Flexi-hours

I had a friend years ago who worked 6 months non-stop and then travelled for 6 months. This way he was fortunate to earn a salary and to see the world at more or less the same time. To me it always felt like he was using up all his money and that he had to start from scratch again, but that was the time when I still believed that a bigger bank balance and security was more important than enjoying what the world and other people could offer you. Unfortunately I lost contact with him, but I am sure he is traveling somewhere and still enjoying what he does, and I am only starting to experience the joy of doing what you like.

I rode to work on my bike this morning, very early. It is Monday and what better way to start a new week. Or is it? I took Marine Drive which is the more scenic road to take from my house to where I work. I saw Table Mountain in its sun draped glory and the crystal blue sea and I realized that this is one of those gorgeous days in Cape Town. A day that should not go by without me "experiencing" it and showing some appreciation. I turned around and rode to Carlucci's where one can hang out with the most spectacular view on Table Mountain right in front of you. I knew I was going to be late for work, but I had something most people do not have...and that is working flexitime. You can find the benefits of flexitime and flexi-hours on many web sites, but to me it means one thing - I can stop at any time to appreciate the beauty of Cape Town, especially when it is picture perfect outside like today. I am one of the people whose mood swings fluctuates along with the weather patterns. In Cape Town the weather can do 4 seasons in one day, meaning that my mood can go from good to bad in a couple of hours. Having the opportunity this morning to sit and watch the beauty that Cape Town offers, even if it was only for a couple of minutes, changed my day from an ordinary one to an exeptional one. I watched the people stuck in their cars in the morning traffic and wondered if they ever look at the mounatin. I am sure some people do, but if they do they definately do not show it. I wondered how many would stop for 10 minutes, get out of their cars, smell the sea and get back to their busy schedules? Maybe they wanted to but they cannot be late for work, or they just want to get to their destination because the traffic drives them insane.

Nevertheless, if you EVER have to go for a job interview again and you get to the point where the big boss wants to know if YOU have any questions then there is only one thing to ask: " Can I work flexi-hours"?

Fish & Chips

My weekend didn't start out well. Friday afternoon I was thinking of going camping, but the weather just didn't play along. Saturday was better, but soft drizzle prevented me from doing anything either, especially on my bike. Sunday came and what a glorious day. I thought the only place for me to go on such a "short notice" was to Hout Bay to have some fish & chips. The closest route from where I live to Houtbay is through Milnerton and Camps' Bay over the Suikerbossie pass straight into Hout Bay. The popular hang-out spots along the way were filled with people soaking up some of the rays from the last winter sun, and along the way quite a number of motorcyclists had the same thing in mind as I did...get out and ride! Hout Bay is a small town situated about 20 km south of Cape Town's city centre. I did not take any pictures of Hout Bay because the mist that was driven in from the Atlantice was giving the whole picture a hazy look which does not really compliment the scenery. Hout Bay is not only famous for the Chapman's Peak Drive, one of the most beautiful roads in South Africa, but also for its fish & chips.

I passed Mariner's Wharf, my first option of having fish & chips and went straight down towards the end of the harbour area. Althought situated at a very nice spot next to the small fishing harbour, Mariner's Wharf is more frequented by tourist, a little bit more expensive and usually very overcrowded. So I headed straight down the road to Fish on the Rocks. I always buy my fish and chips here because I like the setting more than the one at Mariner's Warf and although usually crowded as well, you can still get your meal very quickly and go sit on the rocks if you cannot find an empty table. Although there are more than just fish on the menu, I stick to what I like, hake and chips. For R35-00 you get hake and for R32-00 snoek. Both are well worth trying.

My plan was to go from here, sit somewhere where I could find a good view of Hout Bay and read a book. Just when I wanted to leave the restaurant I realized that I don't have my mobile phone with me. This could only mean one of two things. Either I left it at home or it fell from my pocket. Now this thought really dampened my mood, so I thought reading a book not knowing where my phone is is not a relaxing way to spend the rest of the day, so I decided to skip the book and go straight home. I still enjoyed the ride back home, especially the twisties between Llandudno and Camp's Bay. When I arrived home I was relieved to find my mobile phone where I left it while looking for my bike's spare key. Oh, that was another story, but let's not go there... Anyway, finding my phone didn't really make up for the fact that my whole day was already ruined. Unfortunately not a weekend to remember. But, like they say, the sun will shine again...and who knows what next weekend has in store....

Pictures vs Words

I know that wanting to do a "travel blog" is not as easy as one might expect. First of all traveling around takes time and is quite expensive, and showing people the beauty and experience of what you have witnessed yourself is not that easy. I do however believe that the fun that I get out of the little bit of traveling I do makes up for the disappointment of the above. Sometimes it is nice to be able to say, "Oh, I've been there", or "Yes, I know what it's like". One thing I have seen though is that some people do the budget kind of travel where you take a organized tour, probably to save money, time or effort. I see that happen a lot in South Africa, busses packed with tourists (usually people from Asia or Europe) trying to squeeze in as much as possible getting trigger-happy with their cameras all in a attempt to make sure they can "see" all the attractions the country had to offer when they get back home..The bus would come to a halt at Bloubergstrand, 150 Chinese will jump out, take 2 million snaps of themselves posing in front of Table Mountain, jump back onto the bus again and hit the road to their next destination. When they get back to their homeland, they stuff the pictures in an album and start preparing their next trip. Or they force their friends into watching their 300 pics of Table Mountain, all looking basically the same. If it was a bad weather day with clouds covering Table Mountain, they might not even have that "proof" that they were close to Table Mountain at all.

So talking about the "proof". Isn't it funny that some people just don't have the ability to take good pictures to show that "I was there". Like the one top left. Those two girls were obviously there, maybe they had a fabulous time in Paris, but the picture definately does not show it. Compare it now with the one on the right. It is icy cold in Paris, but I bet you these two Japanese tourists had a much beter time in Paris than the two girls on the left...or so it seems at least. If you are even more creative you don't even have to be in the picture yourself, take one that starts conversations....

I stole this picture from a lady's post discussing the difference between a tourist and a traveler (http://www.vagabondish.com/4-ways-to-be-a-traveler-not-a-tourist/) I have to admit, when I saw her post I felt like dropping the subject of good picture taking as I am sure someone has discussed it before. Nevertheless, let me make my point and you decide. This picture does not even show the person's face, but it can be framed and diplayed on a wall. So much better when someone asks about this picture and you can reply with:" Yes, i took that myself last year on my trip to France". Compare that with: "Please, sit down I want to show you my pictures of Paris". Watching other people's pictures of their summer holiday in Spain or their children's first day at school can be really a pain in the arse. Having a nice picture on your wall that can automatically start the conversation has a much better impact and will invite people to talk about your trip, or maybe even wanting to see more of the interesting pictures you have taken.

Below is my attempt to show that I have also been to Paris. Ok, I won't hang this in my living room, my wife might just question my fidelity, but was I still in college a blown-up version on my wall would have invited more coffee break discussions with my pals than the surf pictures did way back then. I guess that this picture says more about me and where I've been than just "I was there". And you have to agree, it looks better than the first picture of the two girls standing like statues in front of the Eiffel Tower. Now can you imagine if those two girls took a picture of themselves like this one, how much conversation their picture could have started for them back home. The point that I want to make is be creative, let your pictures speak for themselves, let them show that you were more than just there, that you were 'experiencing' the place and that it was in fact F.U.N! Happy snapping.....

Road Trip - Swartriet, West Coast, South Africa

They say the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. I guess the shortest distance between Cape Town and Swartriet, a small holiday resort at an even smaller West Coast town called Jacobsbaai is probably also a straight line along the R27, but when a friend invited us for a weekend at Swartriet I decided to take the more zigzag approach...or otherwise knows as the "scenic route" to get there.

My trip started just before 9 on Saturday morning. Unlike my previous trip this was supposed to be a family weekend, so we decided to take the road to Swartriet in my blue 1996 2.3i Volksiebus, you know the one with the red veldskoene which David Kramer advertised on TV many years ago....?

Our departure was brutally interrupted when a friend pleaded me over the phone for company at Carlucci's, the well-known hangout place for yuppies and kite-surfers alike. His wife was at a friend's breakfast birthday party and he had to look after the twins. I knew that he was looking for assistance more than company and I have never said no for a breakfast at Carlucci's before, so we decided to stop there on our way and grab a "Quickie", the R19-95 breakfast which includes bacon, eggs, a fried tomato and toast of your choice....


The Twins, Zach and Wim...or is it Wim and Zach?

At Carlucci's we ran into more friends and my dream to have my own "F.R.I.E.N.D.S coffee-stop" scenario where you could go at anytime for a coffee and find friends felt like it was coming true. The 'Quickie' turned out to be longer than expected and after an hour or so we were on our way again...

On the coastal road between Blouberg and Melkbosstrand we stopped at a little beach called "Kreeftebaai". Between Blouberg and Melkbosstrand there are a couple of beaches with names like "Derde Steen", "Haakgat", "Holgat" and "Kelpbaai". All of these are favourite spots for surfers, fishermen and romantic lovers taking walks along the beach...


Looking back from Kreeftebaai towards Table Mountain...It was a glorious day, sun, no wind and the temperature just right for traveling...

In Melkbosstrand we stopped at this little antique shop. I guess the majority of the shops in South Africa have sales on at the moment. Who can afford antiques in these difficulty times in any case? If I hang on a little while longer all the furniture in my house will be antiques soon...We had to leave quickly as Kai could not appreciate the value of a 200 year old coffee table... The store keeper was relieved when we eventually left and I could start breathing again...

After Melkbos we headed towards Darling. We turned of from the R27 towards Atlantis and Mamre. We passed Atlantis and stopped at Mamre to have a look at what it had to offer...

I was quite surprized to see how beautiful it was in Mamre. We drove to the Moravian Church Museum and passed this little house under the oak and pine trees...

A mission station was established at Groene-kloof (Mamre) in 1808 by the Moravian Missionary Society at a former military outpost on the farm Louwplaas as well as the farms De Groene Kloof and Cruywagenskraal. The missionaries Kohrhammer and Schmidt set out to work among the local Khoekhoen but the mission station also served as a haven for freed slaves. Today the old "kerkwerf" (churchyard) can still be seen as well as a mill, bakery, stables and a school. The Old Shop was in fact an empty building in the process of being renovated into a restaurant. Inside I met Rose, a member of the Moravian Church but also a member of the Monument Commision. Rose was very eager to show us around the "kerkwerf", telling us about the history of the mission station and the upcoming flower festival....

The church was inaugurated in 1818. Inside everything is white. I did not take pictures out of respect, but asked permission to take a picture from the outside. In 1967 all the buildings were declared a National Monument and the church is working hard in restoring all the buildings. They are planning a Flower Festival in September and I was invited to come back and join in the fun. Who knows, I might just visit Mamre again...

The "Pastorie" is the same house which Willem Adriaan van der Stel lived in when he came to Groene-kloof in 1701 to establish a military and cattle post in this area to protect the European settler's cattle from theft by the indigenous KhoiKhoi people...

Kai is posing next to the plaque which was stolen off by vandals for scrap metal. Nowadays nothing in South Africa that is made from copper withstand the onslaught by criminals stealing the metal to buy a loaf of bread...or drugs. I guess theft is still a problem and wish that Mr Van der Stel could come back again to solve the problems with the local "Khoikhoi"

The R307 to Darling meanders through some beautiful farmlands....

Everywhere along the road are picturesque scenes of wild flowers. Although it is way too early in the season for the magnificant flower spectacle that this area and further north provides, everywhere beautiful patches of Namaqualand daisies were staring with their faces into the sun. This might be a good trip to do in September, a flower road trip to Namaqualand...

When we arrived at Darling Kai was fast asleep. This prevented us from actually discovering what Darling was hiding in its little shops and hideaways. Darling is famous for the comedian Pieter-Dirk Uys, who every now and then cross-dresses and change into Evita Bezuidenhout, a white Afrikaner socialite and self-proclaimed political activist. We didn't run into her, but we will definately come back to Darling in the near future...or maybe even come back and watch one of his many shows at his famous "Evita-se-Peron".

From Darling we shot across to Langebaan. Langebaan Lagoon is popular for kite surfing beginners as the shallow water makes it very easy to stand while one tries to figure out how to turn the kite left and right and how to get back to the water once the wind takes you up into the blue skies..It is one of few purely salt water lagoons in South Africa.

In Langebaan Kai woke up when we stopped to browse around in some of the little shops close to the main beach. Here we spend about an hour or so on the beach while Kai tested out some of his new beach toys...

From Langebaan we took a scenic gravel road to Saldanha Bay. We got lost after a while and when I pulled out my new Nokia 5800 to get directions from the built-in GPS, I realized that continuing with the same road until I see a familar road sign might be the best thing to do. We managed to get back on track and later arrived in Saldanha Bay. Saldanha Bay's location makes it a paradise for any watersport enthusiast, and its local economy depend strongly on fishing, mussels, seafood processing, the steel industry and the harbour. Saldanha Bay is named after António de Saldanha, captain of a vessel in Albuquerque's fleet which visited South Africa in 1503.

After Saldanha it was not far to our final destination, Swartriet. We passed the Swartriet turnoff to go check out a strange looking structure at Jacobsbaai....

A very "un"familiar sight in Jacobsbaai and yet another Cape of Storms victim. The eight-storey high vessel ran aground when heavy downpours and gale force winds lashed the Cape coast line. The barge called Margaret is a towing barge with a further 13 barges stacked on top that was being towed from Durban to the Netherlands by a ship called the Salviliant when the tow rope broke in the bad weather.

"Jacobsbaai is a small coastal village on the West Coast of South Africa, still unspoiled with mostly dirt roads, no shopping centers or amenities. A visit to Weskusplek with its picturesque restaurant offers a unique experience of the overwhelming beauty of the fynbos framed Atlantic Ocean, contrasted by barren land with a curious charm." This is how Jacobsbaai is described in many tourist brochures. What they do not mention is that the little restaurant belongs to the infamous Steve Hofmeyer....

Another view of Jacobsbaai....

We finally arrived at Swartriet. Swartriet consists of twenty four comfortable self-catering chalets virtually on the beach! The seafront chalets have three bedrooms and beds for eight people. The remaining chalets have two bedrooms and beds for six people. Each chalet is equipped with a two-plate stove, fridge, plates, cutlery, built-in cupboards, braai facilities and a garage. Bedding is provided on request.

Draadkar ("Wire car"). How many boys growing up in South Africa have never had a "draadkar"? If your dad hadn't built yours, then maybe the gardener built you one, or you built your own. Nevertheless, draadkarre are as part of any South African boy's life as "kleilat gooi" and "ketty-skiet".

Some of the houses from Jacobsbaai sticking out behind the dunes. When I we arrived at Jacobsbaai I went for a quick surf. After that I took a long walk on the beach and later had a braai with the friends that were expecting us....

When you walk along the beach you get the feeling that no-one had ever been there before. Unfortunately you see footsteps and you know you were not the first one there. Nevertheless, to end a day journey at Swartriet is a good way of ending your road trip.... I hope to do another road trip soon....

Road Trip - 5 Mountain Passes

I live in Cape Town and decided to do a round trip on my bike after my plans to travel to Mossel bay fell through due to less favourite weather predictions. My plan was to travel to Touws River and back, covering as much mountain passes as possible seeing that there are so many awesome passes in this area. I managed to do five this time, will do more at a later stage. Here are some pics of my trip with some comments...




My journey started at 7.30. It was still dark, so no pictures. I rode on the backroads past Durbanville while the sun was slowly but surely sticking out its head. The weather for the day was predicted as 26 degrees with no wind. I was wondering about the 26 each time I went through a valley, but being an ex-Geography teacher I knew it would change soon. When I arrived in the beautiful little town of Wellington, I stopped for my first coffee at this little coffee shop called the "Halt 'n bietjie" (Stop a little). Although the smell of bacon and eggs tempted me to stay longer, I decided that I will have breakfast later somewhere else. I was on my way to the first pass on my journey....

Just ouside Wellington the road takes you between beautiful farmlands. With the Slanghoek Mountains in the back drop everything was green like winter in the Western Cape usually is. Being on a bike I could'n't help but smell the farms around each corner. Never though cow dung could have a nice aroma...

Thought this was somewhere in Europe? As this road is leading to one of the most dangerous mountain passes in South Africa, I was not surprized to finding hardly any cars on the road. I had the road to myself and although I wanted to make use of the "freedom" I had, I stayed under a 100kph to enjoy the morning air instead.

The top 10 km of the pass was blasted out of solid rock. An attempt was made to built a tunnel, but it fell in after heavy rains, so the road ended up being a bit longer than planned. Dacre's Pulpit seen here on the picture is a familiar site and every tourist tries to stop here to take pictures. Unfortunately there is not much space to pull over. The retaining wall, which is still standing after 150 years is still holding up the road today, does not allow for vehicles to pull over.

On my way down I took a picture while riding. I don't think riding anything faster than 50 kph is advisable, so I was basically freewheeling down when I took it. There are numerous tight corners, and some spectacular views along the road. I only crossed two vehicles on this road.

A view through one of the big boulders still remaining on the side of the road. I call it "window to heaven". Looking through the hole you can see some beautiful water falls on the other side of the valley.

When someone calls you a baboon, don't always take it as an insult. Baboons are so clever, they can break into your house and keep the police searching for the wrong suspects for years without leaving any trace that it was baboon's child responsible for the broken window and the empty refrigertor. Well, this design to safeguard the rubbish bins agains baboons seems to outsmart them.

So, if we cannot open the bloody thing, we'll use it as chairs for our beauty salon....

The next pass on my trip, just before reaching Ceres, was the Michell's Pass. Although this pass from the road does not look nearly as impressive as the previous one, it was in the heydays another engineering feat. If you stop along the road and look down you get a much better picture. With a wide road with nice curves it was a pleasure to ride this with the bike, I nearly went all the way without stopping once...

Along the road there were plenty of water falls. This time of the year sees more waterfalls due to the winter rains...and this was just one of them.

If you look at the top left side of the picture you will see the road. Just beneath it you get a glimpse of the railway line. It is suggested that one gets out of your vehicle (or down from your bike) and actually walk the railway line to get a better impression and appreciation of the magnitude of this pass. The pass has a rich history of farmers making their own roads and getting upset with other travelers using it. The first proper access was again built by Andrew Bains and it was open in 1848. This gave access to the fruitfull Ceres valley.






















In Ceres, with R142 km's on the clock I filled up for my next leg to Touws River. I was not sure what to expect, so I guessed a full tank was better than a half-full one (see the optimism in that "half-full" statement?). I passed my third pass , Theronsberg Pass, just outside Ceres. From the picture one can see that it is not much of a pass, with hardly any turns and just a slight gradient downwards. I only stopped here to put my iPod on as I was ecpecting a long and dull road ahead of me....
























The road to Touws River was just that...long and dull. I guess having a speed bike here would have been much more pleasurable than a cruiser. This is Karoo and somehow holds a beauty of its own...if you are into semi-dead shrubs and freaky lizards. The only living things I met here was a film crew shooting a scene in the middle of nowhere. Probably another Van Damme movie playing off 500 years after the earth was demolised by our own greediness....






















In Touws River I had breakfast. I drove through the town which I visited many years ago with my parents on many of our trips down to Cape Town. There was not much left of it...but it brought back some good memories. I was on the N1 now on my way back towards Cape Town. Just before I reached the Hex River Pass, I took this picture of the Hex River Mountains covered in snow. When i got to the actual pass I decided NOT to stop as the 18-wheelers using the same route to get to Cape Town was a bit scary. There was no safe place to pull over and with the trucks using the yellow lane, I decided to drive on. When you go down the Hex River Pass you get into the Hex River Poort with a small town called De Doorns. I drove through De Doorns but again did not stop. As with the Michell's Pass you will only appreciate the pass when you take the train and hang out of the window. The first operational line was built in 1877 and is still used today.

My next stop was Worcester. Here I filled my bike and my stomach again. The riding makes one hungry I guess, as it was only 80 kms after my breakfast. Once you leave Worcester you are met by the mighty Du Toit's Kloof Mountains. At first it looks like there is no way to cross, but there are actually two ways, over or through the mountain. This picture shows the entrance to the Huguenot Tunnel, a 4 km gas chamber if you are on a bike. So I decided to do the right thing and take the pass. If you want to see how boring it is to take the tunnel, watch this clip on Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRRndUwba0U

In case you are into tunnels, you might be pleased to know that the Du Toit's Kloof pass also provides a short tunnel. You can actually see "the light on the other side". In this case there were two...one being a truck. Getting stuck behind one of these trucks can really spoil your day...unless you are on a bike of course.

The reward for taking the pass in stead of the tunnel is R21 in your pocket (no toll), and the view you find on the other side. probably one of the most breathtaking views in South Africa is The Paarl Valley. When I stopped here I could feel the 26 degrees that was predicted....

On the way down form the Du Toit's Kloof pass one can see the road coming from the tunnel and meeting with the pass road just after the toll gates. Toll price being R21 for a bike nowadays I can fill a quarter of my tank with that...

Most Capetonians does not even see this anymore. This is The Paarl Mountain. The huge granite rock is formed by three rounded outcrops that make up Paarl Mountain and is the second largest granite outcrop in the world. It used to be called “Tortoise Mountain” by the Khoikhoi.

A leather couch in the making.....























The Green Green Grass of Home. The farming lands of Durbanville, with Table Mountain in the back. Now if this is not beautiful, then you are either colour blind or prefer to live in the Karoo...I drove 451 kms and it took me about 8 1/2 hours. My next trip will definately be shorter with more time to spend taking pictures and enjoying the scenery. It was fun though....