Tag Archives: Abu Dhabi

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 31 March

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   British travelers can experience a virtual taste of Cape Town and other South African highlights whilst in Manchester(NoHo) and in London (Corbet Place), with a special film about our city on the virtual reality headset Oculus Rift.  Abseiling down Table Mountain, shark-cage diving, paragliding, kite-surfing, feeding elephants, and visiting the Johannesburg Neighbourgoods Market are featured. Two viewers will win tickets to travel to South Africa, to experience our country’s beauty in reality.

*   For the first time Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom has admitted that the Immigration Regulations, which were Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 5 February

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   New draft legislation calls for zero alcohol consumption before driving, with input sought by 27 February.  Alcohol in medicines and fruit could lead to wrongful arrests.

*  SAA has announced that its direct flights between Johannesburg and Mumbai in India will come to an end on 1 April. It will fly to Abu Dhabi, from where passengers will fly with Etihad or Jet Airways to Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Madras in India on a codeshare basis. This route cut, combined with the one to Beijing, will help reduce costs for SAA. Ironic is that SA Tourism as well as local tourism players is in India at the moment, on a marketing trip for our country!

*   Horror of horrors is the report that the Glen Country Club sports grounds is up for sale Continue reading →

Chef Reuben Riffel: 2014 was a very busy year! More MasterChef to come!

Reuben Riffel Whale CottageYesterday I met Chef Reuben Riffel for a Day of Reconciliation coffee at Crisp in Franschhoek, around the corner from his Reuben’s restaurant, a follow-up from our reconnection at the Mercedes-Benz Eat Out Restaurant Awards.

As he sat down, Chef Reuben apologised for not feeling 100%, starting a cold, and expressing that he is exhausted after a very busy year, but seems to have enjoyed every minute of it. Ironically he and his wife Maryke had planned 2014 last year, wanting it to be a less busy year than 2013, but looking back, he said it was even busier. In the past year he has done the following:

*   filmed MasterChef SA Celebrity Edition, a series we are yet to see, in January 2015, in which he cut his MasterChef judging teeth, apologising that he was still new at being a TV cooking show judge.  Food24 reports that the 10 celebrities, cooking for a prize to be donated to  charity, are Singer Patricia Lewis, Comedian Chris Forrest, Comedian TolAss­Mo, Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 15/16 December

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine new headlines

*      Etihad Airways and SAA have announced one of the benefits of their ‘strategic partnership’, in that SAA is commencing flights between Johannesburg and Abu Dhabi from 29 March, doubling the number of flights on this route.  Abu Dhabi is a hub, with access to India, the Middle East, and Asia.

*   The International Air Transport Association (IATA) predicts that the profit of its member airlines is expected to grow, due to the lower oil price and GDP growth. Airfares are expected to decrease by 5%.

*   The R 2 million Sun Star sculpture on Signal Hill has unleashed a debate about the role of corporate sponsorship in Continue reading →