Abstract baby gecko

Coffee and breakfast at Harrie's Pancakes in Graskop. I tried to photograph the baby gecko on the underside of the table, but failed miserably, also wonderfully. This abstract photo of a gecko is the result.
I'm also enjoying baking my bare legs in the hot sun.
Then a young male Jack Russell, with the prettiest face muzzled up against me and expected attention. Which I lavished upon him.

Perfect morning

Another perfect morning begun by the pool, with my morning pages and a mug of green tea...which means I'm free for some good coffee.
On the way, now, to Graskop, then to God's Window.
It's a perfect day, not a cloud in the sky, just sunshine on my skin. And joy in my heart.

Obrigado* Canimambo

There's not much that surpasses the travel experience, except perhaps, and quite ironically, coming home to your own bed after a long journey away from home. What undoubtedly enhances travel are the great meals (read 'extraordinary culinary experiences') in unexpected places... as well as the unexpected and highly intense social interactions with other human beings on the 'same level' as you that par for the course. Now imagine bringing these two together... but while travelling!

A restaurant in my own province, of Mpumalanga, that I've often dipped into after a day or few days of being on the local road, is Canimambo in Graskop. It's never let me down.

I love the combination of Mozambican, Portuguese and South African cooking.

I love the friendly staff, like our waiter Maxwell who looked us in the eye and welcomed us, as well as the fact that the host (Lance) leaves you well alone to write your notes, to take your time with whatever, including eating, and that - most of all - his partner (Carla) is hands-on in the kitchen.

That they have Portuguese wine and Mozambican beer is another plus. Also that it's always full with a great mix of locals, local tourists, and foreign visitors.

Not to mention that Canimambo is value for money. On Sunday evening my starter was mussels with cream and garlic sauce (R39.90), while for main I supped on a hearty bean stew with chouriço and smoked chicken (R59.50). (Delicious Portuguese chouriço – sausage - get its distinctive smokiness and deep red colour from dried smoked red peppers). I also made a point of dipping into Steffen's aromatic chicken chauti, a Mozambican dish served with coconut rice and salad (R59.50).

Next time I'm heading straight for their renowned seafood platter. 

Info: +27 13 767 1868

Canimambo Restaurant, Graskop

Corner of Louis Trichardt and Hoof Streets

They have a sister restaurant in Dullstroom, which I'm dying to try. Canimambo also boasts a Platinum Star Award from the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa.

* 'Obrigado' is ‘thank you’ in Portuguese.

Misty Mountain

Anna and I have just had a Heineken on the very edge at Misty Mountain. We're heading down the Long Tom Pass towards Sabie and Graskop. It's a magnificent Sunday afternoon, but icy cold. I've just had a great conversation with bikers from Malelane about the great mountain passes of Mpumalanga province. There's not a cloud in the sky and I can see way beyond Sabie, all the way to the very edge of Mozambique it seems. Despite the icy cold, it's good to be outdoors and on the road. I have fond memories of travelling in 2002 through the snow on this very same pass.

Graskop blues

Harrie's oh-so-famous Pancakes: an extraordinary foam covered cappuccino; the old chap at the table to my left looks like Grahamstown-based poet Don Maclennan; the three Gauteng bikers to my right are eating salads and health stuff, they are talking about the fact that Amazon doesn't courier books here via the SA post office anymore because the merchandise gets stolen. Talking of honesty and realted stuff, I also notice that three of their bikes, just in front of the open window, has silver duck tape stuck over digits of their number plates, one's gone so far as to cover two digits of his plate with a suprisingly clean white sweat band. This must be to avoid being trapped when metal-grinding past the cops and their cameras (I wonder what the guys in the post office doing all the opening and stealing of parcels war?).
Don gets up and is a most unlikely Don - he's very short and squat; it can't be him. Damn, because there's some compliments I wanted to pay.

The Book Case in Sabie

It's humid and overcast in Sabie; today I can't smell wood chips and pine on the thick air and my clothes are trying to stick to my body. We're heading to Graskop for coffee, maybe pancakes, then to God's Window... if His curtians are open. At this point the mist is swirling and has been since yesterday afternoon; although none of the stunning mountain views are visible, it's a moody, delightfully melancholic world we're contentedly snailing through.One of my highlights in this town, other than the Fanie Botha hiking trail and the Woodsman Inn, is the Book Case for secondhand books, where I bought four ancient Gavin Maxwell books for R12 each, books I've been perving for just under a year.