apr, 19th - a walk around the city....

day 436 continued....

we had a lovely early morning stroll around the city.....enjoying old favourites and discovering new haunts.....it's so good to be back in the Mother City.

we started in Kloof Street and stopped in at Vida for a coffee. Vida is a South African institution....now a chain of coffee spots...but a chain with soul, the mood, the music, the buzz and the laughter always make my day.

down into Long Street and another long-term favourite, Long Street Cafe, wrapped up in loads of memories (i used to waitress for their sister cafe as a student) and then a brand new contender for my affections....Yours Truly, below. (More about this fabulous new coffee spot in a future post.)

another spot that needs its' own post is the Grand Daddy Hotel further down Long Street. i took A. up onto their roof to check out the Airstream Trailer Park. we struggled to get Limi to leave.......

there were a couple of other shops that i was keen to explore but alas i had forgotten African time and most of them were still closed.....Merchants on Long was one and the other was product designer, Gregor Jenkins. his work is modern and new but with an industrial and raw feel. some of my favourite pieces use widely available, enamelware to make beautifully sculptural light stands. sadly, i had to make do with peering through the windows.....

(ps. in South Africa we call traffic lights, Robots)

and finally, we stopped for some tea at Birds Boutique Cafe.....again, a spot that deserves its' own post space.

what a lovely way to start the day. next stop, Stellenbosch, a picturesque village 40 minutes from Cape Town surrounded by wine estates and dotted with Cape Dutch style buildings.