A Travel Guide: A Spontaneous Four Day Trip to Cape Town

Let me tell you, first and foremost, I am not a spontaneous person. I really wish I was but in reality, I am a plan-weeks-in-advance-have-several-excel-spreadsheets-and-a-bullet-journal-page-anal-retentive (phew) type of gal. But I also have a serious case of wanderlust. So when a beautiful, long weekend lay ahead of us, Dale and I seized the opportunity to go on an epic Cape Town adventure.I was super proud of myself, we booked an Air Bnb and the flights literally the day before we left. Shock. Horror. Who am I? 

It. Was. Awesome. And I highly recommend just getting out of your anal-retentive shell, if you are like me, and going on a spontaneous trip. 

Where we stayed? 

We stayed in a centrally based flat on the bustling and vibey Green Market Square just off of Long Street. Whilst certainly not romantic, it was the perfect location for a busy weekend of site seeing. It was a few metres from the hop-on hop-off bus stop.

Where we went? 

Day 1: 

On our first day in Cape Town, we bought tickets for the City Sightseeing Red Hop-on Hop-Off line bus and hopped off at the stunning Camps Bay stop. We had a lazy lunch at Mezepoli just on the main road overlooking the beach. There is just nothing better than having a table of delicious mezes, with a bottle of wine on a sunny day staring out at an azure ocean. I was so incredibly alive and happy in that moment. That. Or I was a little tipsy on superb Cape wine. Ha. Same same. 

Before heading onto the beach to sink our toes in the white sand, we picked up some cheeses, cracked black pepper crackers and dates to pack in our bags for our planned trip up Table Mountain to watch the sunset that evening.

It turns out you can buy a bottle of wine at the restaurant at the top of Table Mountain. When in Cape Town... 
Needless to say the highlight of this whole trip was sitting on the top of Table Mountain, enjoying our picnic with a glass of wine and my favourite human watching the sunset over Cape Town.

I highly recommend buying tickets to go up the mountain in the morning so you avoid the ticket lines at peak times especially prior sunset. 

We took the last red Hop-on Hop-off bus to V&A waterfront and after exploring the little Watershed night market, we bee lined for a packed pub with an old man belting out all the classics. Finally, we concluded the night at Tiger's Milk on Long Street. 

Day 2: 

The second day was spent lazily walking around the Green Market Square market, drinking coffee in a cafe situated in an old church and meeting up with some friends who had moved to Cape Town. We sat on Long Street and ate tapas at Fork and concluded the evening watching local bands at a club on Long Street. We did actually visit The Crypt Jazz Club but I was sorely disappointed so I won't mention too much about it. 

Day 3: 

We woke up early and caught an Uber to the vibey Old Biscuit Mill for the famous Saturday morning Neighbourgood's Market. It was a perfect morning with blue skies and the market was bustling with people and music. The smells of pizza, pancakes, fresh mint, freshly brewed coffee wafted from here and there as we made our way from stall to stall.

 The overwhelming choice from fresh honey, cheeses to sushi was staggering. Dale chose a breakfast burrito, whilst I chose a fresh Mediterranean salad with fresh hummus and aubergine. 

From the market, we headed to the hop-on hop-off buses to grab some tickets for the Purple wine route tour. 

Nothing is better than wine-tasting in Cape Town. Our first stop was Groot Constantia, the oldest wine farm in South Africa, and whilst it was jam packed with tourists, the selection of wines certainly made up for it. In an effort to escape the crowds, we took our glasses of wine, and strolled through the vineyard. 

On our next stop on the wine route tour, we visited Eagle's Nest Wine Estate and ordered freshly baked bread, tomato salsa and a cheese board to accompany our wine tasting. 

We ended our day with a stroll along the harbour in Houtbay.

Day 4:

We hiked up Lion's head. 

I mean... They don't tell you how precarious it is up there, that there are points where it is a bit rock-climby and that there are chains and ladders to pull yourself up with. I've been told numerous times that people climb up Lion's Head at night. Nope. I enjoy my life too much, thank you. I am just not that hardcore. 

But, yes, the view is so worth it! And it feels so good to get fresh air and get some exercise especially if you have spent the last few days drinking wine and eating all. the. food. Which I had. 

Having conquered a mountain, we treated ourselves to cold beers and burgers at Beerhouse afterward. Best beer of my life. 

Our last night was spent at Shimmy Beach Club for dinner. Unfortunately, the weather had taken a nasty turn so the atmosphere was not as vibey as we had hoped. We did end up grabbing some last minute tickets for the Cape Town Comedy Club at the V&A waterfront which was phenomenal. To end off our trip we sauntered back to our favourite pub at the V&A later for drinks. Let's just say we nearly missed our very early morning flight the next morning. Oof! 

Some Other suggestions:

If you are an overseas tourist or if you have not visited Cape Town before, I highly recommend that you add the following places to you itinerary: 

• A trip to Robben Island 
• Dinner at Mama Africa 
• A trip to Seal Island 
• A trip to Cape Point 
• A visit to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens 

If you are a foodie and have some money to spend, I would suggest making a reservation at: 

• La Colombe 
• La Mouette 
• The Test Kitchen 

Have you been to Cape Town?
Xxx 

Paint Nite: A Fab Gift for a Fab Friend

I have known my friend Sam since the beginning of High School. She tells me that we met in the bathroom at the swimming gala. I don't remember it at all... I am sure I have just erased it entirely from my memory as having to wear a school swimming costume in front of other people and actually swim is not my idea of fun. 

I have always admired Sam's confidence and drive. Even when she was a little Grade 8 girl, she knew that she was going to study Zoology. She wanted it. She focused on it. And after killing it at Rhodes University, she now has her masters in Zoology and landed her dream job at Endangered Wildlife Trust. She is a pretty fab human.

 She has certainly seen all my bad hair days, bad fashion choices not to mention my bad boy choices. As one of my first friends to get married she is my go-to-gal for relationship advice.

So of course, it goes without saying that since she is such a fab bestie, she needed a fab birthday gift. Looking to do something unique and fun, I booked tickets to a Paint Nite at a restaurant in her area. 

Paint Nite is an event that happens all over Johannesburg at different bars and restaurants. An art teacher takes you step by step and teaches you to paint a pre-determined picture on a canvas. There is wine. There are laughs and even if you aren't an artist or, it is an artistic outlet.

I really recommend trying it out if you haven't already. 

Have you tried it?
Xxx

My 5 Fall Faves

It was a particular scorcher of a summer and I am enjoying the reprieve of cooler weather at the moment. There is something incredibly romantic about autumn. The colourful leaves and the satisfying crunch of them under your perfect, over-the-knee boots on a brisk morning walk.

Here is a quick rundown of my 5 fave things for fall. 

1. Chai Lattes 

My current favourite go-to coffee is a spicy chai latte. I. am. obsessed. Nothing beats that smell of cinnamon, cloves and sugar. It is comforting and indulgent. I am looking forward to attempting to make a homemade version.  

2. Dark Lips 

Loving dark mauvey and red lipped look. It is dramatic and perfect for cooler weather.

3. Autumn Fashion

Cosy, chunky knitwear paired with over-the knee boots, anything with a classic trench coat, a super cute and playful pom pom beanie... Yes! This is my season. 

I must admit I was a bit naughty and splurged on some over the knee, grey Hanover boots. And then because I loved them so much, I went and bought some black over the knee boots from Zara. I may be a tiny, bit obsessed.

Black Jumper Dress: Edgars; Grey Over-the-knee Boots: Hanover (Superbalist Online).

Trench Coat: Forever New; Chunky Pink Knit: Edgars; Blue Jeans: Woolworths; Nude Ankle Boots: Forever New. 

4. Soup

I. cannot. stop. eating. soup. No seriously. I am addicted to the creamy tomato soup from Woolies. My ultimate autumnal lunch is a bowl of steaming, tomato soup with crusty bread with a thick creamy layer of freshly smashed avocado. Can we just drool together on this one.

5. Running

Yip. Who thought I would have placed this in my list of favourites. In the last year I have gone from wheezing when walking up a couple of stairs to jogging my first 5kms. It isn't much but it feels like a huge accomplishment. The cooler weather has also really helped with inspiring me on going on more runs. This past weekend I beat my personal best of 31 minutes, and ran the Parys parkrun in 29 minutes, 33 seconds.

What are your fall faves? 
Xxx

The Quest to Love Myself

I have not spent a great deal of time writing in the past year. I suppose life takes over in a huge rush and some things end up on the pile of old hockey sticks, golf clubs, & yoga mats from various hobbies taken up in a passion & quickly forgotten.

The New year arrived in his handsome suit and sparkling smile, with whispers of new beginnings and exciting adventures, and although he seemed so familiar, I ignored the warnings to be careful and jumped right in with vigour. I was starry eyed and excited. But then the handsome suit turned to rags and the sparkling smile turned out to be dentures, and I received a swift kick on the backside when reality came hurtling in.

This may not make sense. But basically, the last few months have been difficult for me. I have been struggling to work through the carnage that is in my head. My anxiety levels were through the roof and I have been trying desperately to piece my self-esteem together. 

 The problem is that no one’s self-esteem should ever rely on someone else. If someone disappoints you, or a relationship does not work out, it should not be the end of your world. 

So I am on a path of self-realisation to build up my self esteem and just as Frodo departed from the comfort of the Shire to destroy the ring, so I too have to take my (great) ass on a quest to learn to love myself – see I am starting already.

Xxx

Jade 

The Regular Joe

I swaggered out of university with illusions of grandeur bigger than Kanye’s ego. Is it just our obsession with YouTube, Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter that makes us all feel special? A new society where our life is a fabulous stage on which to perform for our 627 friends which includes every person we have ever met since primary school including our sixth grade maths teacher and yes, even her cat, Mr Twinkles (He has more friends than I do FYI). 

I am a product of this society. Even as I type this on a relatively public blog, I am acutely aware that I am a slave to other people’s acceptance and recognition via social media. Do we all think that we are destined for fame and greatness? We can’t all be the rock star with adoring fans. There needs to be someone to clean up the drug and alcohol induced vomit backstage.

I have been obsessing about this for a while now. I thought I would be something more. I loved to sing. I loved to perform. I loved to write. I just egotistically assumed that I would end up being a creative genius something more than I am. Despite aching to do musical theatre, at the end of the high school I opted to study law. It was a stable, well-trodden paved road.  And despite pretty much hating every moment of it, I managed to get my law degree and get a respectable place at a well-known law firm in the city to complete articles. My fear was that I would become a sad wannabe living in a cardboard box with 10 stray cats to keep me company and begging people to pay me for singing/ writing/ acting lessons to buy my next hit of glue. I survived a year of long hours for a salary that barely covered rent, one year of being treated like vermin by the other employees, incredible stress that had me in tears on most nights. But eventually I found the courage to accept that it was not what I wanted and quit. I managed to get another job that wasn’t at a law firm but in a legal department, with kinder colleagues and slightly better pay. I did not take the job for passion. Rather, I grasped at it to avoid moving back home.  And a year on… I find myself wondering how I became so lost. 

Does anyone else feel like this? 

Am I just so full of myself that I thought I’d be more than a regular Joe sitting at my grey desk lost amongst a grey tetris-block universe of cubicles?  

Life is not always beautiful like a perfectly curated Instagram feed and sometimes we end up being Joey, the guy who cleans up rock star’s vomit backstage but it does not mean that we can’t find happiness outside our cog-like existence in the proverbial clock of life. I’m sure Joey is a great guy with a regular Jane wife who makes his heart explode with happiness. Maybe Joey can make the best omelette the world will never know. And maybe the fact that Joey isn’t famous or hugely successful is okay, because he still finds happiness. In his friends. In his family. In the small things.

So I guess for me, I will continue to write my anonymous blog posts like a kid chatting to an invisible friend and continue to be happy and grateful for everything I have even if I’m not rich or famous or even special at all.   

A Travel Guide: Itinerary for 3 Weeks in Japan

You would have noticed that the date stamp on my travel essentials post is 5th April 2016. I wrote the post before we left but posted it when we got back. We took a trip to Japan for 3 weeks during March.  It was one of the best trips of my life. What struck me was the amount of people that we met on our travels who decided to wing their Japan trip and did not have an itinerary at all. I really applaud their spontaneity. Most of these travelers conceded that it took too much time and effort to put together an itinerary and winging it just suited them.

 I, on the other hand, spent weeks researching and compiling a hardcore excel spreadsheet. I thought I would share my itinerary because I know how much it helped to see other people's itineraries online. I am just going to briefly lay it out in point form as a lot of the information I inserted in the spreadsheet was copy and pasted from www.japan-guide.com & www.jprail.com.

We did not necessarily stick to this itinerary and when we changed our plans, I'll put a little star (*) next to the activity or day. This is certainly NOT the perfect itinerary and there are definitely things that I would change (and did change) but I am merely sharing the one I created in the hope that it helps someone else/ inspires them to create their own.


TOKYO (5 DAYS)

Day 1: (Tokyo)

- Arrive at Narita, Tokyo Airport.
- Explore the area around the hostel

Day 2 (Tokyo):

- Meiji Jingu Shrine
- Harajuku District
- Shibuyo Crossing
- Robot restaurant (*)

Day 3 (Tokyo)
- Day trip to Nikko

Day 4 (Tokyo)
- Tsukiji Fish Market
- Akhihabara
- Asakusa (*)

Day 5 (Tokyo)
- Day trip to Hakone*

NAGANO (1 DAY) 

Day 6 (Nagano)
- Travel to Nagano
- Stay one night in a Ryokan
- Visit Snow Monkey Park
- Experience Onsen

OSAKA (3 DAYS) 

Day 7 (Osaka)
- Travel to Osaka
- Osaka Castle

Day 8 (Osaka)
- Baseball Game
- Dotonbori Canal

Day 9: (Osaka)
- Sumo Wrestling*

NARA (1 DAY)

Day 10 (Nara)
- Feed the deer
- Todaji Temple

KOYA-SAN (1 DAY)

Day 11 (Koya San)
- Stay one night in Buddhist temple lodging


KYOTO (4 DAYS) 

Day 12 (Koya San to Kyoto)
- Morning prayer at buddhist temple
- Travel to Kyoto
- Nijo Castle *
- Manga Museum
- Nishiki Market

Day 13 (Kyoto)
- Kinkakuji (The Golden Pavillion)
- Arashiyama *
- Higashiyama District

Day 14 (Kyoto)
- Fushimi Inari Shrine

Day 15 (Kyoto)
- Free day to explore *

HIROSHIMA (1 DAY) 

Day 16 (Hiroshima)
- Hiroshima Peace Park
- Hiroshima Castle*

MIYA JIMA (2 DAYS) 

Day 17 (Miya Jima)
- Free day to explore *

Day 18: (Miya Jima)
- Climb Mount Misen
- See floating Tori Gate

TRAVEL DAY (MIYA JIMA TO TOKYO) 

Day 19: Travel day

TOKYO (2 DAYS)

Day 20 (Tokyo)
- Free Day *

Day 21 (Tokyo)
- Free day *

Day 22: (Tokyo to Johannesburg)
- Travel home

So that is the itinerary that was planned but changed as we went along. I think it is so important to learn to be flexible. Some of the activities planned had to be rescheduled to another day. Researching online is one thing but when you are in the country, it is easier to figure out what to see on a particular day. Perhaps our traveler friends were clever to wing it. Personally, I am happy with the way we did it. We had a plan but were flexible enough to make changes based on the weather, the budget, when sites were closed for renovations or for safety reasons.

I really hope this helps someone with their trip to Japan. Writing about it is making me incredibly nostalgic. 

Have you been to Japan?
xxx

** PLEASE NOTE ALL PHOTOS MAY NOT BE USED WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT. 

Big in Japan - My carry-on essentials

Next week Friday, I will be jetting off to Japan for 3 whole weeks! I am more excited than an audience member getting screamed at by Oprah to look under her seat... 

It has been four years since I last traveled overseas and I am relieved to once again quench my undying wanderlust. My mom is a travel nut, and even though we did not have a fancy car, or DSTV (or even a washing machine for a few years) growing up, we used the money that we would have to travel. I would choose to travel over constant reruns of Keeping up with the Kardashians anyday anyway. (Thanks mom!).  As soon as I started to work I began to put money aside to travel and I am finally off! 

After travelling to 25 countries, I think I have a pretty good packing system down so I thought I'd share my travel essentials that I bring on the plane, especially since I love reading about everyone else's ... #nerdface! 

My little stash so far that I have collected to take on the trip

Unless you are one of those lucky people who can afford to fly first class (*sigh*) then like me you will inevitably be stuck in "cattle class". You will be stuck in a seat next to the large human whose only possible profession could be a competitive Mcdonalds burger eater. That person will unapologetically take up half your seat as well. Not to mention that you will have the luck of sitting behind a family that decided to bring their 6 month old baby screaming monster from hell with them. The dad who is in the seat directly in front of yours will immediately recline his seat into your lap and fall asleep, oblivious to the shrieks of his angelic bundle of joy  monster from hell. The thirteen year old  directly behind you will be vlogging every second of their journey: what they ate, their toilet habits, what they watched. All the while, kicking your chair every two seconds.... 

It will not be that bad. 

Ultimately, flying can be very uncomfortable and thus the main aim of  everything I take with me in my carry on bag is to ensure maximum comfort. 

1. An empty water bottle to hand to an air hostess to fill up at the beginning of the flight. It is common knowledge how dehydrated one can get on planes. I have been stuck in a situation too many times when I was so thirsty but the air hostess would only fill up a tiny paper cup with water each time I asked and all I really wanted was a large bottle.   

2. Tissues. In case you have the sniffles. In case the impossibly large person next to you has the sniffles. In case you spill something. In case the bathroom has no toilet paper. In case you feel like spit balling wet tissues through a straw at the teenager behind you for funzies. Just kidding... 

3. Face wipes to take off your makeup before you attempt to sleep, or if you were confident enough to get on the plane bare-faced, to refresh your face at the end of the flight. 

4. Hand sanitizer. Germs. Are. Everywhere. 

5. Some snacks to keep your inner hanger-troll at bay. I tend to get hangry... I don't know about you but if I don't eat I can be quite unbearable.  Also the food on planes can be pretty gross. 

6. A moisturising mask. This may seem bizarre. But I think that since you will be sitting for such a long time, you might as well utilise the time to pamper yourself. I bought a moisturising mask that you can leave on your face while you sleep. 

7. An eye mask. To cover your eyes especially when the person next to you puts on their reading light and you want to try sleep. I bought the cutest panda eye mask from typo, you can get a similiar ones here.

8. I also grabbed some moisturising eye strips to place under my eyes while wearing my cute panda eye mask. 

9. Vitamin E Face Mist. Probably unnecessary but it refreshes and moisturizes your face. A few spritzes after sleeping makes me feel less-zombie like. 

10. A neck pillow. 

11. Some sleeping pills or mild sedatives to ease those pesky nerves and assist with sleeping 

12. A make up bag with samples of foundation, mascara, lip-ice, blush and eyeliner. Just before we land, I like to put some make up on. Not 100% necessary,  it just makes me confident. If I look great, I feel great too. 

13. A jersey and some warm socks. 

14. Gum. To prevent your ears closing when the plane takes off. I also take some decongestant tablets to take on the flight and it works wonders if you have problems with your ears hurting on take-off and landing. 

15. Your own comfortable headphones. 

16. A notebook. 

17. A magazine to flip through. 

18. A small perfume and a sample sized deodrant. 

19.  A hair tie to put your hair into a bun and if the flight allows, some dry shampoo to freshen up your locks on landing. 

20. Just remember to put all your liquids in a ziplock bag!

I would love to hear what your travel essentials are. 
xxx