Finally, I’ve done my first Umhlanga parkrun – those free, timed 5K runs that are held every Saturday morning in hundreds of cities all over the world. The Umhlanga one starts from the grassy area just opposite the pier, no more than 500 metres from the front door of our flat in The Oysters. So, why has it taken me so long to get around to doing it?
It doesn’t look as if we’ll make it up to Mozambique this time round, but we did go for lunch at Mo-Zam-Bik in Florida Road with my mother and BFF Julie Simpson. One of a chain of pleasant-but-not-great “family restaurants”, it’s down the same alleyway where the great Gaby’s Portuguese restaurant used to be.
Now I’ve had my first Durban bunny chow, I know I’m back home. Don’t be alarmed, any bunny-huggers out there – this is not about eating rabbit, though I confess I have nothing against that either.
There’s nothing that says “Durban” more conclusively than a bunny chow, also known simply as a bunny. Indeed, Rocky Bunny café (27 Lighthouse Mall), just up the road from us in Umhlanga Rocks, would have us believe that the bunny is becoming South Africa’s most popular meal. (Must be true – it’s printed on their quarter-bunny take-away box.)
Saint-Malo, in the province of Bretagne, is a wonderful destination to visit and revisit – apart from being the home of our daughter Wendy. This time, we were there to drop off our Renault Twingo for the winter and spend the first part of Wendy’s birthday with her.
It would be a mistake to think that Le Mans is all about the 24-hour race and nothing more. For one, it has more than a kilometre’s worth of 2,000-year-old Roman wall that’s still largely intact, and a gorgeous old city area full of artists and galleries. We spent just the one night here, en route to Saint Malo in Bretagne. .
Reluctant to leave Burgundy without doing at least one wine-tasting, we took a drive to Chablis – an easy 15km from Auxerre, and of course the home of the appellation Chablis. You drive past vineyards and through several wine villages to get there, and it’s all very picturesque.
Staunchly resisting the Garmin’s attempts to keep us on the straight and wide, i.e. the A6, for the hour and three-quarter trip from Chalon-sur-Saône to Auxerre, we instead chose a route slightly less travelled, the D906 via Chagny.
This is the heart of Burgundy, passing through gorgeous little villages, and farmhouses covered in autumnal vines and creepers. But you’ll have to take my word for it – Roy was on a mission to pass lorries, and was in no mood to stop the car, especially if it meant having to pass them again.
In all these riverside towns we’re visiting, taking a boat tour on the river is one of the things to do. Though I sort of feel I’d like to, I know there’s little chance – “What on earth for, when we’re coming back next summer in our own boat?”, my husband would respond to such a suggestion. (Pick your battles, I say.)
Not having time to research your destination in advance can sometimes be a good thing. Yes, you miss out on the smugly virtuous feeling of having done your homework – but instead, you could have the unexpected fun of landing up in the middle of something as delightful as the old city of Dijon.
Once he’s got going, my husband does not like to stop unnecessarily (if at all) en route – but he must perforce stop for fuel. When the aire (layby) he was aiming for turned out to be more about hiking and picnicking than petrol, we clicked on “Places of Interest” and then “Fuel” on the Garmin, which took us on an enjoyable sortie along narrow country lanes to a single-pump affair where a smart lady in lavender suit with matching jewellery pumped gas for us.
