Inner Sphere

Thursday, 12 January 2012

Wednesday, 11 January 2012

Skinny laMinx

So far my favorite street of Capetown is without a doubt Bree street. I'm typing this message from &Union cafe/restaurant, situated along Bree Road in a garden like scene. Not romantic but tough. I like the fact that I'm surrounded by locals (but that's my deviation;). The funny thing is that I'm not a huge meat fan but I adore the sausages from their bbq. Anyways, Bree street... With delicious breakfast/lunch hotspots (Amsterdam eat your heart out!) and with some small local designershops. The shops are extremely small but really cute and all got their own signature. Like Skinny laMinx. By the way: I've got a trendsetter like statement: in 2012 the next best thing will be 'hanging plants without a pot'. In your living room... Saw them both@Skinny and@Noordermarkt in Amsterdam. It's a worldwide revolution.

Skinny laMinx

Skinny laMinx ~ http://skinnylaminx.com/

&Union ~ http://www.andunion.com/

Birds cafe & gourmet eatery

Do you know the kind of places in a city just outside the centre which are petite treasures. Secretly you hope the crowd won't find out of it's existence because it would otherwise lose it's relaxed vibe. Birds is such a place due to it's cool interior design, the lovely food and the kind people who work there.

Birds cafe & gourmet eatery ~ 127 Bree street Capetown

Tuesday, 10 January 2012

Hello Capetown

Every end means a new beginning so I'm utterly happy to give you a sneak preview of Capetown. Have been strolling a day in the city and have discovered some wonderful (non touristic!) spots. It's extremely warm out here so my pace is quite slow but this prevents me from missing the cute small hotspots. Tomorrow I'll continue the discovery of the city.

a preview of the lovely 'birds cafe & gourmet eatery'

Goodbye Stellenbosch

It makes me smile

Flower

Tokara

Tokara wine estate really impressed me due to their architecture and art collection. Besides an estate you could nearly call it an art gallery. The lunch was divine: an absolute recommendation if you visit Stellenbosch. Below two pictures of the 'three' in front of Tokara's entrance. I loved it!

Monday, 9 January 2012

Laborie Wine Farm: a lovely surprise

I absolutely adore surprises, especially romantic ones. After my Hermanus adventure I longed for some low profile joie de vivre. Some peace, quiet and nature. I was ready to find my 'inner zen Pip'. And this of course in combination with some lovely wines because we were headed for THE wine area of South Africa. And what a surprise indeed: a romantic stay on the Laborie Wine Farm in Paarl. And the most wonderful thing was, the Laborie estate consists of seven rooms, each named and decorated after a type of wine. And I (of course there was no other option:) slept in the 'Sauvignon Blanc' room. A lovely room with a desk (see the picture underneath) I instantly fell in love with. The breakfast was fairytale like. With silver cutlery and we ate at a table with room for thirty people. Just like in the movies. The surprise made me really happy. Thanks H!

Sunday, 8 January 2012

It really had me for a minute...

Hermanus: a thrillseeking experience

Hermanus: the place to be for Whale watching! Although they're huge I find them cute so I really was looking forward to meet and greet some whales. Unfortunately cosmos decided otherwise. They had just left Hermanus. A bit of a trauma but soit. A good reason to visit South Africa for a second time. Instead I decided to go paragliding which wasn't extremely successful because I puked on the "three time" paragliding world champion. IN THE AIR so that was quite exciting after all! My thrill seeking visit to Hermanus ended with a visit to the local country market. It reminded me of the Sunday Market back home in Amsterdam. They had market stalls with lovely local products: sausages from a happy pig farm (I don't really like sausages but the "sage red onion" sausage was absolutely magical), delicious curry pies, sweet tarts with milk custard (I tried one and it was heavenly), a stall with Creation wines (so happy that the Sauvignon Blanc was as delicious as the day before). But what I liked most was the conversation we had with an old couple from Hermanus. We joined them on the picknick table and it was really touching to just sit down with them and have a talk.