Flying South African Airways

You guess it right, I am in the air again, but it looks like it is the last time for a little while, at least the next four month as I will be based on the same ship for that time. As the title for this blog already says, I took South African Airways, one of my favourite airlines. OK, maybe it is because I live in South Africa and support anything South African or it is that I have never had a bad experience with this airline when it comes to flying.

What I like already is that there is more leg space than in many other airlines which makes long hauls a lot easier. I was flying from Cape Town to Johannesburg and then via Dakar to New York which is a 17 hour long trip, so it is very much appreciated to have these couple of extra centimetres.
Since they renovated all the airports in South Africa for the Football World cup the check in is so much easier. Cape Town International Airport is an absolute dream, no comparison with the old one. Check in is easy, everything is good to find, nice restaurants and good shopping, even on the domestic side. I love this airport.

The same with Johannesburg; one finds everything easy, check in is quick and the facilities are great. The shopping is outstanding and of course everything is brand spanking new. Like this flying already starts well.

As I already mentioned, South African Airways did again a great job. The service was outstanding, the food was good, ok the sandwich was a little weak, some sloppy wrap with beef inside, nothing to write about, but then the hot meal was very good and nicely presented. The choice of course the usual beef or chicken and I opted for the chicken, very tasty and good, no complaints.

The movie choice could have been a bit better, but I guess if one doesn’t fly too often it is perfectly fine. I slept quite a bit on the way so it didn’t matter too much. The service passes often with refreshments, so one is very well looked after.

Now I spend the day in New York but I don’t even want to go into the hotel here, check in time is late so there is no way to catch a train to the city as we are out at the airport, but at least one can relax a little and get ready for the next day when I am back onboard the beautiful Celebrity Summit.

Cape Winelands for Kids

There is so much to do while in the beautiful Cape. I went with friends on a special outing for the kids. Sometimes they need a little treat too and if the weather is nice it is worthwhile to have a little drive out towards Stellenbosch. There is a wine estate called Eaglevlei and for everybody who wants a little bit of gourmet food and have the kids happy at the same time, this is the place to go.

The main attraction for the kids is the huge jungle gym. The gym is so big that even with 30 or 40 kids it is still not overly full. There are always other kids so they will have a guaranteed good time.

The kids menu is great, little smiley faces as fries, small hot dogs and hamburgers, just what one needs to get them going. And then as a dessert a little treat, a marshmallow ice cream with sweets in it and some crumbles, great idea.

The menu for the grownups is fantastic too, but careful, the portions are huge. We had a Biltong (South African Beef Jerky) plate with is a little pie, a soup, an ice cream and a bit roasted game. It was under the starter section, but could have easily gone through as a main course. Then as a main course we had the oxtail poijie, a wonderfully tender oxtail stew served in an iron pot and I had the Pork belly, huge, huge, huge, but really nice. The novelty there was that instead of an apple sauce they served it with an apple sour ice cream which actually went very well with the rich pork belly.
Dessert then was....we still had a brulee Amarula cheese cake, again very nice with a light coffee ice cream but heavy. The espresso is Illy, so top quality and just what we needed to end of a lovely lunch.
The wine of is from the estate itself, we opted for the Viognier, 2009, a lovely wine, light but with enough body to it.

The kids.... ah yes they had so much fun, there were a couple of puddles so you can imagine how they looked like. They made plenty of friends and had just a wonderful time

South Africa, West Coast things to do

OK, you are on holiday in Cape Town and have some time on your hand, so why mot have a little drive up the beautiful West Coast. It is not far but there is plenty to do.

Start the drive and go over Darling, the stunning little Victorian village, worth stopping and walk through the lovely streets with all the renovated Victorian houses. Maybe stop at Ormonde Wine Estate for a tasting, you won't be disappointed. Of course Darling is the town of Evita Perron, or Peter Dirk Uys little theatre, museum and coffee shop. A must to stop there too. The hand made glass pearl animals are so beautiful and well made, and the Koeksusters are amazing.

Then there is the West Coast National Park, lovely to drive through when going to Langebaan, a lovely village on the coast.

Why I actually write this blog so is because of the West Coast Farm Stall. When you drive from Darling direction Yzerfontein......yes you remember right the little seaside resort where I had the sheep's heads last Christmas, you will arrive at the Farm Stall just when crossing the R27. There are plenty of bird cages with exotic birds and the latest attraction is the Lions. They have white and normal Lion and one can get to them with a short tractor drive. The perfect stop with kids, they can see the lions and then play in the jungle gym.

There is Sunday Lunch, and every day lunch. Just a buffet with self service, but really good value for money. Don't expect fine dining, but be sure the tummy will be full.