For urbanites looking for a back to the land experience Babylonstoren is the place to decamp and unwind for a weekend. A working farm and wine estate, Babylonstoren is an unpretentious place where you can collect eggs for your breakfast or chill with a glass of wine and a good book in the garden. The farm is easily reached by car from Cape Town and while it would make a lovely day trip, I suggest booking a room at the hotel to take full advantage of all of the farm activities.
One year ago today, I started this blog. Sharing a table is a public, albeit heavily edited, letter to my friends, family, and strangers about my life in South Africa. For me, this blog has kept me sane, pushed me to visit new places because it might make a good story, provided a much needed distraction during rough patches, and ultimately is something I am immensely proud of.
Places that are fantastically bizarre and give in to the eccentricities of their creators are always top destinations during my travels. I stumbled across The Orient Hotel because of the reputation of the onsite restaurant, the Mosaic, and from the website I knew this hotel would be delightfully strange in the best possible way.
Nature has the ability to inspire awe and there are moments while in the bush when I realize that what I am viewing is incredibly unique. These moments are oddly emotional and often difficult to describe, but I had this profound sensation as I watched 17 three month old wild dog puppies outside of their den during my recent visit to Ngala Tented Camp.
This is a bit embarrassing to admit given the number of times I have gone on safari, but I only recently learned why the cape buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion and rhino are called the Big Five. The Big Five is originally a hunting term coined because these five animals were considered by hunters to be the most dangerous to shoot.
One of the best views in the Stellenbosch winelands has to be from the Jordan Restaurant dining room, but when the dishes start coming out of the kitchen, all attention turns to the magnificent food. This is not a restaurant where the view is meant to distract from middling food, but one where the views of wine farms and farmland convey the provenance of what you are eating.