Field Trip in the Cederberg

When we cancelled the Cederberg field trip in February because of extreme heat, I was convinced that it would snow over the weekend of the rescheduled trip - what a pessimist!

The weather report said we'd have fine days but it was hard to believe as we set off on Friday afternoon and drove the first 150 km's in torrential rain. When we stopped at Kardoesie on top of the Piekenier's pass we were greeted with a cloudburst that kept us huddled in coats, shivering inside the farmstall.

Onward when the rain stopped, to Clanwilliam and an hour at the Living Landscape Project that our archaeology guide, John Parkington, began some years ago and where our students spent a weekend in 2003, 2006 and 2008.

This time though, we were not staying here. Instead we headed higher up into the mountains, over the Pakhuis pass, to Traveller's Rest, a large farm owned by the Strauss family, offering accommodation and food, with hikes to the many San rock art sites that are found here. We arrived, got the bed selection organized and headed over to the Khoisan Kitchen for our first meal, a huge three course dinner made by our generous host, Haffie Strauss.

After supper, John Parkington gave us a slide show of what we could expect to see on our hike in the morning, after which it was off to our cottages.

Saturday was a perfect day, sunny and warm - how could I have doubted those forecasters! After breakfast, we walked the Sevilla trail with John. I'm not going to describe it here - it would take too long - just take a look at the photos in the link below. After lunch, we walked to Salmanslaagte, another rock art site alongside a babbling river with cliffs on either side. Six of our party went on horseback - Traveller's Rest offers horse trails too. Back to the Khoisan Kitchen in the setting sun for another wonderful meal and pleasant end to the day.

Sunday morning John walked all but 9 of us to the Hollow Rock Shelter, set on top of a ridge with quite a demanding ascent. From the top we waved at the riders down below on their trail. We didn't meet up with them this time.

John explained how the Hollow Rock Shelter had been found and excavated. It was not a site for paintings, but a very interesting collection of stone tools. See this U-tube video if you want to find out more about the tools man used 70,000 odd years ago.

We had a slight panic on return when the horse riders were not back by 11:45 and we were due for lunch at noon. Tim waited for them while Sipho took the first bunch to Bushmanskloof  a Relais & Châteaux lodge that adjoins Traveller's Rest and has an extensive collection of rock art.

I guess the photos really say it all, so this is enough from me for now. Thanks to all who made this such a great excursion, especially the Bings!

Witsand and Hermanus

My brother, Thane, farms outside the seaside village of Witsand, at the mouth of the Breede River. He and his wife, Elize, have turned a ramshackle purchase of a few years ago into a fully working sheep farm called Melkhoutkraal (Milkwood 'enclosure'). I love a lot of things about my brother, but mostly I am so proud of the wind generator and solar panels he installed to feed 36 batteries and provide all the power they need. Well, not quite. All except a gas cooker and the HWC, but the latter will change soon. And the water collection tanks he uses to be independent of council supplies.. The really pleasing thing is they don't get the utitlity bills that the people in the cities dread to find in their mailboxes. Such freedom! I wish my parents were still about to see his handiwork. Here he is.

Last Friday afternoon, Tim and I drove to Witsand, three hours away. We checked into the Breede River Lodge and were soon visited by Thane's daughters, Natalie and Liza. Natalie was on her way to spend the weekend with her boyfriend. Fortunately Liza was on hand to fetch Thane and Elize because the clutch of his 'bakkie' (pick-up truck) had collapsed and we wouldn't have been able to have supper together if it hadn't been for Liza and her boyfriend, Jannie. They set off in a tiny little bakkie to rescue my stranded brother. On their way back to Witsand, they had a puncture! Repair had to be done in the dark by the light of Liza's cell phone. That was the second bad thing to happen to Thane that day. Fortunately, meeting up with Tim and me was not the third. We had a fabulous meal with non stop chatting and lots of education about the fishing industry in South Africa, as well as wind turbines, sustainability, etc.

Saturday morning we visited the farm, see back view, above, and walked over the scorched earth (no rain) to look at the geese, the sheep and the two hand built and brick walled wells - their source of water. The wells were made by a previous owner. After the tour we sat inside the house and chatted for a few hours and then set off for Hermanus, the seaside town where I spent all my school holidays, and where my parents retired.

My father's sister, Ruth, turning 96 at the end of the month, inherited her parent's holiday home in a beautiful position on a headland overlooking the rocks and sea and, in season, the whales. Ruth's son, Peter, and his wife, Muffy, invited us to spend a night with them and what a treat that was. Although the fine Saturday weather didn't last and Sunday we got a bit wet on our cliff path walk, I loved being in the familiar places of my childhood, walking past the beaches and cliff pools where we swam and sunbathed, smelling the heady scents of the fynbos, treading magical paths through arches of indigenous trees and shrubs. My childhood was definitely spent in heaven!

Home again and a picasa photo album posted. This week has been mostly preparation for the upcoming weekend. We leave on Friday for our long awaited Field Trip to Clanwilliam. The one that was postponed in February because of the extreme heat. It looks like we may be in for extreme cold this weekend. We've had a week of torrential rain. Hopefully it will not follow us to the mountains!

Trips and visits and an important birthday

I spent five lovely, chilly, days in Johannesburg, visiting my sister at the end of April. Funny, the weather was what I'd expect in the Cape, long, soaking rains. It was an excellent break from Cape Town routine, a chance to read, go to the movies with Gill (to watch (mostly in horror) A Prophet) and be treated by Gill and Michael to a superb dinner/night out at CasaLinga restaurant. Over the weekend we had visits from my nieces, Gill's Polly, and her boyfriend, Chris, as well as Michael's Bernadette, and boyfriend, Alan, and their children. Wonderful to catch up.

Back to Cape Town to enjoy another daughter's visit - this time Tim's Erin, all the way from California. She spent a week with us - a gorgeous sunny week, ratcheting up several kilometers hiking on the Cape's mountain trails. Twice above Kalk Bay, once in Newlands Forest, and the last, all the way from our house in Newlands to Kirstenbosch, up Skeleton Gorge and down Nursery Ravine to end up with weak and wobbly knees for lunch at the Kirstenbosch tea room. After huge, healthy salads, we walked home feeling very weary.

Here's our self timed photo on top of Skeleton Gorge - I'm already collapsed and we still had to get down the slippery, steep mountain.

On Friday we nipped off to the winelands, to visit the goats of Fairview Wine Estate's "Goats Do Roam" fame, and taste their fine wines and cheese. We had lunch in Groote Drakenstein, at Solms-Delta in a beautiful setting at a table with a sweeping view of the Simonsberg mountain - here's the photo.

Sunday morning was a special day for Nan's Nathaniel. He turned 5 and had a picnic party in the forest at Silvermine. 22 children and their parents engaged in a lot of merriment. Tim, Erin and I managed a quick walk along the river after the party, the last bit of exercise for Erin before she boarded the plane that afternoon, back to California.

This week winter arrived with a vengeance - it's been cold and very wet. I guess we can't complain about a few wintery storms after 5 months of summer. Our house is dark and cold, the fuzzy jackets and heaters are out, and we're working our way through some good books. My latest have been two thrillers, one by Scottish author Val McDermid, and a South African writer, Deon Meyer which was fun to read. It is so South African it was written in Afrikaans and translated into English. I rather enjoyed the familiar place names and a real mystery set in this country. Fun! I'm nearly finished another SA book, Trekking to Teema by Pieter Dirk Uys, the satirist who performs in his theatre, Evita se Perron, in the small town of Darling, about 90kilometers from Cape Town. Another homely read for me.

We'll be taking the students to Darling to see Pieter Dirk Uys's latest show, Koeksisters for Zuma at the end of May. A koeksister is a very sticky sort of South African doughnut and the show is a send up of our colourful politician's food fancies.Lots to look forward to this month. Four more student dinners, one each week, next weekend is the field trip to Clanwilliam, wine tasting the following week and we end the month with koeksisters in Darling.

Another week slips by...

Only nine more left before we leave Cape Town for Singapore. Still so much to do here. Thank goodness we'll be back in December!

Last week we had the first "Dinner with the Stantons" evening with the students. Instead of cooking up a feast at home, we walked to our local restaurant, The Wijnhuis, for a very pleasant evening with Bonnie Chien, Shelly Amieva, Lucy Litvak and Adriana Campos. Bonnie is from Taiwan, Shelly and Adriana are both from Texas and their families come from Mexico, while Lucy is from Mill Valley a few miles from our home in West Marin!

Tim took four students to Riebeeck Kasteel on Saturday morning, to Goedgedacht Trust where they are doing research projects. There are a number of fine wineries in the area where Tim enjoyed sampling wine and olives. Not in quite the same jolly vein as last week's ramble in the Constantia Valley, since he was the driver, but very pleasant to explore a new area. The town of Riebeeck Kasteel has an eclectic mix of shops and restaurants and Tim stopped at the Bar Bar Black Sheep restaurant for some gazpacho. The menu there has pretty fine food for a teeny town. Click on the link if you want to listen to some Afrikaans "boere musiek" (farmers' music, also called "tikkie draai") and check out the menu.

Saturday evening our friend Pieter Jolly launched two new books, one called Rock Shelter, about cave houses in Lesotho, and the other on decorated Sotho houses. The event took place at the Iziko Cape Town museum, in the rock art gallery where we took the students last quarter for the first part of our field trip when Pieter was our rock art guide. The displays there are excellent - it was a perfect setting to show off the  beautiful photos in these books. After speeches and sales quite a few of us carried on partying at Pieter's house. I took my camera along - click the link to see photos of the fun evening.

Last night we got the closest to Bluegrass we've been in Cape Town at the Alma Cafe where Blacksmith performed to an enthusiastic following. Lots of singing along encouraged, and Tim seemed to know all the words!

Today we woke to cold and rain. Winter is here. This evening we'll be environmental activists at a meeting at our old favourite, the Vineyard Hotel. We'll be protesting the building of another nuclear power plant near Cape Town. It will be a different sort of Monday evening compared to our old wine tasting nights when our friend Chris filled our glasses with generous samples of fine wines.

Constantia Wines and Sunday hike

We’ve been in Cape Town four months now and not yet ventured out to taste the blush of the vines, apart from the visit to my grandparent’s old fruit farm turned into a wine estate in Stellenbosch. So, last weekend, on a lovely clear Saturday morning, we set off with our friend, Pieter Jolly, in his 56 year old Citroen to explore our local Constantia Valley, a half hour from home.

The day was too short to visit more than three of the eight farms in this region, but I think we chose well.

Constantia Uitsig (uitsig = view) is much more than a mere wine estate, with three restaurants, a cricket oval, a hotel made up of guest cottages and spa, and, finally, rows and rows of vines. Sadly the tasting room abuts the main road and feels decidedly “touristy” leading into one of the restaurants.

Because Constantia Uitsig charges for their tasting (R20 for 6 wines) we only ordered two, one for Pieter and one for Tim and me to share. We started with a bubbly, the only estate of the three we visited to offer a Methode Cap Classique (South Africa’s name for Methode Champenoise). It was a good way to start our morning, but, ouch, the cost of this and all their wines was as unattractive as the setting alongside the busy road. The wines were very nice but a touch beyond our means.

Without being inspired to take any photos here, we piled into the Citroen and moved on to the next farm called Klein Constantia (= Small Constantia), winding our way along the back roads. We felt like we were miles from suburbia as we skirted the border of the original Constantia Estate, now subdivided into Groote (=Big) Constantia, Klein Constantia and Buitenverwachting (see below).

We passed through the guarded gates and Pieter led the Citroen along the dusty farm lane to the tasting room, passing ancient buildings that triggered old history lessons of Jan van Riebeeck’s arrival in the Cape and the early attempts to make wine.

The tasting room was situated on the floor above the cellar with glass doors to view what was happening down there. There was a buzz of activity here, lots of tasters, all very friendly. We loved the wines, although they, too, were a little pricey. The hosts were extremely generous ending with a small tot of their famous Vin de Constance, a dessert wine made in the same tradition as that produced in the 18/19th century enjoyed by the likes of Napoleon.

Another plus – there was no charge for the tasting at Klein Constantia – bonus! They produce a cheaper KC label, not on the tasting list, but available from our local distributor.

Klein Constantia gets a big thumbs up.

Buitenverwachting (= Beyond Expectation) is almost next door to Klein Constantia and also part of the original Constantia Estate. Another lovely farm road led us past beautiful old buildings to their tasting room where, again, there was no charge. The mood was friendly and we made our way through half a dozen whites and reds, served by a young woman who works at weekends with her husband.

We weren’t able to see the cellar from the tasting room like we were at Klein Constantia, but there were casual tables, chairs and couches that created a comfortable atmosphere.

Outside, a gorgeous long lawn spread out towards the manor house where, from a side building, the cellar master’s wife served delicious picnics. By this stage we’d consumed enough wine samples to need to feast ourselves back to sobriety!

Some photos of our day and also of our lovely hike on Sunday in Kalk Bay with Nan and Daniel.

Cecilia Ravine Hike

The weather here has turned distinctly wintry so waking on Thursday to a windless, clear and sunny morning was a delightful gift. A hike was called for, but by the time I was finished the morning chores it was after 11:30 – time for mad dogs and Englishmen.

I decided to go back to one of my old favourite hikes, the Cecilia Waterfall loop that starts at the parking lot in Cecilia Forest and follows a stream sheltered by thick forest, up, and up. Ten years ago I was able to do this circuit in an hour, but today I felt very unfit as I trudged up the steps. After 15-20 minutes the path leaves the forest canopy and traverses up the slope, in the open. It was very hot and I simply had to stop to listen to some bird calls and mop my brow and catch my breath - what was I doing hiking in the midday sun?

The thought of the waterfall ahead of me boosted my spirits and roused me to the task of gaining the final elevation before dropping down a bit to the cool sanctuary in a small canyon along the dry and dusty path. I stuck my head under the water rushing down the moss and fern covered rock face, gasping at the icy contact, withdrawing almost instantly, letting the cool residue drip down my neck. Bliss!

After the waterfall the trail makes its last long haul up to the highest point on this circuit, and then drops down a myriad steps into another gully of trees. A last small rise and then down more steps to the contour path.

I looked at my watch. If I jogged this next section I might be able to make my one hour target. I got back to the parking lot with a very red face, but not from embarrassment – I’d done the hike in 55 minutes! Thank you legs, heart and body!

I’ve posted some family pictures from the last few weeks – take a look if you’d like to see Nan, Daniel, Ayanda, Nathaniel, Gareth and Naz.

Tears, movies, a book, and Spring Quarter Orientation

Tim and I saw The Last Station over the weekend. Marvelous performances by Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer and others. But a very sad ending and I left the theatre clutching a soggy lump of tissues.

On Monday evening we watched District 9 on video - terrific movie and so South African. When it came out last year the reviews were mostly good, but I'm not mad about science fiction and had little interest in watching creatures that look like a cross between a cockroach and a prawn acting out on a big screen. But I was swept away by the possibilities in this story and the analogies with political situations in this, and other, countries.

While watching the movie we munched on a bar of 85% chocolate which gave us both a sleepless night. Unable to nod off, I got up around 4:30am. I was nearly finished the book Marley and Me - being awake now was a perfect opportunity for me to get to the end.

I'm not sure if we are more susceptible to tears in the early dawn hours, or this was just a teary week for me, or the author, John Grogan, tells his story extremely well. I spent more than an hour sobbing through the ending pages and, for the whole morning, wasn't really able to think about anything other than the loss of one of my Jack Russell terriers, Popcorn, many years ago.

Monday was Orientation day for the new group of students. Over lunch the faculty and lecturers teaching this quarter outlined their courses followed by dessert and questions. Of course I was there to take photos!

Here's one of Tim explaining his course to students.

March ends and a new quarter begins

The first Stanford academic quarter is over and almost all the lovely students we met have gone home. All except four who have stayed to travel and take more courses here with the new students in the second quarter.

The African Genocide class I took has also ended. Our last seminar, where we revisited the definition of genocide, was held at Rhodes Memorial on a sunny wind-free day sitting around a table overlooking the city, far removed from possible genocidal atrocities. The five students taking the class ended the session with a spontaneous intense discussion re the complicated issues that the topic of genocide raises. A philosophically mind blowing experience that I was so lucky to be part of!

My son, Gareth, arrived with his girlfriend, Naz, from London on March 6th. It's been wonderful having them down the road, staying in a nearby guest house, popping in almost every day - a great treat for me.

The Farewell Dinner for the students took place last week at Moyo restaurant at Spier wine farm, about 35 kilometers from here. We all piled into the bus driven by Sipho Mpepho who has done nearly all the shuttling for the students. Of course I took photos and hope you enjoy them!

Here we are with our painty faces at the Farewell Dinner!

It's been a while ......

My first attempt to update my blog since the Field Trip a month ago - what is happening in Cape Town to keep me so busy?

Tim went away right after the Field Trip, back to the US to a meeting in Georgia, followed by a visit to his wonderful parents in Florida, then to Stanford for some work and to see his children and grandsons, and finally a night at home in Inverness; all the while waiting on tenterhooks for his passport to be processed by the South African embassy in Los Angeles, making him legal for work in Cape Town at last.

While Tim was away my sister, Gillian, came to visit from Johannesburg and we had a marvelous party weekend in the winelands celebrating two good friends' seventieth birthdays. Gill and I visited the farm in Stellenbosch where my father was born and where we, as children, went for regular Sunday visits while my grandmother was alive. This farm, Glenelly, has recently been bought by Madame De Lencquesaing, owner of a vineyard in France. Madame has converted my dad's old family fruit farm into a plush, modern wine estate and we were taken on a tour of the house, the vineyards, the tasting rooms and the cellars. We felt some sadness at the loss of our childhood haunts, but enjoyed walking around the beautifully manicured home.



And then the dreaded gastric flu attacked and left me feeling helpless and hopeless for close on a week. But it gave me an opportunity to read Stieg Larsson's The Girl who Played with Fire, the follow-up to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - a thrilling escape and just what I needed. I followed that with my first ever TC Boyle book, The Tortilla Curtain, which I loved even though the story is a tough one to digest. His writing is wonderful. And the last little book I devoured is called Wild Honey by Bookey Peek. Treat yourself to this read - such an inspiring story set against the depressing background of Zimbabwe's decline.

I got better, Tim got back, and we geared up for the Stanford Reception on Friday March 12th - what a good party! My camera was once again in action - click on the link to see the photos.

The Long Awaited Field Trip

Disaster struck last weekend - the weather gods must have been in a bad mood because they posted forecasts for temperatures in the Cederberg (where we were headed for the weekend) in the mid to high 40's Celsius, or over 110F. We had to cancel our plans much to the dismay of all eager to get away from city life for a bit.

Tim hurriedly consulted with staff and our rock art guide, Pieter Jolly, and came up with an alternative outing, keeping the emphasis on art of the San people (which is why we were going to the Cederberg!)

1:30 pm Friday we gathered around the bus with Pieter and set off for the Ixiko South African Museum in Cape Town where we spent an hour or so poring over the excellent rock art displays.

Back into the bus, always expertly handled by our driver, Sipho Mpepho, who has been driving Stanford students since the first pilot program in 2006. Down the peninsula we drove, to Noordhoek where Tim had arranged accommodation for all but four of us at Monkey Valley resort, while the four boys chose to stay in the lodge at the nearby Noordhoek Farm Village. These boys like sticking together.

After checking in and tea/scones, Grant held a class followed by some free time to explore the beach before dinner. Monkey Valley is set in a well established and secluded grove of Milkwood trees, one of my favorite coastal shrubs. They were in flower and the smell, for some, was a little unpleasant!

Our wooden cottages, with evocative names like Hornbill, Leopard, Falcon, Albatross and Dormouse, all seemed to be in perfect harmony with nature. What a treat after the disappointment of the cancelled Cederberg outing. Dinner was nothing to write home about but Pieter followed on with an outstanding slide show of some of his photos of beautifully executed rock art.

Saturday morning we hiked a short way to Peers' Cave which contains traces of human habitation dating back as much as two hundred thousand years. Unfortunately, modern graffiti blasphemes the walls today, but on the plus side, some cave paintings can be seen high up, above the defaced area. It's nice to know something from the Middle Stone Age remains in this much used cave. And it felt good to think that humans were living in this huge overhang so long ago, hunting small antelope in the fynbos, searching out edible plants, collecting shellfish and catching fish from the two water masses, False Bay to the east, the Atlantic ocean to the west.

Back for more meeting time with Grant, a fascinating session on South African humour with tea with delicious muffins. Lunch followed after which we lounged around the pool and deck until it was time to head off to Hermanus, the second leg of our improvised field trip.

Hermanus is a popular coastal village with sea, surf, beaches, mountain, lagoon and glorious walks. The bus took the students straight to Grotto Beach. Saturday was the hot day: 35 C at the coast and 45+ inland. Grotto beach, with stretches of white sand as far as the eye can sea, was the perfect antidote to 2+ hours in the bus on a very warm day. Lots of frolicking before returning to the village and checking into the Hermanus Backpackers.

Meanwhile, Tim, Pieter and I had driven to Hermanus in our own car. Grant and his family did the same and we congregated at the B&B we'd booked into, The Potting Shed. Pieter had been allocated the Loft room - oops, on the hottest day of the year? No, that wasn't going to work. Fortunately the owners were pretty flexible and gave us keys to an apartment they manage which was ok for the night. Not quite Monkey Valley, but it was cool and we were close to the sound of the crashing surf.

That evening we gathered for supper at the Hermanus backpackers. Chicken or Vegetable Potjie was the order and heaped platefuls were dished up to the hungry horde. The last activity on Saturday took place in a large front room at the backpackers that we cordoned off from other guests. It was a game of Double Jeopardy. Questions/Answers were setup by Grant and some of his students, and the whole game masterminded by Anna with a computer and LCD projector. Students got together in three groups and in this complicated game of "What question goes with this statement?" hands went up, voices too, answers delivered, and all the time Claire kept score. Lots of laughs!

During the night we couldn't believe it rained. And continued to do so on Sunday morning which put a damper, literally, on plans to hike in the mountains, although some of us managed a nice coastal walk in between showers. Others walked around the town, and Tim took a group to the town of Stanford to check out a community project there.

We all met for lunch at Bientang's cave. This was the final touch to a very pleasant weekend. Bientang was the last "Strandloper" ("Beach Walker" Khoi person) who lived in this cave, harvesting seafood. The rock shelter is enormous and the cave where Bientang is thought to have lived is tucked into a low crevice, behind the restaurant bar area. Whoever thought students were disappearing behind the bar for 'refreshments' was wrong - they were seeking solace in the ancient cave.

Tim left for the US on Tuesday afternoon - lucky him to be back home for a bit. Enjoy him, all who see him!

And now, what you've been waiting for, photo's of the field trip!

Oh, and one last titbit (we're in South Africa and that's how it's spelt here!) - we learned that on Saturday it was 45.5 C and Sunday 43 C in the Cederberg - big relief we changed the plans!