counter behind us...you can either have them with coffee or to take away for tea later that afternoon if you are there for breakfast. The only downside to Petits Fours at the moment is that they don't do a good old English fried breakfast...but apparently that is being rectified (...feedback from customers is soooo important....well if you don't tell them, they'll never know, will they....) as a lot of men have been complaining about the lack of serious protein on the breakfast menu....a bit disappointing as I reaaaally wanted bacon & eggs. 

 

 

Hot as Hades.....

Just when we were starting to think the blindingly hot summer days of old had passed us by this year, along came the weekend.....boy, was it hot...I was in Paarl & it is always a good deal steamier there than in Cape Town...but 47 degrees C....that is just ridiculous....nothing for it but to..

 

But not before we had the most delightful lunch at Cotage Fromage - we had the harissa lamb, warm pitta bread, roasted brinjals, minted yoghurt, tzaziki and chilli oil - yum-yum-yum!! I've been there several times and never had a bad meal EVER. Their latte's are seriously good too. The restaurant is situated on Vrede en Lust wine estate and they also offer a wedding venue....my cousin got married here 2 years ago and even the food at the wedding was spectacular. I'm just sorry that I didn't have my camera with me to take a picture of the food....presentation was beautiful and sadly they don't seem to have much of a food gallery on their website. 

My friend, Colette, has excellent taste and it was a real treat to stay in her beautiful home this weekend - many thanks!

    
 
  

Today, Monday, is no better....this is what weatherman Pete is predicting..OMG...another scorcher.