Cape Town Daily Photo

Water shortage

2008-07-22T22:42:00.003+02:00

Cape Town had water restrictions imposed a couple of years ago, which meant that regulation restricted the watering of gardens to evening and early morning and banned the use of a water hose to wash one's car, patio or any paved area.

Next summer will be the first summer that we'll have in our new home, so we'll still have to wait and see how much water our densely populated garden needs to survive. It looks to me as though many of the plants are relatively water-wise, but not being very green-fingered, I'm not yet sure.

It's becoming more and more important for South Africans to have only indigenous plants in their gardens. Indigenous plants tend to use less water and cope better with the dehydrating effect of the African sun.

Rick's Cafe and Casablanca

2008-07-21T08:50:00.001+02:00

Even though it seems as though it may be one of the iconic movies of the 1940s, I've never actually seen Casablanca. Rick's Cafe in Park Road (just off Kloof Nek Road) is decorated with items reminiscent of the 1940s. A Spanish friend of ours even commented on the background music, saying that it sounded like the music that his grandmother in Spain listened to many years ago.

Rick's is a cosy little restaurant and the separate bar area with couches makes it the perfect place to pop in for drinks after dinner.

Is it a bird? Is it a plane?

2008-07-20T19:18:00.003+02:00

So there we were, driving happily along the N7 this morning, on our way to visit my brother and his family at their new home in Hopefield, when we noticed that the traffic had slowed somewhat, and there seemed to be some sort of obstruction on the road ahead, with an awful lot of blue and orange flashing lights, and plenty of cars on the wrong side of the road.

We were all a little taken aback when we spotted the cause of the hold-up. It turned out to be this rather large plane, being transported up the West Coast by truck. We toddled along behind it for several kilometres, as only a few cars were being allowed past every so often. Eventually we got close enough to get a few photos, and you can see the rest of them on the Cape Town Daily Photo Extras blog. Anyone know what kind of plane this is?

High tea with style

2008-07-19T00:56:00.001+02:00

A friend of ours turned 30 this week and chose to celebrate by inviting a few friends and family to the Mount Nelson Hotel for high tea. Exquisitely beautiful, the hotel's decor makes it seem as though someone managed to travel back to colonial Cape Town and return with an assortment of artifacts.

I'm not sure what the buffet of cake, sandwiches and little treats cost our friends but I'm sure it wasn't cheap. The assortment and quality of the food was 5-star, absolutely superb.

This pot of Earl Grey tea was delivered to me only moments before I took this photo. The teapot arrives containing only boiling water. Tea leaves are popped into a retractable glass container and an egg timer is set for three minutes. When ready, one removes the inner glass container and voila, a pot of freshly brewed tea is ready to be poured.

I can certainly recommend visiting the Mount Nelson for high tea. Only, may I suggest parking your car a couple of kilometres away so as to have the opportunity to work off the extra kilos you'll gain after the many visits to the buffet table? ;)

Happy 90th birthday, Madiba!

2008-07-18T22:44:00.004+02:00

Freedom-fighter, prisoner, president and hero - today South Africa and many around the world celebrate Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday.

Born in rural Transkei 90 years ago Madiba rose to be a man affecting world change - he became a symbol of peace and an example of humility. Today we join with many others around the world to wish you a happy birthday and a peaceful next year.

Viva Nelson Mandela, viva!

A vehicle of a different type

2008-07-17T20:13:00.002+02:00

Following on from yesterday's post, involving a Citroen, we have a vehicle of a different type today. This cement truck is coin-operated and delivers not cement, no, but bouncy-balls. You know the ones... those small rubber balls that seem to go on bouncing for ever.

I begged and pleaded, but Kerry-Anne just wouldn't let me have one, mumbling something about a rubber ball and a certain heirloom vase. No, I'm just kidding, of course. Seriously though, our cats really do enjoy these balls. We play throw and retrieve, just the way you'd play with your dog... it's too cute.

An unidentified vehicle

2008-07-16T22:53:00.004+02:00

If anyone's able to identify what kind of car this is I'd be most appreciative. The badge on the back is just a little unclear for me to read and I'm not able to identify it from the shape alone. I'm guessing that it dates back the the 1930s or 1940s, but that's about all I know.

To answer the question in your mind: I'm not sure why I didn't just walk up to the car and read the badge... I'd have to guess that I'm just terribly unobservant and never even saw the badge at the time.

Update: Kerry-Anne apparently did walk up to the car to have a look at the badge, and she says she's pretty sure it was a Citroen.

The sun has got its hat on

2008-07-15T22:43:00.002+02:00

Although late afternoons and evenings are still bitterly cold in Cape Town, the sun has been shining brightly in the clear skies for a few days now. While visiting Kerry-Anne's mom and dad I noticed the neighbour's washing line and realised that with all the rain we've been having, brightly-coloured laundry hanging out to dry is something I haven't seen in quite some time.

The owners of these clothes must also have forgotten about the brightly-coloured laundry hanging out to dry. My mother-in-law pointed out that this washing has been hanging up for several days, getting wet every night and drying again during the sunny day.

Confessions of a daily photo blog

2008-07-14T22:23:00.001+02:00

For more than a year we've managed to pretty much post a photo each day - only once in a while having to catch up with a day here or a day there. In this time we've been really appreciative of our readers' daily visits and the many comments we receive.

Due to work pressures keeping us fenced in ;-) for the past two weeks, we've been struggling to post a new photo every 24 hours, and in fact, if you visit often, you'll have noticed that we missed posting for several days at a stretch. And, while we do catch up on each day missed, we realise that this breaks from the appeal of a daily photo blog.

But you can be sure that the trend of the past 500+ posts will be restored, and we'll soon be in a position to post a new photo every 24 hours again.

Thank you for understanding, and for coming back to see more of our beautiful city each day.

This photo was taken at the relatively new Berg River Dam in the Franschhoek area. Notice the snow on the mountains in the background? It's still darn cold in Cape Town!

Franschhoek - it's not all bad

2008-07-13T22:10:00.001+02:00

In yesterday's post I had a little rant about how un-French Saturday's Bastille Day celebrations felt to us. Now while I stick with that opinion, perhaps it's worthwhile mentioning that Franschhoek is actually a really nice little town, a gem of the Cape in fact, and a place that we really do enjoy visiting.

It's exquisitely beautiful, nestled among rolling hills and mountains. Although restaurants tend to be a little on the expensive side, it's still very much worth a visit - and you'd do well to spend a night or two in one of the many guesthouses in the area too.

When visiting, take time to walk around and experience nature as well as to browse the little shops, art galleries, and especially the small (but very popular) chocolate shop in the main street.

Bastille Day in Franschhoek

2008-07-12T21:42:00.002+02:00

Kerry-Anne and I grabbed a boy- and a girl-friend of ours and headed off to the Bastille Day celebrations in the "French" town of Franschhoek today.

Except for berets and the French colours of blue, white and red, we were sad to discover very little else French. Now it may sound like I'm complaining, and you'd be darn right... we're longing back to our 2006 visit to Brittany and Paris and thought that a visit to the Bastille Day celebrations would be just the right consolation.

Alas, it was not so... we didn't hear one "bonjour", not a single "merci beaucoup" either; and instead of crêpes the locals were serving up pancakes (and crêpes are quite decisively different to local pancakes).

Black and white

2008-07-11T19:03:00.001+02:00

The Glen Garry shopping centre in Brackenfell (very close to our home) has one of those oversized outdoor chess boards in its centre courtyard. I was however sad to discover that there are several pieces missing from the board - so I was unfortunately unable to whip Kerry-Anne at a game of chess. ;-)

Management - please put those pieces back, we want to play a game!

Not enough to ski

2008-07-10T18:25:00.002+02:00

It's never (to my knowledge) snowed in Cape Town before. It did however snow on top of Table Mountain a few years back, but as far as I know, never in the city itself.

Today's photo is of one of the peaks in the Boland Mountain range. This mountain range is Cape Town's visual thermometer. When its peaks are white, it's freezing cold outside and generally a good idea to remain indoors.

Homes in and around Cape Town (and more so in informal settlements) are generally not very well equipped to deal with temperatures below about 10 degrees Celsius. Most homes don't have central heating, air conditioning or proper insulation. The energy crisis and rising cost of electricity in South Africa also makes many reluctant to switch on electricity-based forms of heating.

This has me wondering whether or not anybody has done a study to ascertain whether or not Cape Town has a mini baby-boom each year around April and May...

Hail!

2008-07-09T22:11:00.000+02:00

I've been mentioning for some time that it's been fairly cold in Cape Town lately. We arrived home this evening only to be greeted by a torrential downpour followed by a pounding of hail.

Now hail in Cape Town isn't quite comparable to the golfball-sized hail experienced north of the Western Cape. Our hail is far more delicate, never bigger than a pebble. Hail, for Capetonians, is merely a strange phenomenon that most people gather at windows to watch, as if in some kind of trance.

After two or three minutes the hail has ceased and is quickly forgotten.

Cold 'n wet

2008-07-08T23:41:00.000+02:00

It's been cold and wet for days now. I think it's been this way ever since a friend visited from the UK a week or so ago. I should have reminded him to take his weather home with him. ;)

Kerry-Anne had a business meeting this evening, so I dragged my laptop along and grabbed a seat at Arnold's, a popular restaurant in Kloof Street. I watched a movie (on my laptop) and drank Coke and a single whiskey until it was time to fetch my lady.

The waiters at Arnold's were surprisingly friendly and welcoming to someone who was there only to use their facilities and not to have a meal. They even sat me down at a table close to an electricity outlet.

If it's freezing cold outside and you're looking for a relaxed dinner, or conversation over drinks, consider Arnold's - service was quick, the staff were friendly and it was nice and toasty-warm inside.

And, if you need Internet access while visiting Cape Town, Arnold's has reasonably affordable (about R0.80/MB) wifi Internet access through their Skyrove hotspot.

PS. This photo was taken at Yum, not Arnolds... I left my camera at home! :(

Coffee cups and candle light

2008-07-07T23:01:00.001+02:00

It's freezing cold and it's been raining in Cape Town for days. This is certainly not a time to be a tourist in our water-drenched city. That said, it's been a rather eventful day for us, with Kerry-Anne celebrating her birthday and my mother being released from hospital after knee replacement surgery.

You may recall that I mentioned a restaurant called Jamaica Me Crazy about a week or so ago. We were invited by friends to join them for the Monday night specials at Jamaica Me Crazy. Kerry-Anne and I both had their Barbados burgers: the patty was covered with two or three large pieces of bacon, cheese sauce and a pineapple ring, and was served with chips and battered onion rings. It was truly delectable.

Vredehoek

2008-07-06T23:08:00.007+02:00

Cape Town sprawls out before this Vredehoek flat almost as far as the eye can see. From this vantage point one can keep a keen eye on and almost feel the heartbeat of South Africa's Mother City. ("Mother City" is a colloquial nickname for Cape Town.)

See yesterday's post for more about what exactly we were doing in Vredehoek on Saturday afternoon.

Flying high

2008-07-05T22:05:00.001+02:00

We spent a couple of hours this afternoon with one of Cape Town's celebrity radio presenters, Lisa Chait. While she fed us tea and cake we helped her register her domain, and set up her new email address and an "under construction" website.

Lisa recently left Cape Talk radio and is preparing for new adventures in her career. This flying damsel is hanging in Lisa's front lounge window, which overlooks the city bowl, Vredehoek and Table Bay. It's an exquisite view that lends itself to all kinds of creative thinking - which is precisely what a broadcaster and creative thinker desperately needs.

Thanks for the cake and tea, and here's wishing you well in this new phase, Lisa!

Afternoons and coffee-spoons

2008-07-04T14:23:00.003+02:00

Isn't this lampshade just awesome? Okay, perhaps not for your home, but it does fit in with Yum's decor really well. It would appear as though someone spent quite some time drilling little holes on the many teaspoons and hanging them on little pieces of wire attached to the lampshade.

While eating I happened to notice that at least some of the art on the walls was for sale. It would appear as though artists use the restaurant to sell art. I guess that it's a nice way for the restaurant to keep changing its decor and for artists to sell a few pieces.

Simply Yum

2008-07-03T00:03:00.000+02:00

Tucked away in the quite city suburb of Vredehoek is Yum, one of Cape Town's finest restaurants. Known for it's wonderfully-good rump steak with creamy Jagermeister and mushroom sauce, Yum certainly is a favorite among people with a need for good food.

The restaurant has an casual bar area with an indoor fire burning to keep patrons warm and a separate non-smoking, slightly more formal area for finer dining. I say "finer" because although Yum isn't a traditional burgers and chips restaurant, their food isn't quite fine-dining either (in other words portions are big enough and the food tastes as good as it looks).

If you carefully review the decor on the walls you'll notice that Yum seems to have a cutlery theme going. They have old knives, forks and spoons (that you may recall your grandmother having) glued up on the walls.

Unless I find a particularly good photo to post for tomorrow, I'll show a photo of the very interesting teaspoon lampshades hanging from the restaurant's ceiling.

Back in the glory days

2008-07-02T23:14:00.002+02:00

This ice cream shop used to be a favourite stop when visiting Sea Point, but it seems to have been closed for quite some time now - could it be years even? I find this a bit strange, really, because there aren't any other shops selling softserve ice cream along this stretch of beachfront, and, well, it is a beachfront after all. Beaches and ice cream kind of go together, don't they?

If anyone has any information on what became of this little shop, please leave a comment!

Breakfast for R10

2008-07-01T21:11:00.002+02:00

I realise that I may be branded a liar, but it is true, you really can have an English breakfast at Beleza Restaurant for only R10.

I haven't actually had breakfast here before but on popping in for a drink I noticed a sign posted outside advertising their super-cheap breakfast. I'll certainly visit one morning to give the breakfast a trial run and report back on my findings.

If you're looking for the place, click through to Wikimapia. It's on Kloofnek road, directly in the middle of the satellite photo.

Rafiki's = Sport

2008-06-30T21:02:00.001+02:00

It's true for most of Cape Town, but not for us. Rafiki's (on the right) is a popular, nay, a very popular, place to watch any sporting event of any widespread significance. We've recently tried to pop in at Rafiki's to watch a game or two but to our disappointment found that there was simply not enough seating... this is no fault of the establishment... it's just so popular and has such a great vibe that sports-lovers are drawn to it like moths.

I have a feeling that Kerry-Anne's going to insist that we arrive at least two hours before the match to book our place at the next great sporting event.

Euro2008... in Africa

2008-06-29T23:19:00.000+02:00

I've been supporting the Spanish football team since the World Cup in 2002, so I was understandably excited that they'd actually made it to a final for once (even a semi-final for that matter!). I dragged Paul kicking and screaming to our local Dros (a steakhouse chain) to watch the final game of the Euro2008 championship this evening.

I got the distinct feeling that the greater majority of people in the restaurant were supporting Germany. There were quite a few glum faces when the game ended, but mine was certainly not one of them. I was beaming from ear to ear, in fact, and the feeling hasn't entirely worn off yet. I'm really looking forward to seeing La Furia Roja playing on South African soil in next year's Confederations Cup. Although my first loyalty will always be to my country, I certainly won't be sorry to see Spain win that tournament too. :)

Not enough of a good thing

2008-06-28T22:14:00.001+02:00

Here's another photo from inside Ziggi's (see yesterday's post). It really was that good. :D

Now that I think about it... there was one thing that wasn't that great about Ziggi's. I'm not keen on strong coffee - and theirs certainly was strong - really strong. It wasn't much of a problem though - I LOVE milk and the waiter was kind enough to bring over a second round of warm milk to sufficiently dilute the coffee.