As promised in a previous post ...

.. would you like to stroll through part of the 6 acres of gardens of the Vineyard Hotel in the leafy suburb of Newlands, Cape Town ...

The path starts here ...

... eyes up ... peek through the trees to Table Mountain ..

... come to a clearing at the top of the ridge ...

... down we go ... following the path ..

... or shall we go up ... ?

... keeping to the lower path, it leads a bridge where there are 'cottages' (!!) on the other side .. but it's drizzling so we won't go that far !!! .... (those are self-catering cottages/houses/mansions (!) which are also part of the hotel) ...

... view from bridge ....

... another path leads to this 'cottage' (!) which has two numbers, so I suppose it's two units in one large-what-used-to-be a private house ...

... turn around and go back ... and cross the little bridge ...

... and follow the path again ...


.. stop to whisper hello to the sleeping wet tortoise ! ...

.. follow the path edged with masses of Plectranthus - this is why I need to encourage mine to grow in my garden - they were magnificent here and in Kirstenbosch! ...

... stop a while ... quiet spot on the other side of the river for meditating or reading a good book while a child swings - there is a black tyre-swing on the left, just visible ...

... off we stroll again .. following the path as it narrows towards the end ...

... where there is large shallow pond with a few Koi ...


Hope you enjoyed the stroll as much as hubby and I did :)

Wordless Wednesday :

In the gardens of Vineyard Hotel, Cape Town

For more Wordless Wednesday contributions go here and here

This is especially for you ... Mr T and P ....

... 'cos you couldn't be with us on 'our' holiday in the Cape :(

Soooo ... come with me and I'll show you what you missed/share some of our photos from the Vineyard Hotel in the leafy, quiet suburb of Newlands, Cape Town ...

Built in 1800, "Paradise" was the residence of Lady Anne Barnard and her husband Andrew, the secretary of the first British Governor of the Cape. It was the first English style home to be built in the Cape. In each of the rooms there is a very interesting book with the story of those early beginnings but I sadly didn't have time to read the whole book. It has of course, been added onto ... this being one of the more modern blocks of beautifully appointed rooms overlooking the gardens. Ours was the one in the gap in the trees with the window open (closed umbrella under it) ...

But let's start at the entrance which is on the other side !!!! Small cannons guard the front door ...

... inside the foyer, and indeed, all over the entire hotel, there are antiques and treasures from bygone days ... this is a huge consomme pot from the old Carlton Hotel in Johannesburg ...

... take a peek down the original main passage ...


.. which takes you into the gardens ...

... passing the old staircase and a gallery of drawings and paintings done by Lady Anne ... a painting of her is in the oval frame ...

... a corner in one of the lounges ...

Let's go up this staircase to our floor ...

.. down the passage lined with old pieces of Afrikaaner furniture and prints of well known artist Jacobus Hendrik Pierneef ... another very interesting website is www.gbu.co.za/trees/jacobhendrikpierneef.htm ...

I am sure this - below - is original. It's a Christmas greeting card to the now deceased owner of the hotel, Henry and May Patousis .. (but it is still in the family as the sons now own it) ...


... on we go ... into our room with a panoramic view of Table Mountain (the 'table top' is round to the right) ...

... and the beautiful lush gardens below ..

The dining area is in an old courtyard linking the old building on the left to the newer part ...

.. with a beautiful mosaic fountain inscribed "Family Patousis .. Vineyard" ..

If you need a workout or a little pampering, there is a gym and spa nestled in the gardens ...

I shall take you for a stroll around the gardens next ... so watch this space !!

Wordless Wednesday :

In the garden of the Vineyard Hotel, Cape Town

For more Wordless Wednesday contributions go here and here

Snippets from the Cape ..

Tuesday - I have been trying to finish this post since Sunday! Have been busy since our return from our trip to the Cape. Choosing a few photos was very difficult as we seemed to be on the go the whole time .. and it was suppose to have been a relaxing few days away !

So here are just a few photos .. I shall do separate posts on some of the places we visited as they are worth sharing in more detail

This old fellow is one of the resident tortoises at the Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town

...which has a stunning view from the front patio which is part of the original building built in 1800 ...

... a large lush garden ...

... interesting corridors (in the newer part of the hotel) as though one was looking through mirrors ...

... and a dining area set out in rows ..

We strolled around the beautiful Kirstenbosch Gardens filled with indigenous plants .. (Kirstenbosch Gardens are the representatives every year at the Chelsea Flower Show in London and all the plant specimens come from these gardens) ...

The Cycads are amazing ...... some are huge in height and width !!

Wine estates in the Constantia Valley were another stop but being a Sunday some were closed like this one - Buitenverwachting ..

Hubby and I then spent some time in Stellenbosch whilst staying at the Erinvale Estate Hotel .. quite different from the Vineyard but equally as comfortable. From the vast picture window of the Vineyard hotel room, our Erinvale room was quaint !! ...

The buildings are also very old but I couldn't get any info from the chappie at the front desk. He just said it was 'steeped in history' and used to belong to 'an Irish guy' !!! I am hoping I have set him a task by telling him that there must more people like me who are interested in the history of a place !!

Strolling through the courtyard we came across a these cuties huddled in the morning sunshine ...

Morgenster Wine Estate is close by ..... soooo naturally we popped in for a tasting !!! We've been there before but it's well worth a second visit .. or third ... or .... !!!

Something different was the olive oils and olive tastings. Found the oil tasting quite weird as I had to warm the little glass in the palm of my hand and sip the oil! I managed ... actually it wasn't that bad .. I certainly got the flavours but the third one was a white truffle essence oil ... oh yuk!! The smell was fowl and the taste even worse!!! Apparently the overseas visitors love it and often buy bottles of the stuff to take back home !

Back to wine tasting ... this time a gem of a place ... Hidden Valley

... and whilst in the Hermanus area we popped into the old farm building of the Hamilton Russell vineyards. Took Hubby's Mum for a change of scenery from the Old Aged Home where she now lives .. well into her 80's, she is looking well but getting frail

Picnic anyone? ... Well worth a visit is the Franschhoek Motor Museum which is well signposted on the main road to Franschhoek ...

.. where there is a magnificent personal collection of about 350 cars spanning 100 years, of which 80 are displayed at any one time (they rotate the cars all the time so all can be viewed if you keep popping in to the museum) - we'll definitely be back - it was amazing (shall do a separate post on this outstanding museum) ...

A little wine tasting at La Motte in Franschhoek ..

... where I could peep into an oak wine vat ..

A Bistro lunch on the main street in Franschhoek which was bustling with tourists but I managed to captured these three tables at a moment when no-one was there ...

Perfect setting for a snack lunch ... beautiful mountains and buskers' music!!

Must add this ... that's one HUGE plane!!! It had just landed at OR Tambo airport ... I don't know what it's called but hubby says it holds about 600 passengers or so!! It's mighty large !!

And finally .. from the window of our 'ordinary' aeroplane ... the gorgeous False Bay with part of Strand Beach and mountains passed Gordons Bay up the coast ... the coastline where my Dad's ashes are scattered ...

Spent a little time with my Mum .... she didn't know me this time :(