Stellenbosch Hotel

... was the grande provence winery, another fabolous setting where we tried 5 wines.. sauvignion blanc, chenin blanc, cab sav, shiraxz and the wineries own grande reserve. the wines were excellent with the cab sav being the best. we took time to look around the colonial gardens and buildings and saw the most amazing glass bottle chandeleer in the main house. Following the winery visit, it was back to our accomodation for sunbathing round the pool, more wine and some tunes.. a lovely ...

... you are saying you went to the city Johannesburg, nicknamed Joburg, to dance when clearly you are standing in Cape Town on the other side of the country. But, really, they can figure it out if they try. Excessive capitalism and gluttony were balanced by a trip to Robben Island. The boat ride out was a bit cold but we were able to see a nice view of the city and Table Mountain. This is one picture that I am very sorry to have missed ...

We had a number of friends living in Stellenbosch, however the afternoon was drawing to a close, and we did not want to be caught driving in the dark through some lonely spots between Stellenbosch and Cape Town, especially with slums lining the highway in this region. So we proceeded directly back to Cape Town and onwards to our hotel.

Finally got round to adding a bit about the tour to go with the photos. Well I went out again the night before the tour but I ate a pile of toast and drank loads of water before I went to bed so I didn't feel too bad the next day. It was another beautiful day and our driver picked us up at nine from outside our flats. Is was just our group and a retired American couple who were real wine conisurs. We were shown round the first winery and then th tour guid ...

... delivered with wry humour from a local Cape Malay chap. He explained the history of the island, showing us the quarry where Nelson Mandela and the other ANC prisoners had worked. We were then dropped off at the prison for a guided tour by a former inmate, who had spent time there. When asked why he had been imprisoned he gave a potted history of his involvement in the anti-apartheid struggle, noting that he had received training in Germany - my thought ...

... to us. Naturally I responded with, "lo siento señor, no tenemos plata" (Spanish). Sarah laughed at me and reminded me that he probably doesn't speak Spanish. So as I kindly told him sorry we don't have any money he responded with a very unusual request, mustering up what I thought was the only English he could find the man said, "buy a donkey," so I thought... wait what!?!?!... Why should I buy him a donkey?... I can understand if he wants change, but to ask to buy you a donkey ...

... it not only annoying, but also mildly suicidal. We arrived in Robertson pretty depressed; if we'd wanted to bike on a freeway to look at wine vineyards, we would have saved the plane ticket and gone to California. But we were still holding out for the R62, the scenic road north of the more coastal N2 highway which is the traditional Garden Route, and which many people had recommended. That night at the backpackers we got ...

... was our car. Unfortunately, there were no cars available, so there was nothing for it but to book a seat on the infamous Baz Bus. Basically a so-called inexpensive backpacker bus that tours SA. In reality it is actually quite expensive, at approx 80 GBP to travel the 500 miles up to PE. I was due to be picked up at 715 in the morning. The driver eventually turned up an hour late because the door had fallen off earlier that ...

... glass concreted into fence tops and no barbed wire. Fashionable homes stream up the hill from the smart redeveloped waterfront apartment complexes and diamond showrooms to eddy around the foot of Table Mountain. The mountain itself dominates the town, usually draped in its table cloth of softening cloud, but when the cloud is swept away it thrusts darkly up wrapped in fire scarred brush. Drive out from the city towards the expensive outlying suburbs nestled in among ...