South Africa, Part III
Posted: May 20, 2008
Category: Pastor Steve's Blog
TAGS: South Africa, vacation
Sorry that I’ve taken some days off…but the time goes by quickly.
Sunday, May 18, Day 4
Not a lot to add about the day. We have sore legs and bodies from all the walking that we’ve done while we have been here and the hike up Table Mountain took it out of us. We are the fortunate ones though, because the cable car has not worked at all. They’ve called in a person from Switzerland to come and fix the system. When there hasn’t been cable car issues, it has been the weather issues…so we are leaving town on Tuesday having seen the #1 site of Capetown.
Food…a little on the food. The experience of the South African food has been really good. There is an international flavor because of the influence of the Dutch and Germans who settled the region and other cuisines because of business travelers. We have enjoyed German beer with sausages, local game dishes (ostrich, kuzu, sprinkbok, wildebeast, etc.), South African pizza (not like Pizza Hut), and we have seen many western style eateries (KFC is real popular here).
Our breakfast each morning has been fun…I add this not because of the food, but because of the people. The staff has become our second family here. We have pictures of many of the staff and they have our picture as well. Many of them take the bus in from the outlying areas and they work among those who are “wealthy” tourists/business people. They are very geniuine and very kind. Starting the morning with a cappucino, some fresh fruit, breads, meats, and an assortment of choices (omelets, english breakfast, french toast, etc.) has made for a very relaxing time.
More on people…we have met a variety of travlers as well. People from England, Scotland, Japan, Germany, other parts of Africa, and Australia to mention a few. We have truly enjoyed the experience of Africa, but we have also enjoyed the people we have met.
Monday, May 19
Today is our chance to go to the wine country. Very old and very new wineries exist in the region of Stellenbosch. It is named after an early governor of Capetown region. He discovered and named this region after himself. It is the Napa Valley of South Africa.
We are picked up by Wayne Donaldson, who we realized later was listed in Food and Wine in 2006 as a fine tour guide. Fortunately for us, no one else signed up with Wayne for this day and so we had our own personal tour. We traveled to some fine stops for wine tasting and enjoyed each experience. At Waterford, we enjoyed some of the wine with some fine belgian chocolate and both were wonderful.
After a few stops, we went to Spier to see and interact with Cheetah’s. Next door is also a “bird of prey” sanctuary. Ursula had a chance to go in and pet cheetah cubs. No time for the eagles, but we enjoyed the cheetah section. Both are trying to save the animals. Like our country, their is an encroachment of the world of man on the world of the cheetah. They are raising dogs who can protect the herds so that the farmers are not trying to shoot or poison the cheetah. They take in the injured animals in order to bring them back to health and re-settle them to other areas.
We had a wonderful walk around the town of Stellenbosch as well. It has the look of an old dutch settlement in the buildings and yet it is a tourist area with the availability of shops and food stops. It is our last full day in Capetown…Tuesday we fly to Johannsburg. Not sure when I will next post on the blog, because we may or may not have internet service.
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