November, 2018 - Travels with Verne and Roy

Big 5 Nambiti Game Reserve, 18-21 November 2018

Going to “the bush” – meaning a game reserve or something similar – is a popular pastime for South Africans. How did Roy and I get so lucky as to crack the nod to Idwala Private Lodge in the Big 5 Nambiti Game Reserve?

Well, our friends Brigid and Clive have been coming here for more than ten years. They own a fractional share of the lodge, which they generally use to host family and close friends.

This time, when one of the five villas became available for the last few nights of their stay, they invited us to join them there.

Verne and Roy on Idwala Lodge’s viewing platform

Cape Road Trip: Part Four – The Garden Route, 31 October to 3 November 2018

Extreme hosting in Hermanus; kind cosseting in Knysna; hanging out in Uitenhage, Morgans Bay and Kokstad

From Cape Town it was a quick 120km drive to the lovely coastal town of Hermanus, famous for whale-spotting and for being the home of old friends Paddy and Zoe Probert.

Cape Trip Part Three: Cape Town and Franschhoek, 29-31 October 2018

Ghosts of Cape Town past and present; catching up with friends; side trip to Franschhoek

Within a couple of hours of our arrival in Cape Town from the scorching Karoo semi-desert, the wind came up, the weather turned cold and a foggy blanket covered Table Mountain. On cue, I developed a snotty head-cold.

To cheer things up, here are some memories of past trips to Cape Town, some even featuring sunshine.

Ghosts of Cape Town past

The classic view of Table Mountain from Bloubergstrand – Roy, 1992

Cape Road Trip Part Two: Prince Albert, 26-27 October 2018

It’s a 335km drive from Graaff-Reinet to Prince Albert in the Central Karoo, where we were to stay for two nights. Apart from it being famously karaktervol (full of character), the main attraction for us was my old school friend Linda and her husband André, who 14 years ago retired to a smallholding on the edge of Prince Albert.

“Do stop for lunch or tea at Sophie’s Choice in Willowmore,” Linda texted me, so we did. Below is Sophia with Roy, in the gorgeously eclectic antiques store and restaurant she’s been running for 13 years.