New Year's Eve, Betty's Bay, and Home

When I started this blog, I really thought I would be able to make an entry almost every day.  However, reality set in and I found it difficult to always have access to the internet and the time to make an entry.  The sign of a good trip, I suppose.....too busy to write!  Anyway, before I leave this adventure, I would like to catch everyone up on the last part of our trip.

We left the winery and our home away from home on Thursday afternoon and traveled about an hour and a half to Betty's Bay.  Once again we had a lovely little house to stay in, with a lovely view of the Indian Ocean this time.  The day we got there it was terribly windy...a sou'easter was blowing, so we spent most of the time indoors and enjoying the views.

The next day we went to Stony Point where there is a reserve for penguins.  The Jackass penguin is native to this part of Africa, and somewhat endangered, so there is a reserve that is loaded with penguins!  All of those years teaching about penguins, and finally, I got to see them up close and personal in all their smelly glory!  There were thousands of them on the rocky shore and we could get pretty close much like seeing the elephant seals in California.  We were actually quite grateful that it was so windy because they were very, very smelly!  Cormac and Harper loved seeing them, but were ready to go when the time came to get away from the strong odor!

On New Year's Eve most of the adults went into Cape Town for a concert in a gorgeous botanical garden.  Johnny Clegg was the featured entertainer singing songs mostly in Zulu and Afrikaans.  His music is mostly rock, but with the passion of a folk singer, and his songs celebrated the diversity of the South African people and their beautiful homeland.  It was a beautiful night, in a gorgeous setting, with good friends, and good music.  Good way to start 2011!

Needless to say, New Year's Day was pretty quiet as we didn't get to bed til 2:30 am.  We went  to another botanical garden close by and had a late breakfast, and a short hike to a waterfall.  The water that flowed in this area was a reddish, brown color.  It gets its color from the tannins in the plants.  The waterfall looked like root beer flowing down a rock cliff.  Cormac said it reminded him of Charley and the Chocolate Factory!  There were some beautiful orchids that grew on the cliffs near the waterfall.  All in all, a good, relaxing way to start the new year.

On January 2nd, we had to pack up all of our dirty clothes and find a way to stow away all of the treasures we were trying to take home to family and friends.  We had to be very creative to fit it all in, but we did, and barely made our weight limits!  Mid afternoon we headed out to Cape Town for the last time, checked in our car, and had a great, last dinner with the Rightford Clan.  The good byes were very hard to make after spending two weeks together.  There were lots of tears and hugs.....

After 12 hours of flying we were back in London, with barely enough time to catch our last flight to DC.  After another 8 hours we were home, and very tired.  We got to Brust's where the heater wasn't working and it was pretty cold.  We had been so spoiled with the warm South African sunshine!  Fortunately, his wood stove did work, and the kids opened Christmas presents left by Father Christmas while we were gone.

The next morning I had to leave pretty early for California...poor planning on my part!  It felt good to be home when I finally got there, though:)

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to go on such a marvelous trip.  I have so many fond memories of fabulous people and amazing places.

Sunset over the Indian Ocean.

Penguin Colony near Stony Point

Jackass Penguins

"Root beer" waterfall in Disa Kloof.  The water looked almost black in the pools, and reddish in the streams!

The sun dipping below a fog bank over the Indian Ocean.

The two "wawas" (grandmas) and Cormac and Harper on our waterfall hike.

One of the most outstanding features in South Africa are the stunning mountains and beautiful rock formations!

In two months I head out to Egypt!  Til then....love to you all!

Some Pictures to Catch Up

We have been so busy, and away from internet access that I am way behind in sharing pictures of all of our activities.  So, here goes.....

This is the truck we went in on our tour of the game reserve.  Just like a real safari!

 

The whole crew!  We saw a lot of different animals and had a marvelous tour of the reserve!

A very unusual looking locust!  We got a very up close view on our hike to the bushman cave paintings!

This is at the castle...I don't know who the people are, but we had a great time at the real live castle.

Cederberg Wilderness and the amazing rock formations.

Bushman cave paintings....

Marian, Harper and Cormac

The cute little huisie (house) we stayed in at the Cederberg.

Finally, we saw a baboon by the side of the road!  Cormac was so excited!

Tomorrow is Stellenbosch (the Cape's oldest wine region) so more to follow!

Christmas Day and Cederberg Wilderness

We had a wonderful Christmas Day that started with opening pressies at Brett and Elske's house.  They also served us tea and Christmas cake and mince pies to share their family traditions with us.  The three children had a wonderful time, as did all of the parents and wawas (grandma's) watching them!  Then, we went to a Christmas lunch with the extended Rightford family and many of their friends.  I think there were 42 people there in all!  They were very welcoming to our international group!  All in all, a nice, relaxing day.

The next day we left for the Cederberg Wilderness which is about 3 hours drive from Wellington.  It is an area of very red rocky landscapes much like you might see in Arizona or New Mexico.  The rock formations were really amazing and beautiful!  There was a small river we could swim in to cool off during the day, as it was pretty warm....probably 95 degrees or so.  The cabin we stayed in was once again the oldest building on the winery!  We seem to get the older houses which I love, as I enjoy the history of the place.  This house had traditional Dutch doors, and a thatched roof which made it interesting.  Also, all of the doorways were very small!  I felt a bit like Alice in Wonderland down the rabbit hole!!  Each evening we had a braai, drank wine, and talked until the stars were out.  Because we were so far from much civilization, the stars were really numerous and bright.  I was wishing I knew more about Southern Hemisphere constellations!  Orion was high in the sky though, so at least I knew that one.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to take a trip that was off the beaten path, so to speak.   We had to drive about 30 miles on gravel roads to get there.  The rental car may be a little the worse for wear.  It certainly needs a car wash, for sure!  But, I was glad to get to see a different side to South Africa than some tourists get the chance to.  It is nice Brett and Elske are sharing some of their favorite places with us.

After two nights up there, we drove home today, and were so hot that we went directly to the pool! I haven't had the chance to download pictures, as I need Cormac's camera to do it...long story....but, will send another post this evening and include some pictures this time.  I had tried to send a short video of the game trip, but it took too long to download, so I will have to try again.

Til next time....

Game Reserve Trip and Castle

Thursday afternoon we drove a short distance from the wine farm where we are staying, and had the opportunity to have a tour of a game reserve on a real safari land rover vehicle (just like in the movies!)  We saw a lot of wild game, but in this area of Africa there aren't a lot of the big five (lion, giraffe, elephant, wildebeest and zebra).  We saw lots of eland, springboks, some wildebeest, some zebra from a near extinct line, lots of birds, and a fox that looked like a big squirrel with big ears!  It was really a wonderful trip with beautiful scenery.  Quite the adventure!

Today we made another trip into Cape Town and went to the Castle which was built in the 1600's by the earliest Dutch settlers.  It was really interesting with lots of plaques to read!  Cormac really wanted to see the dungeon, and there was even a torture chamber!  The castle was complete with a moat....with water in it!

After our time at he Castle, we went to Green Market in downtown Cape Town where they sell lots of local goods...kind of like a flea market in the States.  You need to be good at bargaining (which I am not!), but I did pick up a few things to bring home.  Before we headed back to the farm, we drove to the area where Marian lived in Cape Town and saw her old house, which was nice.  It was good to see where she spent time growing up.

Now I am late to attend another braai by the pool!

Merry Christmas to everyone...I miss you all!

Game Reserve Trip and Castle

Thursday afternoon we drove a short distance from the wine farm where we are staying, and had the opportunity to have a tour of a game reserve on a real safari land rover vehicle (just like in the movies!)  We saw a lot of wild game, but in this area of Africa there aren't a lot of the big five (lion, giraffe, elephant, wildebeest and zebra).  We saw lots of eland, springboks, some wildebeest, some zebra from a near extinct line, lots of birds, and a fox that looked like a big squirrel with big ears!  It was really a wonderful trip with beautiful scenery.  Quite the adventure!

Today we made another trip into Cape Town and went to the Castle which was built in the 1600's by the earliest Dutch settlers.  It was really interesting with lots of plaques to read!  Cormac really wanted to see the dungeon, and there was even a torture chamber!  The castle was complete with a moat....with water in it!

After our time at he Castle, we went to Green Market in downtown Cape Town where they sell lots of local goods...kind of like a flea market in the States.  You need to be good at bargaining (which I am not!), but I did pick up a few things to bring home.  Before we headed back to the farm, we drove to the area where Marian lived in Cape Town and saw her old house, which was nice.  It was good to see where she spent time growing up.

Now I am late to attend another braai by the pool!

Merry Christmas to everyone...I miss you all!

Game Reserve Trip and Castle

Thursday afternoon we drove a short distance from the wine farm where we are staying, and had the opportunity to have a tour of a game reserve on a real safari land rover vehicle (just like in the movies!)  We saw a lot of wild game, but in this area of Africa there aren't a lot of the big five (lion, giraffe, elephant, wildebeest and zebra).  We saw lots of eland, springboks, some wildebeest, some zebra from a near extinct line, lots of birds, and a fox that looked like a big squirrel with big ears!  It was really a wonderful trip with beautiful scenery.  Quite the adventure!

Today we made another trip into Cape Town and went to the Castle which was built in the 1600's by the earliest Dutch settlers.  It was really interesting with lots of plaques to read!  Cormac really wanted to see the dungeon, and there was even a torture chamber!  The castle was complete with a moat....with water in it!

After our time at he Castle, we went to Green Market in downtown Cape Town where they sell lots of local goods...kind of like a flea market in the States.  You need to be good at bargaining (which I am not!), but I did pick up a few things to bring home.  Before we headed back to the farm, we drove to the area where Marian lived in Cape Town and saw her old house, which was nice.  It was good to see where she spent time growing up.

Now I am late to attend another braai by the pool!

Merry Christmas to everyone...I miss you all!

Robben Island

Yesterday we spent most of the day on Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for many years during the time of change when the ANC was working towards equal rights and representation in government.  Reminded me some of the struggles America went through first for independence from Great Britain, and then during the push for civil rights in the 60's.  There are many similarities.  All in all it was a really nice day and great experience.  Our tour guide was very passionate about the struggle for freedom and his part in it, and I learned a lot about the history of that time.  You know me and history!  I am reading every plaque I see!

Today we are heading out to a game farm.  I am not sure that we will see the big five as they call them here, but it should be interesting to be out in the country seeing some of the wildlife.  A lot of our days have been spent in Cape Town, and I think Brust is a little tired of driving down there every day!  Hopefully, I will get some good pictures to share.

Braai (BBQ) at Tony and Ian's house on the winery.  First night in town and many, many bottles of wine.

 View from the bottom of Table Mountain (in Cape Town, and a World Heritage Site)

View from the top of Table Mountain (1,026 meters) looking down at Clark's Bay

We took a tram trolley to the top, Brett, Brust, Greig, and his girlfriend Antonia climbed up the side.

Tram Trolley going up

Cormac and Harper lounging by the pool in our rare spare time.  Brett keeps us busy!

Nelson Mandela's cell on Robben Island, where he was imprisoned.  Twenty seven years of imprisonment and 13(?) in this cell.  His last "prison" was a two bedroom cottage with a kitchen and a swimming pool.  This was when he was in peace talks with DeKlerk and the last of the apartheid government.