Fishing
Weekend in Pietermaritzburg
23 to
26 September 2010
…. though we ended up not even fishing at all.
oo0oo
Thursday, 23 September 2010
Hauling out the crates from the Wendy house, I
started to pack for our fishing weekend.
Although it was mostly picnic things and clothes, I decided to skip my
Tai Chi class and concentrate on remembering all the bits and pieces.
Hein had a meeting, but we managed to leave
home around 11h30. A few kilometers from
home, we realised we forgot the GPS. At
the Beyers Naude McDonalds we pulled in for diesel and lunch. I had a chicken foldover (yummy!!!), Hein had
2 Cheese Burgers, chips and a flat Coke.
Tsk, tsk, I should have remembered to buy him a bottle Coke instead.
The N3 was quite busy, until we realized the
schools closed for the short holiday. At Mooirivier, we turned off to the
Kamberg valley, to visit friends.
Years ago, we had a lovely holiday at a
beautiful thatched house in the mountains.
Secluded, no TV, no cellphone reception.
Attie and Evol (love spelled in reverse) stayed close by and we had a
few beers. Just a few months ago, they
moved into their newly built bigger house, so we thought to stop for a
cuppa. It was 5pm when we arrived in the
Kamberg Valley.
The fields and mountains were a bit green, although they haven’t had any rains yet.
We saw these lovely little flowers next to the road.
Evol showed me the house; we had some cold
drinks and fruitcake. (I made this
fruitcake with Archers Peach Schnapps and undiluted Oros.)
At 6pm, we said goodbye and drove to
Pietermaritzburg in fast-approaching darkness.
The moon was a big yellow ball.
Some of the smaller roads were a bit scary
when you encounter trucks, but we arrived safely at Hein’s parents around
7h30pm. After quickly unpacking the car,
I unpacked our clothes and we had pasta and mince for dinner while catching up
on family news.
Friday, 24 September
2010
After a good night’s sleep, Hein and I woke up
late – well, we thought it was, until we checked the time. 6 am.
Brushed our teeth, splashed our faces and started the coffee machine. Hein took our Golf for a much-needed wash.
Looking out to the garden, it was sad to see it
in such a sorry state. The grass was
yellow and brittle, some of the trees have died and others are clinging on for
dear life.
The bougainvillea and tree orchids were
thriving though.
When we are in Pietermaritzburg, we usually try
to have breakfast or lunch next to the ocean.
One of our favourite spots is The Oyster Box Hotel, Umhlanga. Although we didn’t visit for a while, because
they had renovated the whole hotel.
Earlier in the week I phoned them to book for
breakfast. Their buffet breakfast is
R195 per person. When I enquired about a
la carte lunch on the terrace, they suggested their Curry Buffet, also R195 per
person. And flash bulbs exploded in my
head … just a few days ago I read a
review by Brian Berkman, a well-known Cape
Town restaurant critic. Commenting on his review, he urged me to try
the Curry Buffet … so I booked a table
for 4 on Heritage Day.
Arriving at Umhlanga just before 12, we
approached The Oyster Box Hotel (www.oysterboxhotel.com)
and were greeted by this friendly gentleman.
And then we stepped inside …
Wow! I
would describe it as Colonial décor. Big
chairs, gilded mirrors, bowls of fresh apples, impressive chandeliers; Anthurium flower arrangements and a couch for 6
people.
This is part of the floor – and also
the glass ceiling of the wine cellar and private dinner room below.
The interesting fact is that, although the
décor is opulent and grand, the atmosphere is very relaxed.
Residents are dressed in shorts and minis,
children are having lunch with their parents and on the terrace, the
resident cat is strolling amongst the tables, hoping for some tidbits. The wind was blowing, so we moved to an
inside table.
White-painted chairs and benches with green and
blue furnishings, exquisite ceiling tiles paired with a brass chandelier and
paper ‘tablecloths’ completed the décor.
Understated, ocean chic.
The Curry Buffet. Oh wow!!!
On the left were bowls with: Chicken & Shrimp Curry, Fish Curry,
Butter Chicken, Lamb Vindaloo (not hot at all) and Basmati Rice. In the Centre were Butter Naan and Garlic
Naan Breads and Poppadums. Also small
bowls filled with coconut shavings, peanuts, chutney, mint yoghurt, peanuts,
etc. On the right were bowls of: Flavoured Rice, Vegetable Korma, Cauliflower
Curry, Lentil Curry and Biriyani.
Where to start … at the table, we had more bread and 2 sets of
cutlery next to our plates. As soon as
you’ve finished with one plate, they remove it.
When all your cutlery is gone, they just bring you new ones. I had tiny portions of each dish. Everything was heaven! Most of the curries were mild, but the flavors … worth the experience!
It’s actually a very nice dinner party
idea. Each couple can bring along a
curry dish with some of the condiments.
And with dishes like veg curry, lentil curry and cauliflower curry the
costs will be minimal.
Tempted by the desserts, I had the Espresso
Mousse with Chocolate Meringue and Granadilla Pulp.
It was ok-ish. My in-laws had Malva Pudding with Ginger and
Pineapple. They said it was
lovely and just the right size, not too much.
Hein had Apple Crumble with Ice Cream, but it was very
disappointing. The inside was very dry
and filled with cinnamon and only a few slices of apple. I do hope they improve on that recipe.
On paying the bill, the waiter informed us of
the Sweets Trolley at the door. Jars
filled with all kinds of sweets, eg:
sugared almonds, apricots, mints, choc éclairs, etc.
Being Heritage Day – or National Braai Day – we
dropped my in-laws at home and decided to buy something for the coals. With the idea of a picnic fishing the next
day, we drove to Hein’s friends, Vicus, Karen & Luke, their
son, to finalize our plans for fishing.
With cold beer and drinks on the patio, we
watched anxiously as the sky darkened in anticipation of a much-needed
rainfall. Listening to old music favorites, the beers stayed cold and in the end Vicus started their Electric
Braai and grilled steak and ribs.
Karen
buttered buns and made a lovely green salad (Vicus is absolutely crazy over
salad). Unforeseen boat problems made us cancel our fishing trip the next
day. On our way home, tiny drops of
rain fell on the windscreen.
Saturday, 25 September
2010
When we
woke up after 7, it was wet outside. A
light drizzle fed the thirsty ground.
While we watched this little bird having his
breakfast, Hein decided to braai sausage on our mini-braai. It literally only needs about 6 briquettes and
can easily fit a whole packet of sausage on it.
Although the Spar’s buns were a day old, we toasted them on the fire and
enjoyed them with tomato sauce and mustard.
Always keen for a drive, we explored the
Midlands Meander. At Dargle, we found a
pizzeria and had lovely Tiramisu in coffee cups (top left). Onward to Groundcover, a leather shop, then a
browse at the Piggly Wiggly Shop. Bought
some lovely Lemon & Lime Honey and Coffee & Ginger Chews. On our way to Karkloof Canopy Tours, we saw
these pile of logs and I took some close-ups.
Although our Golf 6 handled well on the dirt
roads, her belly is a bit low for ‘bundu-bashing’, so we decided to head back
to Pietermaritzburg.
Without the GPS, we just followed our noses,
hoping to arrive back at Howick.
Stopping at a local, he informed us that we were on our way to Greytown,
not Howick. Oops – better make sure that
the GPS is on my checklist next time!
U-turn, dirt road and finally we arrived in Howick. My poor car … dirt was packed on the boot and
her tires were nearly white with dust.
At the Red Fox, Howick, we decided to have a
light snack.
For dinner, Hein had a whole chicken in the
Weber, he had corn on the cob on the coals and his mom made pumpkin and
beans. I made a quick and easy Corn
Bread.
Corn Bread
500g self raising
flour
1 x 410g tin
evaporated milk
1 x 410g tin sweetcorn
2 tsp salt
Preheat oven to 180
oC. Sieve the self raising flour and
salt. Add the evaporated milk and
sweetcorn, mix thoroughly, spoon into greased bread pan and bake for +
60 min.
Sunday, 26 September
2010
Woke very late, had a look on the clock and was
surprised to find the time 6h00. So much
for a lie-in.
After nice strong coffee outside on the patio,
I started to pack and had a shower.
Deciding to have breakfast on the road, we left Pietermaritzburg at
07h30.
Rawdons Country Hotel & Fly Fishing Estate
(www.rawdons.co.za) was our choice for
breakfast.
A beautiful thatched hotel in the Midlands
Meander. In the dining room, they have a
selection of cereals, yogurts, stewed dried fruit, muffins, croissants,
cheeses, cold meats, juice, coffee and tea.
I had this ‘cake bread’ with cumin cheese and preserved
green figs. And a few bites of this
delightful coconut jam slice.
Hein had smoked Haddock, poached eggs with
cheese sauce and I had an omelette with mushrooms, ham and cheese.
Speculating about the bill, I guessed the
breakfast to be R180/person. To our
shocked surprise, we only paid R150 – for both of us! Worth a visit.
Although the road was quite busy back to Gauteng, we arrived back
home around 2pm.
With the car and crates unpacked, we flopped
down on the couch and relaxed.
