Watching Cricket History

Me and Ernst woke at 02h00 this morning to watch South Africa make cricket history by winning a series against Australia in Australia. We joined a few other cricket fanatics who saw the event live at the community hall at MeerenBosch. This is a moment I will cherish for a long time.

The beauty of Sandown Bay

Me and Annelie went for a walk on the beach close to MeerenBosch today. It was a brilliantly beautiful day. The lagoon was crystal clear and the air was fresh. We are so fortunate to live close to such a paradise.

Adri's narrow escape

We had dinner at the holiday home of Lwellyn tonight. During the process, the electricity supply was cut and we had to complete the dinner under candle light. In an attempt to create more light, Adri was burnt by an accident with liquid gas - fortunately not too seriously. This is him at the dinner table nursing some of the burns with an icepack. We were so thankful that he turned out to be fine.

MBA in the swimmingpool

One thing that cannot be said about Ernst, is that he lacks dedication to make a success of everything he tackles. He was even studying in the swimmingpool on Xmas day. Judging from the yawn, it was hard work though.

Christmas lunch

We had a wonderful Xmas lunch at Ernst and Catherine's house today. We enjoyed a feast of salads, chicken and desert. What was especially nice was the thoughts about 2008 and our hopes for 2009 that we shared.

My sons at MeerenBosch

Now that I am back in South Africa, we spent some time at MeerenBosch - my holiday cabin close to Hermanus. My sons and daughter-in-law ere also there and we roasted a Snoek (a special South African fish) on an open fire, while hearing the sea-waves break in the background and seeing the dusk arrive as the sun sets. We had the Snoek with a salad and homemade bread. I opened a stunning Elgin Viognier and I knew that God's blessings are more than I can fathom.

Boarding for Cape Town

I am on my way back from India, boarding Emirates Flight EK770 for Cape Town. I managed to get a quick shower at the Emirates lounge and check for e-mail before I had to board. The last score of the Protea match in Perth is that we still needed 117 runs with seven wickets in hand. If everything goes according to plan, I will see my family in ten hours.

Rooftop Dinner

We had an amazing dinner on the roof of one of the buildings in Pune. During the past few days, Richard (on the left in the picture) and me tasted many different Indian dishes, but this meal was special in as far as the food were concerned.

Amity University in Delhi

Me and Richard visited a tech start-up with a small office in the University Incubator. We thought that the trip there was eventful, but didn't know what was waiting for us. (Two-and-a-half hours in dense traffic!). Nevertheless, the outing was extremely beneficial. We learned a lot and it helped us to develop our strategy for Fundamo.

Lighting a ceremonial candle

I was asked to light a ceremonial candle at one of the companies that we visited in Bangalore. It felt a bit strange but I obliged. On my way to the meeting, I asked the driver to allow me to drive the car as I always wanted to feel what it was like to drive in the heavy Indian traffic. It actually turned out to be quite easy. The other drivers were quite patient and accommodating and the traffic moved quite slow.

Leela Palace

Arrived in Bangalore today after a long journey from Cape Town. We are evaluating the possibility of off-sourcing some of our development work to India and was booked into this amazing hotel (the hotel has been rated as the best business hotel in the world). I must say that I have rarely been exposed to such customer care. Staff at the hotel are so keen to help that you sometimes feel like saying: "Just leave me alone!". I have never seen a room cleaned to this degree. When I return after the first day, everything was absolutely perfect - even the toothbrush and soap was perfectly aligned.

Celebrating Quintes' Graduation

My friend Quintes graduated yesterday. He successfully completed his PhD degree and can now officially refer to himself as "Doctor". We celebrated this milestone at his home tonight with some of his friends. It was a joyful experience, but also in a way solemn because we also thanked the Lord for all His blessings in our life - for having Quintes as a friend and for the talents to experience the different dimensions of our friendship (from philosophy and religion, to music and food and wine).

Fundamo Mexican Boatrace

The Fundamo social committee arranged a Mexican Boatrace event at the offices this afternoon. I had a chance to talk to the staff about a great 2008 and what we expect of 2009. The committee had a guy making cocktails and the event culminated with a race across the swimmingpool in various homemade "ships".

Wedding Anniversary

After arriving back from the US, I had time to celebrate our wedding anniversary in style. We had an amazing dinner (yet expensive) at Asara. The setting is just so special overlooking a dam and the Stellenbosch mountains in the backdrop. We watched as the sun set, the vineyards initially bright green merging into the night as the moon arrived. Me and Annelie shared the Chateaubriand (perfectly cooked) with a bottle of the acclaimed Bell Tower. It was a celebration of knowing each other more than thirty years, of tough times, but also of so many wonderful times.

Pink Sun

The sun was pink tonight at home. It was because of the bushfires in the mountains above Gorden's Bay. As we were having our dinner Annelie exclaimed: "Look at the sun!", and I was just so glad to be home...

Leaving on a Jetplane

This is a empty restaurant at JFK. I had a final lunch here before boarding for Dulles and then South Africa. As I sat down, I had some time to review the few days that I had in the US. A few things struck me:

• I did not know that so many Xmas songs exist. Even as I sit at this desk, I am listening to Xmas songs. Since I arrived, this is the only music that I heard. Is this common? Will they keep on playing these songs till the 25th? Believe me, it will drive me crazy.

• The US was built on steel: Steel bridges, steel structures, - but the steel is busy rusting. I have seen rust everywhere. The airports and the hotels that I visited all just felt so tired. (It is in stark contrast with places like Dubai and Singapore that I recently visited).
• The economy is down - I mean really down - in a bad way down. Take this restaurant: empty... I have asked retailers and in general conversation, I have noticed that the consumer is tired, and scared. They have been asked to kick-start the economy with their spending previously. I don't think they are going to do it again.
• Customer service does not exist anymore. In the country where terms like "customer centric" and "delighting the customer" was invented, I see very little of that practiced. Maybe it is because of the general atmosphere, but the customer service people are just not doing it.

Miami from my Hotel Room

I have just finished all the meetings for the week in the US. The week was very productive and I am professionally satisfied. I am starting the long trek back home tomorrow, but am actually quite sad tonight: I am married 28 years with my lady tomorrow (or today, because it is already Saturday in South Africa) and I am so far away from her. It would have been so special if I could share the sunset in Florida with her, but now I am alone...

Back to JFK

Having finished my meeting in White Plains, I am now on the way back to the hotel next to JFK. I am planning to leave for Miami very early in the morning, so I decided to stay close to the airport. I have rented a Avis car and am being navigated back to the hotel. I am listening to a radio station that is playing Xmas music all the time - nothing else! This is America.

Video conference facility

I had this meeting with a potential partner in New York where one of the team joined us from their office in San Fransisco. I have been in Video Conference meetings before, but this experience blew my mind. Three High Definition screens and multiple very high quality speakers created a virtual extension of the table that we were sitting at. It almost felt as if the other person was in the room with us. I have seen the future of remote meetings!

Ernst birthday braai

Ernst 26th birthday is on the 1st December. He invited me and Annelie to his new house for a braai with many of his friends to celebrate. We gave him a wheelbarrow (and a case of beer) for his birthday and enjoyed the day with the young people.

Die Burger Race

I had a good ride on Sunday, completing the 98km Burger cycle race in 3:50. This was a much improved performance for me, but more important, I had such a good time. This race is a seeding race for the Argus and I improved my seeding index from 65 to 44, which mean that I am now in the R group (I used to be in the U group).