OCTOBER 2011 - HARTENBOS TRIP
Thursday, 27 October 2011
After coffee, we ‘caged’ our daughters and armed with their latest
toy, a big black straw hat, I drove them to their hotel. At
home, we had a coat rack in our bedroom’s corner – but with all my handbags
hanging on it, the coatrack gave me nightmares.
Moving the coatrack, I removed my big black straw hat and placed it on
the bed. My girl, Minx, immediately
pounced on it, knead it and then went to sleep on it.
A few last shopping items and a trip to the library, meant I will be
home around 11h30. Hein was still at
work in Midrand, so I planned to do email, facebook and pack. When I stopped at home, I searched for my
house keys … and realized that when I left with the cats, Hein was still at
home. I could have kicked myself – Hein
said he’ll be home in about 30 minutes.
We’ve decided to pack clothes, our coffee machine and only a few
groceries – 2 o’ clock our car was packed and ready to go.
Where to? 8 Glorious days at
Hartenbos. Last year May, we rented this
amazing 2 bed flat right on the beach of Hartenbos for R400/night. This year we’ve rented a similar flat for
R500/night. www.
Our holidays always start with McDonalds. My choice was a chicken wrap and tea, Hein a
Big Mac and coke. First stop –
Bloemfontein.
Tom’s Place Resort is 33 km past Bloemfontein – a few chalets on the
Tierpoort dam – www. –
R450/night. I was a bit apprehensive,
but we only really need a bed. The
receptionist told me if we arrived later than 7pm, the gate would be
closed. We arrived at 18h30. And laughed.
No gate was to be seen anywhere!
Only a boom that seemed to be permanently open. Taking the key, we asked about leaving early
the next morning and if the restaurant is open.
The chalet was very nice – a double bed and 2 single beds in an
open-plan space – small kitchen, bathroom with bath & shower. The lady told us we could either walk or
drive to the restaurant – we decided to walk the 50 meters.
I wasn’t really in the mood for ‘diner’ food, but the restaurant
only had burgers, toasted sandwiches and a few ‘choice’ meal items. I decided a Dagwood would be a safe
option. Hein had a burger. The food was good, but halfway through our
meal, the radio suddenly changed to a church sermon, so we muted the sound.
Half of my Dagwood was taken back to the chalet, we read a little
bit and 8pm our lights were off.
Friday, 28 October 2011
After a bad dream at 12, we woke at 5am. Showered, dressed, packed the car and at 5h40
we were on our way. Luckily with the
roadworks, we were only stopped at 1 spot for 5 minutes. The rest of the way we just drove through.
Our poor throats were parched!
In Colesberg, we filled up with diesel and decided on the Wimpy for
much-needed coffee and breakfast. That
first sip of coffee …. Priceless! Hein
had his usual Wimpy breakfast with the onions hidden under the patty. I had scrambled eggs, toast, baked beans and
a muffin. And another coffee. Inside the muffin was chewy white stuff – I
asked the waitress and only afterwards did she tell me it was cheese. Now that’s an idea.
One of my dad’s brothers, Audrey, and his wife Alta, stays in
Graaff-Reinet. Since we left nice and
early that morning, we phoned them and said we’ll stop for coffee. It took us a few moments to remember that the
last time we stopped in Graaff-Reinet was 10 years ago.
Alta made us coffee (did you know that Jacobs
have Espresso Style instant coffee now? – I must admit it looks a bit black
oily-ish when you spoon the granules into the boiling water, but it’s quite
good) and we had some sausage rolls and miniature peppermint crisp tarts.
Alta bakes for a home industry, so we talked about food, food and
food. And family. She also gave me a lovely jar of onion, chili and ginger jam.
Hartenbos was about 4-5 hours away.
Just before Willowmore, about 30 km, we noticed on the GPS a dam – but
we looked and couldn’t see anything. And
then were shocked to realize it was actually a dam – a very very empty dam –
Beervleidam.
In Willowmore, a tiny little town, we stopped at Sophie’s Choice coffee shop for a sandwich. What a cosy,
funky little antique shop with a verandah.
Hein had a look at the couple next to us, asked them what they ate and
we started to chat. A German couple from
Somerset West – on their way to Baviaanskloof.
The guy said they stayed one night in Loxton and Hein said: ‘my wife used to dance in Loxton.’ My college roommate, Suzette, were from
Fraserburg. During our September break,
I went with her and the one day we went to Loxton for a dance.
This German guy scrunched up his face and asked me: but where did
you dance? There’s nothing in
Loxton! I laughed – his wife said there
was a notice for an upcoming dance – ‘but where?’ did he ask again. It was very very funny.
I chose the spinach and feta quiche and Hein had the chicken
pie. Both came with a lovely salad and
was yummy!!!!
Feeling a bit tired, we drove the last 169 km to Hartenbos and
arrived there just after 4pm. This year,
our flat is actually closer to the ocean – and right next to the stairs going
down to the beach. Dropping everything
in the flat, we bought a few things at the local Spar and liquor store and Hein
lit the fire while I unpacked our things.
The smell of the sea was intoxicating – a T-bone, chicken pieces and
yummy boerewors together with tinned peas and sweetcorn was dinner – the onion,
chilli, ginger jam was absolutely delicious with the meat.
Too tired to start a book, I paged through the latest You magazine
while Hein read a book on his IPad.
Sleep wasn’t far off.
Getting into bed, we realized that there were no sheets at all! Bummer.
I don’t understand what’s the big deal – if you can provide a duvet and
duvet cover, surely you can provide sheets.
We didn’t sleep that well on the mattress cover.
Saturday, 28 October 2011
Thinking it was already 8am, we realized that our bedroom faces East
and it was only 6am. Coffee on the
patio, smelling the salty ocean and we decided not to braai boerewors for
breakfast. Our plans were to visit my
family in Gansbaai, about 3 hours’ drive from Hartenbos.
Driving to Mosselbay’s point, we stopped at Delfino’s for breakfast
while gazing over the sea and surfers. I
was sooo not in the mood for anything oily, so for the first time ever, I
ordered fresh fruit with yogurt and toast.
It was refreshing and the Americano coffee lovely and strong. Hein had delicious mince on toast, topped
with an egg.
I phoned the owner and asked him if he has some spare sheets –
otherwise we had to buy some. He said it
was no problem.
Refreshed, we drove off to Gansbaai.
At Riviersonderend, we stopped for some Venison pies. There goes my ‘healthy eating’. But it was absolutely delicious!
Catching up with my family, we ate some Custard Cake (one of
Lorraine’s specialities) and just before the Lions/Sharks rugby game, Hein
started to make Rogan Josh mince. On our
way to Gansbaai, Esme sms’d me and asked if we’ll show them how to make and eat
Bunny Chows. Of course!!!
Hein bought ground spices for the mince and while the women watched
him cutting, slicing and stirring in an apron, Mike (Lorraine’s husband) was
very interested. And not quite sure
about eating a bunny with your hands – because those are the rules.
I wanted to buy buns to fill with mince, but Hein vetoed that
firmly. So 2 whole (unsliced) breads
were carefully sliced – it left us with 4 crusts. The rest of the thick slices we pressed down
for the filling. 12 Bunny chows were
made.
Starting at the head of the house, Mike, I handed them out. And oh wow – it was absolutely delicious! And everyone enjoyed eating with their hands
– Mike actually had 2. The curry taste
was lovely.
Sadly our team, the Sharks, lost, but we drowned our sorrows with
some lamb chops, chicken pieces, boerewors and ‘braaibroodjies’ (toasted
sandwiches with tomato, onion and cheese on the coals.)
My head started to feel like cotton wool – and when it was 10 o
clock, Hein, myself and Esme drove off to Esme’s home in De Kelders. After a quick make-up removal, I was in the
bed and off to la-la land.
Sunday 30 October 2011
Once again, we woke early.
After a quick shower, I packed our overnight bag, made the bag and went
downstairs. Lobo, the dog, and Dirkie,
the parquet, were ready for some conversations
Esme started a real guesthouse
breakfast while we talked about this and that.
Dirkie sneaked up on me and managed to peck my ankles – he wanted some
food.
Fresh papaya, toasted English muffins, bacon, eggs, cheese, tomato
and filter coffee – a royal treat. My
dad’s brother, Wilnand, turned 60 in October and we drove off to Hermanus to
visit him. A lovely chat, some laughs
and we drove back to Gansbaai.
Luckily
we were watching for whales when Esme realised her handbag was gone. It was nearly panic-stations! When she phoned Wilnand, she had left her bag
in his room – we turned around and all was well.
In Gansbaai, we had another piece of custard cake and coffee and
said goodbye. What a lovely visit we had
with our family – at 4h30pm we were back at the flat.
Since the Thursday night, I’ve been ‘craving’ Jasmine rice with feta
cheese. Dinner on Sunday night was just
that. Hein had a quick nap while I
started on a book. The weather was quite
funny and after a few drops of rain, it was quite cold. And I
have not packed warm clothes ….. A
hot bath to soak in, a book to read and our holiday was well on its way.
Hein found out that the glass sliding door doesn’t lock at all – so
we made a note to tell the owner.
Monday 31 October 2011
Thinking it was already about 8am, we were very surprised to find it
only just before 6am.
Hein started the braai and I made some tomato-onion relish. After a yummy breakfast, we just relaxed with
books for the rest of the day. Late the
afternoon, we drove to the Spar for some groceries. When I phoned the owner, Danie, about the
sliding door, he said there’s a way to do it.
I told him it’s rubbish and he must make sure it’s fixed. Danie said he’ll come and check the door.
Not feeling like making dinner, we went to the Spur. I had some quesidellas and their Fudge Picasso
– man, it was good, but rich! Hein had a
pepper burger, but on Mondays it’s 1 burger free. He asked them to wrapped the extra burger,
chips and onion rings in a packet.
We gave the packet to a white carguard at Spar. For the rest of the evening we just read.
Tuesday 1 November 2011
Somehow our clocks are still on work-mode ... we again woke early. After some coffee, I made us toast with eggs
and we settled down with our books. I
heard Hein talked to someone on the patio and then was told the horrible news –
the builders are going to rip out the floor tiles – in the flat directly above
us. And it will be noisy.
What absolute nonsense! And
our sliding door is still not fixed! I
sms’d Danie and said to him we’re very disappointed in the whole thing. After a shower, amidst an awful racket from
hammer drills above, we drove off to Delfino’s in Mossel Bay, armed with
books. But boy, I was in a mad mad
mood!!
Phoning Danie didn’t help – he just said the builders are only
suppose to do their work in the winter months.
And he’s waiting for the supervisor to buy a part for the sliding door,
it should only be that afternoon. I was
fuming. I then phoned the supervisor – he
informed me that the builders are allowed till 15 November. And also he has nothing to do with the
sliding door. I felt like Medusa –
snakes twirling and whirling around my head.
While reading at Delfino’s, we ordered a pizza – boy but was it
greasy!!! Luckily we shared it, but
still.
Danie phoned and said he has another flat with sea view available –
but when we had a look, it was underneath their house – no way Jose!
Between Hartenbos and Mossel Bay is
Diaz beach. Hein drove to the
Diaz hotel and while I was searching the internet for chalets, Hein came back
and asked me to have a look at their room.
https://www.diazbeach.co.za/ It was a 4-star hotel with breakfast included. It’s a normal hotel room with double bed and
lovely comfortable couch and chairs – small but ideal balcony (10th
floor) overlooking the ocean with 2 wooden chairs and a bathroom. We booked it till Monday 7 November.
On our way back to the flat, we realised it was a good thing we
didn’t buy a lot of groceries the previous afternoon. In a jiffy we were packed – I phoned Danie,
the owner, and told him to meet us at the front gate, we’re moving out. But it was hard talking to him, because the
jack hammers were really going ballistic above.
He started to hum and haa, but I just cut him off.
Of course Danie started to make all kinds of excuses, but Hein was
afraid he would lose his temper with the pathetic excuses, so we gave the key
and drove off. He will have to refund us
for 6 nights.
The porter loaded all our baggage on a ‘Hollywood’ trolley – I
unpacked everything and we settled down – a cool breeze was blowing through the
open balcony door. After all this
emotional stuff, a nap was in order.
Waking after 4pm, I made us some filter coffee (our coffee machine was
plugged in of course) and we read till it was time to shower for dinner. It was a buffet – just your usual stuff, but after
that oily pizza I just wanted something fresh.
While Hein was in the shower, I
read in a magazine that 1 glass red wine per day keeps the dentist away. And since for the past 10 years I’ve had such
trouble with my teeth, I vowed that’s what I’ll have. My gall bladder is removed 10 years ago, so I
can’t drink alcohol anymore – it burns my tummy and affects me quickly.
I started with some cheese and biscuits, then had a lovely fresh
salad and a bit of chicken pie – with my glass of red wine. The desserts looked appetizing, so I wanted
to try a bit of them all. In the
process, I gulped my wine so that I can have coffee with the sweets. Big mistake!!! I started to giggle, talk a lot and I could
feel my head was starting to spin. The
desserts were a bit of a let-down – I tasted them and they were mediocre,
except for the lemon meringue pie.
Coffee was good. But that red
wine … I think I managed to walk straight out of the restaurant, but I had
these bursts of uncontrollable giggles …. Ok – that’s it! No more wine for me – dentist or not.
Wednesday 2 November 2011
The bed was so comfortable, we both slept soundly. When I opened my eyes and looked at the
clock, it was 5h30 am. We jumped out of
bed, brushed our teeth, wet-brushed our hair with fingers and went for a walk
on the beach – the first time since we’ve arrived in Hartenbos the previous
Friday.
I made us some good coffee, we read till after 7 and then showered
for breakfast. Just the usual buffet –
fruit, cereals, yoghurt, etc – it was lovely.
At the start of the holiday, Hein
said he’ll do the dishes the whole holiday – I joked that in order for him to
do that, he booked us into a hotel.
Read in room, lunch at Art Café.
I had bbq wings & ribs with salad, Hein had pepper burger. We watched Charlie Chaplin black-and-white
movie while eating.
Dinner was buffet – cheeses and biscuits, lovely grilled fish,
broccoli and cauliflower with cheese sauce, onion rice and salads. I tried the berry custard – it was nice, but
the cupcake with supposedly ‘tiramisu’ topping was soft and fluffy, but
definitely not tiramisu – my homemade version was better.
Back in the room we watched CSI and went to bed at 10h30pm.
Thursday, 3 November 2011
After a good night’s rest, we awoke late – at 6am. Hahahaha.
Once again because the room faces East and with our curtains drawn all
the way, we’re woken by the sun.
I’ve decided to have no carbs at breakfast. Lovely melon and papaya and strawberries to
start with. Then yummy salmon and
rollmops with some cheeses and scrambled eggs.
Strong fresh coffee was a perfect pairing. Hein was ‘seduced’ by some viennas. Afterwards we read in the lounge till 10.
Our washing had to be done, so we handed it in at hotel reception
and drove to Mossel Bay. Cruising the
streets, we saw a leather shop and Hein got a gorgeous kudu belt. Lunch was at the Sea Gypsy in the
harbour.
Grilled hake with salad for me
and hake and chips for Hein. Sitting
next to the ocean while reading books, were absolutely holiday-ish.
Popping into the Spar, I checked our lotto ticket from Saturday, but
didn’t win anything. I have been craving
our favourite yoghurt, Activia Cereal flavour, for the past week! Luckily we found some as well as deodorant
for Hein.
After reading our books, I went for a brisk 30 min walk barefoot on
the beach. I was a bit worried about the
wind, but it felt nice.
Looking at the dinner buffet, I wasn’t overly impressed, so decided
to order Spaghetti Bolognaise from the smaller restaurant. It was absolutely delightful!! Hein craved meat, so he had pork &
sirloin from the buffet and some yummy-looking potatoes and a cabbage dish that
he raved about. He got some brulee, but
after 2 tastes, I decided it wasn’t that nice.
Friday, 4 November 2011
Once again, we wanted to sleep in – but was awake at 5h50am. Hein was busy with his last few pages of
Michael Connelly, The Last Coyote, while I was reading The Void Moon, also from
Michael Connelly, on the IPad. Ok, after
reading 2 books on the IPad, I’m convinced.
It really is a pleasure and such a space-saver. Well, I won’t be buying an IPad of course,
but a Kindle for sure. Especially when
we’re travelling. Which, as you know, is
quite often.
Breakfast was served till 10, so we arrived after 9. I had some very nice chicken livers, a fish
finger and quite nice blueberry scone with tea, but I suppose we’re a bit tired
of hotel food, so I didn’t eat that much.
Grabbing our jackets (weather a bit cold) and camera, we went for a
drive. First to the mall to buy some
work shoes (black) and socks for Hein, then later on to the Milky Lane for some
waffles (me) and ice cream for Hein. He
started to eat from the top, but added different syrups as he spooned his way
down.
Feeling a bit tired, we headed back to the hotel. No lunch today, just reading our books,
coffee and some rusks.
Hein was in the mood for a proper steak, but when driving past
Jazzbury’s, a restaurant we visited last year, I phoned for a reservation and
was devastated to find them closed for business. Oh dear.
I wanted to do some shopping at CNA at the one mall and I knew there
was a Cattle Baron. I assumed Hein knew
as well – we’ve driven through Mossel Bay and seen a steakhouse, but he wasn’t
very optimistic about the look of it. At
CNA we bought some games and at Clicks some toiletries. When I told Hein the Cattle Baron is just
around the corner, he was very surprised.
In Johannesburg, I’ve previously had a deboned bbq chicken at the
branch there – and that was what I was aiming for. But to my bitter disappointment, no such
thing on this menu. Tiaan, our witty
waiter, said the menu was changed 3 months ago.
Darn. I settled for 2 chicken
quarters bbq’d in a sauce with salad.
Hein ordered the T-bone steak (600g) and nearly swooned from pleasure
while eating it. I wasn’t planning on
having dessert, but Tiaan suggested their cotton ball cheesecake – well, I’m
not sure why that name, but it was a delight.
I took my 1 quarter chicken home and we read our books.
Saturday, 5 November 2011
Last year in May, we’ve visited the Wild Oats Organic Market in
Sedgefield, 65 km’s away, twice. The
alarm clock went off at 5 am and we snoozed till about 5h20am. Coffee first, then showered and dressed.
Not sure how far to drive, we realised it was only 65 km. So we drove very slowly. Arriving at the market just after 7h30, we
thought we’re too early, but the place was booming. As we parked the car, we realised a cold wind
was blowing, so I took my pashmina. First
we walked around to see what yummy goodies they have, but when Hein saw smoke,
he immediately steered towards what he hoped would be boerewors rolls. (Living in a hotel denies one making a
sandwich, popping corn in the microwave and to braai a boerewors …. After 2
weeks, we would be seriously glad to be back home.)
I quickly made a circuit, then chose a curry mince vetkoek. Black and strong coffee washed it down
nicely. At one stall they have these
amazing pies and I was hoping for a venison pie, but the lady told us it was
out of season. Sigh. We made another round and walked across to
the flea market. Nothing interesting,
except 2 door stoppers (for Hugo, my brother-in-law whose doors are always slamming)
and 2 CD’s for Hein.
Knysna was next. Luckily the
town wasn’t that busy, but everyone drove like hooligans. In the main street we spotted a Coffee
Connection and stopped for a newspaper and coffee. It was quite shocking to pay R14 for a
newspaper … and found it filled with doom and gloom. The coffee was good and an elderly couple sat
next to us. After a while, we started to
chat and made some jokes.
Since we’re leaving the hotel on Monday, I suggested to Hein that we
have room service for lunch. A toasted
sandwich would be lovely. My chicken
mayo was nice, although Hein’s roasted beef sandwich had too much sauce and too
little beef.
While waiting for the food and reading in bed, I suddenly spotted a
bird on our balcony balustrade. First I
thought it was a pigeon, but quickly realised it was some kind of falcon. Slowly I reached for the camera, but it flew
away.
Sunday 6 November 2011
Hein answered his phone and told me there's a change of plans. He had to be in Cape Town the next day for a meeting.
Packed up our bags and left the hotel. By lunchtime we reached Caledon and were quite hungry. Stopped at Dassiefontein farmstall for real home cooking. I had waterblommetjie stew and Hein had
bobotie with yellow rice. Delicious!!
Arrived at our guesthouse - Cotswold House, Milnerton (http://www.cotswold.co.za/), I unpacked and hung my jewellery on hangers.
A whole lot of geese on the lawn ... sooo cute!
After a short afternoon nap, we drove to Cape Waterfront for dinner. Deciding on Belthazar Grill restaurant, (https://www.belthazar.co.za/) we sat down. Not quite realizing that their prices were a bit steep.
Monday 7 November 2011
After breakfast at the guesthouse, Hein and his colleagues drove to the Cape Expo for the day. I stayed mostly in my room, relaxed and reading books. Pretty purple flowers in the garden were visited by bees ..
Hein was off to the Expo again. I had snacks in the room, so I just chilled and read my book.
For dinner someone told us about a curry buffet close by ...always delightful to have a few options to choose from. Food was delicious.
Thursday 10 November 2011
For dinner, we decided to visit a seafood restaurant in Cape harbor …
https://panama-jacks.com/ …. It has these ‘pools’ filled with live crayfish, crabs
and abalone. You scoop out the one you
want and they prepare it for you.
The restaurant inside is cosy and the roof is decorated with loads of flags. The top of their tables has maps. After some bread, I decided to have a Sangria with Tequila and Oyster shot. It was absolutely scrumptious!
Friday 11 November 2011
After a glorious and eventful holiday, we headed back home.
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