AND SO ON ....

You know when it’s just not your day !!

After skulking off to our room at the Hotel Safari (or rather sulking off to our room) after our Namibian plans got stalwarted .. We decided to relax and give it another go later in the afternoon. I started working on my blog and my husband watched the rugby. The first indication that something was wrong was when he got up to get dressed and skied across the room like a champion only to fall flat on his butt ... in 8 inches of water !! There had been an accident with a water tank two rooms down from ours and the rooms and corridors were ankle deep !

Immediate evacuation with a huge amount of action and noise from the Hotel staff and Management – and we are now in another room which I have to say is much nicer than the one we were in originally ..

EXASPERATED EXPLORING

Always on the lookout for a good adventure (well, I am anyway), my husband and I decided to make a weekend out of a business trip I had to make to Windhoek. Armed with nothing more than a general idea that we could have some lovely German Food and perhaps see a little more of another country we set out on Friday evening and landed in Windhoek. Let me stop anyone thinking of engaging in something like this right now – certainly if you are thinking of heading for Namibia.For a country that is a Tourist Mecca, where every second advert from the minute you arrive in the customs hall advertises tempting tourists experiences, to the never ending flow of safari vehicles and tourists – the locals are appallingly informed about their own country and in fact their own city. They are delightfully free with as much information you could wish for – all of it WRONG !!

Never arrive here unless you have everything completely tied up and pre- booked.

• Do not try and fly to Swakopmund over a weekend – there are no flights!!

• Do not try and drive to Swakopmund ( a three hour journey) over a weekend as no one will hire you a car in case you steal it – something the Avis Lady was very happy to tell us when we enquired. Why you only want to steal one of their cars on a Saturday or a Sunday is a mystery to me.

• Do not try and catch a shuttle to Swakopmund over a weekend – the tourist information bureau where you book the tickets is closed and no one can give you any information other than it goes and comes back – Oh yes and it left three minutes ago and we think they are still in the area but they are not answering their cell phone and the number on their flyer is obsolete

• Do not ask any hotel receptionist to help you do anything than actually check you into the Hotel – they are willing and polite but have no idea where anything is, what time anything opens or how to get there

• Do not ask a Hotel receptionist to book you on a local guided tour of anything – mountains, cheetah feeding etc – even though the brochure is on their desk in the Hotel. In fact don’t even open a brochure, the information is completely obscure and times are all incorrect – Yes we can take you on a game drive but you have to sit at the Farm restaurant for three hours before the game drive actually leaves – Why exactly ???

• Do not book a tour to a game farm - you have to pay a fortune for the transfer to get you there and then have to pay a double fortune for the tour itself – something they all forget to mention (along with the three hour wait ...)

• Do not try and find a German Restaurant unless you know its name – no amount of frustrated web research can discover where these hidden jewels are, despite the fact they are mentioned in every guide book, brochure and local literature. Apparently on the Dining Out Website there are only four restaurants in the whole of Windhoek (not so)

In a fit of frustration we fell into the lovely Zoo Restaurant situated in the immaculately maintained gardens in the City Centre to revive ourselves with a cup of tea (The English recommend this when things get tough) and the Russian owner summed it up in one “Welcome to Disney Land “

Oh well – tomorrows’ another day!

WE ARE SAILING ....

Sometimes my job has some great perks (the emphasis here is on “sometimes”) and this past week has been one of them. Dear friends of ours have just refurbished their houseboat and we were invited on The Phillipa’s maiden voyage (sans refurb) to check out all the facilities and see what still needed to be tweaked. Now, I sell houseboats all the time, big, small, expensive, and not so expensive but I had never been on one or even been near one, so this was an ideal opportunity to work out what all the hype was about– and I have to tell you – I am a total convert – I just LOVED it !!

All in the name of work, meant we had to spend a week on Lake Kariba, sailing around the Matusadonna shoreline, game viewing, eating, fishing, eating, sleeping, reading, drinking and eating – so you can see why it was so tough.


The Phillipa is a lovely spacious boat with four gorgeous cabins with all the trimmings on the bottom deck and ample space on the deck above for a bar, lounge and dining area, plus a lot of space for sleeping if the cabins became too hot. The top deck is not glassed in or air-con’d but looking at the other boats we passed, this was an advantage in the end as we appeared to have a lot more space to just chill out. Fully crewed, cold beers and three tender-boats to take out the insatiable fisher-people (I never got off the houseboat) was just the most ideal way to have a wonderfully relaxing holiday and I really hope I get a chance to do this again – often ...


Glorious food, outstanding company, good fishing even if Karen Hodgson dropped the biggest fish of the week overboard when she tried to show me (I somehow got the blame for that one?)


Just another day in Africa!

Contact Co-ordinating Zimbabwe cozim@coz.co.zw for reservations

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TIFF

Tiffany, Dayne’s gorgeous girlfriend has finally turned 21 and

they came down from Victoria Falls to celebrate the occassion with family and friends. Dayne wanted to surprise her with a lovely special evening and tasked me with the job of finding the right venue for classy drinks and snacks. Now for a town with a restaurant, coffee shop or cafe on every corner (I am not exaggerating here) this turned out to be surprisingly difficult. For a small evening celebration there are not a lot of places that are either small enough to feel comfortable or open in the evening.

However the lovely Pembroke Place stepped up to the plate and really did us proud.

I have to point out that Pembroke Place is not the actual name of the restaurant, but since its opening, over a year ago, if you talk about “going to Pembroke Place” everyone knows you mean the restaurant and the actual name has blended into the background and even I don’t know what it’s called.. Anyway Sam Webster and her husband Dean (owner, manager, chef and waiter), have managed to pull a rabbit out of the hat when it comes to catering. The setting is stunning. A huge – and I mean huge – granite kopje dominates the restaurant with beautiful gardens, shady trees and emerald green lawns – a definite plus in water-rationed Bulawayo.

Set up on the veranda, Sam sent out platters of snacks – miniature cheesies, baby burgers (Dean’s secret recipe) and crispy potato wedges – piquant dips, olives and feta cheese and traditional biltong – and lots of it !! Drinks served from the bar kept the party going and even though we departed at a decent hour, I am told the youngsters kept it going until the wee hours. Even after all that, Sam arrived at work the next morning looking as fresh as a daisy and ready for another busy day in the kitchen.

This is one couple who deserve to make a success of their business and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this venue for anyone looking for a special event big or small.



Where Did All That Salt Come From?

My latest policy has been that it doesn’t matter what or where the Conference Hotel is located, I will book in there whenever I go away on business. This is a result of many hours of frustration trying to find my way to various locations.


Take this morning for instance – armed with a map, excellent directions and a “Garmin” I still managed to get lost for over an hour in a 1km radius from the Hyatt Hotel in Joburg. I have to thank the Parking Attendant for not going into panic mode as I sat there sobbing in his car park..

As a result, tonight it’s the Radisson Blu Hotel in Sandton. First glance is this is a block of concrete, set in the middle of a constant building site and further confused by the fact the reception is on the 13th Floor. It’s a bit too angular for my liking and being a closet si-fi addict, the warped mirrors, metal spheres and strange egg like objects outside the lifts, resemble props from a scene from the “V” series and I half expected them to crack open and goodness knows what to come out. I do realise the architectural fashonista’s will be shouting me down as an ignorant know-nothing from up North as I am sure this style is the height of “now”, but it’s not really my thing. Redeeming qualities were however their outstanding pillows which are a completely different size and the fact my television greeted me by name (I am not telling stories)

With the afternoon to spare and still in search of the ultimate experience, I headed for the Amani Spa in the hotel, for an Indian Head Massage. What a treat. Rozelle my beauty therapist was built like a sylph with the strength of a body builder – a total chill (so I thought). After my treatment she took me for a tour of the Spa and there is where I found The Salt Room. Now this is the ultimate restoration – mind and body. It is the first Salt Room in Africa (being a European concept) and the idea behind it is that as the room gently heats, it purifies the air and is wonderful for respiratory ailments, colds and flu, ear ache just to name a few – but more importantly has extreme relaxation properties. Well I wasn’t leaving without trying it and I have say, with thick white salt on the floor like sea sand and ionized salt walls with rows of purple lighting, you have to be forgiven for feeling like you had arrived in a mystical cavern far from home – well that was the whimsical thought I had before I fell asleep...

So it just goes to show, first impressions aren’t always right and the best surprises are often the ones that aren’t immediately obvious!


Radisson Blu Hotel, Sandton, Johannesburg - http://www.radissonblu.com/
Amani African Spas - http://www.amanispas.co.za/

When Luxury is a Luxury

I can’t help getting a little irritated these days by all the endless claims that everyone seems to make to be the “Most Luxurious” of everything and anything. What pity that this wonderfully expressive word has been bandied about with such carelessness that it now simply means something that is better than “nice, lovely or amazing”. What happened to the thrill of walking in somewhere and just standing there in jaw dropping awe and feeling the Luxury sweep right over you?

Actually, I think the right word here is “feeling” and once we have moved away from silk finishes and gilt taps, the new Luxury has got to be whatever you feel it to be and in most cases, it’s totally personal.

Take me for instance – I am constantly surrounded by people (most of whom I adore, some I enjoy and others I could do with less of). My days are spent like so many other people, dealing with people at home, in my office and the 50 beautiful girls at the school where I also teach Travel and Tourism. The phones, the conversations, emails, broadband, skype – even our parrot can talk. When I get a change to be “away” on my own, it is a total experience and one I really want to savour. I have to admit though that I want to do the savouring in beautiful surroundings, with all the trimmings and just the right music in the background and my ultimate Luxury would have to be that someone else had gone to the trouble of providing all that for me..

Right now as I write this article, I have Joshua waiting on me hand and foot – here’s a Cosmopolitan, good choice of dessert and what sort of tea would you like, we have quite a selection. No I have not died and gone to heaven, rather I am in the lap of Luxury and feeling it all the way. I am staying at the totally stunning Marion on Nichol which is like a tiny oasis in the middle of a raging city – Johannesburg. Nestled near Sandton, this 24 roomed Boutique Hotel of Distinction can really carry the description. It’s not the beautiful decor or the polished staff (all Hotel brochures wax lyrically about those), it’s all about the total feeling of pleasure that washes over you as you walk through the door and carries on right the way through to your “never-get-off-this-bed-out-of-this-bath, down to feeling completely pampered and cherished without even trying – now that, as far as I am concerned is total Luxury!!

And so I sit, the cool night air taking the edge off the city, orchids gently scenting the air, tasting every mouthful of my Apple and Pomegranate Tart served with Honey-Bush Ice Cream and Pomegranate Fluid Gel accompanied by Cinnamon Anglaise and a pot of white tea on the table, I realise that moments like this are very special and need to be appreciated for what they are –a complete privilege. Sincere compliments to the management and staff at the Marion for getting it so right..

The Marion on Nichol,
Crn Stirling & Hamilton Road, Hurlington, Johannesburg.
+011 783 7816 or 011 783 7239.
http://www.themarion.co.za/

ITS ALL ABOUT COMMUNICATION

Sitting here at 4 in the morning - (grumpy as the dogs woke me up at 1.00am and I havent been able to get back to sleep) is probably not the best time to update my blog, but what the hell I am awake anyway..

Its not often I have a real beef about Restaurants - I prefer subtle hints on what I personally think they could "tweek" but this week I had a bad run and have decided to be a little more direct.  26 on Park is one of my favourite places to go and when you have somewhere you just want to be, you are going to be put out when you cant get in.  Its obviously a lot of other peoples favourite place as well.  On Saturday morning we decided to head off there for one of their delicious breakfasts and when we got there at 09.55 we were unceremoniously hustled off the veranda as the kitchen was closing at 10 for a private function.  As I stomped back to the car I couldnt help wondering why they hadnt bothered to put a notice up at the gate rather than have us all plundering through the gardens before we were informed.

On Tuesday, the thought of their delicious lunch was hovering in my mind so we decided to give it another try - but this time the restaurant was packed .. great news for them .. bad news for us.  A very kind lady indicated that she was just waiting for her bill and we could have her table which was great, except there was nowhere to wait, no one to bring her the bill and no one to see if we were alright.  In fact no actually acknowledged us until 10 minuts later when we decided to stop standing there like storks and make another plan. 

Flicking through a copy of the latest MailBox I saw some lovely adverts for this restaurant - one of which was a bold block with their name - and underneither the caption "no words needed" - Sorry guys but I beg to differ.