Out of Africa

Forty days on the road in Spain, Qatar and South Africa and we are ready for our 24-hour-plus trip home. It is Monday night here and we'll catch the 8:30 pm to Doha and connect for the long ride home arriving as the polls close. It is my fervent hope that by midnight they will know that Hillary won and we'll never hear from Trump again.  While we tried to avoid as much of this nonsense as possible, it was simply too horrible to ignore.  In all of the cities we have visited when someone found out we were from the USA, politics was all they could talk about.  Every single person who spoke to us about the election could not understand that out of a population of 350 million, these are the best two people that we could muster.  Everyone is terrified that Trump could win since they all know it would be an international disaster. I'll block all of this and try to watch a few good movies on the planes to forget it all.

There are two types of taxis in South African cities, metered and private. The metered are for those with money and the privates are a response to many people needing to get around and not enough public transportation. It works like this: someone with money buys a few vans, hires drivers to run them all day and most of the night, and they have very specific routes. There is nothing written on them but everyone seems to know how they work. As you are walking towards your destination, you hold up your hand and display a certain number of fingers indicating where you want to go. The driver, and they are all wild and crazy, then honks his horn, you turn around and get in and off you go. Very ingenious and I'm told quite cheap. 

We are at the airport now, third world experience until after immigration, and then it is like any large airport in the world with shops, restaurants, duty free and lounges. We got here early since it was supposed to rain and we knew the traffic would be horrible after four. It did rain during the trip but our Uber driver knew shortcuts, don't they all, and took us up a big hill that had huge mansions and grounds, absolutely lovely - and then we passed China Town. Our driver was none too happy with the Chinese since they drive the price up and the values down on everything they touch. We had to wait an hour before we could check in and the huge hall was dark, dank and did not smell of fresh rain on grass. We are finally settled into the Qatar Lounge and have another three hours before takeoff.

The trip was filled with highlights, meeting new people many of whom could become friends, traveling to lovely destinations - some with cherished memories, others bittersweet - and those in South Africa wildly delicious. Despite all the packing and unpacking, bus, subway, train and plane trips, in and out of taxis, Ubers and shuttles, we are still laughing at each other's jokes and toasting our good fortune. Home will be fun - back to a routine a delight, and being in my own kitchen, heaven. Come by for dinner some time!  Go Vote!  Cindy and Wm

Johannesburg

Johannesburg was created 130 years ago by three guys all named George who found gold by digging pits - and the downtown still remains a pit!  We were lulled into a false sense of admiration for this city since our taxi driver took the back roads from the airport due to heavy traffic. We passed lovely homes on shaded streets and all of them had guards, high fences or walls, and lots of barbed wire on the tops. All of the private schools looked grand but were also fortresses. Our hotel is in the middle of a wealthy area called Rosebank: four malls, four hotels and many, many corporate headquarters that used to be in downtown Johannesburg.

On Saturday we took the Gautrain subway from our hotel area to Park Train Station where we were to get on the hop-on hop-off bus. The subway is marvelous - clean, well maintained and well guarded. However, coming out of the subway and into the area surrounding the station was eye popping as it is in most train stations worldwide. People selling everything, people just standing around, others directing traffic and hoping for tips if they guide you to a parking place. It appears that you cross the street here as you do in Hanoi, just walk with purpose and hope people drive around you.  Really chaotic!

We got onto our bus and got seats on the upper deck but under cover since we had had enough sun for one trip. Things got off to a rocky start when a woman from Spain seated behind us tried to close our window. I opened it again and said this will stay open and she tried to give us lip about going to the back of the bus where it wasn't covered if we wanted air. I just ignored her and the window stayed open. (A third of the way into the trip she was fanning herself feverishly.)

About ten minutes after the bus tour began Cindy and I were looking at each other and saying, what have we gotten into?  The downtown area is, to be polite, blighted. There is litter everywhere, people sitting on the sidewalk selling old clothes and shoes, boarded-up buildings, uncontrolled traffic - and all the while we are hearing through our earbuds about how vibrant the downtown has become.  All of the major banks, insurance companies and investment houses have moved their  headquarters to Rosebank, and with the new buildings came the majority of the workers.  So places that looked like they might have been nice apartments or condos are now filled with squatters or boarded shut. It appears that the townships have moved a lot of folks to downtown Joburg, and this is a grey and lackluster downtown. At one point in the commentary we were told that this was a horrible place for a major city. It is too high (6000 ft), it has no water source so all of the water has to be pumped in from great distances, it has no port or seaside or river and thus it is completely out of touch except by train or air.

After about an hour of navigating around the downtown we headed out to see the mining area which is simply slag heaps and red dirt that blows into the downtown on windy days. Next came some neighborhood that they said was due to be developed. I think they meant overdue. All of a sudden, out of all this rubbish and filth came the big Gold Reef City casino development, with an amusement park, a huge casino, cinemas, and hotel. What a contrast.  We stopped at the Apartheid Museum, which is a lovely building, but the lines to get in were just too long for our mood. We also went past the WITS University Campus which is really beautiful and sits on a hill as a beacon of learning.

We finally got back to the starting point and missed our subway train by two minutes so we walked though the train station for about twenty minutes. The train station is a sprawling place with tons of trains coming in and out, most to the townships and a few long rail lines to faraway places like Cape Town.  It was now about four and it was obvious that many people had come in from the townships and spent the day shopping and were now heading home. There were huge bags of stuff on top of women's heads, there were porters pushing their carts filled with all manner of items, and there was even a refrigerator still in its packing crate.  I really wanted to wait to see how that was going to get onto the train, but it was time to head back to our hotel and we did not want to miss the Gautrain.

I think that if we had not been to Cape Town first I would not have all these negative impressions of the downtown area of Joburg, but when you see how a place like Cape Town can be run with no garbage on the streets, folks obeying traffic lights (in Cape Town they call traffic lights robots), and grand avenues that are sprinkled with parks and fountains, you just know that Joburg could do better.

That brings me to my last point: people. Until we arrived in Joburg our most intense and pleasant experience has been interacting with the people of South Africa.  They have been uniformly friendly, courteous, smiling and genuinely happy to have you in their city or lodge or hotel. The people of Cape Town especially are so proud of their city and they love it when you ask them questions or tell them how beautiful the city is. Everyone was willing to go out of their way to show you around or help you with a problem. When you ate in a restaurant no fewer than three people would come over to you and ask how your day is going.  Pride of place is what is missing in Joburg. You do not get many smiles, no hellos, and certainly no reliable information. There is a famous Sunday Market in Rosebank where everyone comes to get good food, local crafts, etc. I was on my morning walk and thought I would see them setting up in the park but there was nothing. I asked  a security guard where it was and he didn't know what I was talking about. Five queries later to shop owners and other guards, nothing.  Perhaps it is a language issue - they do not do as well with English here as they do in other parts of South Africa, despite it being one of the two languages they must learn - but I think it is more than language.  It is just a lack of caring about their jobs or neighborhood or city.  It is very sad, and a sad way to end a trip that has been filled with such color, sweet smiles and caring people. (I did finally find the market on the top floor of a parking garage, and it was fabulous!)

Conclusions to follow. Cindy and Wm

Our last day of the safari was in many ways the very best. We went on another Bush Walk but this time it was just the two of us and our guide Joe.  We headed to a watering hole and pulled the Land Rover into a grove of trees and headed out on foot. Within five minutes we stopped a giraffe, legs splayed as he drank from the river.  He spotted us right away, gave us a look-over and headed away at a gallop. We then came upon a huge bull elephant as he was drinking. He didn't seem to notice us for a while so we just stood there only twenty yards from this behemoth as he drank, sprayed himself and just seemed to be enjoying his morning bath. He finally acknowledged our presence and nonchalantly started to cross the river, dropping depth charges of dung as he walked. It was really a wonderful experience to be that close, and being on foot gave us a much better perspective as to his size.

For the next hour or so we wandered along the edge of the river and Joe talked to us about the birds, their nests, insects and their nests, and all the river animals that make their homes nearby. There were large animals including three hippos who were humping above the water line so we could finally see more than their ears, and three crocodiles basking in the sun. There were several fish eagles circling and dozens of birds of all sizes building nests, some communal nests weighing as much as two hundred pounds and housing fifty or sixty mating pairs. We spotted a dung beetle pushing his ball of dung across the sand looking for a spot to bury it and invite a mate to lay eggs in the ball. It was all just fascinating.

During out last hour of the walk we spotted a female warthog with her three kids across the river, and in the same field there were several impala, steinbok, kudu and water bucks. There was a very large water monitor, a lizard, lounging on a rock by the river totally undisturbed by our cameras clicks. On the ride back to the lodge we saw large white birds that we think were Snowy Ibis and smaller birds such as orioles and a European Roller, a multicolored bird about the size of a dove.  We were also treated to the repetitive chirping of a crested barbit - a yellow bird that resembles a woodpecker - punctuated by the beautiful call of an oriole over and over again.  Cindy even "videoed" it for the sound.  All in all, a perfect walk.

Lunch saw the arrival of a new lodge guest, a woman traveling by herself. All the tables are set for two and she looked rather lonely so we invited her to join us and she leaped at the opportunity. Her name is Peggy and she is originally from Liverpool but has been living in Geneva for fifty years (she just turned 75). She is a retired particle physicist and sharp as a tack and became our companion again for dinner and breakfast the next morning. I finally got to ask someone in the know what the 'god particle' is all about, and it turns out she worked at the Hadron Accelerator.  She did her level best and I think I understand half of it, but oh her enthusiasm for the topic was just lovely to observe.

And so it is over and it was a grand experience, one that I don't think I will do again, but one that I'm ever so happy to have had. I'm pleased that I didn't look like all the other men who had purchased cargo pants that could convert to shorts with matching khaki safari shirts that converted to short sleeves.  I'm happy that I didn't purchase bush shoes that matched the pants and a silly hat that flopped in the breeze when driving.  I'm sorry that I listened to the travel agent and my doctor and took malaria pills.  The incidence of malaria where we were is almost non-existent due to the drought. There is very little standing water for them to breed and I didn't get even a single mosquito bite.  I did get a spider bite but they don't carry malaria!

We are in Johannesburg for the next three nights before heading home via a transfer in Qatar. We'll have been on the road for thirty nine days and are growing weary of travel but looking forward to exploring this city.  Best to all, Cindy and Wm

Safari Day Two

I had set the alarm for 04:55 so as not to be awaken by a phone call at 05:00.  Cindy and I had laid out our clothes and in ten minutes we had brushed, flushed and dressed and were heading out of the door, careful to lock everything since we had been warned that baboons would come and clean out everything if we didn't. There was a rather tepid sense of cheer as we all had coffee or tea and muffins, and then it was time to mount up and be on with the morning drive.

It was a rather pleasant temperature due to the early morning and the overcast skies, so the ride was refreshing and gave us a chance to fully wake up. A night's sleep had done nothing to improve the driving skills of our guide and there were occasions when those of us at the back of the open Land Rover were almost knocked out of our seats, setting off a scramble to find the seat belts and securing them. We saw lots of giraffes, a few snake eagles, a dazzle of eight zebras, one pair of Egyptian Geese, a few steinbok, a resting hyena, several Cape Buffalo, and a Kamikaze bird, so named for his mating ritual of flying straight up in the air, doing a back flip and falling to the earth like a rocket before pulling out of the dive just before impact.  Not sure how impressed the female was, but it left me breathless.  We stopped for a coffee break and the hood of the Land Rover became a coffee wagon with biscuits, instant coffee and not quite hot tea.  The break however allowed us to stretch and it was ample to mark my territory behind a large ground termite mound.

After three hours of riding, spotting, and gaping at nature, we return to the lodge at 8:30 am for a full hot breakfast at the tables set under bamboo rods for shade and protection from rain. Since there was nothing scheduled again until lunch at 13:30, Cindy and I promptly retired to our tent for a two hour nap followed by a cold shower. I didn't really want a cold shower but that was the only temperature available. I thought it was due to the drought and the fact that they are so ecologically sensitive. Two showers later I found out that an electrical outage had blown the timer on the hot water heater and they fixed it immediately, much to my delight.

Lunch was a simple buffet with decent food and some fresh, if not ripe, fruit.  The food has been a disappointment due to the fact that we have had stellar experiences with food for the first two weeks in SA. This is a rather high end lodge and we had expected much better quality and variety, but we didn't come for the food and the experience has been spectacular.

As it turned out, that morning drive was to be the only one we would take during our time here. By the end of the afternoon drive we had seen all the animals we really came to see and a whole lot more that we didn't know about. We went on two more afternoon rides, but getting up at 5 am holds no excitement for either of us so we opted for two mid-morning walks in the bush with our guide Joe. These departed at 10 am - much more civil - and it gave us an opportunity to see the smaller aspects of the savanna. On the first walk there were eight guests and two guides, the latter armed and ready just in case.  The original plan was four guests but for some reason they combined our walk with the cheap lodge on the river, so we were eight.  Only four of us (the ones from our lodge) seemed to have any interest in the walk; the other two couples from the sister lodge seemed to be just checking a box. They were in their late twenties and asked not a single question of either of the guides.  At one point Joe picked up some impala pellets to show us how they digested their food.  He crushed a few in his hand and showed us the grasses and seeds. He then said that on weekends after a bit of booze he and his mates would have an impala pellet spitting contest, much as we do with watermelon seeds. He then took one in his mouth and spit it some distance. He picked up eight more and offered them to all of us to try and no one - except yours truly - accepted.  I popped one in my mouth and gave a good effort but didn't come close to his mark. I need practice shooting the shit!

Safari

By the time I was ten I had read all of the Tarzan books I could get my hands on. I would jump from my back steps onto the back of a huge lion and with one of my mother's table knives I would stab at the lion until I brought it down. I was always attacking lions or leopards or huge snakes, much to the anguish of my mother who finally banned me from using the knives to stab the dirt. I would pitch a tent using an old bed sheet and sleep outdoors imagining that the night noises were from cheetahs or hyenas or other wild African animals. And now, sixty years later, here I am sleeping in a tent and listening to the real sounds of these real animals.

My tent is a little more stylish that those of my youth. It is air conditioned, has running water, and the sheets are for slipping between at night as opposed to providing a bit of protection from the wilds of Connecticut. We arrived here at our safari lodge after a very early start to a long morning of travel, filled with delays.  When we got off the plane it was 103 degrees and I quickly shed my sport coat and looked around for our greeter who finally found us and herded us to the van. The ride to the lodge took about an hour - and very close to the road, which is in the Kruger National Park - we spotted giraffes, springboks, impalas (the animal not the car), Cape buffalo, warthogs - and in the distance a rather large elephant, making that the best ride ever from airport to hotel!

We arrived at about three, giving us an hour to unpack and get dressed for the first safari at four. We arrived at the reception area at the appointed time and were quickly packed into our Land Rover which is an amazing vehicle. It holds up to nine guests in a tiered seating arrangement allowing everyone wonderful views since it has no sides or top to interfere with the sights. Our guide, Joe, introduced himself and our tracker, Shaddy, who sits on a seat attached to the left front bumper. We were told the rules, which were common sense and minimal, and then we were off. In some respects it was like an amusement ride and Cindy and I, who were on the upper seats, had to hold on for dear life as Joe pushed the Land Rover though brush, into and out of dry riverbeds, over steep hills, all at speeds approaching the Concorde at takeoff.  

During our three-plus hours we must have seen fifteen different types of animal species, most of them viewed up close and personal. The list would bore you but it was truly amazing to actually be here in Africa and on a real safari. At sunset we pulled off the dirt track and the crew quickly arranged a bar on the hood of the vehicle and were offering cocktails, wine, beer and soft drinks along with some snacks of biltong (kudu jerky - a type of antelope), and mixed nuts.  Here we are in the middle of nowhere, it is getting dark, and we are stopped for Sundowners.  We arrived back at the lodge after dark and had to wait to be shown to our tents since we are not allowed to walk alone at night due to the fact that there are no fences or gates and all the animals have access to the grounds.  We had just enough time to clean up a bit before being brought back to the bar for drinks with our fellow travelers as well as Joe and Shaddy.  At about eight, we were escorted to a large sandpit with a huge fire going in the center and tables surrounding the fire pit. The tables were set with linen tablecloths and napkins, glasses for wine and water, and rather a lot of heavy silverware; not your typical BBQ. We were served a wonderful vegetable soup and then invited to make our way to the buffet where there were salads and starches, breads and rolls, and all manner of grilled beasts. We had a lovely time, ate and drank well and were nearing exhaustion.

As we were walked back to our tent at about ten, the last thing we were told was to expect a wake up call at five am and departure for the morning safari would be at 5:30am. Those were not the words I wanted to hear at that moment!    Best to all, Cindy and Wm

South Africa

This is a really complex country. It is still a tale of the haves and have nots. The contrast from the wine farms in Stellenbosch to the townships in Cape Town is stark and sad. In many ways the legacy of Apartheid lingers like a festering cancer and it seems to be spreading. The government of this country is so corrupt and self-centered, resulting in a complete breakdown in many of the social systems that were supposed to provide for those still struggling with under-education and unemployment. 

Drugs seem to be a big problem here - especially meth - everyone tells us not to be on the streets after dark, and this is in the downtown core. The other night we walked across the street to a little Italian place that has great food and a wonderful vibe. As we were approaching the entrance a guy came up to us demanding money for him and his sister since they were hungry.  He was really aggressive and loud; he didn't touch us or anything but he was in our face and it wasn't pleasant. So our options are taxis, even for short trips, or the hotel restaurants at night which is a shame since this is such a beautiful city.  On my morning walk I go past the Salvation Army Shelter and the side street is always littered with hypo needles indicating to me that there is an issue with other drugs. Luckily our hotel has a shuttle that takes us back and forth to the waterfront shops and restaurants. During the day it is a most pleasant walk; at night absolutely not advised.

On a more pleasant note, I have to comment yet again on how wonderful the people are in all of our interactions. If you go someplace twice, you are family and welcomed as such. Yesterday we did some shopping and instead of change they give you a little toy in a packet.  We stopped for coffee and were looking at these packets to see what they were when our waitress came over and said "oh, those are Stikeez." She said they were little things that you stick to the walls or refrigerator and that her daughter loved them. Naturally, we handed her two of them and you would have thought we were dispensing diamonds. The smiles and thank yous and the touching - they do a lot of touching - were just a delight.

We went to the Cape Town Opera last night for a performance of Carmen. It was billed as a Flamenco Performance, but we didn't see that much dancing.  However the singing and acting were just superb. It was a majority black cast as you might expect in South Africa and we enjoyed all three hours of the opera. One thing I don't understand is how you build an opera house without a middle aisle. We were in the cheap nosebleed section, the only tickets we could get at the last minute, and there were 53 seats per row, which means that someone with a middle seat coming after those of us on the aisle - and there were a lot of those since there were two intermissions - has to get by 25 or so people. Aside from the inconvenience, what happens in a fire or earthquake when all these folks have to get out via two small exit ways?  Aside from that, it is a great hall and from our vantage point high up in the lobby of the second balcony, we could watch everyone lining up for drinks before and at the two intervals. I've never seen so much sparkling wine being tossed back, truly amazing and a tribute to this marvelous people.

Our plan had been to grab a taxi right after the performance and head to a highly recommended Tapa bar, which we thought would be appropriate after Carmen.  We got out there a bit after nine since this performance started at six, but there were no taxis in sight. In fact there were no cars in sight.  The streets and sidewalks were completely deserted, well lighted, but still spookily empty with not a pedestrian or vehicle in sight.  We walked briskly the four blocks back to our hotel and decided it was too late to go to the tapa bar which closed at 10:30. We had a post opera snack at the hotel (I love saying post opera) and asked why the streets were deserted and were told that the clubs don't open until 11 pm so everyone is at home getting ready.  What a city.

Today is the 30th of October and two days ago the big mall at the waterfront was completely decorated for Christmas!  When I say completely, I mean completely: trees, hanging decorations everywhere, shop windows and yes, muzak with the old standards.  Now Christmas is my least favorite holiday, always has been, but the onslaught of this forced merriment in October is just maddening. 

We leave at the crack of dawn tomorrow for our safari. The flight is 3.5 hours and lands in a little Air Force Base somewhere near our campgrounds.  The weather here has been delightful with sun and sea breezes but it will all change tomorrow. The forecast is for 100-degree weather with no breeze at all.  Dreading the heat and bugs.  Started my malaria pills last night and it upset my system something fierce, no sleep and stomach and headaches. Hope that was just because it was new to the system but we'll see. Our camp is in the wilderness and I'm hoping there is no TV, Internet or even radio. I'm sick of listening to and reading about the elections.  Goodbye beautiful Cape Town and hello bush!

Back to Cape Town

We came back to Cape Town a few days ago after a truly remarkable time in Stellenbosch. We were sad to leave and even tried to extend for two more days, but they were sold out and there was no room at the inn.  I must say however that living here at the Westin is not a hardship. Our room has a view of the old seaport with Robben Island* in the background, and every morning it is a pleasure to see what is going on outside our windows.  

* the prison where Nelson Mandela and other notables were held for decades

Yesterday we hired a driver and car and drove all over the place. From here to the Cape of Good Hope via the old Good Hope Road, which winds and zigzags over the mountain to get to the shore. We stopped first to see the penguins and I thought at one point that Cindy was going to throw a haymaker at a couple of Chinese women who were trying to push her out of the way to get shots of the penguins.  My money was on Cindy, but she simply glared at them and said in perfect English, I was here first so move on. We related this story to our driver, a native Cape Townian who does lots of tours and he just went on and on about how the Chinese are the rudest, cheapest, nastiest travelers in the world.  He simply won't deal with them any more since it is always so unpleasant. The drive to the marker for the Cape of Good Hope takes you through a lovely state park filled with glorious flowers which are all in bloom. We thought we were looking at sheep grazing but it turned out to be huge clumps of white flowers on stalks that were about two feet tall. The Protea, the national flower, was in full bloom everywhere you looked and in such a variety of colors as to take your breath away.  There were baboons, which we didn't see, ostriches, which we did see, and lots of great looking birds.

The line to take a picture at the Cape marker was rather long due to the fact that there was a group of Chinese who had to take twenty pictures each of the marker - they were lined up and one would pose while her friends took photos, and then another would pose while his friends took photos, and oh dear it was never going to stop. We ended up just taking a picture of the marker between Chinese "models" - there went our Christmas card with the Cape of Good Hope in the background!  The ocean there is just vast and blue and I could just picture my dad sailing around the Cape on his small destroyer escort in WWII. The first time I ever heard about Cape Town was when my dad would 'invite' my sister and me to sit with him on Sundays to watch Victory at Sea. One episode - he was in all of them or so we thought - was about Cape Town and he told us how when they were there for re-provisioning stops before the trip back to Recife, he had his first fresh pineapple. Strangely enough, one night in the Club Lounge Cindy and I were talking to a couple and when I asked what he did, he said he grew pineapples in Durban and his family had been growing pineapples for eight generations and they supplied lots of fruit to the US Navy during the war. That was really cool!

Last night we dined at a restaurant that had a two man band, one on Marimba and the other on piano. It was great fun to listen to the African music but all too soon they switched to old standards.  The food there - and everywhere in South Africa - has been uniformly superior.  Everything is fresh and tasty and prepared extremely well. We have eaten several species of African animals - Springbok, Impala and Ostrich - but hope to see more on the hoof when we get to the safari on Monday.  More later, check Facebook for photos.  Wm

Stellenbosch

Sunday, Stellenbosch South Africa

We are at peace!  We have not felt this tranquil, energized or happy as we have for the past three days here in the middle of the wine country of South Africa.  We booked into a wine farm, what they call wineries here, for four days to break up our time in Cape Town. Our hotel is on the Spier Wine Farm and has 135 rooms on a 1200 acre estate that is one of the most picturesque places we have ever seen. It, like Cape Town 40 Km to the west, is surrounded by tall craggy mountains on three sides, with vineyards climbing the mountains like ivy on a tree. Out room is just a simple but elegant expression of the subdued luxury that exudes from every pore of this facility.  It has a gas fireplace (we haven't needed it) - and for that matter we haven't needed the AC either because we have fabulous cross-ventilation.

This farm began in 1692 and has been in continuous operation since then, with the same family owning it for the past hundred or so years. It is a Green facility and as such the focus is on sustainability which normally doesn't float my boat, but here you can see what can really happens if everyone does what should be done. All of the water used in the hotel is completely recycled, processed and used to irrigate all the gardens and grounds. All the food waste is processed to provide food for the goats, chickens, boars, horses, and cows as well as composting for the gardens. All the lighting fixtures - artsy overheads - are made from old plastic milk containers. I mention all of this just to point out the level of detail that goes into the thinking behind this hotel. 

The grounds are filled with native flowers, plants and trees, most of which are flowering now since it is late spring. There is a river that flows through the center of the estate and it ranges from raging near the hills to mellow and meandering as the terrain levels out and widens. Cindy has been beside herself with joy since she has finally been able to run outside, having been condemned to the torture chambers in the hotels in Doha and Cape Town. She comes home from long runs with a grin on her face which reflects her thrill at running through fields filled with wild flowers and tall fragrant trees. Yesterday we had our first rain in the morning but it didn't stop her from running or me from a long walk; in fact it was so refreshing that we hoped it would last all day, but by noon it was bright and sunny allowing us to walk the grounds and take a lot of photos.

The food and wine here are fantastic. The two major restaurants are farm to table, using ingredients from the estate to create lots of interesting combinations of creative and sustainable dishes.  The wines are very interesting and varied, with lots of variety. The whites are generally too alcoholic for my taste with most of them ranging from 13 to 14.5 percent. They tell me that the weather here has been getting hotter over the past decade and thus the wines have been getting more alcoholic.  They do have a lovely Sav Blanc that is about 12.5 and thus at the top of my range and the new 2016 is very drinkable.  What is fantastic are the sparkling wines, which are only about 12%. One is a very marvelous Champagne-like blend and the other a pink sparkler that is about 11.5% and offers a refreshing change of pace. The prices here are marvelous, even though they have us over a wine barrel in that you can't go anywhere else. Most of the wines are about $2.00 per generous glass and the sparklers are only about $2.25. The per bottle prices are equally amazing with a bottle of of the Sav Blanc costing only $5 per bottle!! Needless to say, we have not gone too long being thirsty.

Today we inquired as to how we might get into Stellenbosch to walk around the town. At first the tour director told us it would be 200 Rand, about $15 dollars, to take a car the 12 km to town. That sounded like a rip-off to us so we consulted Uber and got there and back for less than half, including a tip. The drivers were just delightful and like everyone else we have met, proud of their country and their city. Stellenbosch is lovely and larger than we thought with lots of old colonial Dutch buildings and a very grand University, the oldest in South Africa.  It is a center for the wine industry and as such money has been spent to make it very attractive and livable. We wandered for a few hours and stopped for a light lunch and a glass of a different type of sparkling wine. We ended with an espresso at another venue and were surprised and delighted that the coffee was served with homemade truffles, which were rich and tasty. The coffee in South Africa is fantastic, as good as what we would expect in Italy, and every place we have been seems to know how to make the very best espresso and other espresso drinks. Again the prices here are remarkable, due in part to the dollar being so strong, and espressos cost only a tad more than a dollar. 

Cape Town

Our flight from Doha to Johannesburg was on time and comfortable.  Joburg airport is congested and a tad disorganized, forcing everyone to claim luggage and go through immigration and security and then go through security yet again after transferring to the domestic terminal. We had plenty of time but it felt rather fragmented after the first part of the travel. Our flight to Cape Town was about two hours and the two flight attendants in our cabin were simply wonderful. Both were so proud of their country and especially the wines, which flowed liberally since they wanted everyone to have a wine tasting experience.  Lots of fun and we were soon in Cape Town.  It was dark when we arrived and the drive from the airport didn't give us much to go on in terms of where we were and where we were going.

In the morning as we opened the windows in our room at the Westin, we were - as the Aussies say - gobsmacked.  On one side was the lovely harbor and on the other was Table Mountain with clouds flowing over the mountain like water over Victoria Falls. I was out of the building in a flash and walking around the harbor craning my neck to take in all of the views, which were spectacular. We took the hop-on/hop-off bus and got a great overview of the city, which is as complex as it is beautiful. We got to the top of Table Mountain where you can climb up the mountain or take the cable car, however it was very windy and the mountain was completely covered with clouds so they had closed the cable car. It didn't matter to us since the views from the base of the mountain were glorious. The city sits in a bowl with mountains on three sides and it seems to flow right into the South Atlantic.  Imagine our surprise though when we looked at a map and realized that our view of the Atlantic was to the north!  Cape Town sits on a peninsula that juts west into the ocean and the city actually faces north; we thought we were looking toward Antarctica. 

Our hotel offers spectacular views from the club lounge, which also serves as their top restaurant at night. There is always something new to see since the city is always changing, and the cloud cover is particularly amazing the way it swirls over the mountain and around the town and then gives way to absolutely clear skies.  The harbor traffic is fun to watch and the sunsets are energizing.

We're on our way to a "wine farm" aka vineyard in Stellenbosch for a few days - more soon.

Doha

Doha, Qatar

If you are taking a long haul flight out of Madrid, the airport is one of the most difficult to navigate that I've ever seen. The new terminal 4 (new to me, at any rate) requires you to check in in the North section and depart from the South, which is connected by a train three levels down.  From the time you clear immigration and passport control, you still have an 18-minute journey ahead of you on escalators and trains.  It is very inconvenient.  We had used all of our points to fly business class on Qatar from Madrid to Doha and continuing on to South Africa and then finally back to Dulles next month. Our plane for this flight was a relatively new Boeing 787 and the seating was 1-2-1 so Cindy and I opted for two window seats, one in front of the other. The service was very nice but certainly not on the same level of excellence as Singapore or Emirates or Etihad. They had great wines but served them all at the same temperature, warm, which was okay for the reds but horrible for the Champagnes and whites. Promises of a quick chill never panned out so we reverted to using ice in the glass, which is a real shame with such wonderful wines.

Upon arrival in Qatar at 6 pm we had the privilege of paying $35 each for a visa, and then took a taxi to our hotel, the Marriott Marquis. This is a classy hotel with great rooms and a lovely lounge for breakfast, snacks and canapés, and cocktails. We arrived in time for the last half hour of cocktails and had a drink and 'tapa' in a very, very crowded room.  We went down to look at the restaurants and decided on the Italian one called Cucina for a small meal since we had eaten well on the plane. It was a good thing we had, since the prices nearly knocked us off our chairs. I suppose we had been lulled into a false sense of modest prices during our ten days in Spain but this was a real shocker.  A glass of very average white wine cost $15, instead of the $2.25 in Spain. My small but tasty bowl of pasta aioli was $13 and Cindy's small eggplant dish was $10.  Needless to say, we were not happy that we had this to look forward to for four days!

The next morning we woke up late and when we opened the curtains we were amazed at how much Doha had grown since our last visit in 2009. There are high rise buildings everywhere and they are all interesting from an architectural point of view. However, it is still Qatar and it is grey, dusty and hot. The city seems to be in a constant state of imminent sandstorm; it just depends on the strength and direction of the wind. It is a country where you can only drink in hotels, not in any of the scores of malls with their hundreds of restaurants. It is ruled by one family and thus those members of the royal family can do what they wish whenever they wish to do it with no fear of penalty.  For instance, it appears that the royal brats like big motorcycles and on the weekends, Thursday through Sunday, they race them on the main streets of Doha from dusk 'til dawn.  We are on the 36th floor and could hear them all Thursday night. When I asked about this I was told that all of the hotels have complained about the noise, not to mention the danger, but nothing is done about it.  When the main component of the tourist industry complains about the same thing and nothing is done, it is because the authorities do not want to do anything about it!

We cannot enjoy our usual long walks here, it's too hot, dusty and dirty. Instead we go to the torture room and use the inquisition machines, me a treadmill and Cindy on the elliptical. After that we clean up for breakfast, having made the mistake of going into the club in shorts the first morning. While it appears men can wear shorts, women cannot since it offends the local Muslim men. We forgot how much we really don't like this area of the world but thought we were going to be meeting friends here and when that didn't work out, we already had plans that could not be changed. 

We have become Mall Rats in that we take several walks each day and we have seen some very interesting things in the Mall. On Thursday afternoon, the start of the Qatar weekend, the mall was filled with BLIPs (Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indian, Philippine) workers who were standing in long lines at all the ATM machines to take out the money that had been deposited in their accounts by their employers.  They then headed to the large Carrefour Supermarket for their food needs.  The market is similar to the one I shopped in while living in Bahrain and I just had to take a look. I can assure you that the carrots from Australia are still the best looking in the whole world.

 At best this is a stop for us to recharge, at worst it is a place that reminds me never to come again.  We have another crack of dawn start on Sunday, having to leave the hotel at six in the morning for our 8:20 flight to Johannesburg and then connecting to Cape Town and arriving at 8 pm.  It will be a long day, but this is the trip we really planned and it will be lovely I'm sure. 

Madrid Addendum

A gentle reader reminds me that perhaps there is too much emphasis on food and wine and not enough space dedicated to culture, museums and architecture. Therefore, let me write just a little bit about some wonderful museums we discovered in Madrid and Malaga.

Both Madrid and Malaga have magnificent Museums of Jamon, in fact Madrid has four of them. These are tributes to the national delicacy of Spain, ham, not like the kind your mom might have served at Easter, but tasty, salty bits of the leg of a pig fed on acorns or corn. The hams hang like Spanish Moss on an old southern oak, drying in the open air of the museum with little cups stuck in the fleshy part of the leg to catch the fat as it drips and dries.

In Malaga, there is a quaint little museum completely devoted to the making and storing of Malaga Sweet Wine. While I'm not a fan of this, I do adore museums so we visited it during a long walk. Not far from this museum is one that is dedicated to the production of Gin, a drink quite favored in Spain. 

Seriously, we did visit some real museums, like the Temple of Debod in Madrid. This was an Egyptian temple that was built in 800 BC and stood in Aswan until they decided to flood the place. It was dismantled and shipped to Spain to honor the Spanish historian who did all the initial work on translating the text that is all over the Temple. They only allow 15 people inside at  a time in order to limit the CO2 because it is so small.  We also took the "Hop-on Hop-off" bus to all the famous places in Madrid:  the royal palace, the gardens, the cathedral, and the various plazas of Espana, Toledo and Sol. 

But museums and churches and galleries are the things you do when the weather is horrible, not when the sun is shining, the sky is blue, and the gardens filled with color, as they were during our time in Spain. We did go to the botanical gardens of Malaga and enjoyed them, but there were other gardens that were right downtown and free, so why bother?!

Malaga

Well I must have had some fun in Malaga since I didn't write a single word during our six days there. We had perfect weather for lots of walking and exploring. Our hotel, The Room Mate Valeria was a lovely spot right on the harbor and we upgraded to a larger room with a balcony overlooking the port. After our horrible room in Madrid this was a blessing, with a tiled bathroom with large towels and one of those rain showers.  The beds were very comfortable and the lighting decent. They had really fast wi-fi all over the hotel and some fifty feet surrounding it so we even had internet access in the little park, not that we needed it. The very best part of the hotel was the staff, all quite young and all professionally trained - and the smiles, well they were genuine and sincere. Breakfast was included in our upgraded price and much to our surprise, it was available until noon!  Normally we don't eat breakfast at hotels since you have to be there by 10 or 10:30 and that if far too early for us, so this was a real surprise.

We got into a routine quite naturally. I would walk the harbor for an hour each morning while Cindy ran though a park and then met me somewhere along the harbor. It is a true working harbor and during our six days there were three military ships, seven cruise ships of various sizes and two or three large ferries that went to Tunis and Morocco. The cruise ships deposited their guests for about twelve hours and they would swarm the old town. There were three 'budget' cruises - you could tell since the ships had no balconies which meant they were very old. The first day was German, the second French and the third Brits.  The Brits were the ones with third degree sunburns who sat at bars drinking beer and talking in their outdoor voices.

We had chosen Malaga because we knew it from previous visits and loved it, and our friends from San Francisco wanted to enjoy Spain with us and they agreed that Malaga was a great idea.  After our morning exercise we would meet them for breakfast and plan our day, which was always the same plan.  Walk in one direction or the other for two hours, stop for a drink and a tapa, walk another half hour and stop for a drink and a tapa, and repeat until about four when we would all head back for naps.  A few times we would meet at 7:30 on the rooftop bar to watch the sun set and then we would take off again to find an area to explore for either tapas or a sit-down dinner, which we only did twice.  It was far more fun having lots of tapas so as to sample all that Malaga has to offer.  We did go to one of our favorite restaurants from our previous two visits to Malaga, Meson Mariano, famous for its roasted goat. Señor Mariano is always there and always the life of the party, bringing us little treats to try and making sure everyone is having fun. The goat was great as were all the little and not so little sides.  It is still possible to buy bottles of excellent wine for under $12 and glasses of wine are usually about $2.25. We would take the long way home since the weather was always great and stop at one of two spots next to the hotel for a Spanish brandy before turning in at 1 or 2 am.  I must say that six days of that were plenty; too much fun can damage the health and liver.

Our friends departed for Madrid a day before we did so Cindy and I promised ourselves a very early evening, a promise that was broken.  We really had the best intentions in the world, a few tapas and then home, but the lure of lamb overcame us and we had a great dinner of roasted leg of lamb, the whole thing, and a marvelous salad of fresh greens and dried fruits and dates. We ordered one salad and one lamb, which normally would be what one person would order and we could barely finish either dish. Fortunately our train to Madrid was not until 2 pm so we were able to sleep late and still keep our morning exercise routine.  The trip back was in First Class which meant in addition to great seats they served a meal, a real Spanish meal with apprentices first then appetizer, main, dessert, coffee and brandy. Wine both still and sparkling was available throughout the luncheon and before we knew it we were in Madrid.

On our last night before heading to Qatar we met our friends again, who had been joined by another couple we'd met on a cruise a year ago so there were six of us. We had told them where to meet us, El Lacon, a favorite tapa spot for us, and they enjoyed it as much as we had hoped they would. It had to be an early night for us since we had to leave the hotel at 7:30 am   which was not the most fun thing to do, but Cindy was a trooper and we were in a taxi in a driving rain storm heading for the next leg of our adventure.

PS. If you go to Malaga, skip the On Off Bus. It is quite horrible. The Madrid bus was great in that it had lots of information on what we were seeing and on Madrid in general and it only cost 10 Euros (for seniors; otherwise 13 Euros).  The Malaga bus was 20 Euros and it offered us almost no information on the sights or on the city of Malaga. It stopped at such exciting places as the main bus terminal and the railway station. At one point they told us we would be seeing the magnificent bull ring of Malaga; however there was a line of trees in the way that prevented anyone from seeing anything.  For the 80 Euros it cost the 4 of us we should have hired a tour guide and taxi.

Madrid

Madrid, Tuesday October 4th, 14.30

Cindy and I are seated on the fast train to Malaga which departs in five minutes.  It is a very comfortable train and almost completely filled.  Who goes to Malaga on a Tuesday afternoon?

Our trip to the train station was quick and easy but earlier than we had anticipated.  Our hotel would not give us a late checkout, something I thought was automatic with my status with Best Western. (Yes, Best Western has a loyalty card just like the real hotels.)  When I asked, the clerk just shrugged and said they were full and needed everyone out of the rooms by noon. When I asked it was already 11:15 so we had to hustle to get cleaned up, packed and out in 45 minutes. Not the most pleasant way to leave Madrid. It was made a bit easier since our room was so small we hadn't really had room to unpack.

Our two days here have been fun, mostly filled with touristy things and lots of walking. We arrived at noon on Sunday having flown from Dulles to Brussels to Madrid without incident.  The streets and plazas of downtown Madrid were filled with people doing their Sunday thing, walks and long lunches.  We wandered around for a few hours to get over jet lag and work up an appetite and found a nice little spot for some wine and pulpo de Gallegos, steamed octopus in the style of Galicia which is sliced and dusted in paprika. It was just what we needed to get us back to the hotel in time for a much needed siesta. 

We slept soundly and longer that we thought, and by the time we got up it was getting dark and time to hit the streets again. Once again we wandered for a few hours and then stopped for a sherry and tapa at a really cool bar.  Tons of wood and lots of people, most of whom were locals. It was so nice we stayed for a glass of wine and another tapa and and then decided to make it an early evening and headed back towards the hotel. We got really close, but discovered we were still hungry so stopped at a bar a block from the hotel for a quick wine and tapa. There was another couple at the bar - from Australia - and we said hello.  Two hours later after nonstop talking and laughter we said goodbye. Goodness what a night!

We slept well and long and were up and out at the crack of 9:30. After our exercise we stopped for coffee and then back to clean up for the day.  We took a hop-on hop-off bus for a two hour ride around Madrid. The weather was perfect and it was fun to see the sights. We got off near the grand Park Retiro and walked another hour or so in search of a place to eat. It took us another hour to find a spot and after a very light lunch we hopped back on the bus to head home for our well-deserved siesta. 

We headed back to the first night's tapa place for a sherry. Only the Spanish really know and appreciate sherry and they always serve the Fino ice cold. We took a walk after that and then returned for some serious tapas, but this time we took a table and ordered a bottle of wine, which cost the equivalent of twelve dollars! We had the fried eggplant served with two sauces, honey and brava which is a spicy tomato based sauce. Then we had grilled mushrooms with paté. It was a hot dish and the waiter took the paté and placed it on top of the mushrooms and then cut it all up so that it looked like hash but tasted divine. We finished with grilled squid served with garlic aioli.  These were all small dishes but just enough for us.  We ended the evening at the local bar and had just one drink since our Aussie friends had departed Madrid. The owner, Sebastian, remembered us and we had a little talk and he told us we had to try a special cheese from Malaga called Payollo. We'll look for it.