Cape that! - Ginger and LimeCape that! Trek, walk, bike, ride, drive, climb through South Africa’s Mother City, Cape town, to discover magnificent mountains, blue seas, colourful

12 MARCH 2016 | VERVE | SOUTH AFRICA 13vervemagazine.in vervemagazine.in SOUTH AFRICA | VERVE | marCH 2016

Capethat!

Trek, walk, bike, ride, drive, climb throughSouth Africa’s Mother City, Cape town, to discover magnificent mountains, blue seas, colourful cultural precincts, shopping, food

and so much more….

Victoria & Alfred Waterfront


MOUNTAINS,WAVES & VISTAST

he siren song of Cape Town calls out to me, making me return to this scenic city on South Africa’s Atlantic Seaboard, near its southern tip.

it is the sound of the locally named Cape Doctor (believed to clear the air of pollutants and pestilence), the dry south-easter that funnels through buildings and streets from spring to late summer, causing skirts to fly and twirl innocently around the waist. it is the sound of the music of the sea, deep-blue waters lapping on beaches of fine sand, edged with whitewashed houses flowing down undulating hillsides. it is the sound of the earliest inhabitants, their horse carts clacking down rough roads to journeys unimagined. it is the wind in the vines, roving incessantly over the indigenous habitat, the scented fynbos (‘fine-leaved bush’ in Afrikaans) that hugs the ground so possessively. it is the beauty of the country’s national flower, the king protea, that blooms in a variety of colours, encouraging fond names like ‘pincushion’.

And so i heed the call of the wind and the mountains, the sea and the faces of proud Capetonians going about their daily business and revisit South Africa’s Mother City, where it all

began. The first Europeans to discover the Cape were the Portuguese with bartolomeu Dias arriving in 1488. it was however only in 1652 that Jan van Riebeek established an outpost for the Dutch East india Company as a halfway station to provide fresh vegetables, water and meat to ships travelling to and from Asia. The original vegetable plots are today preserved in the Company’s Garden, in the city centre. Subsequently, the british and French arrived and settled in this strategic area.

Cape Town’s majestic natural surroundings cannot be ignored, making this, arguably, one of the world’s most beautifully situated cities. The iconic flat-topped Table Mountain, sometimes with its orographic clouds forming a ‘tablecloth’, seems to loom over everywhere, so that locals and visitors can chart their way with the help of this prominent landmark. This mountain is flanked by Devil’s Peak to the west and Lion’s Head to the east (when looking from the harbour), this latter a great favourite of locals who oft-times wend their way in hundreds, climbing its circular path on full-moon nights. These dramatic mountains together with Signal Hill, with its booming daily midday cannon burst, form a natural amphitheatre of the City bowl, as the main city centre

has been dubbed, and the Table bay harbour. A drive up Signal Hill, a must-do activity surpassed only by a walk up which is even better, is rewarded by stupendous, sweeping views of the city, the harbour, the coast, the sea and the familiar silhouettes of the mountains against the changing colours of the South African sky, outlines that have become familiar friends on the horizon. on windswept evenings, this has become a place of meeting and greeting, of paths to walk, of challenges to meet and limits to move beyond.

And then there is the sea and the drive along a verdant, cliff-hung coast. Capetonians love the Atlantic Seaboard as much as their mountains and the blue waters are marked

with swimmers and surfers braving chill waters, even as shark spotters with their shark-spotter flags settle strategically on beaches and cliffs. Walk, hike, self-drive or bike along the coastal route below the Twelve Apostles mountain range and look down on world-class beaches, picnic areas and the bluest of blue waters dotted with kelp, granite outcrops and basking sea lions. of Cape Town’s Atlantic suburbs, the wind-sheltered Clifton has some of the Cape’s most expensive homes (the wind, it would seem, dictates property prices); Camps bay boasts a palm-lined beach, tidal pool and modern houses; while Llandudno with its white beach and inspiring sunsets presents an irresistible spectacle.

For decades a part of apartheid-era South Africa, Cape Town today is a coveted tourist destination, waiting to be discovered. And yet, it cannot deny its past. over on the far horizon, the view from Table Mountain includes Robben island where Nelson Mandela, the former President of the Republic of South Africa, was incarcerated. ‘We often looked across Table bay at the magnificent silhouette of Table Mountain,’ he once said in a speech. ‘To us on Robben island, Table Mountain was a beacon of hope. it represented the mainland to which we knew we would one day return.’

Cape Town continues to renew and reinvent itself and invites the world to visit and take part in its ongoing drama….V

Cityscape with Table Mountain and Devils Peak from Signal Mountain


MoTher CiTy View

WaLking thE WatErFrontSpend up to a couple of days wandering around the picturesque victoria & alfred Waterfront, a part of Cape Town’s 150-year-old working harbour. Explore this historic area starting at the Chavonnes battery, the oldest corner of the harbour dating back to 1725. Grab a meal with a view at the many waterside restaurants and cafes or head to the V&A Food Market with its fresh produce and artisanal food selections. Visit the Two oceans Aquarium. Enjoy spectacular city views from the brightly lit Cape Wheel. Shop till you drop at the Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre

which has over 450 stores from luxury brands to high-street labels. Catch up on handicraft and souvenir shopping at The Watershed, the new hub for locally made crafts and wellness. book a tour on a pirate ship or take a sunset cruise, hoping that the wind will whip up a fine adventure on the high seas as well as the champagne in your plastic glass.

We are at the Zeitz MoCAA Pavilion at the V&A Waterfront, scrutinising the model of the under-construction Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MoCAA). The R500-million project was announced as a partnership between the V&A Waterfront and former Puma CEo and chairman, Jochen Zeitz, whose Zeitz Collection is one of the most representative of contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora and has been gifted in perpetuity to this non-profit institution.

The V&A Waterfront wanted to repurpose the historic, heritage-listed Grain Silo Complex, an icon of the Cape Town skyline and disused since 1990, in a manner that would combine ingenuity, resourcefulness and beauty. This complex consisted of 42 vertical concrete tubes, 57 metres tall, with no open space to experience the volume from within. Architect, Thomas Heatherwick, developed a solution by carving galleries and a central space from the silos’ structures to create a cathedral-like atrium filled with light from a glass roof, resulting in an oval hall surrounded by concrete shafts overhead and to the sides. The other silo bins will be carved away above ground level leaving the rounded exterior walls intact.

The museum will have galleries, education areas, a rooftop sculpture garden and is scheduled to open at the end of 2016.

art in a siLo

“Here in Cape Town we are laidback almost to the point of horizontal,” states an unabashed Capetonian. And yet, city denizens, while displaying an attitude of sangfroid,

will, at the drop of a hat, put on their ‘takkies’ (local lingo for sporting shoes) and dash off to climb the nearest hill, most likely their beloved Lion’s Head. It is this dichotomy that

makes the city ever more interesting...

Facing page: Victoria & Alfred Waterfront Top to bottom: detail on the V&A Waterfront; shopping at The Watershed

19vervemagazine.in SOUTH AFRICA | VERVE | marCH 2016 18 VERVEMAGAZiNE.iN

traiPsing on trEEtoPsWalk on treetops on the new boomslang aerial walkway, at the 103-year-old kirstenbosch national botanical garden (part of a UNESCo World Heritage site) at the foot of Table Mountain. boomslang is Afrikaans for ‘tree snake’ and this suspended marvel of engineering looks like an inverted reptile skeleton with a steel spine and ribs, and offers

outstanding views. The

garden is home to

7,000 species representing the

Cape Floral Kingdom, the area’s indigenous

flora. Walk gently uphill through paths and greens,

under giant trees and past small shrubs, next to water

pools and manicured beds. The Cycad Amphitheatre

(a temporary exhibition featuring dinosaur sculptures adds great drama to the scene) and the Gondwana Garden feature plant fossils that are 200 million years old. A braille walk, cheetah sculptures by Dylan Lewis (who was a taxidermist before he turned sculptor) and idyllic spots to picnic in, while Egyptian geese with their line-up of babies walk slowly past and hadeda ibis scrabble in the dust, make this paradise indeed. Summer concerts are a special attraction.

Facing page, clockwise from top: The boomslang; Kirstenbosch National botanical Garden; Dylan Lewis’ cheetah sculptureLeft: view from Table Mountain

CabLE to thE tabLEHope for short queues and still weather, but take the table Mountain aerial Cableway to Table Mountain, one of the world’s New Seven Wonders of Nature, for impressive views, easy walks, strenuous hikes, or merely to relax at Table Mountain Café or shop for souvenirs at Shop at the Top. The more adventurous may hike the Platteklip Gorge trail up the face of the mountain. Abseiling is offered at the upper cable station for the super-adventurous. Mountain biking is allowed below the lower cable station while paragliding is more commonly done from Lion’s Head or Signal Hill.

“i love to eat, drink, dance and Cape Town is the best place for this,” says entrepreneur and socialite keru Moodley, who loves the city’s cosmopolitan atmosphere, restaurants and watering holes. Here, she chooses her favourite venues with music and a vibe….

PigaLLE rEstaUrant…. “There is always a big band playing and i have never had a bad meal here.”

thE CrYPt Jazz rEstaUrant…. “This is a wonderful jazz club.”

MondiaLL kitChEn & bar…. “on Saturdays and Sundays they play lovely lounge music. Wagyu beef burgers are a must.”

shiMMY bEaCh CLUb…. “open only for three or four months of the year; and while i find their food too pretentious, the venue on the beach is brilliant.”

grand CaFé & bEaCh…. “Fine dining with your shoes off. The item on the menu that is liquid gold is the salmon wasabi pizza!”

thE bUngaLoW…. “The food is mediocre but there are interesting acts happening all the time.”

diE strandLoPEr rEstaUrant…. “Means ‘the beach walker’. They have a five-to-seven-course menu and cook up whatever they get fresh from the sea. Take your own wine.”

bUkhara…. “only the one on Church Street….”

EL bUrro…. “For authentic Mexican-Spanish cuisine with a lovely Latin vibe.”

PUt on YoUr danCing shoEs


MarkEt Morningon the urban fringes of the Central business District (CbD), Woodstock is the trendy suburb where the yuppies are moving in, leading to a revitalisation and revamp of stores, corner cafes, galleries and malls. A visit to the Salt Circle Arcade mall reveals a second-hand bookstore made for browsing, rustic furniture outlets, a jewellery workshop and a home-brew shop. The Woodstock Exchange too boasts artisan shops

Clockwise: sharing platter at Pot Luck Club; restaurant interior; The old biscuit Mill in Woodstock

Facing page: Art Lab in The old biscuit Mill

and studios. Walking down Albert Road, you will witness impressive urban art works and colourful graffiti, antique and second-hand furniture shops, cafes and restaurants. on a Saturday morning, head to The old biscuit Mill for the Neighbourgoods Market where food stalls, live music and a great vibe dominate under a huge bedouin tent. Here are are located the Art Lab, a digital imaging facility, a pottery workshop

and restaurants including The Test Kitchen, ranked amongst the top 50 restaurants in the world. Good luck with getting a booking there but you may get luckier with the incredibly situated Pot Luck Club where the food is rivalled only by the stupendous view. The area having emerged as a leader in the craft beer movement, a visit to a brewery, like the Devil’s Peak brewery with a view of its namesake, is a must.

‘i am not a beer as you know it but a beer as it should be’ announces a wall at The Tap Room, in Woodstock. Craft beer bars are booming in the city and a visit to The Tap Room reveals a large space with great views and a brewhouse with huge tanks behind. J C steyn, head brewer, Devil’s Peak brewing Company, walks us through and chats on this upcoming trend.

What arE YoU doing sELLing bEEr in WinE CoUntrY?South Africa is a beer-drinking country but essentially lagers. There was always a slight craft influence but only very small. in the last three to four years, the demand for craft beers has just exploded. initially, we made 2,000 litres a month, today we make 75,000 litres. My background is actually in wine; a lot of the beer makers used to be winemakers. There is no competition here with wine.

hoW arE YoUr bEErs diFFErEnt?We do unique, not traditional beers, introducing the customer to a wider range of new, exciting, innovative brews. We are constantly pushing boundaries infusing cherries, grapefruit juice, even wine, into our beers. The demand has shocked us!

brEWing UP a storM

hoW MUCh doEs thE arEa YoU arE in, WoodstoCk, havE to do With this sUCCEss?Craft beers are very relative to a sense of space. in the US, traditionally, artisanal breweries move into an area that is a ‘forgotten area’, leading to a kind of revival. When we started, there were people working on sewing machines as this was a textile factory. The old biscuit Mill changed Woodstock. We were all sceptical about the idea but it worked. one of the 10 best restaurants in the world, The Tasting Room, is located here.


Long and short oF itThe Cbd displays a big-city vibe as well as being rich in heritage, culture and nightlife. A mix of architecture lends a distinctive air with early Dutch buildings, british Victorian architecture, French influences as well as modern buildings. Swing around the Castle of Good Hope built in 1666 and the City Hall nearby where Nelson Mandela stood to deliver the famous freedom speech in 1990. The CbD centres around Long Street with its restaurants and vintage and second-hand boutiques. Church Street is for art lovers and is spangled with galleries displaying modern South African art. Visit the Company’s Garden where the Dutch settlers in the 1650s first grew their fruits and vegetables, today a place for outings and outdoor picnics. bordering the garden is the iziko South African Museum, a natural history and science museum. A must-visit is the buzzing Greenmarket Square with its souvenir stalls, antiques and African market, between Longmarket and Shortmarket Streets. There is much entertainment for the evening on Long Street as well as nearby bree Street. And for some luxury on call, check into Taj Cape Town, a hotel that will remind you of home.

CandY LandKeep your camera at the ready as you wander into bo-kaap, Cape Town’s most colourful district, one of its oldest residential quarters, also known as the Malay Quarter, located at the foot of Signal Hill. Associated with the Muslim community of the Cape, the area features cobbled streets with row houses painted pink, purple, green, blue, in vibrant disarray. While some opine that this could have been a reaction to the mainly white Cape-Dutch architecture or a creative assertion of a newly found freedom (in the past, slaves who were imported to the Cape were housed here), it is enough to enjoy the colours and take a photograph against the brilliant-hued homes. The bo-Kaap Museum showcases local islamic culture and heritage. Minstrel parades or kaapse klopse, held on January 2 every year, were started by slaves who traditionally enjoyed the day as a holiday, ending in the bo-Kaap district.

Chef Jocelyn Myers-adams, head chef at The Table bay hotel on the V&A Waterfront, never sits down on the job — literally. She believes in the simplification of what she calls Cape Town’s ‘comma cuisine’, where too many things are happening on the plate, at the same time. She describes the food here as “a big history of a melting pot of different ethnicities and cultures.” She adds, “South Africans have a very warm palate which can translate into sweetness.” She is the ambassador for simpler food “with quality becoming more important. i am pushing for edible indigenous foodstuff in South Africa. There are thousands of species of fynbos, some of them edible, that no one has looked into. Since this was a colony, a lot of foodstuff was imported and the indigenous stuff was not discovered,”

going indigEnoUs

she says. So, the young chef conducts

foraging tours to pick up edible plants even from the V&A Waterfront. She has added wild olives, wild rosemary, hibiscus and soutslaai that grows in the coastal areas, which means ‘salt salad’ in Afrikaans, and has a “thick leaf, meaty almost, crispy and gorgeous to eat.”

Some of the places she loves to eat are at the Spier Wine Farm, at their farm-to-table restaurant that has a hoghouse as well; The Roundhouse Restaurant that offers the best picnics in the summertime, with incredible views; the Pot Luck Club which is good fun; The Foodbarn Restaurant in Noordhoek and Cheyne’s at Hout bay which makes the best baos in town including duck-and-apple and softshell crab baos….

Facing page: a street in bo-Kaap Top to bottom: Long Street in the CbD; Chefs Warehouse & Canteen

CooL rEstaUrant striPWhile Long Street in the CbD, with its Victorian shops and cafes, clubs, sundowner pubs, bars, filigreed balconies and white facades, is considered the ‘party street’ by the younger set which may liken it to a mini bourbon Street (in New orleans), it is bree street close by that is reinventing itself into the city’s most trendy street. business


oF WinE traiLsTwenty minutes’ drive from the CbD brings you to an area of big houses along long driveways with tennis courts, swimming pools and stables, walking and riding trails and a general feel of the English countryside. Constantia is one of the oldest regions in Cape Town and home to some of the country’s oldest wine estates. For those with little time to go further afield into the Cape Winelands region, this is a perfect alternative. Visit for walks amidst panoramic scenery, for world-class golf greens, one of the area’s numerous spas, or just to lunch at a wine farm’s stellar restaurant. We visit two, both worth recommending. open Door Restaurant at the Constantia Uitsig Wine Estate is a bustling, bistro-style restaurant with an open kitchen, parquet flooring and wooden tables.

We have delicious octopus ribbons with fried anchovy and the pan-roasted linefish which today is yellowtail, all washed down with a refreshing Chenin blanc. Another afternoon sees us enthralled by award-winning chef Mike bassett’s contemporary fusion menu at his new venture, Myoga, in the Vineyard Hotel and Spa. in a stunning setting, we enjoy heirloom tomatoes with toasted cheese ice cream (outstanding!), sea bass with risotto and shrimp, hoisin baby kabeljou (a local fish) and a dramatic death of strawberry shortcake, a strawberry bombe and white chocolate sponge that melts unexpectedly under warm strawberry coulis. Live the experience as you walk through the estate’s six-acre garden or relax through a treatment at the spa. V

ishaY’s toP 10

ishay Govender-ypma, freelance travel, food and culture journalist, blogs, writes and scouts around her city with passion….

CoFFEE: Espresso Lab Microroasters at The old biscuit Mill in Woodstock has arguably the best coffee in the city. They make no-fuss iced coffees and grind the beans for you to take away too.

brUnCh: Hemelhuijs in the city centre combines Chef Jacques Erasmus’ impeccable design aesthetic with his nostalgia for the Afrikaans food of his childhood. Expect the best in-season produce and take home his gorgeous amber jars of spice blends.

sEaFood dinnEr: Harbour House, Kalk bay — worth the 40-minute drive

from the city. book a table with a view of the waves, a full-circle experience if you order a bottle of bubbly and a seafood platter.

rEstaUrant: Lauded chef Luke Dale-Roberts’ Pot Luck Club — my top pick to take friends and visitors for the views, the laid-back vibe and most importantly the carefully crafted sharing plates.

sPa: one&only Spa at the one&only Cape Town — exceptional therapists, using ESPA products which my skin adores. once in, you’re ensconced in privacy.

gaLLErY: SMiTH studio — an inner-city art gallery, it’s become a space for emerging artists to help define a new luxury.

JEWELLErY: Kirsten Goss — high-quality materials, including diamonds, are used for these elegant statement pieces. it’s fun and irreverent.

boUtiqUE: Mungo & Jemima — fresh, easy and classic pieces that flow. Have loved their Long Street store for years.

ChoCoLatE: Honest Chocolate — raw chocolate sweetened with agave and wrapped in artful wrappers, i’ve been taking these as gifts on travels for years. They’ve got a lovely crowdfunded chocolate cafe in Wale Street too.

Cards and stationErY: Lauren Fowler, designer and artist, is one of the city’s most interesting creatives. Her love for flora and fauna shines through her whimsical designs.

(You can read more on foodandthefabulous.com)

establishments, bicycle shops and offices are being increasingly swamped with boutiques, stores and restaurants. beat the rush with an early lunch at the very popular Chefs Warehouse & Canteen and discover the best tapas in town. Further down, Charango Grill & bar is the city’s go-to for great Peruvian cuisine. on a hot afternoon, drop in at Weinhaus + biergarten for some cold craft beer or visit Jason bakery on its strategic corner, touted as the finest artisanal bakery around. birds Café and iyo burger for the best burgers in town. bocca Restaurant, across the road, serves tapas and Neapolitan-style thin-crust pizza. Mother’s Ruin Gin

bar for your after-work G & T and the controversially named orphanage, for some of the most expensive cocktails.

Stores worth mentioning here are Kluk CGDT for couture gowns, Avoova for fine handicrafts, Kirsten Goss Jewellery and Skinny Laminx for illustrated fabric, among others. First Thursday every month is dubbed First Thursdays Cape Town, and means late-night at bree: its art galleries stay open, offering events and wine tastings, and people unusually roam the street at night, all beautifully dressed and swinging to the carnival atmosphere with Cape Town’s famous food trucks adding their might to the evening’s merriment.

Right: open Door Restaurantbelow: platters at Chefs Warehouse & Canteen


She lives the Cape Town lifestyle. We meet Denise Levy in her beautiful old home that she calls the ‘peppermint palace’ due

to its faded green colour. Several dogs and cats wander over to check us out as we walk into a stunning modern kitchen. The house has white columns, an outdoor porch, a large outdoor dining table, a large indoor dining table, paintings by local artists, a bathroom laden with family portraits and cookbooks everywhere. A small pool and outdoor furniture make for comfortable seating when the weather is good, which it mostly is.

born in Argentina, this former international model of the ’80s, who has travelled the world, started Cape Town Productions, becoming a pioneer in the stills production business and running the ‘biggest and best’ production company in Cape Town. Even then, she spent “many years of client-entertaining at home, from 10 to 50 guests, fearlessly and effortlessly”. And then, at the age of 58, she changed careers with aplomb and started Ginger & Lime, with the concept of opening her kitchen to others who are also passionate about food and who enjoy the experience of cooking together. “My concept is, come to me, become part of the

“ApproACh loVe And Cooking wiTh reCkleSS AbAndon….”

Capetonians live life to the fullest, as evidenced by entrepreneur Denise Levy who speaks about the city’s love for food and the outdoors

happening around food and wine and beer, these days. And a lot of outdoor eating. The men in South Africa, they all think they can braai but in my classes i am teaching the ladies to gourmet braai!”

LiFEstYLE…. “i love the outdoor aspect of the city. People exercise, walk, trek, swim…we are so lucky to live by the sea. i love the fact that we can stay fit in an outdoor, natural kind of way. We live amongst wonderful nature here. you must do a walk on Lion’s Head — the views are amazing.”

rEstaUrants…. “Trending right now is the bree Street area and Chefs Kitchen; Liam Tomlin is really pretty much the top chef in the city. Kloof Street too has a lot of restaurants and bars, my favourite being Hallelujah which has only 10 items on the menu which are all great. Camps bay has a

good strip of restaurants; Café Caprice is where the youngsters hang out. And yes, there’s The Grand Cafe & beach on the Waterfront towards Sea Point — that’s really a feet-in-the-sand kind of place with great food — one of the few places that is right on the beach….”

historY oF CUisinE…. “There’s such a mix of

cusines here since Cape Town is so cosmopolitan, everybody has had a little influence somewhere! We tend to think of traditional South African food as the Cape Malay cuisine with recipes that have come down from the 17th century when kitchen workers would add their own spices to dishes. The Dutch and british added their bits too. And the French arrived and started the wine industry. our wines are fantastic, we are very lucky here….” V

fabulous food. The old biscuit Mill is fantastic to visit on a Saturday morning for the Farmers’ Market. Saturday mornings also sees the Waterfront Market where you can eat, sample or take home a variety of food. The entrepreneurship here is amazing and everyone loves what they do. Last Wednesday of the month, the Waterfront has a late-night market where furniture and interior products are on display; there’s very nice food as well. There is a market in Hout bay as well, on a Saturday.”

braaiing…. “South Africans are generally very warm and hospitable people and will invite you into their homes. There is a lot of socialising at people’s houses. There is so much

family, chop, stir, pour the wine, put on the music and then, let’s all eat together….” And so the Levy home sees two interactive cooking experiences a week, as well as private functions, MasterChef-style parties, meetings with major companies, board meetings and so on. “i felt that i earned the right to pursue my passion after putting so many years into a career,” she says, very rightly!

Denise Levy speaks about….

CaPE toWn’s MarkEts…. “i love food markets, fish markets and delis with wonderful international products, and even the humble supermarket holds wonder for me, at the possibilities that it has to create

Right: Denise Levy’s home kitchen Facing page: Denise Levy in her kitchen; details of

her home and products


brilliAnT experienCeCape Town boasts several jewellery and diamond shops that showcase South Africa’s

dazzling mineral wealth. Visit one of the finest, located right in the centre of the city

gobsmacked even as you enter the historic Huguenot House (circa 1752), boutique, on Loop Street in the heart of

Cape Town, you realise that this is going to be more than a jewellery-store experience. A 1993 restoration of the interiors has uncovered wall murals of the former householders as gods Luna, bacchus and Ceres, today back on view. The walls were painted to resemble wood panelling, the ceiling fashioned of South African yellowwood and the floor of burnished teak. To offset this charming room, today, are wooden, jewellery-display cupboards, a carved sideboard and plush sofa. No wonder, we take a breath before proceeding.

Prins & Prins Diamonds is one of Cape Town’s numerous excellent diamond and jewellery stores, showcasing South Africa’s dazzling mineral wealth. you may select your diamond, tanzanite or gemstone from a large collection, choose a ready setting for a quick two-day delivery, customise your own special piece or merely browse through the private showrooms laden with ready creations. And all this in a beautiful, historic setting! As we are free to wander, we drink in the beauty of the place, walking through a tiny courtyard with vine trellis and wrought-iron

The world’s largest gem-quality diamond at 3106.75 carats was discovered in South Africa at the Premier Mine outside Pretoria, in 1905. it was presented by the Transvaal provincial government to King Edward Vii who had it sent to Amsterdam where it was split into nine big diamonds and 96 smaller stones. The largest of these, called Cullinan i or Great Star of Africa, was set in the royal sceptre while the second-largest or Cullinan ii, the Lesser Star of Africa, was set in the imperial State Crown.

other large diamonds from South Africa include the Red Cross Diamond, a canary-yellow, cushion-shaped diamond at 205 carats, (present owner unknown), and the De beers Diamond, a coloured diamond that in 1928 was set in a ceremonial neckpiece called the Patiala Necklace, by Cartier.

boats dredging the sea floor. We are fortunate that nature did the mining for us.

WhErE arE thE diaMonds CUt?We cannot cut the small diamonds in South Africa so these are sent to india where the technique exists and they are then sent back to us. We only cut diamonds that are over a quarter of a carat.

WhiCh arE soME oF thE UniqUE gEMs that CoME FroM soUth aFriCa?Tiger’s eye, blue lace agate. Tanzanite comes only from Tanzania and is available here.

WhY WoULd an indian bUY diaMonds hErE?First of all, while we send diamonds to india to be cut, indians are unable to buy them there since they are sent back. on the other hand, you can find stones here that are not available

anywhere else in the world. Unique diamonds

are easily available here. besides, you are buying from a wholesaler rather than a retailer.

Tourists also get back the 14 per cent tax when they leave the country.

a tiP For diaMond bUYErs?Today, diamonds are being

branded but these are actually the same as unbranded ones — only more expensive. We do not brand our diamonds, though most of the big diamonds, half-carat upwards, have an international certificate.

What arE thE dEsign trEnds oF thE daY?Unfortunately, styles change dramatically every five years. Modern communication, as well as the fact that it has become easy to make jewellery by machine, is responsible. Styles are put out on the internet and things become fashionable. That is the modern way of things. We endeavour to create things that will last. V

chairs to the old kitchen area where an ancient well is covered underfoot. Utensils discovered on the site, fossils, ancient guns decorate the place. it is charming.

in the basement, we observe goldsmiths precisely at work. Here is located, also, the Prins & Prins Diamonds Museum of Gems and Jewellery. Unambitious in scale but packed with information, the exhibition, Earthly Treasures And Human Ingenuity, is dedicated to their interaction, showing how ‘human craftsmanship in stone and metal has, since prehistory, created items to communicate, to beautify and to

create wealth with’. The charming Dr Petré Prins,

though bustling and busy, takes time off to show us around and for a quick chat….

What is UniqUE aboUt soUth aFriCan diaMonds?South African diamonds travel uniquely through fire, ice, water and wind. Volcanoes erupted millions of years ago bringing up the diamonds. Glaciers scoured the earth bringing these down. The wind and rivers carried them into the sea. Most South African diamonds are marine diamonds and De beers has huge

WorLd’s LargEst diaMond

Right: interior of Prins & Prins DiamondsFacing page, bottom left: Dr Petré Prins


no trip to Cape Town can be complete without a visit to the Cape Winelands, a 45-minute drive from Cape Town.

Even a quick mention of this idyllic area to cityfolk brings unbidden smiles to instantly happy faces, probably made of memories of holidays, relaxation, scenic beauty, great food and, of course, fantastic wines. The Winelands almost seem to be a physical and psychological extension of Cape Town, a place to escape to, for a meal, a day, a week….

The Stellenbosch wine route is a circular route that leaves Cape Town via the N2 to the Helderberg, then over to Stellenbosch, up the Helshoogte Pass for panoramic views and back down via wine estates en route to the N1 or N2. Spend a couple of days in the picturesque town of Stellenbosch or escape to one of the wine estates that offer overnight stays. Visit several wine estates, taking in the atmosphere as each one is different from the other, and indulge in wine tastings and cellar visits. And good food paired with great wine is, of course, never far away. in 1971 Stellenbosch became the first wine region in South Africa to establish a wine route, an organised network of wineries, along which the aficionado may experience the region’s famous wines, in all seasons. The Stellenbosch Wine Routes offer a coordinated network of more than 152 wineries, each with a unique cellar door experience. This has been divided into five sub-routes to make travelling on them easier.

The history of this area is closely tied with that of the early European settlers. in 1652, Jan van Riebeeck established an outpost for the Dutch East india Company on the shores of the Cape of Good Hope. He was

succeeded by Simon van der Stel who founded what would become South Africa’s second town, Simon van der Stel de bos (Simon van der Stel’s bush) later contracted to Stellenbosch. Van Riebeeck had planted the first vines at the Cape in the Company’s Garden in Cape Town and after the establishment of Stellenbosch, more vines were planted here. in the time of King Louis XiV of France, 150 Huguenots were given refuge from prosecution in the Cape. From 1688 they were granted land mainly in the area around Franschhoek. The Huguenots brought with them an advanced knowledge of viticulture, which together with the mild weather and unique terroir, made this the centre of South Africa’s wine industry.

The town of Stellenbosch is situated on the banks of the Eerste River (First River) in the midst of spectacular scenery. it has been called Die Eikestad which means ‘city of oaks’ due to its many sprawling oak trees that line the narrow streets, the oldest dating back to 1812. These had been planted with hopes of fashioning wine barrels but the wood proved too porous and today they provide shade and beauty instead. The town streets are lined with stores, cafes, artist studios, restaurants, guesthouses, hotels and public art. Souvenir and antique shops, art galleries and pavement cafes abound on Church Street. This is a cultured town with history, art and heritage in evidence. A mix of architectural styles imparts a quaint look to the streets. Cape Dutch, Georgian, Regency and Victorian buildings, with stark whitewashed facades, offer variety.

Here too is located the prestigious Stellenbosch University, a world-class institution, imparting the look of a large village and student town rolled

Facing page: Stellenbosch Wine Route vista

A TASTe of TerroirStellenbosch, South Africa’s principal wine-growing region, is awash with

breathtaking scenery, unique wine farms, remarkable cuisine, history and art


into one. And of course where there is a university, there will be sport. For well over a hundred years, sport has been closely associated with Stellenbosch and its university has become the country’s finest training ground. Stellenbosch also boasts the world’s oldest rugby club.

bicycle around the shaded streets; visit oom Samie Se Winkel (Uncle Sam’s Shop), an ancient general store retaining its original look, for bokkoms (dried fish) and biltong (dried meat) on Dorp Street which has one of the longest rows of surviving old buildings in any major town in southern Africa. Wander the university campus, pay a visit to the Village Museum, pop into the burgherhuis Museum, a

classic Cape-Dutch home, or spend the afternoon people watching at a pavement cafe. There is so much to do here but the main thing would be to actually get out and about….

Stellenbosch provides a springboard to explore the myriad wine farms that could be a day’s outing or more. Explore the Winelands and taste some of the world’s finest wines. The wine farms in the region range from magnificent traditional estates with stately manor houses, fruit orchards, rose gardens and lawns to modern estates with state-of-the-art cellars. The tasting experiences offered too are different, combining wine tasting with cheese, biltong, chocolate and other accompaniments.

suites, a state-of-the-art conference and event facility and two boardrooms in its historic manor house. We have a wonderful lunch at the fine dining Governor’s Hall Restaurant, with its damask tablecloth-covered tables and silent servers. An al fresco lunch is available on the shaded Terrace Restaurant or a picnic-basket meal on

the award-winning lawns and garden, all paired with the estate’s iconic wine range including their unique Pinotage. you could also grab fresh, artisanal offerings from the deli for a light meal. This 155-hectare, working wine estate is surrounded by dramatic mountain ranges and vineyards, offering an ideal venue to spend a

couple of nights to explore the area from. The Lanzerac Spa is an ideal place to relax in five-star comfort. The Lanzerac Wine Tasting Room offers several wine pairings and gala dinners in the maturation cellar. ‘We’ve been preparing for your arrival for over 300 years’ runs their catchline and the experience proves this to be true.

These wines are complemented in some estates with restaurants serving exquisite food. Many wine farms offer activities like birdwatching, boule, carriage rides, fishing, game drives, horse riding, hiking trails and wine drives. There are golf courses too for the interested.

Here are some farm estates worth visiting….

LanzEraC hotEL and sPaNestled in the foothills of Stellenbosch’s idyllic Jonkershoek Valley and steeped in a history dating back to 1692, this hotel with a five-star rating has 48 luxurious rooms and

This has got to be one of those life-affirming moments…. i am petting a cheetah, up-close and personal, and can feel the strong purring of this magnificent animal under my happy fingers. Goliath, a rather large cub, is a hand-reared, captive-born cheetah and ambassador for the endangered free-ranging cheetah, at the Cheetah outreach project near Somerset West. This has been set up to educate people about cheetahs and raise funds for initiatives to prevent their extinction in South Africa which today has 1,000 of only 7,500 in the world. The cheetah, the fastest animal in the world, is heading very quickly for extinction!

Reluctantly leaving our cheetah ambassador behind, we meet the Anatolian shepherd dogs that are part of the plan to address the conflict between cheetahs and South African farmers who kill predators that attack their livestock. These dogs have for centuries guarded flocks of sheep and once trained, they are given to farmers, ensuring that they can continue to make their livelihood. The funding comes from people who visit the cheetah ambassadors, take photographs with them and learn more about these powerful animals and their conservation. Visit for that photo op as well as to make a difference!

PEt a ChEEtah

Left to right: church in Stellenbosch; beauty of the Cape WinelandsFacing page: wine cellar and deli at Lanzerac Hotel and Spa


WatErFord EstatEWe are seated on cushions in a tree-lined courtyard sipping bubbly at 10 in the morning, and listening to the song of the cicadas and the Waterford fountain, which has been immortalised on the Waterford wine bottle label. in this, the first week of harvest, things are busy as we take a tour of the cellars and bottling facilities. The cellar, with its 1,300 imported oak barrels, is unexpectedly hung with chandeliers: “This room is called our cathedral,” says our guide. Wine is a religion here, we realise, as we set off on a wine drive in a safari-type, game-viewing Land Rover, through the vineyards on the slopes of the Helderberg. “The Waterford Way is a philosophy that celebrates prosperity, life, food, wine, family and friends and guides all that we do here at Waterford,” we are told.

Nestled in the picturesque blaauwklippen (‘blue stone’) Valley, the 120-hectare property boasts orchards, citrus groves, rolling lawns, ponds, lavender beds as well as tracts left untouched, to preserve the natural fauna and flora. The idea of the ‘safari’ is to taste award-winning estate wines in the vineyards of their origin, and we are expertly guided through the aspects of what makes this area so biodiverse and unique. This is such a delightful experience, with the mountain ranges all around, the precision of the rows of vines, the

dELairE graFF EstatEVisit this estate for a true-blue luxury Winelands experience. The first thing that strikes me is the art all around, starting with powerful examples of Dylan Lewis’ towering cheetahs in the vast gardens. This is indeed a world-class art destination, showcasing pieces of Laurence Graff’s (of Graff Diamonds) carefully curated collection of some of South Africa’s finest contemporary artists. The setting is astounding: luxury lodges offer uninterrupted views of the Stellenbosch Valley with sweeping vistas of the wine estate. The spacious light-filled lodges each come with their own private, heated plunge pool.

The dining here is world-class with green gastronomy at the heart of the cuisine. Fruits, vegetables and herbs are picked seasonally from the estate’s greenhouse and gardens, for optimum freshness. The Delaire Graff Restaurant offers its signature

bistro-chic cuisine and indochine serves up pan-Asian fine dining while the team is always happy to advise on private dining events.

The Delaire Graff Spa offers a panoramic retreat for rejuvenating spa therapies and skin treatments like the Diamond Tip Microdermabrasion, while more active guests may visit the gym for the latest machines and free weights. And after all that hard work, for some high-end retail therapy, visit Graff Diamonds for sparkling gems, 100% Capri for fine linen clothing and homeware and VanaShree for handbags and accessories crafted in sustainable crocodile, ostrich, python and stingray leathers.

tall trees along the boundaries. Having experienced the terroir that makes these wines so inimitable, we return to the winery, the architecture of which is inspired by the classic bordeaux chateaus of France, for a wine and chocolate experience. A series of milk and dark chocolates is paired with the estate’s Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Natural Sweet wines. it is interesting to see how the notes of the wines change and resonate to the sweetness or bitterness of the chocolate, imparting a feeling of immense well-being.

Facing page: Waterford Estate bottom left and right: Delaire Graff Estate

FashionabLE ConvErsations

Stellenbosch is not merely a town of fine views and wines. Style icon Jackie burger has returned to her alma mater with Salon 58 which conducts fashion soirees inspired by the Parisian salon of legendary fashion designer Coco Chanel that she visited in 2012. “in the 17th-18th century in France, salons liberated women. This movement became very strong and was grounded in the arts and culture and became meeting places for artists, thinkers and writers,” she says, as we meet in Stellenbosch’s oldest hotel, the oude Werf Hotel. The idea of the pop-up salon, the context of which covers beauty, fashion, food and decor, came to her after she resigned as editor of an international magazine. “Style and substance are important to me as a woman,” she says. “it is the principle of reinvention. i had come to the end of a journey knowing that something new awaits.”


LoUrEnsFord WinE EstatEit’s Sunday morning, market day at the Laurensford Wine Estate. Under a permanent roof structure, making it an all-seasons market, a live guitar boosts things up while we roam jewellery stalls, taste the aromatic coffee, consider barbecue, Greek food, beer made on the premises and of course the estate’s wines and some refreshing honey liquor, even as the premises are overrun by families and pets. The manicured gardens outside feature two artists’ studios displaying original works.

The estate, established in 1700 has 135 acres of quality vineyards, orchards of apples, pears and plums, and is bordered by the ranges of the Helderberg and Hottentots Holland and lies eight kilometres from the sea. The beautiful mountain slopes are covered by pine plantations, trout is cultivated in the streams for the exclusive fly-fishing club, people come from afar to stock up on their coffee

WatErkLooF WinE EstatEWe are perched seemingly at the very edge of the Schapenberg Mountain with spectacular vistas of False bay and the sea, in a glassed promontory, where the estate’s signature restaurant’s French chef, Gregory Czarnecki, serves classical cuisine with a modern French touch.He uses the freshest ingredients like free-range eggs and farm-reared Schapenberg lamb. The modern interiors have a touch of the rustic and a contemporary fireplace takes pride of place together with the open-plan kitchen. it is an excellent meal washed

dinnEr With noCaWE

Nocawe is dressed in her finery for dinner. Her friends and neighbours shout to her as we walk down the narrow streets of the black township of Kayamandi (‘nice home’ in the Xhosa language), a place that symbolises the cruel segregation of South Africa’s former apartheid regime, today a suburb of Stellenbosch. This has got to be the most breathtaking view, i am thinking. We walk past homes made of tin sheets and a bar that boasts a fridge with a glass door.

Nocawe can only be proud of her pretty home. Her sister is the chef this evening and serves us some home-made ginger beer and local African food. We start with magwinya (fried bread), chicken, umngqusho (corn and beans), tomalo (spinach), uthanga (pumpkin) and chakalaka (vegetable stew). The dessert consists of dumplings soaked in sugar syrup. The conversation is about South Africa, india and the world and we feel completely at home here, in this hospitable family home.

down by the estate’s exceptional Sauvignon blanc, perfect for this very hot afternoon.

Proprietor Paul boutinot meets us at the lunch table. “First of all, our wines do not taste like Stellenbosch wines…technically we are Stellenbosch but we call ourselves Schapenberg wines.” Schapenberg in Afrikaans means ‘sheep mountain’, and these animals have been reintroduced in the area to fertilise the land, as part of

boutinot’s eschewing of conventional farming methods for natural biodynamic farming, to produce fine wines with a sense of place. “our farming is based on old indian farming techniques,” he says. “We use horses for ploughing and the actions that we take are determined by the movements of the moon and stars….” Going back to basics, however, seems unreal here, in this fabulous glass building on the mountainside. V

Top to bottom: market day at Lourensford Wine Estate

Facing page, clockwise from top: classical cuisine at the Waterkloof Wine Estate restaurant; view of

vineyards from the Waterkloof Wine Estate; wine fermentation

from their roastery or eat delicious meals at the Millhouse Kitchen restaurant. Site of fabulous weddings and international film shoots, the property also boasts a rare polo field.

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