Ultimate luxury & relaxation at Grootbos

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Karisa

Cast your minds back to February… Just before Valentine’s day I told you guys about an amazing “Month of Love” special at a place called Grootbos Private Nature Reserve. At that point I had only had a very small taste of the place thanks to a dinner I attended there last year, but from that experience I just knew that being able to stay at Grootbos would be an absolutely incredible treat.

Well turns out I’m a very very lucky girl indeed, because they invited me to go spend a night there recently which meant I got to experience their amazing 5 star treatment first hand…

Grootbos is situated in Walker Bay – if coming from Cape Town, it’s past Hermanus, just on the other side of Stanford and just over a 2 hour drive in total. The property spans 1768 hectares of land covered by over 750 species of indigenous plants. They have 2 lodges and a private villa. The Garden lodge is geared for families and the Forest Lodge is more suited for couples. The villa which sleeps up to 12 people is for those folks who want do some serious splurging, because it comes with… wait for it… wait for it… a private guide, chef & a butler! Sjoe.

Bjorn and I were staying in the Forest Lodge and from the moment we stepped through that front door at the lodge, we knew we were in for one helluva ride…

Reception

The lounge

The dining room

Deck heading down to the pool

Deck where you can sit & have a meal

Pure bliss…

While our things were being taken to our suite (yes – not a room, a suite!), we settled in for lunch. And what was that like? Well I think these photos tell the story pretty well:

A fresh salad buffet followed by your choice from the lunch menu (which changes daily) and a fresh dessert (don’t have a pic of that cause I ate it too quickly – sorry)

With our bellies quite happy, we took a short walk through the 1500 year old milkwood forest surrounding the lodge…

Beautiful, isn’t it?

And this got us to our luxurious freestanding suite. This place was almost the size of my apartment – with a lounge, small kitchen area, 2 bathrooms, open plan wardrobe and a huge comfy bed, we were definitely in suite heaven.

And the views, oh my goodness, let’s talk about views… these are not those “partial views” estate agents always try to sell you. You know the type… where you have to lean out the tiny toilet window, tilt your head to the left & squint. Oh no no no. These are endless views of Walker Bay & the Atlantic Ocean from your very own wooden deck & also from every single room:

After a nice looooong afternoon nap, we woke up to this:

You could see all the way through to Fish Hoek that night… #stunning

We were excited to see what Executive Chef, Duane Lewis, had up his sleeve for dinner. Dinner at Grootbos is quite an experience. Things kick off with a small amuse bouche, followed by 4 courses plus a palate cleanser. Duane uses only fresh, seasonal ingredients from the area, so you’re getting only the best here. And the portion sizes are well planned out so you don’t leave there needing a lift in a wheelbarrow or something.

Top: the dining room; Bottom left: amuse bouche; Bottom right: beef tartare

Soup of the day, palate cleanser, herb crusted line fish with asparagus & a red pepper coulis, pot-au-chocolate with vanilla shortbread

After dinner we plonked ourselves onto that big angelic bed in our suite, and I must say I got some of the best sleep I’ve had in years. It’s just so peaceful there. The only noises you hear are of birds and crickets and stuff. A huge change from my city apartment where I wake up to police sirens and fire trucks. It felt like a totally different world…

Next morning we woke up to the full nature reserve experience when we found a little birdie stuck in our bathroom. He was a bit shaken up & disoriented because he had a friend outside and was trying to get to him through the window. Not the best idea to try and fly through glass my little man, but Bjorn managed to catch him so we could let him out. Just look at this face:

Shame man. But don’t worry, he was all good again a few minutes later and flew off with his buddy who’d been waiting around for him.

Another really great thing about Grootbos is all the activities they offer their guests. We’re talking forest & fynbos walks, 4×4 reserve safaris, horseback riding, beach walks, cave exploration, spa treatments and you can even do your bit by planting a tree. Most of the onsite activities are included in your stay and then if you want to venture out a bit, they can also organise things like shark cage diving at an additional cost.

We opted for a morning horse ride before breakfast and a relaxing full body massage before lunch. Sounds like a really tough day doesn’t it?

At our horse ride I had to laugh at how perfectly matched out horses were. Bjorn’s horse was a little showy and couldn’t stop eating all the way along our route. And mine was just like me, slow & cautious on the downhill (especially when in heels).

Oh and just check that scenery…

Breakfast, just like the other meals, was an absolute treat. First they let you loose on the fresh fruit, cereal and bread buffet and after you can select pretty much any breakfast you can think of from their hot menu.

We went for the flapjacks with bacon & honey. So yum!

For our massage we headed to the onsite Blooms Forest Spa. What I really loved about this place was that it was right in the middle of the milkwood forest, surrounded by big trees and thanks to this, they just let you listen to the sounds of the forest while drifting away instead of putting on those typical spa CDs with annoying panpipe music or fake water sounds or whatever. I really hate those CDs. They seem to stress me out more than anything…

I highly recommend a visit to the spa. That massage was amazing.

The only other thing left on our agenda was some serious pool time, I mean who on this planet could ever resist relaxing on a big lounger over here:

What a tough life…

A huge thank you to Robert van Rooyen from D.R.O.I.D Projects who organised this little stay for us and also to General Manager Sean Ingles and the rest of the Grootbos team who looked after us to incredibly well. Hopefully we can make it back there again for a longer stay, because 1 night here is just not enough to take in everything they have to offer.

They even gave us a little prezzie…

Thinking of looking into your own reservation? I highly recommend you do. This is a must for your soul, that I guarantee you. You can make a reservation or enquiry online, or just contact them on:

028 384 8000
Or on email: reservations@grootbos.co.za

Like the folks at Nike say…. Just do it…

xxx

I survived the revolution… the Swartland Revolution

Posted on November 14, 2012 by Karisa

This past weekend I headed out to the lovely little town of Riebeek Kasteel with some wine lovin’ friends to check out The Swartland Revolution – Swartland Independant Street Party.

The concept behind the street party: wine, more wine, friendly folks, some yummy food and yet more wine.

I must say I really love Riebeek Kasteel. It’s such a pretty little place where they still pay a lot of attention to those small details like only small towns do and the people are all really sweet. You kinda feel like you’ve stepped back in time…

We had time to quickly pop into this cute little gifting & decor store, called Luv It, and I almost walked away with a “Skattebol” pillow:

: That pillow is pure awesome, right?

We then lined our stomachs with some gourmet hot dog rolls (boere style), did some stretching and then started working our way through the impressive wine lineup. Before this little excursion, I must say, I wasn’t too familiar with wines from the Swartland region. But I was really impressed. I think out of like 20 wines I tasted (yup – 20!), there was maybe 2 or 3 I didn’t like. So that’s a pretty good hit rate. OK, obviously as the day progressed my opinion might have been clouded by a little tipsyness (or maybe a lot)… hehe. But I’m choosing to ignore that little bit of fine print. These were some of the wines we tasted (which I can remember):

Top row, left to right:

Kloof Street by Mullineux Family Wines
Nativo wines
David Sadie wines
Nuweland wines

Middle row, left to right:

Paardebosch wines (looove the little zebra on the label)
Wildehurst wines (also loved their labels and their Rose was superb)
Sequillo wines
Intellego wines

Bottom row, left to right:

Bright pink “Cellar Foot Sink The Pink Pinotage 2012″ by Lammershoek wines
LAM wines – also by Lammershoek (pretty much loved all of these)
Secateurs by AA Badenhorst Family Wines
Mount Abora Saffronne Cinsaut Blanc de Noir 2012 (I’m a big fan of Cinsaut)

But this Silvervis wine definitely wins the prize for strangest wine label:

Um… OK then… it’s kinda so weird, it’s awesome…

I can’t really fill you in on anything that happened after around 18:30… because… things get a bity hazy. But my friends tell me I had a great time. This pretty much sums up how I feel about the Swartland wine region now:

Good times. Good times… Here’s to next year!

xxx

Pure bliss at The Lavender Farm

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Karisa

For this year’s Bastille Festival adventure, my friends and I decided to stay overnight in Franschhoek. I certainly never need an excuse to stay over in this beautiful town, it’s got a certain magic about it… AND there’s the cutest little chocolate factory! Check out Huguenot Fine Chocolates… mmmmm… mmmmm… mmmmm… wait, where was I?

We totally lucked out by getting space at The Lavender Farm which is situated just on the outskirts of town. Let me set the scene: You are surrounded by fields of lavender, you have the Franschhoek mountain range as your backdrop, you have gorgeous Cape Dutch cottages and the most serene setting you can possibly imagine…

And it doesn’t stop there folks. You have to see the room interiors. We stayed in their Lavender Suites and it was pure 5 star luxury:

Now can you believe that we got all that for only R475 per person sharing? Yup, that’s their really awesome low season rates which is still running until 31 Jul. From 1 Aug it goes up to R625 per person sharing, but even then I still think it’s really well priced. I mean our room was MASSIVE, kinda like a little apartment. And it was kitted out with DSTV, free Wifi, air conditioning (well in our case, awesome heating), a very pretty private terrace and an ensuite bathroom with a huge shower.

Also, you get to enjoy a mean breakfast spread of fruits, cereals, breads, yoghurts and such and then also the good stuff – bacon, eggs, the whole toot. And the owners are really lovely, which just adds to its charm.

It’s a pity we could only do one night. I’m very keen to go back there with the BF for a full weekend of R & R and Franschhoek exploring. If you’re ever in the area and need a place where you can put your hear down, I would highly recommend this one.

xxx

Bastille Festival – my highlights

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Karisa

This year’s Franschhoek Bastille Festival took place on one of the coldest bloody days in Cape Town & the Western Cape’s history, like ever… OK OK, I don’t know that for a fact, but it was damn cold.

But we were not about to let that minor detail put us off from having a great time. We figured we would just need to eat & drink twice as much to stay warm. The perfect plan for some much needed craziness…

Our festival home for the day was the Food & Wine Marquee (tickets were R150 for entry). It was actually relatively cosy inside, then again I was dressed kinda like the Michelin Man. hehe. I loved all the red, white & blue trim, trees & chandeliers. It made it feel like we were in a little magic forest.

Of course, this being a French festival, we had to support in style. So we got ourselves some berets at only R50 a pop:

Not the sexiest hat out there, but I think we worked it. And hey, it kept my head warm.

Some of the stands really went all out with their space, like this beautiful Morena stand:

And this one very pretty one by Graham Beck:

But my first port of call was obvious… the pancakes stand! AND it was for a good cause as all the money went to the Franschhoek Hospice. So that’s sugar indulgance with a conscience. Doesn’t get better than that folks.

Could’ve eaten my body weight in these babies…

On the topic of food. There was some seriously impressive variety. Everything from gourmet snacks, tempting sweet treats, oysters & hearty sandwiches with the finest cheeses & cold meats…. Mmmmm…

Oh and also this very patrioric (to France that is) fudge!

Entertainment wise they had some live music creating some cool background noise throughout the day. Not that people who’ve had too much wine really appreciate music, but it was really nice for early on in the day at least.

Now let’s talk wine. I decided not to cover the obvious options and rather focus my energies on trying wines I did not know.

First up was a Cab Sav Merlot called “Miss Molly in my bed” by Moreson. Now I know Moreson wines, but I hadn’t tried this specific one before. Plus it has to get a special mention as the sale of this wine contributes to the South African Guide Dog Association:

And how could you possibly say no to that cute doggy on the label… very easy drinking wine btw.

Another winery which caught my eye thanks to their beautiful hand signed bottles was La Chataigne:

They are a small winery which only produces 15 000 bottles per year. And get this, the wine maker personally signs every single bottle. That is not a print. Impressive stuff. We bought some of the Marron (55% Merlot, 30% Pinotage and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon) as well as the Sauvignon Blanc and ended up going back for seconds… and maybe thirds… so turned out to be very popular wines amongst the gang.

Then I thought this one was quite cheeky – an Italian wine at a French festival! Sacrebleu!

I identified this as an Italian wine, not thanks to the name (although that would’ve been obvious as well), but rather cause my eyes zoned in on that grape variety. Sangiovese is used by the Italians to make yummy Chianti wine, something I picked up last year while over there. I absolutely LOVE Chianti, so this was an easy choice for me really. This Terra Del Capo range is actually produced by Rupert wines. Apparently the late Anthonij Rupert had a dream of one day producing an Italian wine because he loved the country & their wines so much. I have to agree with the man, that is one hell of a place and some damn good wine. Maybe that’s why they decided to sneak this Italian alien into Batille land, they knew people wouldn’t be able to resist.

Now what’s a wine festival without some champers right? Our sparkly of choice was from Haute Cabriere:

I love how they packed it in ice. Firstly – it was freeeezing. Secondly – did they really think it would last long enough to get warm? Come now, we’re proffessionals.

After a little too much wine appreciation, we needed to go back in for another round of food. There were 2 really nice meals from Reuben’s – the man who’s won restaurant of the year twice. He was offering some beef bourguignon with horseradish cream & bordelaise salsa (R45):

As well as wok fried squid with chorizo, slow braised onion, cubed potato, gremolata & saffron rouille (R45):

Both were absolutely delicious. Definitely the fanciest festival food I’ve ever had. Then Bread & Wine decided to do a French bunny chow. How do you make a bunny chow French? You add a “le” to the front… Duh…

Genius!

It did have quite a lot of flair though. So I would say that was the true Frenchness about it:

Ta da!

More drinking, laughing and general festival shenanigans followed. All rounded off with some drunken happy snaps… pure bliss…

But this is the only one I’m allowed to show…

A successful day out overall. We ate. We drank. We survived the cold. And we all left in one piece. Bastille will see us again next year!

xxx

Are you ready for this year’s Bastille festival?

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Karisa

Love all things French except maybe snooty French people? Me too! So hopefully I’ll see you guys at this year’s Bastille Festival in Franschhoek on 14 & 15 July.

You’ll be finding me chillin’ in the Food & Wine Marquee – entry will cost you R150 which gives you a tasting glass and a booklet of tasting coupons AND you’ll have access to some seriously yummy food.

If you just want to drive through for the day (it’s only about a 45min drive from CT) – do the responsible thing and get a “designated Dave” or just organise some transport. There are lots of tour companies that will take you through and if you can organise a group, it works out to be quite cheap. This year we’ve decided to stay over for the evening. So we’ve booked into a little Franschhoek B&B. That way we can party a bit later and wake up in the beautiful winelands…

If you want to be super fancy, you can also opt for a VIP festival pass for R395. This will allow you access to the VIP Marquee where you can get up close and personal with top French wine makers, taste their wines and also enjoy a platter of French goodies.

Some other fun activites include the massively popular boules competition, the Waiter’s race, the minstrel parade and the very competitive barrel-rolling contest. You can also pop into the farmer’s market, check out some music and shop at the craft market stalls.

Hop on over to Webtickets now to secure your tickets. You won’t be able to get them on the day and trust me, these tickets sell out faster than you can say “killer hangover”. Oh and do come dressed with a bit of French flair by donning some red, white or allée bleue. If you don’t have anything that will work, no stress, last year they were selling red, blue or black berets at the festival. You’ll definitely want one about 2 or 3 glasses in.

Soooo excited about this one!

xxx

Sir Robert Stanford wines & Madre’s Kitchen

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Karisa

The last stop on our Overberg exploration weekend was Madre’s Kitchen in Stanford. Madre’s is situated on the Sir Robert Stanford wine estate, so of course it made sense that before we got stuck into lunch, we first did a Sir Robert Stanford wine tasting. Oh yeah…

The tasting room was honestly one of the prettiest I have seen to date. Check it out

We got to sample two of their wines. First their 2010 Sauvignon Blanc which sells for R85 a bottle. And then their 2009 Shiraz which sells for R180 a botte.

The sauvignon was very easy drinking and I can highly recommend it while we’re still enjoying the last glimpses of summer. But the real star for me was the shiraz. I don’t know what’s been going on lately, cause normally I really don’t like shiraz. But I’ve stumbled upon some really beautiful ones in the last 2 months. It’s a really nice surprise.

You won’t really find these wines back in Cape Town, but if you email Alta at wines@robertstanfordestate.co.za she can organise to get your wines delivered to you. Nice & easy.

Now Madre’s Kitchen has the most inviting outdoors dining area. With vines draped over head…

And duckies & geese playing along side you…

I really can’t think of anything better. Wait wait… I spoke to soon… freshly baked plaas brood with full fat butter, now that trumps everything.

That’s about enough for me… but shame, what about everyone else?

Madre had planned a very special menu for our group and we were treated to a full 3 course spread. At that point I figured there’s no use fighting it anymore. I had already stuffed my face with so much food over that weekend, what difference would 3 more courses make?

From left to right: Baked camembert in vine leaves, roast chicken in Hanepoort sauce and then some totally irrisitable chocolate tart with fruits & homemade ice cream. Yum!

In between meals I also quickly popped into the little decor shop which is also part of Madre’s. This little place is like a treasure chest of wonderful little goodies:

Make a point to check it out if you’re there…

So this brings us to my final pot belly update for the weekend. The damage looked a little like this:

At that point I was so full, it felt like the food was actually pushing into my lungs! hehe. My poor little body just didn’t know what to do with it all anymore…

But hey, a little extra suffering in the gym is a small price to pay for such an amazing weekend away. I have to say a huge thank you to Nomonde from Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU) for letting me tag along for the ride. And then also to Bjorn Steinbach,Tanya Nefdt, Roxanne Cloete, Clayton Morar and Zane Maqetuka for being such fantastic travel companions. Mwah!

Hopefully I’ve been able to share a few new things with you guys and that you’re now planning your own little trip out to the Overberg area. Happy exploring.

xxx

Beer tasting @ Birkenhead

Posted on April 2, 2012 by Karisa

So what the most logical thing to do after a very relaxing river ride? A beer tasting of course!

The Birkenhead Brewery is situated just outside of Stanford on the R326. It’s a small micro brewery which also owns the title of being the first brewing estate in the Southern Hemisphere.

Before we got stuck into the fine selection of beers on offer, we got to have a look around the beautiful estate. As you’ll see from this pic, there’s definitely nothing “micro” about it:
Now if you’re not into beer, no stress. You can just pop in for a hearty pub lunch or a yummy Sunday buffet spread. The estate is also the home of Walker Bay Vineyards wines and there’s lots and lots of space for the kiddies to run around and play.

The brewery produces 6 different beers:

Honey blonde (6% alc.):
- Malty with a sweet fruity finish and a touch of honey. Low in bitterness with a honey aroma. I guess this one can be best described as a “ladies beer” and can be enjoyed with a slice of lemon.
Pilsner (3.5% alc.):
- A distinctive pilsner with a slighty bitter after taste.
Premium Lager (4.5% alc.):
- Primarily malty, lightly hopped. Slightly sweeter than your average lager.
Birkenhead Pride (4.5% alc.):
- Full malt flavoured style made with the best English hops. Biscuity with a dry nutty finish.
Chocolate Malt Stout (4.5% alc.):
- Strong espresso coffee with hints of chocolate, complemented by tangy bitterness and a dry nutty finish.
Black Snake (10% alc.):
- A Birkenhead creation made from Brandy, stout & Honey Blonde ale. This one’s not for the faint hearted…

We got to taste 5 of the 6 cause it seems the Black Snake is quite a hot seller and they were totally out of stock on that baby.

My favourite by far was the Premium Lager. I could see myself easily sipping away on one of those on a hot summer’s day. And I don’t even like beer.

Master brewer, Benson, was there to take us through the different beers:

And then we did a brewery tour where he took us through the entire beer making process from brewing, and fermenting…

All the way through to the bottling process:

This machine can bottle about 400 beers per hour. Impressive.

I must say, I now know way more about beer than I ever thought I would care to know. But I reckon it’s going to give me a bit more cred with die manne. Plus it was actually really nice to get out of my “wine comfort zone” and try something different.

Wanna organise your own tasting and/or brewery tour? Contact them on:

Tel: 028 341 0183
Email: chrisb@birkenhead.co.za

xxx

Grootbos Forest Lodge

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Karisa

After a bit of an afternoon snooze (to let the wine, cheese & cured meats from our lunch with Lomond & Farm 215 settle) we headed over to the Forest Lodge for dinner. The Forest lodge is one the amazing 5 star lodges which can be found on the Grootbos Private Nature Reserve. The reserve is situated on a mountain slope overlooking Walker Bay and Hermanus and trust me, the views are like none other.

The lodge itself oozes elegance and “living the good life”…

You can tell that no detail was missed and no expense was spared to make sure that staying and eating here is a memorable experience. We luckily got there just in time to watch the beautiful sunset as well:

By this point we had totally mastered the art of getting a successful group shot. So here we all are, getting ready for the big 8 course dinner challenge which was awaiting us… lookin’ good, lookin’ strong… and lookin’ hungry!

Zane (Mr SA finalist), Sonja (Hermanus tourism), me (future princess of Monaco… what?! It could happen…), Clayton (journalist), Roxanne (Marketing Manager at Fair Lady), Nomonde (CTRU), Tanya (E News) & Bjorn (actor)

But I also had to get my own piccie with Zane. I don’t know how this boy only came 3rd in Mr SA, he would have definitely gotten my vote for a win. We begged him to wear his Mr SA scarf thingy to make sure people would know this was the real deal.

I will admit, I was standing on my tippy toes so I wouldn’t look like a dwarf next to him. He is seriously tall.

To drink we had some South Hill Cabernet Sauvignon wine from the Elgin Valley. This was yet another beautifully smooth red which I hadn’t had the opportunity to try before. Happiness. Then we jumped right into course # 1 – the amuse bouche which was a beef carpaccio with some fancy foamy stuff:

After this hot little number I thought to myself… Hmmm, this is going to be quite a ride… nice.

Course # 2 was grilled linefish with tabouleh salad & red pepper coulis:

Course # 3 was a mushroom cappuccino:

Then we had a sorbet palate cleanser as course # 4. And at this half way point, the troops were still looking strong:

Course # 5 was gnocchi with nutmeg & macadamia nut pesto:

Course # 6 was dukkha spiced lamb loin with olive oil mash & tapenade:

Course # 7 was dessert nr 1… yes, that’s right, we were in for 2 sweet treats! And the first happened to be a dark chocolate tart… it was like they knew me better than I know myself.

Then course # 8 was I think the star of the show for pretty much everyone at the table: Amarula set brulee:

Oh yeah baby…

Now the end of this 8 course super battle brings me to my pot belly update for day 2:

OK, the waist belts are no longer working at hiding the boep… some serious gym will definitely be required & poeple are starting to think I have a “bun in the oven”.

But hell, why stop there! We loved the food so much that we actually headed back there the next morning for breakfast. haha. Check out my fancy pants eggs benedict y’all:

Boom!

So ja, I’d say if you’re in the area and you have a mightly appetite, definitely pop in here. You won’t regret it, trust me.

xxx

Lomond wines & Farm 215

Posted on March 30, 2012 by Karisa

So after our cave expedition on Sat we headed over to Farm 215 which is situated between Stanford and Cape Agulhas. Farm 215 is a “sustainable destination”. What does that mean exactly? Well it means that the farm is managed & run in such a way that it puts the integrity of the natural ecosystem around the farm first. Their main goal is to keep their footprint, as well as that of their guests, as low as possible.

The farm is certified by Fair Trade in Tourism SA and is also in partnership with the African Horse Company, which also has a base on the farm. The African Horse Company organises guided horse trails which can be anything from 1 hour up to several days. My older sister is horse crazy, I just know she would absolutely loooove to do something like that.

Quite conveniently for us though, the farm is also home to Lomond Wines and we were lucky enough to get treated to an amazing wine tasting including a massive lunch spread of biscuits, cheeses and meats. All my favourite things!

The wine tasting / restaurant area was absolutely gorgeous. It has a very clean, slightly Japanese feel with lots of wooden detailing:

There was the most gorgeous girl there who took us through all the wines. Sadly (probably due to all the wine & excitement about the cheese spread), I can’t recall her name. But she was so great and very patient with our rowdy bunch.

Loved this girl…

Now before we talk about the wine, let me show you our spread of evil indulgence…

Seriously… If I had to, I could easily live of this for the rest of my life!

The next pic is happiness personified – just look at how I’m glowing:

Wine, cheeses, meats… I’m in heaven!

From the wines we tasted, by favourites seem to be every wine with the word “bush” in it. Not sure why, personally I don’t really like any form of bush that much. But anyhoo. From the white wine selection I was obsessed with:

Sugarbush – A single vineyard sauvignon blanc with distinctive green pepper, herbaceous and dusty notes.
Snowbush – A white blend green, with ripe fig and asparagus flavours which come from Sauvignon blanc, citrus and lime characters from Semillon, and peach and floral notes from Viognier.

And from the red wine selection, my heart belonged to:

Conebush – A single vineyard Syrah with notes of white pepper with hints of wood spice and berries. This baby was super smooth and totally velvety… mmmmm.

From left to right: Conebush, Showbush & Sugarbush

After lunch, I really did want to have a piece of this amazing looking citrus cake:

Awesome right?

BUT, I opted to go for a little tour of the Farm 215 accommodation first. While I was away, those who decided to stay behind totally flattened that cake within minutes! Nice guys… real nice… but be warned, nobody takes cake away form me without repercussions.

Accommodation wise, Farm 215 offers up:

3 spacious rooms in the old homestead, which are very very nice…
And then 3 modern, freestanding fynbos-suites, which freakin’ blew me out of the water. I wanted to check in immediately. Check them out:

Nicely blending in with nature… they were designed by an architect from Amsterdam (just so you know).

The interior is nice and modern, with plenty of space to chillax…

And if that’s not already impressive enough, check out the view from these suites:

I could stare out over that for days and days…

I thought the rates for these suites were really good value. You get all that for only R1300 pp per night (or R1235 if you book online & it get’s even cheaper if you stay longer). Those rates are valid up until end Oct, then the high season rates start kicking in, but even then it’s not that much more. Considering that most luxury hotel rooms cost about that much at least and are tiny in comparison, this is an fantastic deal.

So as for the Lomond wines, I will be hunting them down back in Cape Town once my wine rack situation at home is sorted out. And I predict a long weekend away at Farm 215 in my near future as well.

Day 2 of our weekend away is not quite done yet. So I’ll show you my very scientific pot belly indicator after I tell you guys about our insane 8 course dinner experience in my next post.

Wanna book your own weekend getaway? Just call them on 028 388 09 20.

xxx

Cave exploring @ De Kelders

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Karisa

After our forest walk on Sat, we headed over to De Kelders to check out some caves.

Now the original plan was actually to do some shark cage diving (with Gansbaai of course being the hot spot for it). But sadly the weather didn’t play along and the waves were too high to take us out. Sure, I was bummed – having packed a nice meaty steak to feed the sharks with and everything. I even considered having a “sad shark” T-shirt made, like so:

Ag shamepies… I feel your pain dude, you’ve just been given a bad rep… I totally get it.

But after like 5min I was all smiles again, cause they had already lined up plenty of other cool things for us to do. This cave expedition thing being just one of them. On the way down to the caves we stopped to have a look at what they call “wild dagga”… apparently you can smoke it, but it’s totally legal… hmmm… interesting:

Leonotis leonurus – also knows as Lion’s Tail or Wild Dagga. Native to SA and Southern Africa. Known for it’s medicinal & mild psychoactive properties. Thanks Wikipedia! I’m sure Billy (our guide) told us all of this as well, but I am really poor at paying attention for extended periods of time… I think he lost me at “dagga”…

The De Kelders shoreline is absolutely incredible. I mean just check out the perfection in this photo:

Absolutely zero post editing on this shot, I promise.

We got to check out the Drip Cave (named after the dripping water inside). We were actually very lucky to go inside because it’s not open to the public. Ooooh aren’t we fancy. I was concerned mainly about 3 things:

I’m pretty night blind. So I don’t do well in dark spaces. Luckily we were each given a little LED flashlight. Sweet.
I’m claustrophobic, so didn’t want to have to climb through any tiny holes or anything. Luckily they assured us that this would not be the case. Sweet again.
I’m not a huge fan of bats. I have this massive fear that they’re going to fly into my fair and get all knotted up in there. But apparently that’s a total myth… hmmm, wasn’t 100% sold on that one.

Upon entering I made sure I was walking behind the tallest person there (sorry Zane) cause I figured if the bats were going to attack, they’d get him first and then I’d have time to make a quick exit. Hey, don’t judge me… it’s survival of the fittest out in the bush! PLUS Zane doesn’t have looooong hair to worry about like me.

Luckily though the bats were quite chilled and I actually felt quite at ease. It was probably mostly because it’s so calm and pretty in there. Lemme show you:

Bjorn chillin’ in front of some crystal clear water…. ah bliss…

Colourful rocks… stalactites & stalagmites… (OK, I had to Google those terms – I used “pointy thingies in caves” as my search term. It was surprisingly successful.)

Back outside, Billy showed us how to make a vuvuzela out of some dried out kelp. Zane was the first one to give it a bash… he gave it all he could as you can see in this pic:

You can do it Zane!

Other peeps decided to do some serious chillin’ on the rocks…

Tanya, Lunga (our awesome driver) and Clayton… workin’ it…

We did a bit of a walk and some minor rock climbing to get to the other side of the little cliff area we were in. From here we could see plenty more caves which one could explore:

I see… I see…

Sadly we were on a bit of a tight schedule. So we had to get movin’. But at least now I know where they are – if I ever get back to that area, I’m going to check them out for sure. I mean people used to live there, like way way way back when. They have found bone tools, stone artefacts and even human remains in these caves… I find stuff like that very interesting.

Oh also good to know, this is apparently a great spot for whale watching from Sep to Nov. Just one more awesome reason to take a trip out there.

We’re only about a third through day 2 of the Gansbaai weekend now… much more to come.

xxx

My Love Affair with Cape Town…

Just random fun in my mother city

Category Archives: Excursions