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WINERY TOUR

The Americans, the guide, me, the Japanese.

Whilst in Cape Town last week I went on a full day winery tour. After getting some extortionate quotes at the main train station (2000Rand), I signed up for the tour advertised at my hostel. It was priced at 600Rand and included visits to four wineries in three regions. It also included cheese tasting at the first winery, a great lunch in a restaurant (with wine) and olives and olive oil tasting at another winery.

I was extremely impressed with the tour and the guide, Paul, and found the day to be fun, educational and delicious. Autumn isn't the best time to visit the wineries as the vineyards are not full of fat grapes, but rather leaves which are turning brown and falling off. And on the day I went it was a little misty and rainy so we missed out on nice views of Table Mountain. But it was still very pretty and one of the wineries had a lovely fireplace and big comfy chairs so felt very cozy despite the drizzle outside the big windows.

There were only four others in my group - an American couple on a short holiday and a Japanese couple on a LONG honeymoon. The Japanese couple were eightteen months into a two-year round-the-world honeymoon trip. Pretty amazing! They were kind of quiet, probably because of the language barrier, but the Americans were fun and enjoyed joking around with our guide especially as the wine started to take effect.

We sampled about six types of wine at each winery. It was a combination of whites, roses and reds. There was also a South African champagne and a sparkling red. Paul, the guide, taught us how to look at, smell and taste the wines and taught us basic restaurant ettiquette. It was all very interesting and useful.

The first winery, Fairview, also had cheese tasting and we were encouraged to "match" cheeses and wines. So for example, if drinking a white wine, choose a light cheese like feta or brie. And with heavy reds, a strong blue cheese is suitable. The cheeses were very tasty, even the blues. And my favourite was a White Rock with cranberries, though the combination of goats camembert and sweet chili marmalade was a close second.

Lunch was great - everyone's meals looked scrumptious, but I was very happy with choice of grilled hake with an olive and feta salad. And the restaurant atmosphere and service couldn't be faulted - a cozy fireplace, choice of wines to accompany lunch and warm bread on the table. Though I think the coffee I ordered after lunch was instant coffee. I shouldn't complain though as it only cost 10Rand (70pence).

Of the wines I can't say which was my favourite. There were just too many. I'm not a fan of white wine and can hardly stomach a Chardonney, but I found several nice whites that I could enjoy on a summer afternoon. I enjoyed all the reds, but the most outstanding, perhaps because I'd never heard of or tried before, was the sparkling red. It was light and fresh, but more full-bodied than a rose. Oh, listen to me writing like a sommelier after only one tasting, haha.

All and all a great day out that I would recommend to anyone and everyone. And I have Paul's contact details so leave a message if you're interested in joining his tours (he works with several tour companies).

Camembert with chili marmalade - delicious!

Some of the wines we tried.

Lunch

Tanks for making wine.

A comfortable and cozy place to sample wines and olive oils.

Imported oak barrels.

They look tasty, but I just don't enjoy white wine

DAY-TRIP TO CAPE OF GOOD HOPE

On the bus from Windhoek to Cape Town, I met a Korean girl, Rami (nicknamed so because of her love of ramyon – Korean instant noodles). Rami had just finished eight months volunteering as a nurse in Ethiopia and was planning to travel South Africa before returning home.
My plan for Cape Town was very simple – get drunk! But Rami’s plan of training it down to Simon’s Town, renting bicycles and cycling to Cape of Good Hope – the most south-westerly point of Africa sounded fun and adventurous. And I figured it might be best to do some sightseeing before the hangovers started kicking in, so I invited myself along.
Of course after checking into my hostel, meeting a very lively Italian roommate, being “dragged” to the bar and meeting some red-eyed Moroccans, the idea of a 6am rise didn’t seem like such a good one. Luckily the twenty-two hour journey from Namibia had made me so tired that I was forced to bed early and meeting Rami on time was possible.
Koreans are great planners. I’m not sure if it’s genetic, if it’s a result of the mandatory military service, or just comes from growing up in a group-oriented culture. But most Koreans I know are punctual, well prepared and well-informed about what they are about to do. And Rami seemed to be no different. She had informed me that the train to Simon’s Town takes seventy minutes – correct! And that we should take the Metro-rail “plus” car on the train as it’s safer and more comfortable – correct! (we found out the hard way). And Rami also informed me that the cycling takes about 3 hours round trip. INCORRECT! Very incorrect indeed. I’m not complaining though; it was a great day; I’m just saying.
The train ride to Simon’s Town was lovely – very beautiful. Once we got out of Cape Town the journey was all coastline and we had chosen seats on the left side, thanks to well-informed Rami, which gave us great views in the early morning light. Heading south along the coast we passed many small beaches with people and families already swimming, sunbathing and playing at 8am.
Approaching Simon’s Town we passed lots of small, brightly coloured huts/shacks along the beach which brought big smiles to our faces.



Simon’s Town itself is very pleasant. A lovely place to stroll around with pastel coloured hotels lining the small main street and looking like they’d been taken from an English beach town a hundred years ago. I doubt there is much nightlife, though we did see a couple of youth hostels so there’s probably something going on in evenings.



Rami had read that there were bikes to be rented from one of the hostels so we walked there. No luck, so we went back to a tour agency at the train station. No luck there either. They advertised bikes and it was well past opening time, but the manager hadn’t shown up and the two members of staff waiting outside refused to phone him saying “if the manager’s late, who are we to call him asking why he’s late?” Hmm, interesting attitude, but their loss I guess. Finally we found a little biltong (South African dried beef) shop which had a couple of bikes to loan out. After getting the price down from 150Rand per bike to 100Rand (and later seeing on the disclaimer forms the price 80Rand!) we embarked on our “three hour” return trip. We set off at 09:47.
The ride was pretty nice and a little ways out of town we headed down to the beach which has a penguin colony that you can swim near. Neither Rami nor I fancied paying 45Rand for this pleasure so we saw what we could without paying admission and then continued further south.



The roads were very quiet and the drivers that did pass us were much less aggressive than those I’ve encountered in other part of southern Africa. However, the hills were something to be reckoned with. Luckily the bikes we great, our loads light and we had a nice cool ocean breeze most of the way.



Except for a brief “apple-stop” and to take a photo or two, we just persevered until reaching the gates to the national park (it’s part of the Table Top Mountain National Park) where we had to pay a whopping 90Rand (over 6 pounds) just to enter. My requests for cyclist, backpacker or an adolescent discount didn’t even get a smile from the cold-hearted attendant at the gate, so we forked out the cash and cycled the remaining 12.5km to the Cape of Good Hope. We were both already tired, but Cold-heart had told me most of the road was flat until the Cape so that consoled us. And it is a very beautiful part of the world with an abundance of black lizards and some roadside ostriches which distracted us from our burning thighs.



There are two places that people visit here – Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point. Rami decided it was best to see Cape of Good Hope first as it’s meant to be very scenic and also very famous. The distance between the two places isn’t great, but the road takes a long and backward detour so it’s a bit of work on bicycle.



Reaching the Cape of Good Hope was bittersweet. We were happy to get our photo there and climb the little view point, and we also got lots of compliments on our adventurousness/stupidity from the large tour bus groups and car drivers. However, we knew it was still another few kilometres cycle and long hike to Cape Point. So we couldn’t hang around long. We took the road back the way we came and then cut across to Cape Point, both of feeling very tired and hungry by this time.





When we finally reached Cape Point car park, the last thing we wanted to do was start a ninety-minute hike, so we opted for lunch first and decision making second.
The restaurant was great. I couldn’t fault it. Of course it wasn’t cheap, but it definitely wasn’t expensive. The location was perfect, service fantastic and food delicious and promptly served. The ostriches we’d passed en route has me salivating so I chose the ostrich burger. I’d eaten ostrich before and vaguely remember it being “ok”. This however was delicious – lean and full of flavour and served with a strong cheese and sweet chutney. The waiter also kindly replaced the chips with a salad as I was feeling guilty about yesterday’s fish and chips. The salad was also wonderful with its olives, feta cheese and plenty of tomatoes. Two thumbs up for Two Ocean’s Restaurant!





After a more-than-satisfying lunch we debated the ninety minute hike to Cape Point and decided against it. The debate went a little like this:
Rami-“blah blah blah because blah blah blah”.
Me-“No, no, no, no, no, no.”
Rami-“Ok.”
There was also an option of paying 48Rand to take the chair lift. Rami tossed a coin to see if this was a good idea and the coin said no just as our wallets said “Yeah!” So we started the long cycle back to Simon’s Town.
The ride back was not easy, but we both endured and Rami, in true Korean spirit, didn’t complain or admit her exhaustion until we made it back to Simon’s Town at 17:31, just in time to return the bikes. I had hoped to stop for tea at a little sea-facing Tibetan Tea House we had passed on the way, but it closed at 17:00, so that will have to wait for another time. It’s definitely somewhere I’d like to visit though. It’s such a strange and magical concept – a Tibetan Tea House on the outskirts of a tiny South African town, perched on a hill facing the sea where two oceans meet and penguins swim. It’s gotta be good!



We caught the 17:48 train back just in time. We jumped aboard as the doors closed only to realize that we weren’t in the Metro-rail “plus” (kind of like first class) car that we’d ridden on the way. But it was too late to change. The train car got busier and busier and although I didn’t feel in any danger, I certainly didn’t feel comfortable enough to take a well-needed nap. There was a local man shouting about god and his past sins for the whole journey as well as a young white guy chatting up a stranger about Genesis and god’s goodness in the seat next to us. And more than a few sketchy-looking characters glancing at the conspicuous Asian and white guy obviously far from home(s). But we made it back to Cape Town without incident and happily tired from a nice daytrip.
I calculate we cycled for about five and a half hours and that was at a good speed. And I would definitely recommend this route on bike because it’s so scenic, there’s very little traffic, fresh air and plenty of nice places to stop for photos or snacks. However, since the cycle time is so long, there isn’t really enough time to fit in the hike to Cape Point, which many people may want to do. So staying in Simon’s Town (which is definitely worth an overnight stay anyway) and renting bikes until the following day would be the best idea. Another suggestion is to bring snacks and we didn't pass any stores along the way.

A COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE IN DURBAN

I’m writing this post to let people know better about couchsurfing (CS) – an organisation for travellers that helps people make friends and find free accommodation. I started using CS in Korea where I hosted foreigners in my tiny apartment. Guys and girls I had never met from places like Canada, Russia, Slovenia, China and Mexico, slept on my sofa bed, their feet right next to my head. They also joined my friends and I for dinner or parties and when I’d free time I showed them around my neighbourhood.
Except for a couple of nights in Dubai on my way home to Ireland last year, I hadn't "surfed" (been the guest rather than the host) a lot before coming to Africa. But thus far on this trip I've been surfing lots and using the CS groups/forums to find people to hang out with and get useful, up to date info on the cities I visit and activities I want to do. I can’t tell you just how great it is. I flew to Africa not knowing a single person on the whole continent, but immediately landed to a room, a new friend, a social circle and insider info on the best places to go, eat and things to do. That was Joey, my host in Johannesburg. And because of him and his hospitality I staedy much, much longer in that city than originally planned.
On CS everyone has a profile page which shows photos, info, countries travelled, friends, and most importantly for safety, references. The references are brief comments categorised as positive, negative or neutral left by other couchsurfers. These comments are visable to all members and it’s possible to contact the member who left such comments for more information. So, for example, if someone stayed with me three nights in Seoul, he would leave a reference stating that I was (or was not) a good host. I would in turn, leave him a reference saying he was a good guest; polite, interesting, fun, etc.
As I’ve hosted quite a bit and have a lot of positive references, I think that makes other people more receptive to hosting me when I send “couch requests” or ask someone to hang out.
I recently took a three-night trip to the South African beach city of Durban and CS was massively helpful.
In preparation for this short trip, which I wanted to make the most of, I firstly joined the Durban group – a kind of forum where people can organise events, ask for info or find someone to travel with. After joining the group I put up a post stating the dates I would be in Durban, what my rough plans were and that I would love to hang out with other Couchsurfers there If possible.
Then I sent individual couch requests to Durban couchsufers who had their “couch status” set as “available”. These requests are supposed to be individualised and specific to the person you’re asking for a sofa as it’s not just a free hotel service, rather a network for passionate travellers to help one another. And by the way, it’s not always a couch you get. In my experience it is usually a bed, often a room but of course it can also just be a space on the floor.
A local man called Dave accepted my request. Dave turned out to be awesome; a former cop who now has his own business distributing remote control planes, cars and helicopters. He’s older than me, but is a fun-loving and kind man living his dream. Dave picked me up at the bus station in Durban then took me back to his place to shower after the long journey. I got my own room, a little unkempt with a remote control vehicle orgy taking up one side of the room, but clean and comfortable nonetheless.
After freshing up, Dave and I chatted and got to know each other. CS chat usually revolves around travel initially, as that’s the common ground we all share. Then we headed out to sushi restaurant to celebrate Dave’s birthday with his friends. So instantly I was brought into a group of local people who I could befriend and ask about their city and their lives. Dinner, booze and conversation and then home.
The next morning Dave had to work so I went into town to meet a couple of other couchsurfers who had replied to my post. Two local girls met me for brunch at their favourite promenade restaurant. One had been to Northern Ireland so we had a lot to chat about and enjoyed a nice sunny walk along the promenade where I learned about their jobs, studies and travels.
In the afternoon I did my own thing – a shark cage dive and some exploring and then went back to Dave’s to rest for a bit. That evening another couchsurfer, Laura, who had replied to my post invited me for some home-cooked food at her place with her boyfriend and friends. She even offered to pick me up from Dave’s. I went along with a bottle of wine and had a lovely dinner on their veranda with nice music and conversation. They drove me back at the end of the night and invited me to join them surfing some morning. Wonderful!
The next day, Dave had some free time so brought me to see Little India, the marina and to eat local food at his favourite Indian restaurant. We chilled in the afternoon over a few beers and talked about our upcoming trips; his to China and Thailand and mine to other African countries. Dave also took me to meet his sister and brother in-law, an Irish expat musician. We hung out in his swimming pool with cold beers and I got some useful advice (which I'll probably forget or ignore) about the dangers of the African countries I'll go to next. And later on, as a thank-you to Dave, I bought some groceries and cooked us dinner at home.
That night Laura, the girl who had me over for dinner, texted to say tomorrow's waves would be good and offered to pick me up at 05:45 for some early morning surf before my bus back to Joburg. Of course I said yes despite the early hour.
Next morning Laura picked me up and we hit the beach. Her boyfriend lent me his extra board and another friend who joined gave me a few pointers on handling the waves. We spent an hour and a half out in the warm water as the early morning sun rose. It was a specatacular experience and I felt very privileged to be doing something so awesome with local folk. I was also envious of these guys who regularly surf BEFORE going to work. What a wonderful way to start the day. Laura told me that on some very clear days dolphins come to surf the waves with them. Wow!
After surfing, we dried off, I said goodbye and thanked the guys, and Laura dropped me back at Dave’s in time for breakfast and coffee. She even gave me a couple of CDs – music which I had complimented during dinner at her place. How thoughtful. Dave then drove me to the bus station from where I was once again on my own.
So there you have it; a three-day, insider experience with fun people doing fun things for very little money. None of these people knew me, knew of me, or knew anyone I knew and still they went out of their way to ensure I had a great time in their city. This is couchsurfing.

Brunch with couchsurfers at the beach.


Dinner and surf host; the awesome Laura.


Surfs up!


Big Dave - the host with the most.

AFRICA UPDATE (06 FEB)

Well, I’ve been in Africa just over two months. I’ve been terrible at blogging, sorry. However over the next five weeks I will endeavour to write more and I expect to have the time and energy to do so.
Since the end of November, when I arrived, I’ve been using Johannesburg (Joburg) as a base. My initial plan of spending just two nights in the infamous and dangerous city quicky changed as my couchsurfing host brought me into his social circles and invited me to cool events like pool parties as well as taking me to the city’s best restaurants and clubs. So I stayed on much longer than expected. Using Joburg as my base, I’ve taken trips to three other countries; Swailand, Lesotho and Mozambique. I plan to write about these countries in depth (well, at least as much depth as I could see in my short time visiting. I’ve also visited Kruger National Park, Durban, the Panorama Route (a scenic road north of Joburg), and a bizarre Hindu festival.
I’ve done a lot of partying since arriving on this continent, perhaps too much and perhaps at the cost of other activitivities like scuba diving, bungee jumping, etc. But I’ve loved everywhere I have been and met so many amazing people along the way. Everyday I learn something new, which is shocking because I thought I already knew everything.
Right now, I’m typing this on an Intercape bus from Joburg to Gaborone, the capital of Botswana. From tomorrow I will volunteer at a nature reserve called Mokolodi. They have an expensive, but seemingly well organised and comprehensive volunteer programme that lasts five weeks. This is ideal for me right now as it’s time for my annual 6-week detox (previously known as "Lent"). The nature reserve is 17km from the city and I’m currently the only volunteer, so evenings will be quiet, perhaps even lonely, but that’s ok; it will give me opportunity to write about the things I’ve seen and done as well as some reading time. I hope to use this time very productively following so much hedonism. I plan to run (bye bye beer belly), eat healthy (I have to cook my own meals), read a lot (finally put that Kindle to use), and perhaps consider my future plans and what I will do after Africa (???).
Thanks for your patience and stay tuned for lots of posts and photos.

OUCH! AN ARABIAN HAIRCUT

Ouch! I’ve just been for my first haircut in Africa. I went to the local barbers which turned out to be run by Jordanians. The haircut itself was fine and the hairdresser understood my English reasonably well, but, ouch!
The price of 140 Rand(£10) also included eyebrows, ears and nose. I’d never had these parts dealt with at a barber before, or anywhere else for that matter. But “what the heck”, I thought; I’m at the age where things start to go a bit crazy in those areas anyway.
After the haircut and some small talk about life in Jordan (note to readers: don’t ask Jordanians if they have a crazy night life and hot chicks in their country. They are Muslims and that question may not go down well. Oops!), my barber picked up some Q-tips, the type you clean your ears with. He soaked them in a nicely-scented, warm liquid and placed one in each of my ears. Then he did the same thing to my nostrils. It was unusual, but quite pleasant and I enjoyed the warmth and smell.
While the Q-tips were sticking out of me, the barber took something that looked like dental floss and started wrapping it around his fingers in a skilled and quick manner. Then he attacked me with the floss. He started with my cheeks; twisting and sliding and yanking. I could feel the fuzz and all the hairs too high for my morning shave being ripped out. Ouch, what a sting! He kept at it, all over my face: cheeks, forehead, above the eyebrows, between the eyebrows, and then, the most painful part: my ears. Ouch! Such sharp, stinging and continuous pain. Water was streaming from my eyes, but I was so worried that my barbers fast movements would ram one of the Q-tips into my already damaged brain, that I just sat as still as possible trying not to flinch or whimper.
I breathed a sigh of relief when the floss was put away, but the worst was yet to come. The Q-tips which were still sticking into my nose and ears of me had to come out. I thought they were just soaked in a solution that would soften things up. But actually they had been covered in HOT WAX! I had no idea or I would have definitely protested.
The first nostril Q-tip was unceremoniously and without warning yanked out. I shouted a surprised expletive and the barber apologised, but quickly proceeded to do the same thing again with the other nose hole. And then both ears. Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch. And after each yank, he smilingly showed me the end of the Q-tip, smiling with pride at how much hair he had gotten out, or perhaps smiling at how much pain he had given this foolish white infidel.
Unfortunately inside my nose was extra hairy because the barber said “Sorry. More”, (though he didn’t look at all sorry) and put two fresh Q-tips up my nose. While the wax dried I regained my composure and searched the mirror for any blood on my face. I was fine, just a bit rosy and bleary-eyed. I debated with myself if I left right then, how long would it take for the Q-tips to fall out naturally. Five weeks? Six weeks? Would the humiliation of walking around like that be worth it for missing another couple of yanks? I decided not and took a deep breath.
When it was all over I asked my barber to show me how he did the dental floss thing. He explained it is an Indian technique and they just use normal sewing thread. He demonstrated on my arm by twisting a loop of thread, placing it across the arm, then pulling the loop closed so that it grabs the hair, then yanking. Ouch!
The nasal and ear waxing is an Italian technique, he informed me. God I hate the Italians. But I was glad of this new experience. I’m writing this almost an hour after and I still feel like I’ve been slapped by a granny for trying to steal a handbag. Ah well, at least my face is fuzz-free (for a few days anyway).

The image is a cool map I found on wikipedia when checking which countries make up the Arab World. These are the countries with their flags; basically north Africa and the Middle East. What a massive area!

HAIKU

A lone and wise moth
Ignored the oil lamp's alure;
Found comfort on me.

(Shewula Camp, Swaziland 05/12/12)