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Published: March 17th 2014
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At Cheetah Outreach
It's a lazy afternoon in captivity! It truly is a small world. As indicated in last week's blog, we had dinner with Chris and Jan Little who Debra worked with at the ScotiaBank. This week our friends, Ken and Diane Cranston, stayed at Highcliffe House for a couple of days in advance of their organized Tour. Ken also worked at Scotiabank and knows both Chris and Jan. Coincidentally they will both be at the same Hotel on the same day when visiting Victoria Falls
With Ken and Diane, we had a nice lunch at Jordon Winery. The food was gourmet and of course the views were post card perfect. In addition, we stopped at Van Ryn's for a Brandy tour that was very informative and interesting. The Brandy and chocolate pairing was a delightful experience. We also toured Robben's Island prison, just off the coast from Cape Town. Debra and I went there in 2010 on our first visit. This is where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for many years and a must see for first time visitors to South Africa. The whole Island is now designated as a World Heritage Site.
Of course, Jane and Jim provided their usual great hospitality to Ken and Diane and we all had
a nice dinner/barbecue on the patio at Highcliffe House.
On the way to Stellenbosch, on Route 44, nestled among the majestic mountains and the gentle rolling fields of the wineries, there is a strawberry farm that also has a Food Market and an outdoor market on Saturday. It's called the Thirsty Scarecrow. We've been planning to stop for pictures and finally did when Ken and Diane were with us. This menagerie is so out of place it's hilarious!! See picture. The animals and characters are made out of tin and apparently some of them represent numerous Rugby teams in South Africa who have animal monikers.
On Tuesday, Debra and I spent some time at the Cheetah Outreach in Somerset West. Like all big cats in Africa, the Cheetah's population numbers are dwindling. We saw them in the wild when touring the Serengeti in 2010 and they are an impressive animal. One of the many reasons for their decline is they are a threat to livestock and farmers have been shooting them. The Cheetah Outreach also had some Anatolian dogs which have been bred to help protect the herds without killing the Cheetahs. Of course these dogs are big and apparently are quite
effective in providing protection to domestic herds.
More golf lessons this week and we played at Paarl Valley Golf Resort. The course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and is very challenging with lots of bunkers and water. It's a beautiful development about 1 hours drive from Gordon's Bay. Debra's golf game is improving quite a bit, however, she is still experiencing the same frustration with the game that all golfers have to bear.
There was a little excitement at Highcliffe House on Saturday as a truck went over an embankment and came to rest up against a neighbour's house. It was quite a recovery process!!
The weather here continues to be superb as we now enter the fall (Canada's spring). The temperature is slightly cooler, which in fact is more enjoyable, as some days in January/February can be quite hot (although there is not much humidity).
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