Tag Archives: lights
Stop the sky lanterns
In this particular case, I watched as the onshore breeze blew the lantern from Clifton 4th beach, up to Victoria Road, and onto the slopes of Table Mountain. It's irresponsible of people to threaten peoples lives and properties for the pleasure of marveling at the pretty light in the sky.
Suburb of lights
Tsuyo Japanese restaurant has no mayor!
We visited Tsuyo for traditional Japanese Teppanyaki - which is a Japanese cooking technique whereby the food is cooked on an iron griddle. We started our meal with sushi (it's a Japanese restaurant after all) and then moved on to the main course.
The sushi was pretty tasty - though not as elaborate as sushi prepared at some of the other well-known spots. The teppanyaki was pretty satisfying and fairly filling - so much so that we decided even to skip dessert.
The only disappointing part of the Japanese experience was that we weren't served by a Japanese waiter! But then, this is Africa. :)
Christmas-coloured lights
Although we have Christmas trees in our homes, and the occasional wreath on our doors, massive amounts of Christmas lights and decorations aren't as big a thing in South Africa as we're made to believe it is in the USA. But, somehow the tradition caught on in this suburb - and each year it seems like the collection of brightly-coloured lights increase in number. Perhaps some day the suburb will glow even brighter than the City! :)
Take a look at this Zoopy news report that shows some footage from the area.
Have you seen these lights before?
If you're sure that you've seen these lights before, leave a message here and name the restaurant! :)
A hospital room with a view
The building that you can see more or less in the middle of this photo is the Panorama Medi-Clinic, one of the best known private hospitals in Cape Town. Take a look at the lights spreading out in the background and you'll probably be able to work out why this area is called Panorama. It's located on the slopes of Tygerberg Hill, in the northern suburbs, and from here you can see a very large part of greater Cape Town.
The Panorama Medi-Clinic was opened in 1986, and was the very first hospital launched by the Medi-Clinic group. I'm not a big fan of hospitals in general, due to having spent quite a bit of time in one when I was a toddler. Being in a hospital environment always brings up vague feelings of trauma for me, so I avoid them as far as possible. If you don't have any such qualms, though, then take a visual tour of the Panorama Medi-Clinic. :)
Night-time view of Beach Road in Mouille Point
On Wednesday we showed you the view from Wakame; this photo was taken from the same section of the restaurant (the upstairs bar area), but facing in a slightly different direction (looking up Beach Road, towards the lighthouse and Sea Point). And it was at night, of course. ;-)
We don't often find ourselves in this area on a weeknight, and so we were very surprised to see just how busy this part of the Atlantic Seaboard was. We had to drive around the block quite a few times to find parking - pretty impressive, considering it was 8pm on a Thursday...
We’re loving summer
Hot, quiet and windless evenings like this make Capetonians head for the outdoors. While we were at the Waterfront watching the sun slowly fade into an array of pastel colours, hundreds of people would have been meeting up with friends on various beaches around the peninsula, many would have been walking up Signal Hill, and yet others would have been catching a ride to the top of Table Mountain.
Another perfect summer's eve in Cape Town...
Don’t even think about stopping
In the background of this photo you can see the arches of the Provincial Legislature Building, which houses the Western Cape Provincial Parliament. The building is located in Wale Street, more or less opposite Mandela Rhodes Place.
If you see a sign like the one in the foreground, it means that you cannot stop your vehicle at the side of the road - even if it's just to pick someone up or drop someone off. This particular sign is a temporary one (they were doing some work at the side of the road and presumably didn't want anyone stopping while they were busy), but the markings on a permanently mounted No Stopping sign would be identical.
Mandela Rhodes Place
Mandela Rhodes Place is an upmarket mixed-use development located in one of the oldest parts of the city (very close to the Company's Garden, in fact).
About four or five years ago the idea of inner-city living began to regain some popularity in Cape Town, and one of the most notable developments that originated during that period was Mandela Rhodes Place. The developers, Eurocape, restored several old buildings on the corner of Wale Street and Burg Street, the idea being to preserve the facades and historical architecture of these buildings, while entirely revamping the interiors.
Mandela Rhodes Place was launched in November 2006, and now houses a number of luxury apartments, a 5-star hotel, a winery, retail stores, restaurants, cocktail bars and coffee shops. I've only been there twice (at night on both occasions), but I must say, I love the atmosphere inside - it's quiet and stylish, with a real feeling of spaciousness.
Another revolution
With no particular plans for seeing the new year in, Kerry-Anne and I went through to the Cape Town Waterfront to join the thronging crowds watching the annual fireworks display. We bought tickets for a ride on this ferris wheel just before midnight and watched the new year approach from several metres above the ground.
You may notice that only the "W" in "Ferris Wheel" was lit. As we boarded the giant wheel I wondered whether or not I should be concerned that the ride operators were not even able to keep all the lights in working order... :)
In closing, thanks for spending the last year with us; we've certainly enjoyed ourselves and hope that you've enjoyed sharing in Cape Town each day. We wish you an exciting and fun-filled 2009 with much love, joy and peace!
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