Tag Archives: Mandela Day

Mandela Day celebrates Madiba’s link to Western Cape!

Nelon MandelaMandela Day will be celebrated around the world today, commemorating the birth-date of the late Nelson Mandela. The Western Cape will be celebrating the important date too.

Amnesty International has announced that it plans to display a large tapestry, to be called ‘Flying Madiba’, in honour of the late Nelson Mandela in the International Arrivals Hall at Cape Town International.

The tapestry is still being made by Atelier Pinton in Aubusson in France, and measures 6 x 3 meters, as a partnership between Amnesty International and Cape Town International, with the support of the Nelson Mandela Foundation. Celebrities Bono, John Legend, Peter Gabriel, Yoko Ono, and Sting Continue reading →

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

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   After a meeting yesterday about the controversial new Immigration Regulations, between Minister of Tourism Derek Hanekom and Minister of Home Affairs Malusi Gigaba, they have announced that some of the onerous requirements will be made less stringent for tourism purposes, in preventing them from becoming an ‘administrative nightmare, causing foreigners to go elsewhere’!   The Department of Home Affairs has agreed to allow any equivalent document to an unabridged birth certificate for children from the country of origin.  More centres to issue biometric visas to South Africa will be opened in India and China, where there are only two per country.   One wonders why the Ministers took more than a month to meet, and allowed so much damage to be caused to our country’s Tourism industry!

*   Stellenbosch 360, the town’s tourism promotion agency, is determined to make every day a ‘Mandela Day‘, and assisted ‘boutique impact investment company‘ Heart Capital in its Foodpods Project in the Kayamandi township.  The project encourages locals to grow vegetables.  Stellenbosch 360 would like Stellenbosch residents to ‘live a life of 67 minutes as opposed to making it a yearly activity’. (received via media release from Random Hat Communications) Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 21 July

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   In honour of Mandela Day last Friday, and the launch of the new DVD of the ‘Lego‘ movie, a collection of limited edition Lego figurines of local presenters, including Gareth Cliff,  Bonang Matheba (ex Metro FM), Lee-Roy Wright (SABC3 presenter), DJ Fresh (5FM), and Casper Lee (actor Spud 3) has been created.  A set of three Nelson Mandela mini Lego figurines has also been launched.

*   The few women honoured in Cape Town by means of statues is soon to become something of the past, when steel cut-outs  of such women luminaries and outspoken leaders as the late Albertina Sisulu, Miriam Makeba, Adelaide Tambo, and Nadine Gordimer are erected along the Fan Walk leading to the Cape Town Stadium in Green Point, a World Design Capital 2014 project called ‘Wonder Women’.   Architect Mokena Makeka will make up the steel statues of the women, with a positive and negative image.

*   This coming weekend the focus in Cape Town will be on Street Food, with talks at Sidestreet Studios on Saturday 27 July by Andy Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 18 July

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*  Joanne Gibson has made the shortlist in the International Feature Writer of the Year category, and Michael Fridjhon in the Best Columnist category, of the Roederer International Wine Writers’ Awards.  Ms Gibson was one of the 20 or so wine writers whose entries for the Franschhoek Literary Festival Wine Writer Award were rejected as not being good enough!  (received by Tweet from Joanne Gibson)

*   Decanter has published its top 50 The Decanter Power List 2013

*   Times Media Limited, publishers of the Sunday Times and The Times, has withdrawn from the South African Press Association (SAPA),  a news sharing service, writes The Media Online.

*   SAA staff is striking today, but there has been no disruption, with only a small number of staff being absent, the airline says.

*   South Africa is on the front cover of Marie Claire world-wide, with the very noble cause of developing budding South African swimmers to get them trained up to Olympic standard by Princess Charlene of Monaco, and fitting to celebrate Mandela Day, a Marie Claire exclusive in its editions worldwide. The princess gave up attending the Dutch enthronement for the shoot in South Africa, to royal criticism.  An alternative cover features the princess with swimming stars and Olympic medal winners Ryk Neethling and Chad le Clos. Continue reading →