If not for Blip

What a great day! And all thanks to Blip. If it wasn’t for Blip, we would not have met Sheila (sheilwill). If we hadn’t met Sheila, we would not have met her cousin Robbie from South Africa. If we hadn’t met Robbie, we would not have had the most brilliant guided tour of parts of Cape Town and its surroundings.
 
This wonderful guide (see extra) met us at the hotel and took us on a tour of the coast around the hotel – stunning beaches. Then we headed inland into the Winelands and to Franschhoek (French Corner). Here we wandered along the lovely main street and to the Huguenot Memorial Monument. Then we set off in search of lunch and stopped at a wine estate, Backsberg, where we had the most delicious lunch - fresh food, freshly made and served beautifully in a peaceful, sunny courtyard. Eating outside in the sun in January! And I bought some wine, of course. Thanks Robbie for a wonderful day.
 
As we returned to Cape Town a strong wind was blowing and we found the sky above the bay where our hotel is full of brightly covered kites. Apparently this is a very popular centre for kite surfing and there were so many surfers on the beach and more just arriving. I can see the kites now from the room balcony. I went down to take pictures, but could only walk one way, as the wind was so strong it was blowing the sand at speed. In the picture you can see just a few of the many surfers, with the backdrop of Table Mountain, still with the cloud above (the tablecloth, as it is known locally). The mountain and city are covered in blown dust, so although it was a bright, clear day, it appears hazy. This was a hastily taken picture trying to avoid getting sand in the lens, or in my eyes. The blurring on the top of the sand, is sand blowing along the beach.