Tag Archives: South african

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 27 March

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   Good news for long-haul travellers from the UK is the announcement by its government that from April 2015 the Air Passenger Duty will decrease, with the tax falling away on all flights with a destination less than 2000 miles from London, and the tax to be levied on destinations 2000+ miles from London will be at a lower rate. The UK has the highest departure tax ‘in the Western world‘, which has increased by 470% since 2007!  It also is the country with the second worst rated air tax and airport charges in the world!

*   Metrorail is to receive R233 million from the Transport Ministry to address its commuters complaints: too few trains, not frequent enough, not punctual, dirty, broken carriage windows, infrastructure problems at Cape Town station, lack of security, and no communication about delays, reports the Cape Times.   Upgrades to track infrastructure will also be addressed.

*   Lufthansa, Condor, TUIFly, and Air Berlin are cancelling flights and expecting delays due to public sector ground Continue reading →

WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 23/24 December

WhaleTalesTourism, Food, and Wine news headlines

*   The wing of a BA plane with 182 passengers on board, rolling to the runway to London,  hit a building at OR Thambo airport in Johannesburg when the pilot allegedly did not follow the instructions re the runway to use.

*   The City of Cape Town and the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association with the Kaapse Klopse Karneval Association have met and have agreed that the associations will organise their own event in 2015.  The City of Cape Town will assist with minstrel competitions held at Athlone Stadium, Florida Park, Vygieskraal, and Delft.   The minstrels will march in Cape Town today, on New Year’s Eve, and on 4 January.

*  The V&A Waterfront has completed a R 140 million upgrade, adding Pick ‘n Pay’s Western Cape flagship store now 6500 m² in size; created parking on the same level, having linked two different parking garages; and added 1400 m² upstairs by connecting two passages, expanding the size of Edgars, and adding four new shops.  Its CEO David Green says that there was little disruption to the operation of the mall, but many customers, including ourselves, have expressed their annoyance  at shopping on a building site for nine months.  On average they receive 60000 visitors every day, but they have had days of double that number (we question how they measure the visitors, not having an electronic car counter as they had in early days).

*   Justine Sacco, who achieved notoriety in writing the ‘worst Tweet of 2013‘,  appears to be on holiday in Cape Town Continue reading →

Vergelegen new SA 2014 Great Wine Capitals Global Network Best of Wine Tourism winner!

Vergelegen Camphors interior Whale Cottage PortfolioWhile Vergelegen may have been disappointed in not scoring a 5 star wine at the Platter’s South African Wines 2014 on Friday evening, the wine estate must have been in seventh heaven to have done so well at the Great Wine Capitals Global Network Best of Wine Tourism Awards for South Africa, for which the winners were announced on Thursday at a gala dinner in the Napa Valley.  Vergelegen won in the Arts and Culture as well as in the Restaurant categories, and performed well in four further categories.  The award-winning performance makes Vergelegen the South African Best of Wine Tourism winner for the third time, having last won in 2009.

In addition to winning two categories outright, Vergelegen came second in four out of a total of seven categories:  Architecture and Landscapes, Innovative Wine Tourism Experiences, Sustainable Wine Tourism Practices, and Wine Tourism Service.  It is Camphors at Vergelegen, one of two restaurants on the wine estate (with Stables at Vergelegen Bistro, a more casual daytime restaurant), that is recognised in the Restaurant award.  The seventh category (Accommodation) was not entered, as this service is not offered.

Vergelegen joins nine other winelands region winners this year:

*   Bodegas Dinastia Vivanco in Rioja, a museum and winery complex, celebrated for its Enoturismo y  Experiencias that offers a wide range of exhibitions, courses and other innovative experiences

*   Château de Rouillac, that dates back to the 19th century when it Continue reading →

Restaurant Review: Emily’s lost without Chef Peter Veldsman, has sold its soul to Coca Cola!

Emily's Interior 2 Whale Cottage Portfolio (2)Emily’s restaurant is 21 years old, and has recently opened at its third home on Kloof Street, having spent ten years each in Woodstock and in the V&A Waterfront.  The restaurant has lost all of its previous charm, and its main attraction (Chef Peter Veldsman) is nowhere to be seen.  It has sold its soul to Coca Cola, its branding seen throughout the restaurant, not befitting an establishment of the stature of Chef Peter and his partner Chef Johan Odendaal.

Chef Peter once was the most high profile food editor of Sarie magazine, and was known and loved by all, the doyen of food writers in his heyday. He has written eleven cookery books, and has contributed to many others too. He has won numerous food awards. He started the Culinary Arts Institute of Africa Restaurant School at the same time as opening Emily’s restaurant in Woodstock in 1994, long before the suburb became trendy, and it was extremely popular for a decade.  I remember its quirky decor, inside an attractive building, and being particularly popular amongst Afrikaans Capetonians, it being their first real Afrikaans restaurant.  Chef Johan ran the cookery school, and his students were the servers.

Surprisingly Emily’s moved to the V&A Waterfront, badly Continue reading →