Sometimes I feel ill prepared for life… like everyone else received the script and stage directions except for me. Everyone else seems to know exactly where to position themselves and what scene comes next and I’m still standing at the props table going, “Huh, what scene are we in?! “
As last year drew to a close, I had a very important decision to make. Every year brings with it new decisions, but this particular one was a biggie.
I had put my documentary filmmaking plans on hold at the start of last year, having accepted a short term teaching assignment at a prestigious school.
Have you ever dated a guy who was a sweet talker? I’m talking about the guy who knows just how to charm a hard candy into a mushy marshmallow. Mr Charming himself could take a lesson from him!
Have you ever dated a girl who claimed to be a home girl but when you weren’t looking her name was known on every dance floor in town?
Have you ever been struck by a deep wanderlust for Africa? Ever found yourself having daily “Flashback Friday’ moments with your safari pictures? Longing to sink your toes into the mud of the Serengeti? Enjoying exchanging long and fascinating tales around a fire?
Here are 3 of the best African ‘must reads’ that capture the very heartbeat and essence of Africa without you having to travel vast distances
I have loved baking since I was three. I’m known to find a good recipe and KILL it. With two ‘secret’ ingredients, I’ve revived a recipe that is well known and often badly overdone. Read on if you would like to hear what my two secret ingredients are. (I promise all will be revealed AND I’ll give you the recipe. )
Every town holds mysterious and intriguing stories within its perimeters. The Eastern Cape village of Nieu-Bethesda, hidden between the Sneeuberg Mountains is no exception. If you are a traveller, an explorer, an artist or just enjoy a good getaway with a good story, you will enjoy this.
I am known by my family and friends to be a traveller who embarks on vast amounts of research before departing. I am a supporter of the philosphy `If you fail to plan, you plan to fail’. Once, I Google Street Viewed my entire way around Paris before even arriving at Charles De Gaulle airport. Needless to say, I knew EXACTLY how to get to the Louvre sans a map or guide in hand…. But, sometimes when travelling, no matter how much research you have done beforehand, things can turn pear shaped…and very quickly.
On a recent trip to Cape Town, I discovered that my uncle, who is an Italian and an engineer, has acquired the knack of making delicious jams and preserves. Bellisimo! Trust an engineer to have precision, even with jam making! I wrote about my time exploring the Cape, in my previous journal post.
The Western Cape has an abundance of fresh fruit readily available and, with the season of strawberries, apricots and nectacots coming to an end,
There is nothing more solemn and stark a reminder of how ephemeral life is than someone’s death. It takes all your previous perspectives, plans and ideas and turns them totally inside out and upside down.
Recently, while in the Western Cape which had been ‘home’ to my grandmother (my Dad’s mom) for eighty plus years, we drove passed the exact spot at which we had previously scattered her ashes 6 short months ago, and all the memories came flooding back…
This past weekend I was overcome with a bad case of what I call the ‘wanderlust woes’ or the ‘PLOM’ (an acronym for ‘poor little old me’).
“Why can’t I be in PAAAAAAARIS?!”
“Why does she get to go to Rome AGAAAAAAAAIN?!”
“Why does he get a new car aaaaaaaaaaaand a new house?!”