Blogs from Western Cape, South Africa, Africa - page 5

Only one more stop on our road to Cape Town, our final destination in South Africa. Dec 25 we are supposed to fly back to Switzerland. Do we really want??? This second last stop of ours is the famous South African wine district of Franschhoek and Stellenbosch. To get there we left Oudtshoorn after a nice morning breakfast on the estate and an elaborated chat with the owner. His son played with Nui until the last minute and we left him with tears in his eyes, so sad he was losing his new found playing companion. Following along the Route 62 through the Karoo desert, we passed nice little country towns and crossed fertile farmland and wide spaces. Route 62 is famous in South Africa, having an image a bit like the Route 66 in USA, ... read more

The temperatures have cooled again this morning, because the direction of the wind has changed. This weather pattern is really identical to the Australian Great Ocean Road which runs from Melbourne to Adelaide. We continued our journey towards Cape Town, following the Garden Route in the South Westerly direction. We will however not yet drive directly to the Cape, but turn at the end of today inland towards the Little Karoo Desert area, and visit Oudtshoorn. On our way before leaving the Tsitsikama area and passing through Plettenberg Bay, an upmarket holiday town, we stopped at the bridge spanning over the majestic Bloukrans Gorge. Nenad wanted to give Nui a special present; a bungee jump from this bridge, apparently with its 216m the highest bridge jump in the world. Well do we need to write what ... read more

We could not resist an early morning bike ride and a splash in the ocean before setting off to Tsitsikama only 100km away; another well-known stop on the Garden Route. We drove our bicycles through the nicely build canal area of St Francis Bay, admiring the gorgeous waterfront properties and the folks being active in their kayaks, canoes and jet skis. Some kids were already out and about jumping in and out of the water screaming and yelling from joy. Kids are kids everywhere. The black children from the ghettos nearby can not enjoy this canal areas. Even after Apartheid some communities like to stay separated. Tsitsikamma National Park is a multi-dimensional destination with dramatic coastal scenery, reefs, rivers and lush forest. The boundary of the Tsitsikamma National Park stretches some 5km out to sea, protecting ... read more

I truly hope 2020 is treating you half decently. I have to admit, writing these blogs is somehow challenging. We are all doing the best to get the best of a super difficult year. But depending of where you are in 2020....life can be sweeter...or way more sour! So little disclaimer, I will not be able to complain about 2020...well...there are 29 more days to go. This year was spent mainly between Seychelles and gorgeous South Africa....but 2020 being the year I did get married...you imagine my point of view! So about the title....yes, five years of love...and I'm super happy Tanya has been all the way here for me, the best years by far! First, if 2020 was not that nice to you, I hope 2021 will be way better! This is not the time ... read more

The roots of the South African wine industry can be traced back to the exploration of the Dutch East India Company when a supply station was established in Cape Town. Cape Town was then only a stop for ships and crew to pick up fresh produce during their journey along the spice route to India. Jan van Riebeek was given the task to manage the station and plant grapes to produce wine; falsely believing the eating of grapes and the wine created from them would prevent scurvy and other diseases between sailors during their long voyages. In 1659 the first South African wine made from French Muscadel grapes were successfully made. Thank you Wikipedia. So today, after touring downtown Cape Town and the beautiful gardens around the government buildings, Jenny drove us to the Winelands. It’s ... read more