Author Archives: Paul

No sleighs on the beach, Santa!

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No slays on the beach Santa!
Santa's taking his post-Christmas holiday in Cape Town this year! I chatted to him for a while after this incident - apparently his argument was that there were no signs indicating that slays weren't allowed on the beach. A fair point, I guess.

Surfing Glen Beach

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Surfing Glen Beach
I'm no surfer, but it seemed like the waves at Glen Beach, next to Camps Bay Beach, were large enough to surf, but not too large to terrify newbies learning to ride a wave. You'd definitely need a wet suit on this coast, but the conditions at Glen Beach looked pretty good for those learning.

Surfer’s admiration

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Surfer's admiration
I met these two women, visitors from the Netherlands, on Glen Beach. They seemed to have captured the firm attention of the small crew of guys fresh from their early-evening surfing. :)

The green grass of Maiden’s Cove

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The green grass of Maiden's Cove
I don't think I've ever wandered down to Maiden's Cove... I never even realised that they have this green lawn and beautiful view of the Twelve Apostles and Camps Bay. Isn't it spectacular? Unfortunately, I have an idea that this grassy lawn is overrun with picnic-goers during the summer months - so it's probably not quite idyllic before 18h45 (when I took this photo).

Cloudy Lion from Maiden’s Cove

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Cloudy Lion from Maiden's Cove
Yep, that's my shadow at the bottom, and that's Lion's Head to the left. :-P The clouds look really low from this angle don't you think? Or, perhaps it's just that Lion's Head is higher above sea level than we realise. ;)

Fluffy ‘n white

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Fluffy 'n white
Believe it or not, but this cat was spotted watching the sun set (like, really watching the sun set) from high up above Glen Beach. It sat there for absolute ages just overlooking the ocean. I eventually left it there, still watching as the sun sank over the horizon.

Just one more Lego piece

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Just one more Lego piece
This piece in Nathan Sawaya's collection was pretty much life-size. The lighting in the Waterfront venue was pretty amazing (although, I could have kicked myself for not bringing my off-camera flash along).

OMG, deep fried oreos!

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OMG, deep fried oreos!
Who thinks up this stuff?! Oh, the Americans. Right. I should have guessed. :) Hudsons sells these for R25 (for all four oreos), which is pretty much a bargain for any dessert. They were pretty damn good and the only recommendation I have is to order it with a small bowl of vanilla ice cream.

A busy smelly Clifton 4th

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A busy smelly Clifton 4th
I felt a little bad for first-time visitors to Clifton 4th. It's normally such a pristine beach, but ocean tides were unkind to us and an unusually-large mass of smelly kelp had washed up onto shore.

Even though many were, there was no freegin' way I was getting into that water. I only managed to stay around for half an hour before I decided that it really wasn't fun on that overly-hot, massively-crowded, somewhat-smelly beach. :(

I shall return another day. When the kelp has left our shores. :)

Clifton at peak tourist season

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Clifton at peak tourist season
Phew - lots of people hey?! We really love tourists visiting Cape Town. It's fantastic for our economy and, well, the divergent cultures and beautiful people that descend on our little city over this time is spectacularly interesting. It's a pleasure having you!

It is however sad that most tourists never get to see the calm, relaxed, and quiet beaches of Clifton and Camps Bay. I often wonder to myself if crowded and busy beaches are as all they know. It's a shame, because these beaches are spectacular from late February through to April and even May. Next time you visit Cape Town - consider coming a little later in the new year - I pretty much guarantee you'll enjoy it more than the Christmas/New Year period. :)