Omicron

 Or perhaps - O Shit! here we go again. 

The reaction from the UK and almost every other developed country seems a little OTT. Latest statistics show that UK (pop 68 million) had 39,567 new cases on Saturday 27th with 131 deaths while South Africa (pop 60 million) had 3220 new cases and 8 deaths - and the UK imposes a travel and flight ban?? 

Perhaps if the developed world stopped hoarding vaccines and instead helped the developing world to vaccinate greater numbers of their populations we would be able to avoid this stop/start approach which does nobody any good.

Banning travel to the southern half of Africa certainly won't stop the spread of the Delta variant which is currently shutting down most of Europe. Meanwhile, in his national address on Sunday night President Ramaphosa encouraged everyone to get vaccinated and floated the idea that this may become mandatory but did not introduce any new restrictions - yet.

The Chair of the SA Medical Association has stated that the first people identified with the variant have only shown mostly mild symptons. So no panic buying of toilet rolls yet but maybe I should start stocking up the wine cellar just in case?? 

 

Only in TEXAS

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Visitors

 Our neighbours arrived safely on Saturday and we managed a drink and lunch at the Waterfront before heading home for the start of the Scotland match. Not a convincing win - followed by a disappointing performance from the Springboks. Wales had a good game against Australia and France were excellent against the All Blacks - bit of a rugby marathon - with a braai, Windhoek Draught and Delheim Pinotage to keep us going.

Wine tasting at Tokara on Sunday 

followed by lunch at Delheim,

but made it home for the Ireland game - another good performance - roll on the 6 Nations.

They had a busy schedule on Monday but we had a couple of bottles of Ridgeback Merlot to wash down our Back's pizzas when they got back - probably a glass more than ideal given that we had an 08.00 Yoga class on Tuesday.

Stirling played the Pearl Valley course on Tuesday while Linda and Patricia checked out the shopping in Paarl leaving me home alone for a few hours😄😄. Dinner at Noop - excellent food but very slow service - not sure I'd go back.

We'd planned a visit to Franschhoek followed by lunch at Hey Joe's Brewery before they headed for the airport on Wednesday but it all went pear-shaped when their health clearance for Qatar was declined. They resubmitted all the documents and headed for the airport with fingers crossed. It took nearly 8 hours for the clearance to be issued and they were unable to find any other solution so they missed their Doha flight and had to spend a night in Cape Town.

Back to the airport on Thursday to repeat the process and managed to get their rebooked flight, only to arrive in Doha and find that South Africa has been added to the UK Red List. Due to the difference between Scottish and English regulations, they are now faced with spending 8-9 days in Doha or 10 days in an Edinburgh  quarantine hotel - what a nightmare!!

Another Weekend

 Great hike to the La Paris abandoned fire lookout on Monday morning, early start only 4 of us and perfect weather. Up and back in under 3 hours and home for a shower by 11 am. 

Linda had her first appointment with a new hairdresser - she seemed relatively happy with the result!

Quite busy socially, curry with the Wilsons at Moksh on Wednesday, then an excellent lunch at the Fat Butcher in Stellenbosch on Thursday. Slightly chaotic service - which seems the norm - but very good steaks - thanks to Big John for the gift voucher. 

Met with Mike and Jacqui for sundowners at the clubhouse on Friday - almost ended in farce as their billing system had crashed so had to wait for hand written bill - and in a cashless bar it was then complicated to arrange the payment - think they need a bit more customer awareness training.

Just about to head for the airport to collect Stirling and Patricia - our Edinburgh neighbours. Planning a visit to the V & A Waterfront on the way back but the Cape Doctor is forecast to blow at 75-80km for the afternoon so may need a plan B (like Boris and Nicola???). 

Meanwhile Linda's off to a Russian Tea with some of the ladies - not sure it can be tea if it's served at 11.30 but......

Scotland v Japan, Braai, England v Springboks and Liverpool v Arsenal perhaps a few beers and maybe a glass of wine or two. A tough Saturday 

Where to start???

 Our visa extension application seemed straightforward - very helpful staff - now we have to wait for the decision. Otherwise, we had a great time in Cape Town  - an afternoon and evening at the Waterfront and then a great dinner at Utopia on Friday. Amazing views over the city towards Robben Island with Table Mountain behind us.

Excellent meal - with matching wines - an absolute steal at less than £20 each . Explains why the place was buzzing.

Much more relaxed on Saturday - after a leisurely breakfast we had a stroll around the gardens at Kirstenbosch, 

a bit of shopping at Canal Walk and still home in time for the rugby. Disappointing result for Scotland  - made worse by having to listen to a South African commentary team. 

However a storming win for Ireland - managed to cook dinner on the braai during the half time break - lets hope they can continue that form to the Six Nations and beyond. 

A good result for England but not really an impressive peformance. Will be interesting to see how they fare against the Springboks next week.

Lazy Sunday around the house - it was a hot day 28-29C  - with more to come. Hiking early tomorrow morning - on the hills above the estate and the week begins again. Preparing for a visit from our Edinburgh neighbours - should make for a lively weekend to come! 

More of the same

Just to keep us grounded, we’ve had level 4 loadshedding since Sunday morning and its scheduled to continue till the weekend. This has meant 2 hour blackouts three times each day which is inconvenient during the day – although very challenging for businesses – but the evenings are a little more disruptive, our lights have been going out around dinner time for the last 4 days. So I’m sitting writing this by candlelight  - although my blue tooth speaker is still working –with  Melody Gardot, Leonard Cohen and Claire Martin to keep me company. Must remember to pick up a UPS next time I’m in town!

We’re off to the Mother City for a couple of nights – staying with Ursula at Rouge on Rose as always – with dinner on Friday at her latest recommendation - Utopia. We’ve got appointments to apply for our visa extensions on Friday and planning a visit to Kirstenbosch gardens on Saturday.  

Busy sports schedule with World cup qualifiers, T20 Cricket final and the Autumn International Rugby – Scotland v Springboks and Ireland v All Blacks are probably the stand out fixtures - how the time flies by!!

Hiking

 

Planned a hike with Jacqui and Mike at Berg River Dam for Wednesday. About 11km, limited climbing and a swimming hole on the Berg river at the end. Weather was just right, cool start, little breeze and comfortable. Unfortunately, Jacqui brought along some new English friends who didn’t look like regular hikers – sometimes looks can deceive but not in this case!

Our progress was a lot slower than expected and there was quite a lot more water in the river than usual at this time of year. Our route along the edge of the river bed proved more difficult - shoes and socks on and off a few times as we waded across or along the river bed - and eventually had to retrace our steps. Made for a much longer day – right through the heat of the day. A couple of pints of Blonde Ale at Hey Joe's on the way home was some compensation.

The Goat Run

Before we left Edinburgh Linda had signed us up for the 8km walk at Fairview on Saturday. There were also a 15 and a 28km run along with a 5km walk. Large crowds for each event and after the first few hundred metres we discovered why it was called the Goat Run. Some very steep hills to climb and descend - definitely felt like we had earned the cold beer at the end - even if it was only 10 am.

In exchange for our ZAR 200 entry fee (about £10), we were also given a v generous goody bag:-

... and we were home before lunchtime!