Where's December rushing off to??

I blinked and December was upon us, I was so excited because I was done with work for the year and I was going to have so much free time to get things done!

I blinked again and December's already half-way through!! How did that happen?? What is going on?? I have hardly even touched on the endless list of things to do!

I did manage to get all our Christmas shopping done and wrapped, by the 3rd already! I also took Arya in for a little snip, her stitches come out tomorrow. Since then it's been a whirlwind of selling a ton of our stuff, studying for exams, freaking out over not covering all my content due to not having power for 15 hours straight last week, a three hour long exam on Wednesday and a plethora of farewells since then. Finally I have a little free time to sit down at my laptop and get you all up to speed.

We had our year-end work function on Thursday and our year-end team building at Sun City on Friday. The weather was perfect and we had a blast!

Girls at Thursday lunch

View from the Cascades Hotel, Sun City

Arena in the Valley of the Waves, Sun City

Roman Baths at the Valley of the Waves, Sun City

Sunset over Hartebeespoort Dam

We still have quite a bit to get done as well as alot of packing to do before the 28th when our tenants move into our little house.

I'm getting so excited, this morning I worked out our Itinerary for Paris and it's going to be an amazing holiday! I can't wait to get all snap happy in France (with our newest toy) and share what is sure to be an incredible holiday with you all!

Don't forget to follow me on Instagram to see what we get up to, as it happens!

 *All photos on this post are either mine or courtesy of Roanne Sookdhoo, our tourist!

Travel Tuesdays...Swaziland!

For our first anniversary Riaan and I decided to get our passports stamped together for the first time...I can't believe it took us 8 years but hey, we finally did it!

Since we got married on a public holiday we were lucky to have a nice long weekend for our first wedding anniversary.

We set off on Saturday morning nice and early on our 400km road trip, once we were through the border we found our way (after quite a few wrong turns) to Swazi Candles, it's a local candle factory and mini flea market. All of the candles and pretty much everything else that is sold here is hand made, it is awesome!
We strolled through the candle store and watched one of the candle makers make Rhinoceros candles, these guys are so talented, its insane!

After the candle factory we made our way to the Swaziland Botanical Gardens, the gardens are beautiful and lush, and are home to a very unique dining experience.
There is a restaurant set on the edge of the water with wooden walkways snaking over the water to private little landings where you can enjoy an intimate meal or a few sundowners if you prefer.

After our refreshments we decided to make our way to the Wide Horizons Retreat - Our home for the weekend. Rose (the owner) advised that we try to arrive before sunset as we would be travelling a dirt road.
We stopped off at a supermarket to get some groceries for the weekend and off we went.
Little did we know that our Honda Jazz was about to become a miniature 4x4. We traversed the slopes of the mountain (pictured above) and eventually after what felt like an eternity and a few heart failures, we arrived at our destination, thanks to Riaan and his mad driving skills!!

We spent our weekend relaxing and exploring, we went on a few hikes up the mountain and enjoyed the fresh air! We stayed in the luxury tent, which was wonderful. It is extremely secluded and has an outdoor shower and a semi-outdoor bath. On the first evening we forgot to tie down the tent flaps, and since the tent was so secluded (and we were in the middle of Africa) and the wind was extremely rough I spent the night worrying that we might die! Hahaha such a drama queen! We were literally living on top of a mountain above a small village, everyone knows everyone there, so I actually had nothing to worry about!! Needless to say, I slept much better on the second night.

A random little hut on our campsite

Pathway leading up to the tent

Sunset over the mountain

Before heading home on the Monday we made a stop at the Ngwenya glass factory, here they handmake pretty much anything out of glass. We bought awesome whiskey glasses that will work perfectly on our yacht one day, as well as some pretty seashell paperweights, unfortunately cameras are not allowed in the factory so no pictures of that.

My Best/Worst Vacation...#Blogtober14 Day7

I really don't think it is possible to have a bad holiday - the fact that you're not at home doing the same old thing is reason enough to smile. Bonus points if you're in another town/city and double points if you're in another country!! Unless some natural disaster strikes or you end up re-living the likes of "Taken" and "The Impossible", then you're having a really bad holiday!

I, however, am lucky enough not to have re-lived said movies, and in South Africa besides the occasional flash-flood we don't have natural disasters, we do have unnatural disasters though (The government, The SAPS, Parliament...I could continue but I'm sure you get the point).

I have had many wonderful breakaways and holidays, some involved sleeping in tents at music festivals, others involved fancy hotels and lounging about by the pool - from one extreme to the next - you cannot compare!!

Anyway, my absolute best vacation (so far) was our Honeymoon, it was awesome! We spent it in Cape Town and behaved like tourists in our own country. We bought souvenirs, saw almost all of the main attractions, ate way too much, drank great wine and enjoyed a sunset on the beach overlooking Table Mountain almost every afternoon. It was absolutely perfect in every way.

Beautiful sunset from The Ambassador Hotel

On top of Table Mountain

Wine tasting at Groot Constantia

Relaxing on Clifton Beach

 

Boat ride from Hout Bay to Seal Island

At the Cape Point National Park

Bloubergstrand with a view of Table Mountain! Oh my soul the water is cold!!

Wine tasting at Constantia Glen

The view at Cape Point

The lighthouse at Cape Point

Kayaking in Sea Point

Kayaking in Sea Point

When I think about leaving South Africa and the things I will miss, Cape Town is definitely one of those things. Every time I have gone there I come back to Johannesburg with a heavy heart, I love it there!! There is a place for everyone in Cape Town, it's diversity is what I love most! If you haven't been, you need to add it to you travel agenda!!

So I'd like to know have you been to Cape Town? And what is your favourite thing to do there? If you live in Cape Town feel free to share with us some local tips and hot spots!