General

Rondebosch Craft Market

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Craft Market in a park
The craft market in Rodebosch Park (map) runs every second Saturday of each month between 9am and 2pm. Crafters pay a small fee and take along a table, perhaps a gazebo, and a battery of crafts.

Given the size of the park we anticipated a huge number of craft tables and were a little disappointed to find only a small group of crafters - perhaps between 30 and 35. That said, even though we were disappointed that the market wasn't larger we found that several of the stands had beautiful and very well-made products.

If you do like arts and crafts or if you need more jewellery or painted artwork, you'll find a few great items here. So, on the next second Saturday, pack in a little cash and make a turn at Rondebosch Park - you're sure to enjoy it.

Stellenbosch content conference

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Stellenbosch Streets
Kerry-Anne will be hosting CS Forum 2012 later this month in the lovely town of Stellenbosch. Well, not in the town, rather at well-known Spier Estate, which is about 5 minutes' drive out into wine country.

If your line of work involves content governance, management, or production, or if you're interested in what industry leaders have to say about user experience and design, then make use of the 10% discount code for CTDP readers (see below for details). Come along and listen to talks presented by Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Opera, and even the Western Cape government! :)

CS Forum 2012 takes place at Spier Estate in Stellenbosch, from 24 to 26 October, so there's still time to get your tickets. Find out all about the speakers, the talks, the workshops, the sponsorship opportunities, and the parties at csforum2012.com. Cape Town Daily Photo readers can get a 10% discount on their conference tickets, by using the discount code CTDP10 when registering.

An unusual spot for a garden chair

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An unusual spot for a garden chair
I found this chair carefully positioned among these Agapanthus plants at one of the Stellenbosch University student residences. Perhaps this residence is where all the art and sculpture students live. :)

Lady Peculiar

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Lady Peculiar
Lady Peculiar was closed when I walked past, so I wasn't able to inspect their wares, but, a quick browse of their site suggests that it's a place that I should rather not take Kerry-Anne to visit. :)

They seem to have quite a variety of beautiful accessories. While they don't appear to list prices on their website, I'm going to hazard a guess that they're not particularly cheap, though probably not unaffordable. Perhaps pay them a visit next time you're in Stellenbosch.

Toilet paper and black bags

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Toilet paper and black bags
Well no, I'm not trying to sell toilet paper or black bags. I noticed this sign pasted on the back of a road sign and wondered to myself whether tourists, visitors to Cape Town, are ever confused by signs like this.

In case it's not obvious, the owner of that phone number sells refuse bags and toilet paper - at a reduced price, and often of inferior quality (though not always so). Everybody's trying to earn extra money, so people find ways to undercut regular retailers and sell directly to the public.

Gargantuan gutters

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Gargantuan gutters
The roads of Stellenbosch have serious gutters. This one isn't even the deepest - some gutters are more like canals with fairly decent streams of water flowing along their length. Try not to run your car off into one of those babies - it won't be pleasant. :)

Spring flowers

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Spring flowers
It is spring, and while we're still having rainy days, this has to be the best time of the year for wandering around in Stellenbosch. The manicured gardens with their large green lawns and bright colourful flowers are especially beautiful at this time of the year.

The leafy Andringa Road in Stellenbosch

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The leafy Andringa Road in Stellenbosch
The old buildings, tree-lined streets, and plethora of restaurants and coffee shops make Andringa Road (map), and its surrounding areas, a great place to have an early morning photo walk. Grab a friend and try it some time. :)

Harmonie – a student residence in Stellenbosch

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Harmonie - a student residence in Stellenbosch
The student's of Stellenbosch University are privileged to have what may be the most beautiful surroundings in which to live and study. Besides for the town being lovely, the university complex and student residences have large manicured lawns, huge trees, plenty of flowers, and old buildings filled with decades of history.

This particular building, named Harmonie (an Afrikaans word meaning "Harmony"), is a woman's residence filled with about 160 young students. The building was built in 1905 - which (if I recall correctly from a brief history lesson given by one of its beautiful occupants) is the oldest in Stellenbosch.

A friend and I spent some time taking photos here - it was quite beautiful and peaceful - a place that lends itself to a relaxing atmosphere, perfect for studying and daydreaming about the future.

If you're into Content Strategy, UX, or even strategic marketing, then be sure not to miss Content Strategy Forum 2012 that Kerry-Anne will be hosting at the Spier estate in Stellenbosch from 24 to 26 October 2012.

Good sushi in Cape Town’s Long Street

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A new sushi spot in Cape Town
If in the past you've been a great fan of Sawadee (that little restaurant just off Kloof Nek Road) then perhaps you'll be pleased to know that their sushi chef has move and opened a restaurant lower down on Long Street, where it intersects with the brick-paved Waterkant Street (map).

We met up with a friend at Phad Thai on Saturday evening. The sushi was as great as it had been at Sawadee, and the restaurant wasn't as noisy or crowded as I believe it can be during lunch hours.

It's not a pretentious restaurant by any means - the décor is modest, and there's no need to haul out your best Levis, or most plush dress. If you've never been, you'd probably do yourself a favour to visit pay Phad Thai a visit for a late lunch or early dinner.

Stellenbosch mountains from Asara

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Stellenbosch mountains from Asara
Isn't the view just gorgeous? I'd never visited the Asara Hotel and Wine Estate before, and had no idea of the view that they're privileged have. I can imagine that having a picnic on the banks of this little dam while taking in the scenery must pretty much be one of the best ways to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Asara is a little way out of Stellenbosch, and fairly close to the Spier Estate where Kerry-Anne will be hosting the 2012 Content Strategy Forum towards the end of next month. It's proximity to Spier and that Trip Advisor currently ranks Asara number 2 out of 18 hotels in Stellenbosch probably makes it a great alternative hotel. I wonder if the view has something to do with that? :)

Sparkling reeds

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Sparkling reeds
The sparkling light through the reeds is really beautiful, don't you think? Isn't it a shame that our eyes don't capture light quite like this? True, our eyes to a better and more useful job, but I'm sure you can't deny that a camera's limitations and properties often do produce awesome effects.

The geese know something

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The geese know something
I find geese are a little creepy, to be honest. It's almost like they know something that I don't, and that they are just that bit more vicious than I expect.

These ones came a-charging, fully expecting to be handed loaves of bread on silver platters. It did not happen.

Dams of Durbanville

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Dams of Durbanville
One of the cool things about living in Durbanville is the number of open spaces, and more specifically the number of open spaces with beautiful little dams. We discovered this pond (with ducks and huge white geese) right about over here.

Silver Surfer

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Silver Surfer
This is the figurine that I found hanging from the rear-view mirror of the Kombi in my last two photos. When originally spying the Kombi I had a pretty good idea that it had to be a surfer's ride - and this pretty much confirms it. :)

The good old Kombi

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The good old Kombi
Remember these old VW Kombi's? Can you imagine how many things this one has seen, and how many stories this one could tell? It sure looks like it has a long history of memories attached to the neglected paintwork, rusty spots, and worn-out interior. :)

See the city

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City Sight Seeing bus
This is an awesome way to see the city - provided it's not too windy, and not too rainy. In fact, the optimal weather is sunny and windless - that way you're able to enjoy the hop-off spots to their full.

The bus leaves from the V&A Waterfront, just outside the aquarium. As you can see from the front of the bus, this is the "Blue Mini Peninsula Tour" which basically traverses the city, takes a drive over Kloof Nek, down to Camps Bay, and along the coast back towards Sea Point, ending back where you started at the V&A Waterfront.

Do this trip if you have half a day available of if you'd prefer to spend a long time at hop-off spots - you're sure to enjoy it. As an alternative you could take the day-long tour that goes via Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, over to Hout Bay, and back along the coast past Camps Bay, Sea Point, also returning to the V&A Waterfront.

In close proximity

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Kloof Nek Road and Table Mountain
I'm guessing that it's probably quite a marvel to many visitors that we have a huge mountain in such close proximity to the city. It's somewhat of a marvel to me on clear days like this too! I guess you could possibly then understand why we have such a fixation with Table Mountain.

Breakfast in Cape Town

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Breakfast in Cape Town
Given the number of times I've written something about Beleza, you'd swear they're paying me. Alas no, not even a discounted cup of coffee. :) For some reason I've grown to really like this restaurant as a breakfast venue. It's something about the atmosphere, I think.

Hip Hop fashion

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HIp Hop fashion
Hip Hop is a popular fashion brand in South Africa - they make awesome dresses! Seeing this sign reminded me of a year or two ago when Kerry-Anne won a prize - a custom-designed and fitted ball gown by Hip Hop. Unfortunately, even though they got the advertising mileage, Hip Hop never actually gave Kerry-Anne that dress... which sucked quite some, I'm sure you'll agree. :(