Traveling Cat

South Africa’s cape region has terrific wineries everywhere you turn. I’m not much of a drinker, but I have thoroughly enjoyed visiting the wineries, enjoying the gorgeous views and beautiful estates, learning the history (some have over 300 years of wine making!), and visiting different vineyards in three of the wine regions.

Week 1 winery visit: Groot Constantia Wine Estate in Constantia
Cape Town’s Groot Constantia wine estate was founded in 1685 and is “the oldest and most historic of wine farms in South Africa.” It’s also less than 10 minutes from David’s office here, so how could I not visit? They make a lovely port and gave me a free tasting when I was too late to do the cellar tour. Fantastic!
www.grootconstantia.co.za

Week 1 wine favorite from dining out: Springfield Estate, Whole Berry Cabernet Sauvignon
Set in the heart of the mountain-ringed Robertson Valley in South Africa’s Western Cape Province, Springfield Estate is a vibrant, family-run wine farm. It is owned by the Bruwer family, fourth-generation wine farmers and ninth-generation descendants of the Bruères, French Huguenots who came to South Africa from the Loire in 1688 with bundles of vines under their arms.
+27 (0)23 626 3661
www.springfieldestate.com

Week 2 winery visit: Rhebokskloof Wine Estate in Paarl
Tasting 15R/$2US for 5 wines. Warthog on the menu at their Victorian Restaurant, slightly upscale and tasty.
“Rhebokskloof Wine Estate, part of the Paarl wine route, nestles between two valleys at the foot of the majestic Paarl Mountain, just 45 minutes from the city of Cape Town. The natural beauty of the area is further complemented by the perfect positioning of our heritage buildings. With its rolling lawns, tranquil lakes, willow trees and hectare upon hectare of vineyards, Rhebokskloof is described as a “plush paradise” and is one of the winelands’ most beautiful farms.”
P. O. Box 2637, Paarl, South Africa
http://www.rhebokskloof.co.za

Week 3 winery visits in Stellenbosch:

WARWICK WINE ESTATE
Tasting: 25R/$3.50 for 5 wines and/or 50R for a “wine safari,” drinks in the vineyards, and tasting. Got to drink out of the fancy double cup. :) “The Warwick vineyards stretch up the mountain slopes in the Capes premier red wine valley, Muldersvlei. The restored wine cellar is testimony to a long history : wine has been made in South Africa for over three centuries and the estate was originally part of land granted in 1791 by the Dutch East India Company.”
PO Box 2, Elsenburg 7607, South Africa
+27 21 884-4410
www.warwickwine.com

DELHEIM
20R/$3US for tasting 6 wines (including nice port) and one hour tour of cellar and production facilities. Wonderful lunch with views for under $10. “Delheim’s Cellar, situated in the Simonsberg ward in Stellenbosch, is family owned and produces a wide range of Internationally acclaimed wines. The original farm was founded in 1699 and today, Delheim still reflects the traditions and values of the Sperling family’s commitment to quality.”
P.O. Box 210, Stellenbosch 7599, South Africa
+27 21 888-4600/7
www.delheim.com

UITKYK ESTATE
Tasting 15R/$2US for 5 wines and 20R/$3 for brandy and chocolate tasting. “Uitkyk is one of the most beautiful estates in the Cape. The name means “look out”, which it does – from the southwestern slopes of the Simonsberg Mountain where it is situated, across the Cape Flats to Table Mountain in the distance.”
P.O. Box 104, Stellenbosch 7599, South Africa
+27 21 884-4416
www.uitkyk.co.za

Wednesday I spent the majority of my day at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, the only gardens in the world to be designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We had perfect blue skies and the “winter” weather was about 80F! I even got a little sunburned after spending the whole morning there! The gardens are full of history, and it’s just stunning everywhere you turn!

“Kirstenbosch is South Africa’s world-famous national botanical garden, set against the backdrop of Table Mountain and Devil’s Peak, and home to over 22000 indigenous plants.”

They do free tours daily at 10am, and mine ended up being a private tour as I was the only one signed up. Antoinette was incredible, an older British woman who grew up in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe, and made her home in Cape Town. She knew the names of each plant, and knew fun stuff about which animals ate the bulbs, which birds nested there, what could be used for various medicinal purposes, etc. She was also able to tie lots of the tour of the garden into the history of the Cape. The gardens are very lucky to have volunteer tour guides like her – she was amazingly knowledgeable and personable, just a wonderful gem! Hard to believe these tours are free and that there wasn’t a long line waiting for the opportunity!

At lunch, I picked up David from his office and brought him over so he could check out a tiny portion of the garden. Makes me wish we were here in the summer months when they do their Sunday night concert series. They’ve had tons of big names over the years (like Elton John or the Dalai Lama) in a most gorgeous setting, raising money for the preservation of the gardens. (They’re not funded by the city).

I wouldn’t self identify as a big garden tour buff, but Kirstenbosch is definitely worth a visit!

The fabulous Antoinette

Lots of statues from Zimbabwe all over the gardens

Over 57 species in one pond alone!

(including porcupines who love to eat the lily bulbs)

Great statue of beer brewing – just like it’s done (illegally) by the women in my village in 2 clay pots!

Colorful songbird drinks the nectar of a wonderful aloe in bloom

Black Legged Golden Orb Spider – they spin the most amazing golden web

The females get up to 30cm long (ick!), but they don’t hurt humans and do keep the insects under control

View of the underside

Lots of plants with medicinal uses

Castle Rock is on the right

I love guinea fowl, with the wonderful polka dots, blue heads, and funny strut

David joins the statue garden on his lunch break :)

Another fun week here in Cape Town! I am a lucky girl to be here, able to work partial days and able to explore daily as well!

• Tuesday I visited a wonderful wonderful nonprofit called Beautiful Gate, an orphanage serving primarily HIV positive children. The staff were wonderfully warm and caring, genuine and fun, personable and obviously committed to the agency. It really great to be there and see the good works they’re doing! If you’ve got $20 to donate, or $2,000 for that matter, consider checking out their site and seeing how you can help!
• Tuesday night David and I met up for dinner with my old friend Nicole, who Susie and I stayed with on our last trip through Cape Town. She’s just as fun, energetic, sweet, and generous as before… a truly beautiful woman! We did dinner at Moyo, a very nice African food place right on the waterfront at Eden on the Bay. There was much laughing, much eating, and much happiness for the reunion! I was super excited to meet up with her, and really enjoyed introducing David to her as well. The world needs more people with the positive energy of people like Nicole!

  

  
  Girls will come around and offer free face painting, which Nicole thought I needed :)

• Wednesday I spent the majority of my day at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, the only gardens in the world to be designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. They’re full of history, and it’s just stunning everywhere you turn!

  

• Wednesday night David and I met up with four of his coworkers for a fun and lively sushi dinner in the Observatory (1890 Sushi). I had a helluva time finding it… I wrote down my exact directions from Google and then drove around the area over and over and over when I couldn’t find the streets they wanted me to turn on. I could’ve written it down wrong, but I’m generally careful with things like directions, especially when I’m going at night, by myself, in a neighborhood that’s been described as sketchy and not always safe. I was getting rather frustrated with my predicament (and my blood sugar was probably low since it was dinner time), frustrated the the instructions to follow were literally impossible to follow, but I kept driving around, would see signs pointing me back to the neighborhood, and I’d turn around and drive it again, slowly trying to read signs, trying not to hit the constant flow of people jaywalking across dark streets, trying not to hit other cars, dogs, etc. Needless to say, when I’m busy looking for street signs in the dark, driving on the opposite of the road and dealing with traffic becomes more of a challenge than it normally is as my attention and concentration is elsewhere. None of maps helped either, as the Obs is outside of the city centre area covered by tourist maps. Have no fear, though. I eventually found it on my own. It was a case of Google giving me street names in English, when the street signs were missing or written in Afrikaans. I guess it’s a fact of life in a country with 11 official languages, but man, at that moment, I wanted to follow the instructions, arrive on time, and be warm and snuggly inside a bright restaurant with David, not driving down tiny narrow side streets with groups of men staring me down with “What do you think you’re doing in my neighborhood?” stares. Had to share, as it’s one of those reminders that “traveling” isn’t always unicorns and rainbows. :) It’s real, it can be hard, it can be trying, you can feel frustrated, just as you can in everyday life back home. Anyway, back to the point of the driving adventure: sushi was fun, the coworkers were fun, the food was tasty, and all ended well!
• Thursday I went off to do souvenir shopping for other people. Spending money for other people (three folks asked for a list of things) is actually pretty easy, and I’m totally content to bargain and chat up the vendors on their behalf. Half the vendors in Green Market Square spoke Swahili, and while some were from Congo, most were from Kenya. It was great fun to use my Swahili and chat with them about living and volunteering in Western Province. It was also nice to need to spend money, as they need the income. I don’t tend to buy too much for myself, so while I love markets, I feel a little guilty that I can’t give more business to the vendors. I hit markets all over the city centre yesterday, and then the rain came just as I started my walk home. I got a rather soaked, but thoroughly enjoyed the outing.
• And how can I discuss the week without mentioning my new favorite food: braai cheese?! Who wouldn’t want to throw blocks of cheese on a BBQ grill? I bought some to try it out, sliced it up, and amazingly the edges of the cheese do indeed get golden brown and perfectly toasted, with the insides perfectly melted and so fantastic! Wonder if customs lets you bring home cheese? Seattle’s approaching BBQ season and it’s be awesome for parties!

  

When we met up for dinner this week with the amazingly generous Nicole, she brought me a gift, despite the fact I’d invited her to dinner to thank her for hosting me on my last trip to Cape Town! The gift? A fabulous SA flag adorned vuvuzela. It’s super fun, super loud, and super hilarious! While some may describe it as “an instrument of hell,” I think it’s awesome! Thanks Nicole!!

Vuvuzela: SA football’s beautiful noise
from: http://www.southafrica.info/2010/vuvuzela.htm

What’s plastic, a metre long, brightly coloured and sounds like an elephant? It’s the vuvuzela, the noise-making trumpet of South African football fans, and it’s come to symbolise the sport in the country.

It’s an instrument, but not always a musical one. Describing the atmosphere in a stadium packed with thousands of fans blowing their vuvuzelas is difficult. Up close it’s an elephant, sure, but en masse the sound is more like a massive swarm of very angry bees. And when there’s action near the goal mouth, those bees go really crazy.

To get that sound out requires lip flexibility and lung strength – in short, a fair amount of technique. So be sure to get in some practice before attending a South African football match, or you the sound you produce may cause some amusement in the seats around you!

Vuvuzela supplier Boogieblast offers this advice: “Put your lips inside the mouthpiece and almost make a ‘farting’ sound. Relax your cheeks and let your lips vibrate inside the mouthpiece. As soon as you get that trumpeting sound, blow harder until you reach a ridiculously loud ‘boogying blast’.

Descendant of the kudu horn?
The ancestor of the vuvuzela is said to be the kudu horn – ixilongo in isiXhosa, mhalamhala in Tshivenda – blown to summon African villagers to meetings. Later versions were made of tin.

The trumpet became so popular at football matches in the late 1990s that a company, Masincedane Sport, was formed in 2001 to mass-produce it. Made of plastic, they come in a variety of colours – black or white for fans of Orlando Pirates, yellow for Kaizer Chiefs, and so on – with little drawings on the side warning against blowing in the ear!

There’s uncertainty on the origin of the word “vuvuzela”. Some say it comes from the isiZulu for – wait for it – “making noise”. Others say it’s from township slang related to the word “shower”, because it “showers people with music” – or, more prosaically, looks a little like a shower head.

The announcement, on 15 May 2004, that South Africa would host the 2010 Fifa World Cup gave the vuvuzela a huge boost, to say the least – some 20 000 were sold on the day by enterprising street vendors.

It’s a noisy thing, so there’s no surprise some don’t like it. Journalist Jon Qwelane once quipped that he had taken to watching football matches at home – with the volume turned low – because of what he described as “an instrument of hell”.

Viva the vuvuzela orchestra!
Cape Town-based music educator Pedro Espi-Sanchis has a different view, however: to him the vuvuzela is a rousing instrument that can, when tuned correctly, play in an orchestra as easily as a flute, violin or cello.

Espi-Sanchis says the vuvuzela is a “proudly South African instrument” with roots deep in local traditional music. He was introduced to it over 30 years ago by renowned South African ethnomusicologist Andrew Tracey. A fan of football himself, Espi-Sanchis came up with the idea of a vuvuzela orchestra after realising that crowds at a match could coordinate their trumpeting to make music. “I heard the vuvuzelas at soccer games and the sound was not musical at all,” he says. “Vuvuzelas need to play rhythms together to really show their power.”

In 2006 Espi-Sanchis and Thandi Swartbooi, head of the South African traditional music group Woman Unite, launched a vuvuzela orchestra as part of the Cape Town-based uMoya Music organisation. Made up of a core group of seven people, with Espi-Sanchis as conductor and soloist on the lekgodilo flute and six musicians each playing a vuvuzela, the orchestra made its first public appearance at the Johannesburg Carnival in December 2006.

Their first performance at a soccer match was at the Nelson Mandela Challenge match at Ellis Park stadium in November 2007, when Bafana Bafana took on the USA. Espi-Sanchis found an excellent local football fan base to accompany the vuvuzela orchestra. Supporters of Bloemfontein Celtic football club, based in the Free State, “form one of the best fan bases in South African soccer,” he says. “In November [2007], we taught 60 of these fans to play seven songs in just five days.

“Each of our six musicians was responsible for 10 fans, and they taught them to play their parts. Celtic fans also taught us some of their wonderful songs, and together we supported Bafana Bafana at the Mandela Challenge by singing and dancing with the vuvuzela orchestra.”

“Now we want to bring up a fan base to support our national team,” says Espi-Sanchis. “The vuvuzela music can be learnt very quickly … we want to use the Celtic supporters as models for a national fan base.”

Whether or not Espi-Sanchis’ ambitions are realised, vuvezalas are bound to play an integral part in South Africa’s 2010 celebrations, and World Cup visitors are sure to go home with a vuvuzela or two tucked in their luggage – and a little ringing in their ears …

Article last updated: May 2009
SAinfo reporter and MediaClubSouthAfrica.com

I’m super excited to see a giant ferris wheel make it’s way onto Cape Town’s horizon, less than a mile from our apartment! The 50m diameter wheel, apparently called the Wheel of Excellence, came to Cape Town from Paris and will be here on a six month contract. It was up, built, and lit within 2 days (with about 2 million LED lights so you can’t miss it). I’m really hoping it opens soon so we can ride it before heading back to the States next week. See below for all of the fun (vague) details! No word on opening date, only says it might be running “as early as June.” Hmm… fingers crossed!

Daytime view while driving

Blurry night shot while driving

Giant wheel keeps an eye on Cape Town
By Bianca Capazorio

Cape Town will have a giant wheel, similar to those in London and Paris, at the V&A Waterfront ahead of the World Cup – and it will remain for at least six months.

The 50m diameter wheel, designed and supplied by Wheel of Excellence, is being shipped to South Africa from the Place de la Concorde in Paris. It is smaller than the London Eye (which is 135m high), but similar to the 60m wheel in London’s Hyde Park.

Ronald Bussink, its designer, said it couldn’t be compared to a Ferris wheel: “This is a stand-alone, a major tourist attraction.”

The wheel has 36 enclosed air-conditioned capsules holding eight people. Each trip accommodates 288 people.

Running daily from 10am until 10pm (with the possibility of extending running hours until midnight), the wheel could accommodate 15 000 riders a day.

At night it is lit up by 2 million LED lights, which consume only two kilowatts of energy an hour.

It will be set up at the Gateway Canal at the Waterfront, accessed from the Coen Steytler entrance.

Tickets for a ride are expected to sell for R70, but the Waterfront expects to have various pricing plans, including family packages, and a cost for the hiring of a private cabin. A VIP cabin with leather seats and Champagne bar will also be available. Two of the cabins are accessible to wheelchair users.

The wheel will turn at a stately “panoramic speed” and each trip will last 15 to 20 minutes, allowing those on top panoramic views of Table Mountain, Robben Island, Cape Town Stadium and the Paarl Mountains. The Waterfront in-tends having the wheel functioning as early as June.

“This is a major coup… it’s the first time a wheel like this has been in South Africa,” said V&A Waterfront commercial director for 2010, John Elliott.

There are Wheel of Excellence wheels in major tourist destinations such as London, Brisbane, Perth, Copenhagen, Kuala Lumpur and Niagara Falls.

• Friday I went to the Bo-Kaap and Friday night we rented a movie so David could see Last King of Scotland.
• Saturday we did the Robben Island tour of where Nelson Mandela spent 18 years in prison and had lunch at Ocean Basket in the V&A Waterfront. I had the best three calamari combo ever – grilled, fried, and blackened. There seems to be no shortage of amazing calamari in this town… if only Seattle could learn to pan fry calamari instead of always breading it.
• Saturday afternoon we strolled through the Company Gardens then went to the South African National Gallery for truly awesome art. We did snacks at Masala Dosa (yum!!) then dinner later at Cape to Cuba on Long Street.
• Sunday we did a safari at a private reserve about 2 hours from Cape Town called Aquila. It can’t be compared to visiting a national park, but it was fun to see hippos, white rhinos, elephants, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, springbok, lions, a leopard, cheetahs, warthogs, and crocs. After the safari, we stopped in Paarl in the Wine Country to do a wine tasting at Rhebokskloof Wineries in Paarl and ate at their Victorian Restaurant. The warthog wasn’t my favorite, but the marinated mushrooms were fantastic.
• Monday I visited a nonprofit running afterschool programs (see other post) and Monday night we did dinner at the Hussar Grill near our apartment. They’re supposed to be one of the best steaks in town, around since 1964, so we had to compare it to our dinner at Nelson’s Eye last week. It was indeed quite lovely, as was the dessert menu.

The most exciting thing about yesterday was driving home and seeing the crews installing a giant ferris wheel near our apartment. I love ferris wheels and really hope it’s up and running in the next few days before we return to Seattle. World Cup madness is all over Cape Town right now. The fan parks looks mostly built (where locals can do public viewings), their are banners on all of the streetlights, a giant horn larger than a bus sitting on a freeway overpass, the ferris wheel, etc. Vendors are on every street corner selling SA flags for your car or little sleeves with the SA flag to fit over your car’s side mirrors. It’s quite festive and makes me sad I’m going to miss the games. Today I even had to turn down free tickets to a US vs Australia scrimmage “World Cup Friendly” happening this weekend since it was in Joburg not Cape Town. Sad days. That said, I am super psyched to ride the ferris wheel and might even be able to do a stadium tour on Thursday. One week left till I leave and not enough time to do everything fun the area has to offer. :)

Yesterday I visited a nonprofit running afterschool programs here in Cape Town. I was excited to do a tour but ended up just feeling yucky for even being there. The man directed me to drive to one school, talked on his cell phone as I drove, arrived and passed me off to an already too busy staff person, and told them they had 7 minutes to show me the programs. They’d drag me into a classroom, tell me “This is art class, go ahead and take a picture,” before shuffling me into the next classroom.

They took me in and out of about 10 classrooms, and out behind the school for sports, all in the 7 minutes allotted. And then we repeated it for 3 more schools. Four schools total in under 1.5 hours, then he asked for payment (250R) before directing me to the highway so I could leave them in peace.

I don’t doubt they do great work for youth who really benefit from afterschool programs. It wasn’t too different than the kinds of programs I managed in Seattle, so I have full appreciation for working on enrichment programs with underserved youth. But in an hour and a half, he literally didn’t tell me anything about the goal or mission of the agency, told me nothing about the clients they serve, told me nothing about the community needs, told me nothing of their accomplishments, challenges, etc.

I asked questions between his cell phone calls and it was like pulling teeth to learn anything about the program. They clearly use these tours as a fundraiser for the programs… I asked him about his role in the agency and he said he’s responsible for leading all of the tours for foreign visitors and groups. However, I can’t imagine a poorer introduction to any nonprofit. It felt cheap and sleazy – “See this class? Take a picture of poor kids.” But the ironic thing was I left there thinking the schools were really nice. The classrooms has nice decorations, chairs, tables, windows with glass panes, electricity, etc. The school provides free lunch to all of the students. All the students were all well dressed. The schools were nicer, and kids in the schools were better dressed, than any I’d ever worked with during my times volunteering in Kenya or Costa Rica.

Sadly, I think they could’ve just given me a brochure to explain the mission, vision, community need, clients served, etc and I would’ve learned more and felt more inclined to donate. He wouldn’t talk about any of that, and when I’d try to ask questions between his cell calls it was like pulling teeth. Sigh. At the end of the day, though, no worries. It wasn’t a tragedy to do a really bad tour. Just a letdown. They seem to do good programs, I’m sure they could use the 250R, and I was home in time for dinner with David.

I was a vegetarian before living in Kenya and David’s primarily a vegetarian/pescatarian in Seattle. But Africa, well, it’s a whole new world. It it can be killed for food readily available in decent/good restaurants, we’ve probably eaten it. Here’s the current tally…

• Cow
• Chicken
• Pig
• Lamb
• Ostrich
• Springbok
• Kudu
• Warthog (I didn’t even know you could eat warthog)
• Fish (snoek, yellowtail, salmon trout, kingclip, etc)
• Mussels
• Clams
• Squids
• Octopus

I might be forgetting some, but I’ll add if I remember. All I can say is Wow.