Dear friends,
There is a national monument in one of the suburbs of Cape Town that is called "Groot Constantia". It is the place where the very first wine was made in the Cape in the year 1657 and today it is still a wine farm.
I love to walk with the dogs on the estate because of the wide open spaces, the magnificent view overlooking the Table mountain and the Ocean and the presence of the many birds. On the estate they have what is called a "dam" which is a huge pond or small lake where hundreds of big birds are living. I have seen Guinea Fowl, Ibis Hadedas, geese, ducks and many other birds. For the first time of my life I saw geese that can sit on tree branches. It is quite dangerous to walk underneath them because they are producing impressive droppings.
The estate is much, much bigger than the small vineyards in la Comunidad de Valencia. The rows of vines are planted wider apart, allowing the use of much bigger tractors, and the grapes are grown on a higher level making the cutting during the harvest easier for human backs. Compared to the heavy red earth in Jalon the Groot Constantia vines are growing in something I would call a rather sandy soil.
Four seasons.
People here are saying that it is normal to have 4 seasons in one day. It means for instance that I get up at 6.00 am and wear my heavy duty jacket during the walk with the dogs while rain is pouring down. A few hours later the sun is shining and when there is no wind I can wear shorts. For our afternoon walk I have to change shorts for long trousers and in the evening I even have to wear a sweater at home because it is that cold outside.
Labels
It is so easy to buy organic food here. When I spoke about organic food in Jalon, people looked at me as if I was E.T. Here it is considered as normal.
It is my pleasure to copy the texts of some labels.
My Dad's Honey
Every morning our bees rush out and collect nectar to make this extraordinary honey. We would like to thank every single bee involved. My Dad's Honey is harvested exclusively from our own hives.
(Underneath the text is the logotype of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, confirming that the honey is "Badger Friendly")
Woolworths Organic Cheddar
Produced from cows that roam free and graze in organic pastures.
My hats
I clearly remember that many friends were sort of jealous of my beautiful hats.
It was pure delight for me to visit the shop called Union Cape Market, where Eva bought me a present. It was....a new hat, because she does not like the old ones with the sweat stains.
Read what the label says about my new "Rogue" hat.
"One of my mates asked me to design a hat for him to wear in the bush. He said that there was nothing he'd seen in the shops that was "right". I asked him what was "right".
"Leather", he said, "all leather and it must be the right colour. It must have a wide curved brim with a stiffener around the edge to keep the shape even if I drive over it."
So we stitched it double in case he does.
"Shape", he said. "Get the shape right and call it "Rogue" and I'll be your first customer".
So we did and he was.....
I see him often and he still wears that hat. He designed your hat - we only make him.
But for me the most amazing thing is how the shops in the nearest shopping centre (remember how I compared it with the horror story in Ondara?) called "The Constantia Village" present themselves. Here we go:
Down-to-Earth-Store.
This store is being environmentally friendly by:
recycling
using energy efficient lighting
providing eco-friendly shopping bags
stocking organic products
selling eco-friendly products
stocking locally made products
offering products made from recycled or reused materials
staff walking, cycling or using public transport to get to work
supporting fair trade principles
using green cleaning products
switching off all lighting after hours.
For more info go to www.constantiavillage.co.za
Most famous Belgian.
By the way I suppose you have noticed that a picture of the most famous Belgian was on the front page of Time Magazine of October 31, 2011.
Do you know his name?
Lovely greetings from Bruno in Wynberg
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