Saturday 12 December 2020, Day 83 of Level 1, Day 262 of Lockdown 😷
Corona Gratitude 🙏
#Grateful for a day with a difference, a Roadtrip to Stellenbosch with Jenny Stephens; for a good meeting with one of my beach cleaners; for wine shopping at Woolies Stellenbosch Square to make use of their 25% discount; for buying poppyseed rolls at Dinkel, and homemade Quark (Cottage cheese) at the German Grocer, both of which were kept for me; for a pop-in at Delaire Graff, congratulating the new Chef Kayla-Ann Osborn and greeting GM Johann Laubser; for a smooth easy drive to and from Cape Town; for the highlight of a Tasting of a number of dishes on the menu of the brand new De Vleispaleis on Dorp Street, owned by my friend Stuart Bailey; and for being happy and healthy. 🙏💙
Despite a very long queue at Woolies Stellenbosch Square it didn’t take us too long to pay. We stopped at Furlough Cafe in Dorp Street for tea, and walked from there to the new De Vleispaleis, a Grillroom and Bar. The decor is beautiful, all done by Stuart. The dishes we tasted were a selection by Stuart, to give us a taste of what the restaurant serves…. pardon the pun. We met Chefs Ami de Jager and Juan Craddock, and were looked after by waiter Cole. The presentation of the dishes was excellent, and we could not find fault with the dishes we tasted, except that it was far too much food. An interesting diverse menu, not only serving steak. #Thankyou Stuart.
A group of young girls accompanied bride-to-be engineering student Chantelle Janse van Vuuren, who was dressed up as a ballerina bride, and they came to chat to us, wanting marriage tips….. 😱. We had seen her Groom-to-be earlier in the day, dared by his friends to approach cars, dressed in a pink ballerina outfit too!
We did a quick walk up a part of Church Street, which was very empty, Loadshedding taking place at the time. I was so sad to see that my favorite Pearl shop Jade is no more. A second Pearl shop across the road has also closed down.
Minsky has not come back inside yet, but I’ve heard her in the field next door, clearly cavorting with another cat. 😱 (PS She had a late night, only coming back inside at 1h00 😱)
SA Corona Status 852965 cases 23106 deaths 😷😢
FitBit 10000 steps 7 km 👣
Lovemylife❤️
The Corona Virus Lockdown (Level 5), announced by our President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier to commence on 27 March and to continue until 16 April, subsequently extended to 30 April, lowered to Level 4 from 1 May, lowered to Level 3 from 1 June, lowered to Level 2 from 18 August, and lowered to Level 1 from 21 September, is an unprecedented event in my lifetime. I am posting my daily Facebook post to journal this Corona Lockdown Journey, perhaps to serve as material for a future Book.
Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: Chris von Ulmenstein, My Cape Town Guide/Mein Kapstadt Guide Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein @MyCapeTownGuide