Aldam braai

There are few things that bond South Africans like an open fire at night, lots of red meat and some liquid refreshments. It is a time to strengthen old friendships and make new ones, huddling together, sharing stories about the past. We had such a memorable family gathering at Aldam over the weekend.

Breakfast with a view

It has been some time since I have been to The Ambassador in Bantry Bay. I met some business associates for breakfast and my breath were taken away by the location... again.

Sprained ankle

I stepped off the last step of the stairs in an awkward way, lost my balance, fell and sprained my ankle. At six o'clock the next morning I sat in 14D on my way to Jozie for a meeting, my walking stick in the luggage compartment, ankle heavily strapped and already digesting the first pain killer. During the rest of the day, I realized how important a healthy ankle is... even to do business.

Shopping-madness

When it rains in the Cape, it looks as if the Cape goes shopping. I joined Annelie for a quick "in-and-out" shopping that turned into a two-and-a-half hour excursion. Waiting for parking and standing in queues was not what I would have planned for a Saturday. Yet, experiencing the hussle-bussle, seeing many cards being swiped and enjoying a sandwich at Melissa turned out to be quite enjoyable.

Absa top ten

The winners of the Absa Pinotage Top Ten wines for 2013 was announced at Landtscap. It was a very special affair with good food, great company and of course the best Pinotage that South Africa can produce. Thanks to Pieter and Absa for inviting me.

Snow on Helderberg

Woke up on a cold, wet morning and was greeted by snow-covered mountains. As the sun battled to have a say through the thick clouds, all of the mountains around Stellenbosch displayed a frosted appearance; including the Helderberg... the first time that I can remember.

Looking after the grandchildren

While Annelie was in Bloemfontein visiting her mother, I was obliged to look after my two grandchildren (Arden and Nina) because Annelie already committed. At first I was a bit apprehensive as I was not sure that I would be able to entertain them, feed them and look after them properly. Now, after a few hours into the job, I am starting to enjoy their conversations and their happy faces. I now realize how privileged I am to have this special time with them.

Gavin Submitting Travel Claims

I watched Gavin working to get his travel claims up to date. He was on the road frequently during the past period and this meant that he had a big backlog, and one must remember what each little slip was for too. Terrible admin overhead.

A table for ourselves

I did not want to sponsor a table of ten for the annual Durbanville Kinder-huis rugby dinner so we only bought four seats. With our guests slightly late, it turned out that we had a whole table to ourselves for a while, with the abundance of food and drink for ten. We enjoyed the hard-fought bok win in the company of the ex-springbok coach Pieter de Villiers and other famous players like Rob Louw.

Handbag workshop

Annelie arranged a workshop to make a handbag with ten of her friends at de Wijnlanden. There was much action and activity when I arrived home on Friday which carried on till Saturday afternoon. The living quarters were littered with scraps of material, cups and milk-tart, with sowing machines and ironing-boards: a real mess. But I could see my wife enjoyed it a lot, and I just loved that.

Rust and Vrede lunch

Famous Rust and Vrede restaurant do not have any options for lunch. They only serve steak and chips with their great wines in a typical spectacular Cape environment: grandiose mountains as backdrop to rolling vineyards. Had a special lunch with Andre, talking about new financial models, doing business in China and the purpose if life.

Rudi's debut book

I enjoyed attending the launch of Rudi van Rensburg's debut book: Slagyster. He was a colleague of mine at Sanlam and our kids were good friends some time ago during school. Rudi is an accomplished painter but have previously published a play. This is his first book, and I am looking forward to reading it.

Louis and Ann

Louis and Ann retired to Still Bay five years ago. They have a wonderful house in the Fisantekraal wild reserve overlooking the bay. Louis produces exceptional paintings and Ann is involved with many things including writing (will be publishing a book in a few weeks). We stayed overnight at their place on Saturday after talking till late. The next morning I was up early and saw the sun pierce the clouds on the horizon to paint the tranquil bay yellow.

Green hills of Caledon

After Annelie's book-club we started our drive to Still Bay. We were committed to be in Swellendam by 17:00 so that we could watch the game at a local pub. As we drove through the rolling hills close to Caledon, green and yellow; wheat and canola fields in the late afternoon sun, with thick rain clouds against the mountains backdrop, we both agree: we live in a most beautiful country.

Winter rain

Consistent, heavy rain started in the evening and carried on into the day. The morning traffic was heavily congested on the N2 because of the wet conditions, so I choose back roads through Blue Downs to get to work. It was a new experience - different to speeding along the R300.

Disconnect at the Labia

Saw Disconnect (Henry Rubin's movie) at the Labia with Annelie. Great movie about the impacts of social media on real relationships experienced in an old-style movie-theatre.

Cape morning

The Cape delivered again this morning on my way to gym. Embracing clouds, colored pink by the morning sun, anxious wind pushing plants to dance an ancient rhythm. I think I love the Cape because it is as if I am closer to God.

Home alone

Arrived back on woman's day after five days abroad, to spend the evening alone with the most important woman in my life. We sat for hours talking and then enjoyed a simple home-cooked meal with a favorite Merlot.

Westin beach

The Westin hotel in Dubai is close to our offices on the base of the Jumeirah Palm. I went for a swim this morning in one of the many swimming-pools. For a while it felt as if I were on holiday until the reality hit home.

Tiananmen Square

On our way to the payment forum we drove past Tiananmen Square. One could feel the historical importance of the piece of land flanked by impressive buildings and Chinese words written on red background. And hundreds of tourists following guides with little flags taking photos.

Sophisticated toilet

I have never seen as a sophisticated toilet as the one in my hotel-room at the Kerry Hotel in Beijing. Full of electronics and all kinds of sensors, it had a little control panel with which to manage its functions. I was happy to press the "flush" button, but much more careful with buttons like "pulsating".

Lammershoek

Lammershoek is a family-owned wine-farm with a fresh approach to making unique wines. We enjoyed an early morning wine-tasting with the Kurktrekkers there: experiencing wonderful friendship, passionate wine-making and the beautiful surroundings of the Paardeberg.

Morning sunrise

Cape Town winter sunrises can be so peaceful. With a dry, warm Northerly wind blowing and a clear sky, the night sky took on a pink tinge and then turned yellow before the sun peeked over the Simon-mountains.

Afternoon view

Big windows on the atrium floor of our new offices in Willowbridge gives a view on the Proteavallei residential area. As I left this afternoon, the sun on the houses, the winter greenery and the clouds in the blue sky, painted a beautiful picture.

Flowers at Emirates lounge

The flowers in the foyer of the Emirates first class lounge in Dubai always amazes me. Massively huge sculpture of the most beautiful flowers in a solitary display as one enters. The smell of fresh flowers hang in the air bringing some calm in the anxiety of the terminal building.

Lay-over in Dubai

My lay-over in Dubai (traveling to Cape Town from San Francisco) is eight hours. One of the benefits of Emirates is that they provide a hotel-room and dinner for their premier passengers. This time the booking was in the five star Al Bustan hotel; but I was disappointed when told that the swimming-pool was closed for renovations.

Dinner with Bill Barhydt

I had a great dinner with Bill Barhydt at Tamarine in Palo Alto. The restaurant specializes in Vietnam-inspired Fusion dishes and I enjoyed the simplistic food artistry. We spoke about mobile payments and the Visa card that Boom (Bill's company) issues.

African entrepreneurs

Running late for dinner with African entrepreneurs living in the valley. Looking forward to seeing Pieter, Vinny, Nmachi, Kersten and Sylvia. Mental note: add thirty minutes to travel time when the Giants have a home game.

Cottonwood Canyon Winery

I enjoyed my wine tasting at Cottonwood Canyon so much. Producing predominantly Burgundy wines, I found the wine making philosophy very interesting. Wines are made only with natural fermentation, and then kept at the winery for at least ten years before they are released! I was extremely impressed with the few single vineyard Pinot Noir's. This is how wines should be made.

Brett and Lyn Johnson

I had enough time for a short stop at the home of Brett and Lyn Johnson high up in the hills of Saratoga. Brett is the founder of The Institute for Innovation, Integration & Impact, an organization that had a profound impact on my life. Over a cup of Rooibos, we spoke about the power of the Lord and how nothing is impossible for Him.

Perfect dinner

With the exception of the Pinot Gris pairing to the corn soup, the dinner at Viognier in San Mateo was perfect. I enjoyed Jim's company as we talked about what we have done, and especially what is possible. We ended the evening with some excellent cheese, with a special LBV Dow's Port.

View over the bay

The morning sun on the hills across the bay behind Hayward from the 12th floor of Visa's headquarters painted a pretty picture. There are so many things happening behind the walls of corporate America, but outside, the sun still shines.

Santa Rosa to Dillon Beach

I joined the Santa Rosa cycling club for a stiff 95 km ride to Dillon Beach and back. I completed the ride with the last slow riders in a lot of discomfort because of lack of training. Nevertheless, it was a most enjoyable morning in beautiful surroundings. I will be back, God willing.

Hot Box Grill

Tripadvisor recommended the Hot Box Grill in Sonoma close to my hotel for dinner. I was lucky to find a spot as the place was clearly popular. The steak was "not-too-bad", served with fries and veggies. The glass of Merlot was good. A man must eat, but I wished so much that I could share this with Annelie.

Vault 164

I had a most enjoyable light supper with Vijay in Vault 164. The restaurant was a bank branch in the past - hence the name. We enjoyed a superb Pinot Noir and talked about mobile banking; amongst others. I thought that it was quite ironic that we should do so in a dis-used brick-and-morter bank branch.

California cycling

On a beautiful early evening, I did a quick 30km (or should I say 17 miles) cycle on the new Trek after work. I got an entry-level Trek for the times that I am in California (so that I would not need to rent bicycles here). The Canada road from Route92 through Woodside, is an ideal cycling spot, with great scenery, undulating road and wide shoulders.

Landed safely at SFO

I landed safely at San Francisco International on Sunday. With the exception that one could see the Asiana wreckage in the distance while we were landing and a more congested terminal, my journey was not impacted at all.

Winter ride

After shaking the flu that I had for a ling time, I dusted the mountain bike off and joined the club for a ride this morning. Soon, the rest of the group left me behind and I finished a windy ride on my own.

Dinner with friends

Vegetable soup, marinated lamb cutlets and roly poly dessert was served to very special friends for a belated celebration of Annelie's birthday at home. We opened Annelie's favorite Chardonnay and Kanonkop's Cab 2003. We are immensely thankful for all these special experiences.

End of the Visit

Izak and Julia left for the US this morning after two weeks in the Republic. While we feel sad to say goodbye, we carry such fond memories of the time together. Whether driving through the game reserve, meeting with family and friends, talking till late or eating and drinking, it was such special times.

Winter sunrise

Great to be back home after a long trip through South Africa by road. The winter sunrise is now the furthest north but still beautiful on this crisp and fresh morning.

Looking after my granddaughter

A roadtrip with small children all the way from Kruger Park to Cape Town, can be quite tiresome. At one of the stops, I volunteered to look after Nina for some time while the others finished their lunch. We played on the playground for a while and then she stole my heart with a casual wave and a "Ta-Ta Swing" when we left.

Last day in Kruger

As we packed the cars on the last morning in Kruger, I reflected on the past five days spent with Annelie, my two sons and their loved ones in the Kruger National Park. We saw many different animals and birds and experienced the magic of the "bosveld" with spectacular sunsets and mist-filled mornings. What was realy special was the hours in the cars, searching for game, where we had special moments talking about our dreams and memories.

Annelie's birthday cake

We celebrated Annelie's birthday in Satara Restcamp with a cake specifically baked for the occasion. All our children and grandchildren were present. We had dinner at the camp restaurant and talked about now and the future. Afterwards we enjoyed some Boplaas Port at one of our bangalows and reflected on a very memorable day.

Arden asleep

Arden decided to travel with his grandparents most of the way from Cape Town to Bloemfontein. He kept himself busy with his Leappad, talked to us for a long time, listened to songs and then fell asleep. I felt so blessed to see this young, little human, contently asleep, strapped in his chair, in the back of our car.

Upgrade Avis

"Sir, we have upgraded you" is how the Avis lady greeted me this morning. A BMW or maybe a Mercedes, I thought. Turns out that I got a 4x4 truck with a hard suspension and enough space for six. Upgrade? more like a Sidegrade.

Champion pigeon

Hendrik won the first pigeon race of the season with one of his one-year old pigeons: 5559. We were there to celebrate with him after a (short) speech and having popped a quality MCC.

Springbok supporter

Me and Mukhtar found a pub in Blouberg where we could watch the Springbok-Italy game. The place was clearly full of Springbok supporters, including an old dog that was more interested in the audience than the game.

Alan facilitating

I always enjoy being part of brainstorming work-sessions; especially if we touch on key architectural issues. I attended such a session with the R&D team recently and debated priorities till late. Alan standing next to an ideas board, in some ways symbolized the multi-colored discussions.

Water in the cellar

We had such good rains during the past few days that everything got saturated with water. Unfortunately something went wrong with my elaborate drainage system and water started seeping into the wine-cellar. I spent a large part of the weekend extracting water out of the cellar. Not a fun weekend.