We flew to Port Elizabeth (‘PE’) on Friday evening and experienced exceptional hospitality from Kiren & Phillipe, some of Pete’s friends from work. Kiren cooked us a delicious meal, which was a perfect starter to our short break- Thanks Kiren!
On Saturday morning the boys headed off to Pete’s work site (Port of Ngqura) to see the progress and get a better understanding of the project. We then commenced the road trip west across the garden route, a picturesque coastal line from Plettenberg Bay to Mossel Bay. Walskipper had been recommended to us for lunch and it did not disappoint. It was literally a rustic shack on the beach with the beach sand as the floor. We had a delicious seafood lunch at the restaurant which was less than 10m from the ocean.
The coast along the garden route reminded me a lot of the Victorian coastline. It was very rugged and windy at times with tall cliffs which would then contrast with km’s of sandy beaches where sheltered lagoons and estuaries meet the ocean. There is an imposing mountain range less than 1km from the oceans edge along the length of the Garden Route which splits the coast from the semi-desert Karoo. The mountain range offers stunning views for most accommodation providers which we took advantage of in Wilderness. With the weather being close to perfect we enjoyed walking from our hill top accommodation into the quaint town centre of Wilderness, strolling the endless white beaches, enjoying picnics & introducing Julie and Ian to braai’s!
On Sunday morning we woke with a view of a Southern Right Whale swimming in the shallow coastal waters (Jen felt right at home seeing Southern Right Whales also visit Warrnambool each year!). As we were later walking along the beach we found out that the beach was closed for swimming as a great white shark was seen roaming in the area!
We continued the road trip west to Franschhoek on Wednesday, a cute wine region that keeps drawing us back. Franschhoek claims to be the country’s gastronomic capital so we enjoyed delicious meals at Ruebens and also at Bread & Wine (both ranked top 10 restaurants in South Africa). Of course there was the obligatory visit to a few of the wine farms for some tastings and a customary stroll through the town center for some retail therapy. All very enjoyable.
Unfortunately it was then time for us to return to JHB for work on Wednesday. We left Ian and Julie in Cape Town to continue exploring the region and visit some family friends.
Coastline just west of PE
Ian, Julie & Jen with seafood platters
Scenery from Garden Route to Franschhoek
On Saturday morning the boys headed off to Pete’s work site (Port of Ngqura) to see the progress and get a better understanding of the project. We then commenced the road trip west across the garden route, a picturesque coastal line from Plettenberg Bay to Mossel Bay. Walskipper had been recommended to us for lunch and it did not disappoint. It was literally a rustic shack on the beach with the beach sand as the floor. We had a delicious seafood lunch at the restaurant which was less than 10m from the ocean.
The coast along the garden route reminded me a lot of the Victorian coastline. It was very rugged and windy at times with tall cliffs which would then contrast with km’s of sandy beaches where sheltered lagoons and estuaries meet the ocean. There is an imposing mountain range less than 1km from the oceans edge along the length of the Garden Route which splits the coast from the semi-desert Karoo. The mountain range offers stunning views for most accommodation providers which we took advantage of in Wilderness. With the weather being close to perfect we enjoyed walking from our hill top accommodation into the quaint town centre of Wilderness, strolling the endless white beaches, enjoying picnics & introducing Julie and Ian to braai’s!
On Sunday morning we woke with a view of a Southern Right Whale swimming in the shallow coastal waters (Jen felt right at home seeing Southern Right Whales also visit Warrnambool each year!). As we were later walking along the beach we found out that the beach was closed for swimming as a great white shark was seen roaming in the area!
We continued the road trip west to Franschhoek on Wednesday, a cute wine region that keeps drawing us back. Franschhoek claims to be the country’s gastronomic capital so we enjoyed delicious meals at Ruebens and also at Bread & Wine (both ranked top 10 restaurants in South Africa). Of course there was the obligatory visit to a few of the wine farms for some tastings and a customary stroll through the town center for some retail therapy. All very enjoyable.
Unfortunately it was then time for us to return to JHB for work on Wednesday. We left Ian and Julie in Cape Town to continue exploring the region and visit some family friends.
Coastline just west of PE The yummy Walskipper restaurant (pronounced 'Valskipper') for lunch
Ian, Julie & Jen with seafood platters
Wilderness beach
Pete at Knysna heads
Scenery from Garden Route to Franschhoek
Franschhoek
Winetasting at Boschendal... 5 wines tasted in unison!