Its Sunday evening, and the end to what has been a long four days. K and I are physically exhausted. We've moved boxes, carted pots plants, unpacked boxes, cleaned cupboards, washed glasses, washed cars, sorted out cupboards, moved furniture, changed globes, fixed fountains, hung pictures, hooked up TV's, cleaned floors, painted cupboards, swept driveways and connected washing machines.
Yup, its been a long four days. But its over now. We're in! We have a CD playing in the background, a glass of wine in hand, and a nice cooked meal to look forward to.
Thanks to all our friends and family for offers of help and well wishes. We soon hope to have you all over for a celebratory drink and a meal.
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
NGC 2007
So I had the opportunity to travel up to the Nedbank Golf Challenge last week - in a chopper! Well, a Bell-407 to be exact. A friend of a friend is a pilot, looking for any opportunity to rack up flying time, and this was the perfect opportunity. Six of us left from Lanseria airport at 8am Thursday morning, and 39 minutes later, touched down on the soccer fields at the main gate to Sun City.
We spent most of the day in one of the tents, catching all the action as it unfolded around us. We watched the entire field come through the 8th hole - lucky for us the weather was pretty mild. In fact, the conditions were perfect for following the guys around the magnificent Gary Player course. As for the result, well, apart from Trevor's little choke on the 18th on the final day, he looked like he was going to win from the very first tee shot on Thursday - starting off birdie, birdie, birdie - with an eagle on the 9th. Fantastic stuff.
Once the field had come in, we made our way back down to the soccer fields, buckled up, lifted, and headed back to Lanseria in just over 30 minutes - topping 260km/hour at one stage.
Here are a few pics from the ride:
The view of Pecanwood from the air
The parking lot at Sun City
We spent most of the day in one of the tents, catching all the action as it unfolded around us. We watched the entire field come through the 8th hole - lucky for us the weather was pretty mild. In fact, the conditions were perfect for following the guys around the magnificent Gary Player course. As for the result, well, apart from Trevor's little choke on the 18th on the final day, he looked like he was going to win from the very first tee shot on Thursday - starting off birdie, birdie, birdie - with an eagle on the 9th. Fantastic stuff.
Once the field had come in, we made our way back down to the soccer fields, buckled up, lifted, and headed back to Lanseria in just over 30 minutes - topping 260km/hour at one stage.
Here are a few pics from the ride:
The Bell-407 that was to be our ride for the day
The view of Pecanwood from the air
The parking lot at Sun City
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Boklash...
I thought that some of my English family and friends would like to see the changes made to the English rugby jersey. Its been awfully quiet from that side of the world since the start of the RWC.
Monday, September 03, 2007
London, Scotland and Spain
Well its been just over three weeks since my last post, and not without good readon. K and I have been on the road, doing what we love most - experiencing the sites, sounds and tastes of new destinations. Here's a quick summary of the August 2007 tour of London, Scotland and Spain:
- Tour of the Edinburgh castle, and views from the top.
- Gardens around Edinburgh castle.
- Scottish Highlands.
- Tour to Stirling Castle (with William Wallace monument in the distance).
- Seeing our good mates Neil and Mandy again.
- Windsor Castle and surrounds.
- Cabopino Beach just outside Calahonda, Malaga.
- The ancient city of Antequera.
- The El Torcal mountain range, and limestone rock formations.
- The beautiful village of Mijas.
- On our way to the Picasso Museum in Malaga. Incidentally, although Picasso painted most of his work in France, he was actually born in Malaga Spain. We were also treated to works on temporary display by artists such as Matisse, Balthus and Dubuffet.
All in all a great trip with lots of good memories.
- Alan and Samantha's wedding, set in a quaint little church just outside Milton Keynes, with reception at Whittlebury Park (next door to Silverstone).
- Middlesex Sevens at Twickers (where Newcastle pipped Worcester 20-19 in the final).
- Fringe Festival at Edinburgh castle and surrounds. Went to see a few stand up comedian acts in the Underbelly, or catacombs of Edinburgh. Great setting for these types of acts, as you walk through a series of interconnected rooms, and then all of a sudden find yourself underground in what can only be described as a humid, musky tunnel. Watched a comedian called Martha Mcbrie, in a show called "So you think you think you can heckle?". Wasn't overly impressed with her, but we were blown away by the talent of a stand up comedian/musician called Rob Deering in his show called "Charmageddon". Worth a watch if you ever come across him.
- Tour of the Edinburgh castle, and views from the top.
- Gardens around Edinburgh castle.
- Boat trip out to Loch Lomond.
- Scottish Highlands.
- Tour to Stirling Castle (with William Wallace monument in the distance).
- Seeing our good mates Neil and Mandy again.
- Windsor Castle and surrounds.
- Cabopino Beach just outside Calahonda, Malaga.
- The ancient city of Antequera.
- The El Torcal mountain range, and limestone rock formations.
- The beautiful village of Mijas.
- On our way to the Picasso Museum in Malaga. Incidentally, although Picasso painted most of his work in France, he was actually born in Malaga Spain. We were also treated to works on temporary display by artists such as Matisse, Balthus and Dubuffet.
All in all a great trip with lots of good memories.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Whirlwind update
So its been a while since my last past - and I'm starting to feel the guilt. Thought now would be as good a time as any to post a whirlwind update.
The Tour:
Its over - and life has returned to normal again. No more dominance over the remote control - K is free to change channels if she wants to. So what was up with the Tour de Farce anyway? Things were looking so good at the start of the third week - I thought we were in for a cracking final couple of stages - and then it all fell apart, and continues to push out a daily sport headline revealing some new scandal. On a lighter note, there has been talk amongst one or two mates of putting a "Tour holiday" together for the 2009 season.
Graft:
On the work front, things have been pretty hectic. We're busy with the development of the web, mobile and other interactive elements for the three reality shows that are about to be launched. Interesting times - exciting projects to be involved in.
Golf:
Haven't put in as many rounds as I would have liked this month - although I did manage a round with Tweedie at Obs 2 weeks ago. Had a dogdy start, but came back strongly. Also managed a round at Irene, and shot a respectable (for me) 87.
Travel:
Had the pleasure of being able to spend a couple of days in Dullstroom this past weekend. K and I went down to a place called Millstream - its a trout farm about 4 km's before the town of Dullstroom. Old style stone cottages with fire places - was really nice. We ventured out on our mountain bikes on Friday morning for a ride down to Highland Gate estate. They are busy laying the fairways and greens at the moment, and its looks like its going to be a magnificent course (and housing estate) once complete. Riding the 22km back to Millstream into gale force winds proved a little too challenging for K and I though - we hitched a ride back through the farm roads on the back of a tractor after battling for about 12 of the 22km's back. In fact, the winds were so serious, that on Monday morning, we heard that fires (aided by the strong winds) were responsible for the deaths of two people in Lydenburg, and a number of runaway fires in Dullstroom. Luckily for us though, Millstream wasn't affected.
The fishing wasn't that great either - although I did manage to land a sizable brown trout. I blame the wind for the lack of success :-)
Social:
Off to dinner club tonight - its the "cheap and cheerful" round for the next four dinner clubs. No take out, no franchise restaurants - cheapest total bill out of the four couples wins this round. We're up tonight and will be going to a place in Emmarentia called Lapa Fo. Should be good.
The Tour:
Its over - and life has returned to normal again. No more dominance over the remote control - K is free to change channels if she wants to. So what was up with the Tour de Farce anyway? Things were looking so good at the start of the third week - I thought we were in for a cracking final couple of stages - and then it all fell apart, and continues to push out a daily sport headline revealing some new scandal. On a lighter note, there has been talk amongst one or two mates of putting a "Tour holiday" together for the 2009 season.
Graft:
On the work front, things have been pretty hectic. We're busy with the development of the web, mobile and other interactive elements for the three reality shows that are about to be launched. Interesting times - exciting projects to be involved in.
Golf:
Haven't put in as many rounds as I would have liked this month - although I did manage a round with Tweedie at Obs 2 weeks ago. Had a dogdy start, but came back strongly. Also managed a round at Irene, and shot a respectable (for me) 87.
Travel:
Had the pleasure of being able to spend a couple of days in Dullstroom this past weekend. K and I went down to a place called Millstream - its a trout farm about 4 km's before the town of Dullstroom. Old style stone cottages with fire places - was really nice. We ventured out on our mountain bikes on Friday morning for a ride down to Highland Gate estate. They are busy laying the fairways and greens at the moment, and its looks like its going to be a magnificent course (and housing estate) once complete. Riding the 22km back to Millstream into gale force winds proved a little too challenging for K and I though - we hitched a ride back through the farm roads on the back of a tractor after battling for about 12 of the 22km's back. In fact, the winds were so serious, that on Monday morning, we heard that fires (aided by the strong winds) were responsible for the deaths of two people in Lydenburg, and a number of runaway fires in Dullstroom. Luckily for us though, Millstream wasn't affected.
The fishing wasn't that great either - although I did manage to land a sizable brown trout. I blame the wind for the lack of success :-)
Social:
Off to dinner club tonight - its the "cheap and cheerful" round for the next four dinner clubs. No take out, no franchise restaurants - cheapest total bill out of the four couples wins this round. We're up tonight and will be going to a place in Emmarentia called Lapa Fo. Should be good.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
The Tweedie's...
Hooked up with Ronnie, Hazel and young Edward this past weekend - they're out from the UK for a couple of weeks visiting family and renovating their place at the coast. They arrived on Friday and stayed with us for the weekend, leaving on Monday morning for East London.
Was good seeing them again - also nice to spend a bit of time with Edward - he's a cute little guy going through some teething problems at the moment. When K and I got up on Monday morning to say cheers, we just looked at each other and smiled after our 8 hours of sleep whilst Ronnie relayed how they were up every hour during the night. Our day will come sooner or later...
Was good seeing them again - also nice to spend a bit of time with Edward - he's a cute little guy going through some teething problems at the moment. When K and I got up on Monday morning to say cheers, we just looked at each other and smiled after our 8 hours of sleep whilst Ronnie relayed how they were up every hour during the night. Our day will come sooner or later...
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Blues Room Tonight...
K and I are off to the Blues Room tonight to celebrate Pat's birthday with him. Looking forward to it too. Among the lineup posted on the Blues Room site is a guy called Dean Meldau - haven't heard of him before, but looks like it could be interesting.
As for the rugga this afternoon - what a disappointment. I'm not going to go on about it, as there are hundreds more qualified blogs that could give you a breakdown of what went wrong, so all I'll say is that it was a good match to watch - lots of aggression, lots of excitement, but you have to feel like we threw it away in the last 15 minutes. My simple take on it, is that in a game of that intensity and pace, you can't bring on 4 or 5 replacements all at the same time. It takes them a couple of minutes to get a feel for the pace and the tempo of the game, and to bring 5 on at the same time, you're weakening your side for at least 5-10 minutes. That's where we lost it in my opinion.
As for the rugga this afternoon - what a disappointment. I'm not going to go on about it, as there are hundreds more qualified blogs that could give you a breakdown of what went wrong, so all I'll say is that it was a good match to watch - lots of aggression, lots of excitement, but you have to feel like we threw it away in the last 15 minutes. My simple take on it, is that in a game of that intensity and pace, you can't bring on 4 or 5 replacements all at the same time. It takes them a couple of minutes to get a feel for the pace and the tempo of the game, and to bring 5 on at the same time, you're weakening your side for at least 5-10 minutes. That's where we lost it in my opinion.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Food good, service medium-to-rare
There are times when you just have to shake your head and wonder about the service you get at a restaurant. Last night was one of those times.
Hooked up with Patrick, Jo, Richard and Susan for a dinner at the more upmarket steak house on the Nelson Mandela Square last night.
Having eaten there a couple of times before, and generally having been quite pleased with the food and service, I was looking forward to the evening. It didn't start off that well though. As we got the entrance, we were asked whether we had a booking, and rushed to our table. It wasn't that we were late or anything - just seemed like the reception manager was too busy to welcome us in properly and was pre-occupied with thumbing through the bookings and generally just looking flustered.
That aside, we sat down and had a bit of a wait for Richard and Susan to arrive, so had a leisurely look through the menu. Page one of the menu has about 10 rules that immediately jump out at you as if to say "hey bud, we're here to make money and that's all that counts", including:
- we didn't allow children before, but now we do if they're a certain age.
- minimum price per head is R80.
- 10% will be added to your bill.
- we close at 10pm, so hurry up and get your order in.
Ok, so nothing too serious yet. Just not your typical hospitable attitude thats all. We order some wine and eventually Richard and Susan arrive - time to take an order. Waiters all seem too busy to help out now, because we've kept them waiting for 15 minutes. Another 5 minutes and we eventually track one down. K isn't that hungry, so decides to have a salad and a starter, instead of a salad and a main. We realise that this could contravene rule number 2, so politely tell the waiter that if the salad and starter are less than R80, we'll happily put in the difference. No, can't do. You can't order a starter and have it brought to the table with the mains - house rules. More rules - just that this one wasn't on the menu with the rest of the legislation. K politely calls the manager and asks whether he could bend the unwritten rule number 11, and after a bit of hesitation, he agrees. A victory for the paying patrons - K gets to have a starter with the main meals. Not to let that put a damper on the evening, we order another bottle of the same pinotage that we've been drinking - only to have a bottle of merlot opened and put on our table. That gets sent back at the insistence that we'd like to continue with the pinotage that we so enjoyed, much to the annoyance of the waiter who neglected to actually check what the first bottle was.
Having said all this, the food was actually pretty good, but for the price you pay at a place like that, you kinda expect a little more than medium-to-rare service.
Hooked up with Patrick, Jo, Richard and Susan for a dinner at the more upmarket steak house on the Nelson Mandela Square last night.
Having eaten there a couple of times before, and generally having been quite pleased with the food and service, I was looking forward to the evening. It didn't start off that well though. As we got the entrance, we were asked whether we had a booking, and rushed to our table. It wasn't that we were late or anything - just seemed like the reception manager was too busy to welcome us in properly and was pre-occupied with thumbing through the bookings and generally just looking flustered.
That aside, we sat down and had a bit of a wait for Richard and Susan to arrive, so had a leisurely look through the menu. Page one of the menu has about 10 rules that immediately jump out at you as if to say "hey bud, we're here to make money and that's all that counts", including:
- we didn't allow children before, but now we do if they're a certain age.
- minimum price per head is R80.
- 10% will be added to your bill.
- we close at 10pm, so hurry up and get your order in.
Ok, so nothing too serious yet. Just not your typical hospitable attitude thats all. We order some wine and eventually Richard and Susan arrive - time to take an order. Waiters all seem too busy to help out now, because we've kept them waiting for 15 minutes. Another 5 minutes and we eventually track one down. K isn't that hungry, so decides to have a salad and a starter, instead of a salad and a main. We realise that this could contravene rule number 2, so politely tell the waiter that if the salad and starter are less than R80, we'll happily put in the difference. No, can't do. You can't order a starter and have it brought to the table with the mains - house rules. More rules - just that this one wasn't on the menu with the rest of the legislation. K politely calls the manager and asks whether he could bend the unwritten rule number 11, and after a bit of hesitation, he agrees. A victory for the paying patrons - K gets to have a starter with the main meals. Not to let that put a damper on the evening, we order another bottle of the same pinotage that we've been drinking - only to have a bottle of merlot opened and put on our table. That gets sent back at the insistence that we'd like to continue with the pinotage that we so enjoyed, much to the annoyance of the waiter who neglected to actually check what the first bottle was.
Having said all this, the food was actually pretty good, but for the price you pay at a place like that, you kinda expect a little more than medium-to-rare service.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Mr and Mrs Pretorius
Couple: Sandra and WikusVenue: Harrison's on 12th
Married at: St Mungo's Bryanston
Date: 19 May 2007
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Bit of this and that...
Here's a quick update on the happenings of the week:
Squash league has started, and although I have not won a game yet (two matches played), I captained the side last week, and the team managed a victory, despite my lack of contribution. I played a really strong (new to league) player from Wendywood. The guy was worse than a Jack Russel - just would not let anything go. Anyway, we have a team practice on Monday night, and a bye on Wednesday, so I have a good 10 days to get my game right.
As for K, she's been working quite hard getting her budgets ready for the upcoming year. Her team went away last weekend for a management conference to discuss the budgets and plans for the upcoming year. With the planning now finished, she can get back into her routine and hopefully a little less stress. She flies up to Nigeria and Ghana in May to meet the teams there and share the plans for the upcoming year with them - not a trip I'd like her to be doing, but there is a small group of her management team going, so it should be quite safe.
Went out for a couple of drinks and something to eat with Kerryn, Liam and Lauren last night. Kerryn and Liam are out for the UK for a couple of weeks - was good catching up with her again, and meeting Liam for the first time.
Am currently listening to Derek the Bandit's latest podcast - some wicked trance sounds permeating the air at the moment - awesome.
Oh, on the book front, have just finished a Dean Koontz fictional drama - Brother Odd. Was a pretty, I hate to say it - odd book. Basically about a guy who can see the dead, who moves to a monastery to save a group of monks and disabled children from impending death. He meets the ghost of Elvis and a ghost dog named Boo along the way, and helps them to cross over from this world to the next. Out of ten - i'd give it no more than about a four-and-a-half. Am about to start a new one titled The Family by Kitty Kelley. Its about the Bush Family - the story of their dynasty and its power. I hope its not another Michael Moore wannabee. Will keep you posted.
That's about it for the time being - other tnan to note that the winter seems to have arrived. Wind chill is down to about 8 degrees Celcius. Plenty of sunshine, but a (very) fresh breeze outside.
Squash league has started, and although I have not won a game yet (two matches played), I captained the side last week, and the team managed a victory, despite my lack of contribution. I played a really strong (new to league) player from Wendywood. The guy was worse than a Jack Russel - just would not let anything go. Anyway, we have a team practice on Monday night, and a bye on Wednesday, so I have a good 10 days to get my game right.
As for K, she's been working quite hard getting her budgets ready for the upcoming year. Her team went away last weekend for a management conference to discuss the budgets and plans for the upcoming year. With the planning now finished, she can get back into her routine and hopefully a little less stress. She flies up to Nigeria and Ghana in May to meet the teams there and share the plans for the upcoming year with them - not a trip I'd like her to be doing, but there is a small group of her management team going, so it should be quite safe.
Went out for a couple of drinks and something to eat with Kerryn, Liam and Lauren last night. Kerryn and Liam are out for the UK for a couple of weeks - was good catching up with her again, and meeting Liam for the first time.
Am currently listening to Derek the Bandit's latest podcast - some wicked trance sounds permeating the air at the moment - awesome.
Oh, on the book front, have just finished a Dean Koontz fictional drama - Brother Odd. Was a pretty, I hate to say it - odd book. Basically about a guy who can see the dead, who moves to a monastery to save a group of monks and disabled children from impending death. He meets the ghost of Elvis and a ghost dog named Boo along the way, and helps them to cross over from this world to the next. Out of ten - i'd give it no more than about a four-and-a-half. Am about to start a new one titled The Family by Kitty Kelley. Its about the Bush Family - the story of their dynasty and its power. I hope its not another Michael Moore wannabee. Will keep you posted.
That's about it for the time being - other tnan to note that the winter seems to have arrived. Wind chill is down to about 8 degrees Celcius. Plenty of sunshine, but a (very) fresh breeze outside.
Saturday, April 28, 2007
POTD: 21 April 2007
Went to dinner with Patrick, Frank and Claire and Richard. Went to a place called Soi in Melville. Its a Vietnamese/Thai food place - part of the Orient-WangThai-Saigon group. Had a great meal - fried prawn starter, with Chicken Cashew main. Vary good.Saturday, April 14, 2007
POTD: 03 April 2007
Good looking bunch of roses that I bought K the other day. We had a braai at our place - Tzvet, Graham, Melanie and Andre. Bought these to brighten up the lounge a bit.Monday, February 26, 2007
POTD: 24 Feb 2007
K and I enjoyed a fantastic braai at Tsvet and Graham's place on Sat afternoon. We were joined by Andre and Melanie - pictured here is little Nicholas Cort.Sunday, February 18, 2007
POTD: 17 Feb 2007
Went out for dinner with Frank, Claire, Jo and Rich (pictured here) on Sat night. Went to a place in Parkhurst called Batuke. Good food.Tuesday, February 13, 2007
POTD: 13 Feb 2007
Airports are usually a place of great joy for K and I - the thrill of discovering a new destination - or the anticipation of a holiday has always ensured that. This afternoon however, was a sad day for us, as we said farewell to K's folks and wished them well on their flight back to Perth.Its been a good three weeks. We've spent lots of quality time together - a couple of good trips, some fantastic meals, and a number of quality bottles of red wine, but I guess all holidays eventually come to an end. We're pleased with the fact that they both seem to have had a good time in South Africa, and are both looking a lot more relaxed and refreshed as a result of the trip.
Its funny how, after only three weeks, coming home from the airport this afternoon the house feels so empty...
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Weekend update
Its been a good weekend. We got back from Clarens on Friday afternoon, and then went through to Sandton for some dinner with K's folks. There has been quite a bit of development since they left SA, so its been quite nice to show them all the new shopping centres, housing complexes etc. We had a good dinner on the Nelson Mandela Square.
Saturday was spent trying to find an aircon for our place. The heat has been unbearable over the past few days, to the point where K and I are battling to sleep properly at night. We found some nice looking LG units - something that I'll have to follow up on this week. We then had a quiet afternoon at home, watching South Africa turn the tables in the third test match against Pakistan (which they won today). Spent the evening at the movies - saw The Queen, which turned out to be better than I expected.
Today, we spent the morning at the Serbian Orthodox Church in Sunninghill for Nicholas Kort's christening (Nicholas is Tsvet and Graham's little guy). The service was all in Serbian, so we didn't quite get what was being said, but I guess the dunking of little Nicholas in a bath of water kind of gave it away. Then rushed back home to collect K's folks and made our way through to my folks for lunch - which consisted of roast lamb, roast potatoes and veg, some fruit salad and ice cream, and some red wine. Very good indeed.
Right now, its watching Carte Blanche, whilst listening to the rain falling on the tin roof outside.
Saturday was spent trying to find an aircon for our place. The heat has been unbearable over the past few days, to the point where K and I are battling to sleep properly at night. We found some nice looking LG units - something that I'll have to follow up on this week. We then had a quiet afternoon at home, watching South Africa turn the tables in the third test match against Pakistan (which they won today). Spent the evening at the movies - saw The Queen, which turned out to be better than I expected.
Today, we spent the morning at the Serbian Orthodox Church in Sunninghill for Nicholas Kort's christening (Nicholas is Tsvet and Graham's little guy). The service was all in Serbian, so we didn't quite get what was being said, but I guess the dunking of little Nicholas in a bath of water kind of gave it away. Then rushed back home to collect K's folks and made our way through to my folks for lunch - which consisted of roast lamb, roast potatoes and veg, some fruit salad and ice cream, and some red wine. Very good indeed.
Right now, its watching Carte Blanche, whilst listening to the rain falling on the tin roof outside.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
POTD: 15 Jan 2006
Dinner at Moyo with Frank, Jo, Richard, K, G, and Lance and Pat (pictured). Food was tasty enough - service not that great. Was good catching up with the Hoff, and the rest of the mates again.Tuesday, January 09, 2007
POTD: 05 Jan 2007
Another pose in those superstar glasses. Nice one Pat. Or is that Jack Nicholson? Picture taken on the trail to 'The Big Tree', just outside Storms River along the Garden Route.POTD: 04 Jan 2007
The Bloukrans Bridge - site of the worlds highest bungy jump at 216m. Pat, Jo and Richard would take on the challenge a couple of days after this picture was taken. Frank, K and I were not persuaded.POTD: 03 Jan 2007
The 'Boys' posing for a pic after a refreshing swim in the Bloukrans River. We decided to venture off the beaten track and made our way down this river canyon - taking in the scenery, and the refreshing waters. Left to right - Frank, G, Pat and Richard.
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