Italian cuisine in London

I met Matt for a beer on Wednesday. Afterwards we walked into a small Italian restaurant for dinner. Turns out that the owner is a famous Turin chef; Nicola Batavia trying to establish himself in London. We asked him to impress us and he did. Five courses and an excellent Barolo later, we were convinced that he must be famous.

Guildhall conference

I have attended many conferences in many spectacular places, but the venue for the Financial Revolution in Africa conference was like nothing I have seen before. Hosted by the Foreign Policy Centre of the UK government, it was held in the Old Library at the Guildhall. Old lead-glass windows, stone sculptures and ancient artifacts on display, amplified the great English heritage. It almost felt like one should whisper so as not to disturb the solemn character.

Wine-tasting in the Nuy Valley

The weekend was spent in the Nuy Valley close to Paarl. The rich history of the environment is reflected on murals painted by a Russian artist at the Leipzig guesthouse we stayed at. During the weekend we had a snoek dinner, floated down the Breede river on a river boat and got an olive oil education. It was the wine, however, that were the stars of the occasion. We found the blended wines from Alvi's Drift and the luscious red wines from the Conradie family vineyards really special.

Lunch at Vrede en Lust

Me and Annelie took some time off on Friday to hunt for single-cultivar rare wines. We ended up at the Buys's wine farm close to Paarl, found an interesting Malbec and ended up having a nice lunch and local glass of wine at the deli.

People with a mission

We live in a terrible world where human's value and worth is often measured by how much we earn or our nett worth. We often miss the wonderful contribution people make because they are just brilliant at what they do. This is why I love my work so much; I constantly am exposed to amazing people with great ideas that do things because they love doing it. I had such a workshop today with JB, Martin and Cedric. We should change our values to celebrate this, rather than monetary indicators.

Muratie sunset

Muratie wine estate is one of the older estates close to Stellenbosch. The old buildings and the tall trees tells a story of many generations. We attended the 10th Art Auction of the Marie Stander art school to support the needs of schools in the area, recently. As we sipped local wine and enjoyed the live music, we saw the sun set through the trees, throwing strange shadows on the white buildings. The auction raised a lot of money for a worthy cause.

Umami surprise

Me and Annelie went to the early movies in Stellenbosch on Saturday and then had dinner at Umami's on the spur of the moment. We were pleasantly surprised with South African flavours served with an international flair; like the Malay-spiced risotto and the de-boned chicken wrapped in bacon and served with mushrooms. This was more enjoyable because of the wide selection of quality wines served by the glass.

Old Indaba Hotel magic

I stayed one night at the old Indaba Hotel close to Fourways as I was scheduled to give a talk at the Mobile Banking conference there in the morning. I still remembered when this hotel was some distance out of town. Yet it still retained its charm as a country hotel and the quality of the cuisine and the thinking behind the winelist for dinner impressed me.

Painful Fifth Argus

It was a hard Argus to finish this year for me. I learned that one must spend sufficient hours in the saddle, and not just depend on talent and guts to complete a 110 km race - especially if you don't have much talent. The perfect weather helped me to start well; but when I got to Soetwater, I realised that it is now only a question of survival.

Sunrise in Singapore

The alarm tore me out of a deep sleep. I walked over to the windows of my room on the 44th floor in the new Marina Bay Sands Hotel. The sun was just above the horizon over the Singapore sea. It created strange silhouettes against the ships waiting to enter the port. In a way it was startlingly beautiful.

The shopping never stops

I landed in Dubai for a quick transit to Singapore and was stuck by an impression of a city that never sleeps. Even though it was three in the morning, there was a lot of activity with shops trading, food being served and people standing in queues. This is a huge city with lots of people, that throbs 24x7, but no permanent residents.

Izak visits from Boston

It was a special treat to have Izak with us for a few days. He is in Cape Town to attend a conference and I managed to see him for 36 hours as I transit from Barcelona to Singapore. We had a family lunch under the African sun with Ernst and Catherine on Saturday. Me and Annelie really felt the unmeasurable blessings as we spent time with our children.

Fundamo in Hall One

It was very special to me to see the Fundamo logo in Hall 1 at the Mobile World Congress this year. The logo was proudly displayed on the Visa booth. Fundamo staff and products have integrated well with Visa and it was clear that it is now more formidable in mobile payments.

Seafood spread at El Nou

Me, Bill and Matt had a feast at El Nou in the Barceloneta. We were spoiled with shellfish, crabs, lobsters and other things out of the ocean. We broke common wisdom and enjoyed it with a couple of bottles of Ribera del Duoro red. I enjoyed the food, the setting and the company tremendously.

The madness has started

I picked up my access badge to the biggest business show in the world: Mobile World Congress Barcelona today. With 75 000 attendees and huge halls full of exhibitions it is something spectacular to behold. The week will be full of announcements, new product releases, panel sessions and meetings. It is likely that I will see old friends and meet lots of new ones. I will be busy from early till late after business dinners each night; the madness has started.

Movies at 30 000 ft

Watching a movie is about the only thing that one can do during a meal on a plane. Reading is too difficult and striking up a conversation with a total stranger just doesn't work. So I watched Ides of March on the flight to London, sipping a second growth Medoc and it struck me how one has an opportunity to consider the implications and themes of a movie up in the air: in this case the balance between ethics and power.

At the top of Chapman's Peak

The club had a great ride on a part of the Argus route today. We cycled up Smitswinkel and Chapman's Peak in perfect weather. As I came round the corner out of Noordhoek and the Hout Bay vista opened up in front of me, I once again realised how fortunate I am to live in the most beautiful Cape.

Lamb ribs and Merlot

f asked what food I like best, I would probably settle on lamb ribs slowly barbecued on the coals only salted with nothing else on it. This should be accompanied by a great Merlot. We did just that this week (the Merlot being from a small Tulbach wine-maker; Manleys). Food for kings.

The Fundamo garden

Gardens do add a special quality to a work environment. I think it is the break in structure that makes the difference. Not having to constantly sit in a cubicle or meet around a table looking at a screen is definitely conducive to certain types if meetings. We are blessed at Fundamo with a lovely garden and teams make use of it; sometimes even having a meeting sitting on the lawns under the shade of the trees.

Lunch at La Pineta with Peter

There is something special to catch up with old friends. We managed to find time to enjoy the cuisine at La Pineta with Peter and his new friend, Michele, today. The food, the wine and the setting was brilliant, but what made the day special was to reminiscence about our work at Sanlam, trips into Mozambique, attending the Moody Blues concert and drinking too much on a trip to the Wild coast.