Last Thursday my son and I visited Leonardslee Lakes & Gardens in Horsham, West Sussex, in the UK, on my first day of visiting the country. I loved seeing Chef Jean Delport, previously working at my then favorite restaurant Benguela on Main in Somerset West, and enjoying his creative take on Afternoon Tea at the estate.
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Tag Archives: Wallabies
WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 24 September
Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines
* The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has downgraded its growth projection for airline passengers to 5% for the rest of 2013, but does expect a stronger growth in 2014.
* The City of Cape Town staff strike has come to a speedy end.
* The Fish & Chip Company’s short-lived advertising campaign with President Zuma as its subject, on which R500000 was spent on media placement before it was withdrawn, generated R20 million in PR coverage in ten days, winning the Metropolitan Republic a Gold Loerie for PR Communication Campaign. Die Antwoord’s video for its song ‘Fatty Boom Boom’ was a surprise Gold winner in the TV and Cinema 90 second+ category.
* Swiss airline Edelweiss, which belongs to Lufthansa, returns to Cape Town from October for the third year, serving the Zurich – Cape Town route, a popular way for German, British and Italian tourists in particular to fly directly to Cape Town.
* South Africa’s ‘maverick’ winemakers receive praise from wine-searcher.com!
* The next London Wine Fair will be held from 2 – 4 June 2014, somewhat later Continue reading →
Women’s Day weekend good for business
The Women’s Day long weekend has been good for business, with Whale Cottage Franschhoek, Whale Cottage Hermanus and Whale Cottage Camps Bay fully booked on most of the weekend nights.
The good bookings could be a signal that the worst of the economic crunch is over, and it is encouraging that the guest mix consisted of Italians (August traditionally is their holiday month, and they seem to favour South Africa as before), British visitors, and of South Africans.
In Cape Town the Springboks played against the Wallabies at Newlands over the weekend, while in Hermanus the Kalfiefees and the Hermanus Food & Wine Fair took place.
Franschhoek was largely taken over for the long weekend by one of the largest law firms in South Africa, Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs, and Whale Cottage Franschhoek accommodated the band Watershed, which performed at the company’s function. More than 300 staff and their families spent the weekend in Franschhoek, as the company’s way of thanking its staff for their contribution to its success.
The Whale Cottage guests celebrated the 13 th anniversary of the Whale Cottage Portfolio on Women’s day with the staff.
Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com