This photo was kindly provided by Bennie Vivier, a colleague who's over the years taught me a lot of what I know about photography. His photos have often been an inspiration to me, and now you too can see why - click to see the large version. :)

This was until the then Minister of Health, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, banned smoking in public places. Restaurants have been forced to restrict smoking to a small percentage of the total floorspace, and these designated areas have to be properly sealed from the rest of the restaurant. Smoking has been banned from public transport, shopping malls, places of work... essentially all indoor and many outdoor public areas.

If there's one good thing that Madame Zuma did for us, it was to make South Africa a cleaner, less smokey country. Way-to-go Dr Zuma!

May I caution you however that if you're going to use a public wifi hotspot anywhere in the world that you do at least follow these 5 rules to safer public surfing:

1. If you're using Windows, always turn off "File and Printer Sharing". Not doing this could allow bad people to download files from your computer.

2. Make sure that you're using a proper firewall. If you're using Windows Firewall, I would consider installing a second higher-rated firewall like Sunbelt Personal Firewall, Comodo, or ZoneAlarm. Not doing this could similarly allow bad people to do all kinds of nasty things to your computer, including stealing your files.

3. Never allow your mail client (e.g. Outlook) to download your email unless you're absolutely sure that the client is doing so over a secure channel (which it generally is not). Not doing this would allow bad people to view your mail account's username and password.

4. Whenever using an Internet banking website, a facility like PayPal, or your webmail account, etc. always check the server certificate of the website to make sure that you're not seeing someone's fake website. They really look like the original - you cannot tell the difference just by looking at them.

5. Make sure that your computer's operating system is properly patched. For Windows users this means that Windows Update must be active and you must allow it to install patches. If you're a Linux user you're better off to start with, but don't be fooled, Linux is also vulnerable to attack - be sure to keep your OS patched.

Please feel free to leave a comment if you have any helpful tips for safer surfing when using open wifi.

The area is super-safe during the day, though I'd keep a wary eye open for suspicious-looking people at night. This said, I felt safe enough to whip out my camera and take a few photos of the deserted market area.

I understand that sometimes it's for their own good that some birds are kept in cages, but generally I'm not much into keeping a bird locked in a cage. I don't think I'd ever be able to keep a bird as a pet... unless of course it was an ostrich and I had a farm. ;)

My earliest memory of this particular weed is from my primary school days when we use to call them "surings" - an Afrikaans name that I've always believed was derived from the fact that they are sour to the taste. As school kids we used to munch on the stem of the "suring" flowers during lunch breaks, precisely because they were a little sour. Quite tasty in fact.

Just before you get the wrong idea - no, my mom packed in yummy chicken and mayo, peanut butter and syrup, or toasted cheese and tomato sandwiches every day. The "surings" were just a treat on the side. ;)

Click on the photo to see the enlarged version - isn't it an outstanding use for a discarded cupboard door?

Interestingly, Kerry-Anne just mentioned to me that it would have been her grandmother's 101st birthday today, had she still been alive - I didn't realise this when I chose this picture for today's post.

The slightly unusual angle of this photo hides the actual minuteness of this car: I don't think I'd actually manage to get in behind the wheel, let alone take the family out for a Sunday afternoon drive. :D

The Prickly Pear cactus was apparently introduced into South Africa about 300 years ago to act as a fence to protect farm animals from predators. This cactus was also used as a food source for people and animals and its shallow root system helped prevent soil erosion.

All of these facts aside, I just can't help thinking of John Wayne whenever I see this plant. Funny that.

Mark grew up in Durbanville, not very far away from where we now live - and Kerry-Anne in fact remembers him from a mathematics competition that they attended while in high school. Mark started his business in his parents' garage and within only a couple of years became one of South Africa's richest people - if not the richest.

Anyway, this photo made me think of him, because after making his billions he started a venture capital company in South Africa called HBD, or Here Be Dragons.

To quote HBD's website: "In ancient times, unexplored territories were marked 'Here Be Dragons' on maps and only the bravest of explorers dared venture there - often when they did, they discovered lush lands, rich with treasure and promise."

Next summer will be the first summer that we'll have in our new home, so we'll still have to wait and see how much water our densely populated garden needs to survive. It looks to me as though many of the plants are relatively water-wise, but not being very green-fingered, I'm not yet sure.

It's becoming more and more important for South Africans to have only indigenous plants in their gardens. Indigenous plants tend to use less water and cope better with the dehydrating effect of the African sun.

Rick's is a cosy little restaurant and the separate bar area with couches makes it the perfect place to pop in for drinks after dinner.

I'm not sure what the buffet of cake, sandwiches and little treats cost our friends but I'm sure it wasn't cheap. The assortment and quality of the food was 5-star, absolutely superb.

This pot of Earl Grey tea was delivered to me only moments before I took this photo. The teapot arrives containing only boiling water. Tea leaves are popped into a retractable glass container and an egg timer is set for three minutes. When ready, one removes the inner glass container and voila, a pot of freshly brewed tea is ready to be poured.

I can certainly recommend visiting the Mount Nelson for high tea. Only, may I suggest parking your car a couple of kilometres away so as to have the opportunity to work off the extra kilos you'll gain after the many visits to the buffet table? ;)

Born in rural Transkei 90 years ago Madiba rose to be a man affecting world change - he became a symbol of peace and an example of humility. Today we join with many others around the world to wish you a happy birthday and a peaceful next year.

Viva Nelson Mandela, viva!

I begged and pleaded, but Kerry-Anne just wouldn't let me have one, mumbling something about a rubber ball and a certain heirloom vase. No, I'm just kidding, of course. Seriously though, our cats really do enjoy these balls. We play throw and retrieve, just the way you'd play with your dog... it's too cute.

To answer the question in your mind: I'm not sure why I didn't just walk up to the car and read the badge... I'd have to guess that I'm just terribly unobservant and never even saw the badge at the time.

Update: Kerry-Anne apparently did walk up to the car to have a look at the badge, and she says she's pretty sure it was a Citroen.

The owners of these clothes must also have forgotten about the brightly-coloured laundry hanging out to dry. My mother-in-law pointed out that this washing has been hanging up for several days, getting wet every night and drying again during the sunny day.

Due to work pressures keeping us fenced in ;-) for the past two weeks, we've been struggling to post a new photo every 24 hours, and in fact, if you visit often, you'll have noticed that we missed posting for several days at a stretch. And, while we do catch up on each day missed, we realise that this breaks from the appeal of a daily photo blog.

But you can be sure that the trend of the past 500+ posts will be restored, and we'll soon be in a position to post a new photo every 24 hours again.

Thank you for understanding, and for coming back to see more of our beautiful city each day.

This photo was taken at the relatively new Berg River Dam in the Franschhoek area. Notice the snow on the mountains in the background? It's still darn cold in Cape Town!

It's exquisitely beautiful, nestled among rolling hills and mountains. Although restaurants tend to be a little on the expensive side, it's still very much worth a visit - and you'd do well to spend a night or two in one of the many guesthouses in the area too.

When visiting, take time to walk around and experience nature as well as to browse the little shops, art galleries, and especially the small (but very popular) chocolate shop in the main street.

Except for berets and the French colours of blue, white and red, we were sad to discover very little else French. Now it may sound like I'm complaining, and you'd be darn right... we're longing back to our 2006 visit to Brittany and Paris and thought that a visit to the Bastille Day celebrations would be just the right consolation.

Alas, it was not so... we didn't hear one "bonjour", not a single "merci beaucoup" either; and instead of crêpes the locals were serving up pancakes (and crêpes are quite decisively different to local pancakes).

Management - please put those pieces back, we want to play a game!

Today's photo is of one of the peaks in the Boland Mountain range. This mountain range is Cape Town's visual thermometer. When its peaks are white, it's freezing cold outside and generally a good idea to remain indoors.

Homes in and around Cape Town (and more so in informal settlements) are generally not very well equipped to deal with temperatures below about 10 degrees Celsius. Most homes don't have central heating, air conditioning or proper insulation. The energy crisis and rising cost of electricity in South Africa also makes many reluctant to switch on electricity-based forms of heating.

This has me wondering whether or not anybody has done a study to ascertain whether or not Cape Town has a mini baby-boom each year around April and May...

Now hail in Cape Town isn't quite comparable to the golfball-sized hail experienced north of the Western Cape. Our hail is far more delicate, never bigger than a pebble. Hail, for Capetonians, is merely a strange phenomenon that most people gather at windows to watch, as if in some kind of trance.

After two or three minutes the hail has ceased and is quickly forgotten.

Kerry-Anne had a business meeting this evening, so I dragged my laptop along and grabbed a seat at Arnold's, a popular restaurant in Kloof Street. I watched a movie (on my laptop) and drank Coke and a single whiskey until it was time to fetch my lady.

The waiters at Arnold's were surprisingly friendly and welcoming to someone who was there only to use their facilities and not to have a meal. They even sat me down at a table close to an electricity outlet.

If it's freezing cold outside and you're looking for a relaxed dinner, or conversation over drinks, consider Arnold's - service was quick, the staff were friendly and it was nice and toasty-warm inside.

And, if you need Internet access while visiting Cape Town, Arnold's has reasonably affordable (about R0.80/MB) wifi Internet access through their Skyrove hotspot.

PS. This photo was taken at Yum, not Arnolds... I left my camera at home! :(

You may recall that I mentioned a restaurant called Jamaica Me Crazy about a week or so ago. We were invited by friends to join them for the Monday night specials at Jamaica Me Crazy. Kerry-Anne and I both had their Barbados burgers: the patty was covered with two or three large pieces of bacon, cheese sauce and a pineapple ring, and was served with chips and battered onion rings. It was truly delectable.

See yesterday's post for more about what exactly we were doing in Vredehoek on Saturday afternoon.

Lisa recently left Cape Talk radio and is preparing for new adventures in her career. This flying damsel is hanging in Lisa's front lounge window, which overlooks the city bowl, Vredehoek and Table Bay. It's an exquisite view that lends itself to all kinds of creative thinking - which is precisely what a broadcaster and creative thinker desperately needs.

Thanks for the cake and tea, and here's wishing you well in this new phase, Lisa!

While eating I happened to notice that at least some of the art on the walls was for sale. It would appear as though artists use the restaurant to sell art. I guess that it's a nice way for the restaurant to keep changing its decor and for artists to sell a few pieces.

The restaurant has an casual bar area with an indoor fire burning to keep patrons warm and a separate non-smoking, slightly more formal area for finer dining. I say "finer" because although Yum isn't a traditional burgers and chips restaurant, their food isn't quite fine-dining either (in other words portions are big enough and the food tastes as good as it looks).

If you carefully review the decor on the walls you'll notice that Yum seems to have a cutlery theme going. They have old knives, forks and spoons (that you may recall your grandmother having) glued up on the walls.

Unless I find a particularly good photo to post for tomorrow, I'll show a photo of the very interesting teaspoon lampshades hanging from the restaurant's ceiling.