Sunrise over the Helderberg

The mountain to the east of de Wijnlanden is called the Helderberg - the "Shining Mountain". This morning as the sun rose over this mountain it looked like its name.

U-Start

U-start is a company that provides investment opportunities for wealthy families into early stage start-ups. I attended a dinner hosted by Whitey Basson at Mount Marie for VIP's attended the U-start conference in Cape Town. I cannot recall (maybe with the exception of Davos) that I was at one event with so many dollar billionaires present... and then in such beautiful settings.

Opstal

We were hosted by Attie Louw at Opstal winery in the Slanghoek valley. Currently the winemaker, Attie is a fifth generation Louw farming on this farm. We enjoyed his knowledge and passion for the unique wines that he exposed us to.

First nativity play

After I accepted the reality of being a grandfather, I knew the time will come when I attend a nativity play with one of my grandchildren in it. This happened today with Arden in the important role of the only cow in the manger. I experienced strange emotions of gratitude and compassion to see these young children sing and act without any restraint or fear. All of them were like little canvasses not yet spoiled by the tribulations of life.

Overgaauw restaurant

It is a new concept in eating. No menu, just the freshest ingredients, and food prepared for friends in a farm-style setting. Brother and sister: Jason and Camilla Comins supported by Camilla’s husband, Russel Wasserfal, offer such s treat at the new Overgaauw restaurant. Annelie and me enjoyed the terrine starter and the chicken mains with a great Chardonnay on Sunday, and made a note to be back.

Amazon fulfillment center

I was so fortunate to be shown around the Amazon fulfillment center where Izak work. The brand new building stretches for 100's of meters and is multiple stories high. Inside is some of the coolest technology that you could think of helping hundreds of people to ship thousands of Amazon parcels. As I walked on the floor, seeing the amazing tech and watching my son totally in control of his environment, my heart swelled with thankfulness.

Yardley caching

Izak stays in a quaint little town in Pennsylvania. One afternoon I took some time out to do geocaching: a great way for me to get to know the environment. The town, Yardley, feels like a little peaceful enclave in a busy world.

Izak at breakfast

I am spending special times with my youngest son in Yardley, Pennsylvania. He is working long days as they ramp up for the festive season rush. But just having breakfast with him in the mornings and de-briefings at night when he gets back from work are special memory times for me.

Kettle USA

I cannot understand why one cannot pay with a VISA card for tolls in the US. In the country that gave us the credit card, one must still pay with cash at manually operated tolls. The US is an amazing country in my eyes, but some things remain a mystery to me. Like why is it so difficult to buy a kettle. It took me two hours, walking from one retailer to another until I found the last kettle in Philadelphia. How do you make tea without a kettle?

New York

Getting ready to board EK771 via Dubai to New York. No business planned - just traveling to be with family. Strange feeling compared to my previous life, but extremely satisfying and blessed to be able to do so.

Koos van der Merwe

Attended a Koos van der Merwe show at die ou Meul theatre in Paarl with Quintes and Rielle. It was special to just spend time with old friends. The rendition of Leonard Cohen songs by the artist was good, especially the last song: "Halleluja"

Blending

What fun we had with JP, Maritha, Johan and Christine at Spier. The evening was about a challenge to all the teams present: "using the basic building blocks of Shiraz, Mouvedre and Voignier, re-create the prize-winning Spier SMV blend". Our team did not win (or even got close, but we knew that our blend was even better than the original. It was an evening full of talk and laughter.

Tame Kwikkie

I love it when humans allow wild animals into their space. That is why I enjoyed it so much to see Jakes and Lorraine allowing a "Kwikkie" (Cape Wagtail; Motacilla capensis) to fly right into their house, strutting around on the counter until he got his crumbs.

Visit from New Zealand

It was such a blessing to see my cousin, Elda, all the way from New Zealand when she visited family in Cape Town. An added advantage was that we could also see her mom, tannie Suzie and sister, Lolita too. We talked about so many things as we enjoyed a South African braai.

Nina is three

Nina had her third birthday party today. The theme was princesses and all the little girls came in special dresses. As a father that never had daughters, it was a stunning experience to see a different kind of birthday party as a grandfather: make-up, decorating cupcakes and kissing a frog.

Old Alto

Sunday lunch was just me and Annelie at home. We cooked a shoulder of lamb in the Weber. I decided that the occasion was special enough for an old cab - so we opened a 1982 Alto Cabernet Sauvignon. Who said the South African wines can't age?

Robbery at Waterstone

One realizes how frail we are when you stumble on a crime scene where someone died. There was a robbery at our local Waterstone shopping center and it seems that a security guard was killed in the process. Heartbreaking for the family, but also generates strange feelings of fear and anger in oneself.

Slow market

The Slow Market happens every Saturday at Oude Libertas in Stellenbosch. It is a public marketplace where many vendors sell food and a few other things. We celebrated the wonderful weather by having lunch there. The fact that there were many of the local craft beer brewers present added to the pleasure.

Veritas

The Veritas wine awards are sought after accolades for South African wines. The Double Gold and Gold winners for 2014 were show-cased to the public at the CTICC. I first tasted the Chardonnays with Annelie and then sampled some of the Rhone-type blends and rare cultivars. There were some impressive wines, but the evening was made special because we could share it with the Hofmeyrs and also for bumping into other friends, like Trompie.

Swallow migration

A pair of swallows have built a nest under the porch at our front door. The couple left on their migration during February, probably flying all the way to Spain for the summer on the Mediterranean. Today I noticed that they were back, perching on the wooden veranda over the front stoep. Such a jet-setting life-style.