Day 553 - A Day In Royal History

Yup. I did it. I set the alarm & woke up to watch the wedding. Okay, so I set the alarm for 0930, but that's early for me these days! It was quite the spectacle, I must say! I think every woman on the planet who watched lived a fairytale fantasy she's secretly held inside her heart. Kate is absolutely stunning. She's graceful, real, authentic, poised, the list goes on. And Prince William! In that red uniform - what a handsome man. I am happy for them both. Say what you will, either for or against the Royals, but they are a couple in love & what's not to celebrate about that. And I think we can all agree that there are much worse ways a Government could waste taxpayers dollars! And besides, aren't the Duke & Duchess donating all of their money to charity anyways? 


And then there's the kiss. My heart sank after the first kiss. Thank goodness they snuck another one in to convince all of us die-hard romantics of their affection for each other! I'm sure if I had been in London I would have camped out over night to catch a glimpse of the couple. I would have trotted down the Royal Mile to try & get a photo of them - no matter how crummy that shot may have been!


I'll most probably buy the Royal Wedding soundtrack, along with Ellie Goulding, whom I understand is singing at the reception this evening. She's singing Elton John's 'Your Song' - one of my favourite's thanks to Moulin Rouge & Ewan McGregor. 'The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love & be loved in return.' Sigh. *Insert helpless romantic smile here.*







And that was pretty much the day! Jaco & I went downtown to do a little banking & I stopped in at a few shops to look around. I am freezing as of late, so I've been on the lookout for a great sweater. (Like I don't have enough at home! But they don't do me any good while I'm in Africa, now do they?) I found one, but it's acrylic & it comes out to about $100 after the exchange rate. Not cool! I could have a really sweet cashmere sweater for that price!


Our night was finished off with a Skype chat with Mom & a little late night Dog Whisperer. Life is good!


xxxxMaria

Day 548 - Rain! Precious Rain!

Thankfully today was a rainy day. I'm not lovin' the damp weather, but grateful for the moisture. The local dam is at 20% full, so water is a precious commodity about now. In fact, the cost of water was supposed to go up this weekend, so hopefully this will keep the price increase at bay. We'll see. 


Jaco & I took a little drive around town. We stopped at the Checkers to pick up a few things & then headed home. Petro made a wonderful dinner - this amazing mushroom & garlic cream sauce with rice, beans & a big salad. There was meat too, but neither Jaco or I took any. I think Sis is happy about that, but not so much Petro! 


I spent a while fixing her computer for her. The Internet Explorer isn't working so well. The display looks really antiquated, so I have swapped it over to Google Chrome & now it looks a bit more normal.


Hennie & I watched Carte Blanche. Usually it's a show about stirring up trouble amongst businesses/government in South Africa, but today it was about the Royal Wedding. I suppose that's all we'll see for the week to come. I'd like to know how much money people will make off of the wedding of these two! Ridiculous! Doughnuts, candies, fridges, the list is endless... 


After Carte Blanche, I watched bits & pieces of Invictus. I was Skyping with Andy, a friend from back home, so I was only half paying attention to the movie. We haven't spoke for a LONG time, so it was great to catch up. Of course, the rest of the night was spent on the blog. I'm nearly caught up! I can almost taste the freedom! Ha ha! If you're out there reading, let me know! I'm beginning to wonder! 


Happy Easter
xxxxMaria

Day 547 - Bamboo & Royalty

One of these days we will venture out & do something productive with our time in South Africa. But not today. 

Jaco & I walked downtown again & he told me about the old houses that used to be here & there & Cape Dutch architecture. We talked about the changes in the streets & buildings in the past 2 years since I've last been in Hermanus. It's quite shocking how much has changed!

We stopped in a few shops & I managed to find some Ocean Minded shoes. I bought a pair last time I was in South Africa & I was quite excited to find Ocean Minded flip flops! After the sight of things in Bonaire, I vowed to never buy another pair of crappy shoes that might end up on the shores of some beautiful beach. I would encourage you to do the same! If you remember my post from Bonaire, you'll see the garbage on the shore & there were MANY flip flops. Check out Ocean Minded if you need some comfy & Earth Happy shoes. 

The shops were closing at 1700 promptly, so Jaco & I headed outside & found ourselves on the rocks watching the waves crash in. Jaco climbed way out to the water's edge. I was a bit more cautious & didn't go out so far. I knew the tide was coming in, so I stayed put. Sure enough, the tide came in & he had to do some swift climbing in order to avoid the icy cold water! He had been entertaining himself with urchins & other sea creatures in the pools created by waves earlier in the day. And bless his heart. He holds up a piece of kelp & says, 'Look! Fresh bamboo!' I do love him so.

After our ocean exploration, we walked over to a restaurant along the water's edge nestled in a cave. We wandered in, ignored by a few staff & finally stood in front of the cashier's station. Finally someone asked if they could help us & I asked if we could see a menu. He handed us a menu, we sat on a little ledge & paged through the menu. There were some scrumptious looking shrimp on the menu, so we decided to order. We waited for someone to return to us & take our order. When a few minutes passed, we went & sat at a table. A few more minutes passed. Nothing. Finally I walked up to the bar & asked if I could order some shrimp. The girl looked at me as if I were dense & told me the kitchen was closed & they were closing. It was 6 pm on a Saturday evening. No shrimp for me. 

And now it's becoming crystal clear why businesses change so often in Hermanus & why they struggle to stay afloat. They are never open! What restaurant closes at 6 pm on the Saturday of a long weekend?! Crazy! 

Walking back to the house, we enjoyed a delicious stir-fry made by Jaco's Mom & then we watched a lengthy program on the upcoming Royal Wedding. Wow. They really have the world captivated, don't they? I must admit, I'm reliving the 'Princess' dream just watching the hype! I suppose I'll have to tune in on the 29th & see what transpires!

With that, I'm off to bed... Much love & enjoy your Easter weekend...

xxxxMaria

 At the school again

 Traditional Cape Dutch Architecture

 On the seafront

 Clouds rolling in

 My Baby

 Love you!

 Handsome Man!

 The Cave place that closes early!

 Splash

 Kelp in the mix

 S - for Sylvia

 Be careful!

 Brave man!

 Crash!

 Exploring

 Tides coming in!

 Losing light

Sunset