Today is the first day of nominations for the SA Blog Awards. If you enjoy Cape Town Daily Photo and think we're deserving, please nominate us by clicking on the big shiny SA Blog Awards button to the right.

And while you're there, do nominate a few of your other favourite South African blogs - to give you a couple of ideas we'll mention one or two of our own favourites each day. Today, we suggest that you head over to SA Rocks, to read a mix of some awesomely positive stuff about our country.

This shot was taken at the second event, the Bloggerati get-together at Long Street Cafe. We had a great time at both venues, and met plenty of interesting people we'd previously only known from the Internet. ;-)

Excellent news: Stormhoek kindly sponsored the wine for GeekDinner - and we learnt, with great excitement, that their awesome wine is now available from Pick 'n Pay stores across the Western Cape. If you're in Cape Town, get some now, before we beat you to it.

Anyhow, it's pretty unusual to see a guy staying at home to take care of the kids, don't you think? ;-)

I have wonderful memories of many holidays taken in Hermanus when I was a young girl - unfortunately the town has since become a little too commercialised for my liking. The tiny shell-shops and bookshops I remember from my childhood are gone, and have been replaced by chain-stores and restaurant franchises. (I did stumble upon an awesome second-hand bookstore, though, called Hemingway's. They stock a huge range of first-editions, Africana and out-of-print books; and I could have happily spent an entire month's salary there in just an hour or two.)

There are some beautiful beaches in and around Hermanus, and the Old Harbour is definitely worth a visit.

This year saw the centenary of the parade, and almost any Capetonian's childhood memories will include the Kaapse Klopse, as they are known in Afrikaans. My mother was telling me that she recalls how, in earlier years, the minstrels used to parade through suburban streets, singing Christmas carols and ushering in the New Year.

The post title is Afrikaans for "second new year", and refers to a holiday that was celebrated in the Western Cape until a few years back. Actually, it's still celebrated, but it's not an official public holiday anymore. We Capetonians are rather fond of holidays, and don't relinquish them easily. :)

I thought they looked rather pretty in the late-afternoon sun, but it seems I might be in the minority - I read a few rather unflattering opinions of them on the web last night. It's hard to tell from a photo, I know, but what are your impressions of these larger-than-life ladies?

Click here to see the Wikimapia aerial photograph of Spier Estate.

I hope to never forget the moment at which the cable car rose over the last rocky outcrop, revealing the setting sun and spilling magical orange light over us and the rocks below. What a fantastic end to 2007!

Happy New Year to all of you - we're looking forward to an awesome 2008, and trust that you are too.

Clockwise, from the top left: the sun setting over Camps Bay; the lights of the city, stretching out to Blouberg and beyond; looking north-east over the city bowl, just after the sun had set; three cable cars from years gone by, no longer in use.

Click here to see the Wikimapia aerial photograph.

Cape Town's city lights make it difficult for navigators to distinguish the harbour lights, and so this lighthouse, together with those at Green Point and Robben Island, make it a whole lot easier to get into the harbour safely at night. (I can barely parallel park, so I'm rather in awe of those who steer ships, no matter how many lighthouses they have to help them.)

Pastis is lovely and laid-back, surrounded by plenty of trees and filled with all things French. They also have free wi-fi, so I think I'll be heading there to do some work on a few of the hot afternoons we're expecting in January and February. :)

Although we didn't have a camera with us last night (very unusual behaviour!), and consequently don't have a photo to show you, I have to mention the outstanding dinner we had at Yum in Vredehoek. I had a beef rump risotto and Paul had a Jagermeister rump - and we both agreed that this was the best restaurant dinner we've had in a very long time. If you're in Cape Town now or some time in the future, put Yum on your list of places to visit. And we weren't paid, bribed or offered free food to say this. (Although that would be nice, of course. ;-) )

It's Paul's birthday today, so I snuck out of bed early to do this quick post, and to ask you to leave birthday wishes for him in the comments... :)

It's pretty, I guess. But Father Christmas would have been so much more exciting. ;-)

We ate at Primi Piatti in the V&A Waterfront - what a fantastic view there is from their new balcony section! Stormhoek sent along a few bottles of wine, as is their custom (and oh how we love them for it), and all in all we had a fabulous evening in lovely surroundings, with great company.

For our South African readers, the delectable Stormhoek wines are now available at Checkers stores, and to celebrate, Stormhoek is running an awesome competition. Part of me doesn't want to tell you about this, because I'd really, really like to win it myself (the main prize is a year's supply of Stormhoek wine!), but since you've been kind enough to visit our blog, I'll give you a little info: 3000 bottles of the Stormhoek stocked by Checkers have neck tags explaining how you can win (you'll need to find Stormhoek Big-Love on Facebook and add it as a friend), and apart from the main prize, there will also be weekly giveaways of t-shirts and wine until all the tagged bottles have been sold. Visit Stormhoek's blog for more info. But, um, don't rush now; there's really no hurry... no hurry at all... ;-)

The food was excellent (perfect poached eggs, beef sausage, plenty of bacon, and toast with homemade preserves) and the service really impressed us. As we sat down, before we'd even looked at the menus, we were each given a glass of ice-water with lemon slices - very welcome on a hot day like today! Our coffee and food arrived quickly, and so did our bill when we asked for it.

So, if you're ever in the Muizenberg area, do drive down to Beach Road and pop into Balmoral on Beach for a snack. Just say we sent you... :-)

We love these bridges - they've become a feature over the past 20 years, and despite what we may say to the contrary, if the truth be told, we'd all be rather sorry to see them completed. Where else would bands shoot cool music videos? Where else would graffiti artists go to express themselves? How else would you explain to people how to get to your guesthouse? And, honestly, what else could have been an appropriate setting for the final scene of this little movie?

No, there's nothing to be debated: the bridges must stay. ;-)

There are 128 blogs around the world participating in today's theme day. Click on the links below to visit them:

Boston (MA), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Stayton (OR), USA - New York City (NY), USA - Portland (OR), USA - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Inverness (IL), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Stockholm, Sweden - Setúbal, Portugal - Brussels, Belgium - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Seattle (WA), USA - Hyde, UK - Manila, Philippines - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - London, England - Austin (TX), USA - Toulouse, France - Weston (FL), USA - Sesimbra, Portugal - Selma (AL), USA - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Saarbrücken, Germany - Cleveland (OH), USA - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - American Fork (UT), USA - Seoul, South Korea - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - North Bay (ON), Canada - Arradon, France - Paderborn, Germany - Durban, South Africa - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Cypress (TX), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - Portland (OR), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Wichita (Ks), USA - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Grenoble, France - New York City (NY), USA - Nottingham, UK - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Arlington (VA), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Miami (FL), USA - Cheltenham, UK - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Saratoga Spgs. (NY), USA - Las Vegas (NV), USA - Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina - Nashville (TN), USA - Toru?, Poland - New Orleans (LA), USA - Port Elizabeth, South Africa - Melbourne, Australia - Moscow, Russia - Trujillo, Peru - Château-Gontier, France - Quincy (MA), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Joplin (MO), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Brookville (OH), USA - Chateaubriant, France - Chandler (AZ), USA - Stavanger, Norway - Baziège, France - Auckland, New Zealand - Wellington, New Zealand - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Subang Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Detroit (MI), USA - Riga, Latvia - Nelson, New Zealand - Budapest, Hungary - Cape Town, South Africa - Sydney, Australia - Dunedin (FL), USA - Sofia, Bulgaria - Radonvilliers, France - Turin, Italy - Montpellier, France - Kansas City (MO), USA - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Wailea (HI), USA - Lubbock (TX), USA - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Terrell (TX), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Budapest, Hungary - Montréal (QC), Canada - Sharon (CT), USA - Le Guilvinec, France - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Saigon, Vietnam - London, UK - Crepy-en-Valois, France - Orlando (FL), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Paris, France - Mainz, Germany - Newcastle (NSW), Australia - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Darmstadt, Germany - Naples (FL), USA - Torino, Italy - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Bogor, Indonesia - The Hague, Netherlands - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Anderson (SC), USA - Melbourne (VIC), Australia - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand

And on that note: as you can see, someone has finally summoned the courage to tell the weather people that it's actually November, and thus some clear skies and sunshine would be rather nice. At last I can announce that it's summer in Cape Town.

There were some really beautiful entries, but what struck me most was how the judges' ideas of what constituted a prize-winning photograph differed so dramatically from my own at times. I listened with surprise as they gave relatively low scores to shots I thought were well-composed and original, and exceptionally high scores to shots that I considered to be fairly ordinary.

It made me realise once again that the appreciation of art really is a very subjective thing. (It also made me glad that no-one was scoring any of our photos.)

Today, the first of the month, is Theme Day and there are currently 121 blogs participating. Please take a quick tour of the world by clicking on some of the links below.

Boston (MA), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Arlington (VA), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Portland (OR), USA - Sequim (WA), USA - Selma (AL), USA - Arradon, France - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Stockholm, Sweden - Singapore, Singapore - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Seattle (WA), USA - Toulouse, France - The Hague, Netherlands - Moscow, Russia - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Stayton (OR), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Detroit (MI), USA - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - Bandung (West Java), Indonesia - Greenville (SC), USA - Hyde, UK - Radonvilliers, France - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Nashville (TN), USA - Manila, Philippines - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Saarbrücken, Germany - New Orleans (LA), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Hobart (Tasmania), Australia - Forks (WA), USA - Wichita (Ks), USA - Barton (VT), USA - St. Louis (MO), USA - Joplin (MO), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Quincy (MA), USA - Setúbal, Portugal - Inverness (IL), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand - Toru?, Poland - North Bay (ON), Canada - Le Guilvinec, France - Chateaubriant, France - London, England - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Naples (FL), USA - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Sydney, Australia - Austin (TX), USA - Mumbai, India - Boston (MA), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Paderborn, Germany - Montréal (QC), Canada - Jackson (MS), USA - Stavanger, Norway - Orlando (FL), USA - Grenoble, France - Cheltenham, UK - Forks (WA), USA - Mexico City, Mexico - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Silver Spring (MD), USA - Weston (FL), USA - London, UK - Jefferson City (MO), USA - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Belgrade, Serbia - Paris, France - Shanghai, China - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Montpellier, France - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Auckland, New Zealand - Evry, France - New York City (NY), USA - Nottingham, UK - Las Vegas (NV), USA - Oslo, Norway - Minneapolis (MN), USA - American Fork (UT), USA - Cypress (TX), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Trujillo, Peru - Trujillo, Peru - Melbourne (VIC), Australia - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Durban, South Africa - Brussels, Belgium - Anderson (SC), USA - Budapest, Hungary - Wellington, New Zealand - Prague, Czech Republic - Saigon, Vietnam - Ystad, Sweden - Miami (FL), USA - Seoul, South Korea - Hong Kong, China - Melbourne, Australia - Baziège, France - Greensboro (NC), USA - Sharon (CT), USA - Kajang (Selangor), Malaysia

So, if you had one of these just standing in your garage, how would you put it to use? Personally, I think it would make a fantastic mobile jewellery rack - all those hooky bits are just crying out to have bracelets hung on them, and the big round wheely part would look oh-so-pretty adorned with an array of necklaces.

A postcard for the best suggestion...

For anyone who may have missed the news, the Springboks became the 2007 Rugby World Cup champions last night, joining Australia as one of the only two teams to have won the trophy twice. The streets of Cape Town were filled with people celebrating into the early hours of the morning - motorists hooted, flags were flown, vuvuzelas were blasted, and pedestrians ran up and down high-fiving people as they drove past. It was an awesome ending to a month and a half of excitement, a week of nervous build-up, and two days of unbelievable Springbok fever. We're a happy nation today, despite the collective hangover. :)

Thanks to everyone who posted good luck messages here over the past week or two! For those of you outside of South Africa, today's post title is a reference to this advert.

Everywhere I went today I saw people dressed in green, as well as plenty of Springbok and South African flags flying outside houses and businesses. There's an enormous air of expectation, and quite honestly I don't think a whole lot of work got done around Cape Town today.

Many companies allowed their staff to come to work in casual clothes, and encouraged them to dress in green and gold. These photos were taken by Hannes Thiart, outside the head-office of Paul's employer Santam, which is a large insurance company located in Bellville.

Roll on tomorrow, we're ready!

Disclaimer: I'm 99.9% sure there are no people living in this dilapidated structure. I can't be sure, but I think it could be a shed of some kind. Beautiful surroundings though, not so?

I spent the day at a course at the university today, in the building next to this one (they look identical, this one was just easier to get a photo of). This is part of the Centre for Language Studies, and is set in a beautiful tree-lined street with very limited parking. Oh hang on, that could describe virtually any street in Stellenbosch...

Actually, I love visiting Stellenbosch, limited parking or not - the presence of all those students gives it such a carefree atmosphere, full of promise.

We watched the game at the Springbok Pub in Newlands, which is hosting Cape Town's official Absa Boktown. The atmosphere was brilliant, with all kinds of prizes (for singing the national anthem with gusto, for dancing on the tables, even for the group buying the most beer); and appropriately celebratory music was played at the end of the game. We'll be there for the semi-final and the final too, so if you're in Cape Town and are looking for a good place to watch the games, join us. (Be sure to call the pub and book a table though - the venue can hold a fair number of people, but I have a feeling it's going to fill up fast.)

This is Kenilworth Racecourse, the oldest racecourse in the country and home to the annual J&B Met - a high-fashion affair, with plenty of large hats, designer suits, and very, very short skirts. Oh, apparently there's a little bit of horse-racing too, but you'd never guess so based on the TV coverage of the event.

The J&B Met has been on my to-do list for a really long time, and maybe with a bit of planning we'll actually make it there in 2008 (I don't mind wearing a hat, but my skirt will be of a modest length).

But Harleys are really popular in Cape Town, and you'll often encounter a flock of them going for a breakfast run on a Sunday morning along any of our winding coastal roads. I always suppress my giggles though, because the riders are generally substantially larger than me and I don't fancy my Sunday morning turning into one of those nasty scenes from a Mad Max movie.

Apologies to any Harley riders reading this post; I'm quite sure you wouldn't like my car either. And I know that you're really all big sweethearts and would never hurt a girl.

There are 103 blogs participating in this theme day. Use the links below to see how the dead are remembered around the world:

St. Louis (MO), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - New York City (NY), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Mainz, Germany - Hyde, UK - Arlington (VA), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Toulouse, France - Arradon, France - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Ampang (Selangor), Malaysia - Joplin (MO), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Seattle (WA), USA - Baziège, France - Baltimore (MD), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Sequim (WA), USA - Stayton (OR), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Austin (TX), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Anderson (SC), USA - Orlando (FL), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Nashville (TN), USA - Tenerife, Spain - Manila, Philippines - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Jacksonville (FL), USA - River Falls (WI), USA - Chateaubriant, France - Quincy (MA), USA - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Inverness (IL), usa - Lubbock (TX), USA - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Moscow, Russia - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Crepy-en-Valois, France - Minneapolis (MN), USA - New Orleans (LA), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Toru?, Poland - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand - London, England - Paderborn, Germany - The Hague, Netherlands - Selma (AL), USA - Sunderland, UK - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Stavanger, Norway - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Weston (FL), USA - Portland (OR), USA - Forks (WA), USA - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Boston (MA), USA - Sydney, Australia - Wellington, New Zealand - Montpellier, France - Jackson (MS), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Evry, France - Saarbrücken, Germany - New York City (NY), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - North Bay (ON), Canada - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Cypress (TX), USA - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Paris, France - San Diego (CA), USA - Wichita (Ks), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Prague, Czech Republic - Zurich, Switzerland - Budapest, Hungary - Paris, France - Saigon, Vietnam - Grenoble, France - Zurich, Switzerland - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Naples (FL), USA - Toronto (ON), Canada - Sequim (WA), USA - Chicago (IL), USA