Brain Fart of Note...

Everyone gets them. True Story. That moment where everything makes perfect sense and you wonder how you didn't put the pieces together sooner. Johnny Nash sang about it back in 1973.. The Brain Fart.

So, I've been hearing this awesome song playing on 5fm the past few weeks,
It's called When I Was 17, by Cape Town rockers McCree.
There was just something about the voice that brought back memories. It reminded me of one of my favourite local bands and albums: Kelvin Declined - Kelvin Declined.
I remember watching them perform at Mercury with Sugardrive (many moons ago) and I was hooked. I must have played that album over and over. 42, Stan 229 and Yellow are still on my playlist.

Maybe I've been hiding under a rock, or something, but some minor investigation (Read: Google Search) revealed what I've been suspecting to be true... Mark McCree was the front man for Kelvin Declined.
Duh! No wonder the sound was the same. Idjit.. Needless to say, I know which album I'll be buying tomorrow! Of Hopes and Dreams is out now.

Here's the song I'm talking about. It's awesome. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Another great day to be in Cape Town

Well, as far as Wednesdays go, this has been a pretty good one.
Even though I'm busy trying to recover from a bloody flu/cold thing, I was up early and off to work bright eyed and bushy tailed. (had the wet nose too..)
I've really been missing Rebecca lately. There's just something about your own car that feels like home. And I wanted my baby back.

And then I got a call from the panel beaters to say that my car was ready for collection! Fantastic! (except for the part where I had to shell out just shy of R3k for my excess. Outsurance claims they can't find the bugger who caused the accident.)

So Rebecca is back, looking sexy as ever. I am a very happy guy right now.

Before

After

And so, what with it being Wednesday and time for the 3rd installment in our Starfinder Astronomy Course at the Iziko Planetarium, we decided that we would have a little picnic in the Company Gardens. The last few days in Cape Town have been super windy, but today was just awesome.

No wind, nice and warm...A perfect precursor to summer.

A short detour to Woolworths (I believe everyone has stopped, or never started, boycotting them now..) for some snack and it was off to the gardens.

Picturesque

What a spot for a picnic

This dude was just watching us...#freaky

Turns out he was just finishing his Streetwise Two

The New Vanilla Steri Stumpie..yummy

We had some munchies, with the squirrels looking on. Spotted this random little dude in the pics above. Apparently he was winning the staring contest. At first I thought he was chewing on a stick, but it was actually a chicken bone. All in all, another fantastic impromptu outing in Cape Town. I love this city.

The Starfinder Astronomy Course was interesting as usual. We actually went outside this evening to spot two satellites one of which was the Hubble Telescope. Very cool. One of the guys asked the lecturer why stars seem to twinkle. Apparently the answer is not "Because that's how the song goes..." My bad.

And that was Wednesday.. Oh, Arsenal and Manchester City lost in the Champions League this evening. Can this day get any better? haha

N.

Life Day Spa Cape Town: 3 ways to de-stress

Every day we are confronted by the stresses of modern day life. Deadlines, traffic and cell phones that never stop ringing. There is nothing better than taking some time out to unwind and relieve the stress.

And there is no better place than Life Day Spa at African Pride Crystal Towers Hotel & Spa.

I have selected three treatments to relax and rejuvenate you.

This is your de-stress guide to escape the chaos:

 Rasul Treatment

A cleansing and exfoliating ritual that is based on the traditional Turkish Bath. 

The Rasul Chamber can accommodate up to four people.

The treatment starts with a medicinal earth mud application while you relax on one of our heated benches while an herb infused steam fills the room.

Finally, a tropical rain falls from the ceiling, washing away the mud and the stress. Enjoy this 30 minute treatment as a group or with a partner.

Rasul Chamber

 Floatation Room

Escape to the Dead Sea with a session in the Floatation Room. Warm water infused with a ton of Epsom salt will take all the strain off your weary muscles.

Soft, flickering lights will mesmerize you while you lay, listening to the gentle underwater music.

One relaxing session in the float is the equivalent to four hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Floatation Room

 Back, Neck and Shoulder Massage

The core elements of this treatment are designed to relieve tension in the more commonly over-stressed muscles of the back and neck. 

The therapists at Life Day Spa are internationally trained and can recommend suitable detox products and other treatments. They make use of light therapy and gentle flowing sounds to leave you completely relaxed.

Massage Treatment

With all of these treatments, I recommend making use of the complimentary Steam Room and Sauna to relax the muscles prior to your treatment.

Book now. You deserve a stress free day.

http://www.lifedayspact.co.za/treatments.php

Blaauwklippen Family Market - Sundays in Stellenbosch

Late last night I decided that today I would try something new. The weather in Cape Town is stunning, so I was not up to being stuck in doors. I knew I wanted to go for a drive, so I finally settled on Stellenbosch as my destination. More specifically, the Blaauwklippen Family Market.

Stunning Weather in Stellenbosch

Happening every Sunday at Blaauwklippen Wine Estate, it is a great way to spend the mid part of your Sunday. Parking is plentiful, they even let the older folk park quite close, which I thought was quite nice.

Specialized Parking

I did a few circuits of the market to take in all the stalls. You've got your usual craft stalls, pet items, jewellery, etc., but it was the food that I came for. And I was not disappointed. A taste exploration as many different ready to eat food stuffs were available. From Argentinian Steak rolls to Bitter Ballen, there was something for every taste, including Thai, Indian and freshly baked pastries and pancakes.  

Vendors showing their wares

I'll have mine medium rare, please

Bitter Ballen with mustard..I'll take two.

Belgian Waffles anyone?

I also managed to pick up some fresh deli meats as well as some pucker Cornish Pasties. (although, I was a tad disappointed with the pasties. Bit on the dry side, pastry and filling). On the fresh pastry front, I picked up a delicious Parmesan Twist, which was like a giant Croissant in loaf form.

Parmesan Twist

There is plenty place to sit, either under the umbrellas in the courtyard or on the many grass areas, where your kids (if you have them) can go mad after a sugar rush. Bring a blanket or some camping chairs and you're sorted.

Craft Beer and Wine Tasting are also available but, as I was driving, I only looked on and drooled. 

Plenty seating space

But for me, the stand out stall was Cold Gold Ice Cream. What could be better than some Ice Cream on a warm spring day? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I was rather intrigued by the different flavours that Janine van Zyl had available, but eventually settled on Liquorice. (They even have a selection of Vegan Ice Cream...)

Loads of flavours to choose from

WOW. It was delicious. If you like liquorice (which you should) you must try this out. I tweeted about it while I was savouring it under a tree and got a response almost immediately. The beauty of Social Media and the importance of ORM (Online Reputation Management). This prompted me to go back and buy one for the road. I got the 66% Chocolate Ice Cream (last one that they had!). A little pot of chocolate gold. I swear, this had a halo around it when I opened it. Absolutely heavenly.

Chocolate Gold

Gabrielle over at www.deepfriedbananas.com is going to be doing a piece on Janine soon, so keep an eye out for it. I'm glad to say that I now have a reason other than wine to go to Stellenbosch. And with summer on it's way, you should definitely give this a try.

The Week That Was...

No, it's not Carte Blanche music time just yet, but here's a quick wrap of what happened this past week.

Monday was a busy day at work. The fact that I was able to get there at all is thanks to my sister allowing me to use her Renault Clio while Rebecca is recovering. While it's not the manliest of cars, it has four wheels and goes forward so, thanks sis.

Tuesday did not start off well for me. I woke up with the Cirque du Soleil doing warm-up routines in my stomach. A quick message into work and that was me, man down.. I will spare you the details but suffice to say, it was not pretty.

Thankfully Wednesday did not bring with it any gastronomic fireworks and I was able to consume a marie biscuit or two and try and re-hydrate. A trip to the doctor would confirm my self diagnosis of Viral Gastroenteritis, although to be fair I just said I had a stomach bug. (They spent the years studying, so they get to use the fancy big words..) By this stage I had lost 2 kilograms.
As you may have read in my previous post, I was meant to attend the first of four sessions at the Iziko planetarium for the Starfinder Astronomy Course. This did not happen. So I've missed a week..I'll pick it up from week two.

Thursday was dedicated to more Marie biscuits, Marmite toast and 4.5 litres of Energade. At this stage I was starting to feel slightly more human, except for the sore neck from lying down so much.

Yesterday I was back at work. Quite a few emails to follow up on and a generally busy day. One of my female colleagues told me that I was so lucky to get gastro, what with it being such a great way to lose weight and all. Special. Managed to leave early as I had an errand to run at the Waterfront, followed by drinks with my sister, brother-in-law and some of their/our mates. I decided to stop by Woolies and buy a jersey. Got two awesome Trenery (Larnie, I know) jerseys that were on special.

We started off at Bascule Bar for a cheeky after work drink, which then evolved into dinner at Beluga.
I appreciate that Bascule was really busy, but their service was rather shoddy. Not what you'd expect from them. Beluga on the other hand was very good. I've read a few negative comments about them recently, but I'm glad to report that the service we had was great. The food was very good as well. I had the Lamb Cha Siu Baau as a starter and the braised Lamb Shoulder as mains. Rather adventurous I thought considering I had just recovered from gastro.

I had a really great evening just chilling and talking kak. Great way to end the week I thought. Plus the weather in Cape Town was amazing on Friday.

Another  kak day in Cape Town

I also got a call from the panelbeaters yesterday. They informed me that once they get the parts (Monday hopefully) they would 'try and fit me in' when they got a spot and then it would be another TWO weeks before I see my darling Rebecca. I am having serious withdrawals.

Today was my niece's second birthday. This morning I went to her 'Dora the Explorer' party, which was really cute. My mom made a Dora cake for her which was very yummy. I got her such an awesome present. A Piglet plush toy. It's so awesome, that (and her mom very kindly reminded me of this) I bought her one for her 1st birthday. Well done, Uncle Nick. {Insert slow clap here}

A trip to Makro followed by some sport rounded out my day. Good wins for Province, the Titans and the Delhi Daredevils.

I was very saddened to hear about the boat accident in Hout Bay his afternoon. My condolences go out to the families of those who were involved. A huge shout out to all the people who assisted in the rescue operations, even the abalone poachers who went to go and help.

And so it is now time to tackle Module 7's quiz assignment which I have been putting off for various reasons.
Not sure what tomorrow will bring. Maybe a drive out to the winelands. I hear there's a market out Blaauwklippen way.

Looking forward to getting the results from my blogging assignment next week.

Anyway. That's all for now.
N.

Starfinder Astronomy Course at Iziko Planetarium

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. It's five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."
You don't need to be a Trekkie (which I am not) to be familiar with this line.

I have always loved staring up at the night sky, pointing out constellations that lesser mortals might only guess. Knowing where Taurus begins and ends and that the Pleiades (you may know them as the seven sisters) form part of the constellation. Being able to identify stars such as Rigel, Castor, Pollux and Antares.
I have the late, great Professor Tony Fairall to thank for my (waning) knowledge of the southern skies.

The Iziko Planetarium is one of my all time favourite places to go in Cape Town, albeit it has been a while since I last saw an astronomy presentation. Which is why, this week, I am once again boldly going where no man has gone before. Okay, maybe that's a little melodramatic.

The Starfinder Astronomy Course is a 4 week course which gives you a glimpse of the heavens and how to identify the constellations that appear in our night sky. It is something that every Capetonian should do at least once. And so, this Wednesday, myself and 3 of my favourite Capetonians, shall be reclining in those ever so comfy chairs and gazing at the stars.

Of course, the other bonus about attending these evening courses is that you get to explore the Museum at night. It's hardly Night at the Museum, but exciting nonetheless.

If you are interested in attending the Starfinder Astronomy Course, call the Planetarium on 021 481 3900. Tickets are R200 per person and the course runs every Wednesday evening (19h30 till 21h30) from this week until the end of the month. I know it's short notice, so it's best to call ahead. If you miss this one, don't fret, the course will run again.

While you're at it, check out these shows that are also on at the moment. Morris Mouse is great for younger children and The Sky Tonight is great for a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

If you are already booked for Wednesday, come say hi... I'll be the one looking up.

N.

Fresh Food: What Is Your Favourite Cape Town Market?

I am a huge fan of the Neighbourgoods market at the Old Biscuit Mill.
On Saturday mornings you will find it bustling with activity, people browsing, eating, 'kuiering'.
Fresh Veg, Beer on Tap, COFFEE! and generally an eclectic mix of personalities.
What better way to start your Saturday, right?

Video Courtesy of foodwithastory

Now I know there are a number of more than decent markets out there and I am open to education.
My request to you, dear reader, is for you to take part in my poll (hopefully the first of many).
Please tell me what your favourite Cape Town Food Market is and maybe it will be the topic of a future post..

Your choices are:

• Neighbourgoods Market at Old Biscuit Mill
• Bay Harbour Market in Hout Bay
• City Bowl Food Market on Hope Street
• Earth Fair Market (Either Tokai, St Georges Mall or Noordhoek Farm Village)
• Other

If you do choose other, please comment on this post with the details of your preferred market and what you love about it.

Feck and Arse - Rebecca Needs a Nose Job

Oh the Irony..
I was sitting at home when I heard a big smash. Our house is alongside the N1, so I could only imagine it was another accident. But it sounded big.

I decided to take a short drive down the road with my niece to have a look see. My intention was to add to her already awesome day (after visiting Charly's earlier). We couldn't see anything from the bridge, so I decided to turn into Boston where I could park on a quiet street and then take a walk up to the bridge to look.

While driving up Salisbury Rd I approached an intersection. My right of way. Stop street to the left and right.

Out of NOWHERE, a dude on a Suzuki decides to alter the front end of my car. He totally jumped the Stop Street and connected with the pavement. The first thing I heard, after checking that my niece was okay, was him shouting, "Dis my skuld, dis my skuld. Jammer. Fok dis seer". I went to check on him and thankfully he landed okay, just hurting his ankle.

Take me to the nearest plastic surgeon

That's going nowhere

He called a few people, I called a few people..it was all a bit surreal.

The folk who live on the corner were very helpful in keeping an eye on Megan while I waited for my mom to come and fetch her.

Called the ambulance for the kid, called the cops, who responded quickly and, of course, didn't need to call a tow truck. It just appeared out of nowhere. Outsurance were very helpful, except for the part where they can only assess my car next week. So I'll be sans car for a while yet. So irritating.

Going to be one of those weekends... Think Bike? Bugger that...#ThinkCar 

*I should explain. Rebecca is the name of my black i20. She was christened by my sister, Tracy. She is named Rebecca because she is Black and I got her on a Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday.

Charly's Bakery. Cape Town's most famous Cake Haven.

Charly's Bakery has been a favourite among Cape Town locals for many years now.
Their quirky cupcakes, petite Petit Fours and fantastic cake creations are, well, Mucking Afazing..

Mucking Afazing

So, recently, Charly's Cake Angels has appeared on our screens thanks to Justin Bonello and the guys at Cooked In Africa. Catch them on DSTV Channel 175 (Food Network) weekly or on Friday's at 9pm on SABC 3. You've seen 'Hoboken Style' on Cake Boss, well....This is Cape Town Style!

Watch out for crumbs!

Seen as it is school holidays, my 8 year old niece, Megan, has been spending time with my folks. This includes fighting for the remote with my Old Man. They have found common ground in Charly's Cake Angels. Watching them create those amazing pieces of art as if you could do it yourself.. Megan LOVES the show.

So I decided that, as I was off today, I would take my mom and Megan to Charly's, as a treat. I figured that mid morning shouldn't be too busy on the roads and as it was before lunchtime, with any luck, Charly's wouldn't be busy either. WRONG! There was a great buzz around the bakery. The Oompa Loompas were furiously helping customers, unloading trays of freshly made goodies onto the shelves (which didn't last long) and being super friendly. It was rather overwhelming. On the shelves, you can see some of the cakes that were made in Series One of Charly's Cake Angels. In the displays....Pies, Petit Fours, Pigs Ears, Cupcakes, Brownies, Biscuits and MORE....So many tempting items. It's almost like that evil queue to the till at Woolies, with all the sweets, but worse. You just place your order and then you see something else that you want..

They even come with instructions.

If you don't buy one, you might be one..

I love their risqué decorating style like the ones above. There were a few others that are not quite as PG, but that's what makes them so much fun. Have a look at some of their other creations here.

Delectable Brownie...

 This little loaf brownie went down a treat with some coffee. So much yumminess in box.

Rainbow Nation

These stunning little treats are fantastic. It was amazing to listen to the people waiting to be served. Talking about what they were going to choose, where Francis was and, of course, where is the hole in the ceiling where the basket comes down!

Not a bad haul..

Their Red Velvet Cupcakes are something else. Made with Beetroot extract instead of red food colouring, they are topped with a cream cheese icing. The faint flavour of beetroot is quite a pleasant escape from the sugar rush of all the other goodies.
Megan chose the Flower Cupcakes as she had seen them make it on the show. I must add that she had green teeth for a while.. 

She was very excited to see the cameras in the bakery as well. Who knows, maybe we'll be on an episode in Season Two...

You can follow Charly's Bakery here.

What is your favourite favourite from Charly's Bakery?

The Art of Procrastination

So I'm onto Module 6 of my Social Media course: Blogging.
It's been such a hectic weekend (all work, no play) and the start of the week has been super busy, so by the time I get home I'm pretty knackered.
I really should be reading my course notes right now, but we've learnt about so many other platforms that I find myself trying to keep up with what's going on there..
Google+ is new to me, so that requires an investment of time. Facebook and Twitter are firm favourites and then there's Pinterest.
At least I've got a half day on Thursday and I'm off on Friday, so I'll make up for lost time then...I'm sure.
We'll have to wait and see..
N.