We woke up to a cold rainy day so I went and chopped some kindling from the logs of wood outside the house. We managed to create a magnificent fire to keep us warm.

The plan was to drive to Swinoujście, a north western town of Poland about a half hour drive away, in order to investigate the where we could get a ferry across the Baltic sea to Trelleborg, Sweden.

The Oder river had sheets of ice moving along with the current with birds hitching rides on the floating ice.

We stopped at a Zabka store, which are a general store franchise throughout Poland. Scott would ask staff if they could speak German or English. Of course German is common because of its proximity to the border. Apparently there is a viral trend for people to eat a Zabka frankfurt which is served in a cylindrical tube of bread. It was quite delicious.

After searching the roads for a while, we finally found the terminal for TTferries and Polferries. We were told that it would be best to buy our tickets online, so we decided to do that at the end of the day using Scott’s laptop.

We then drove back to Szczecin to find the Stare Miasto (old town) and find a nice restaurant for a late lunch.

After walking around and admiring the buildings we settled for a meal in Harna’s. 

Zurek soup, placki with goulash and pierogies were ordered.

We had to take a detour on our drive out of Szczecin to find the massive cat mural in the suburbs.

On the way home, the clouds had cleared away and we could see the stars. Our accommodation is very rural so the night sky was impressive when we finally finished the day. We built an impressive fire to keep us warm for the evening.

Dobranoc

Scott collected a Sixt Peugeot for our adventure into Poland. The advantage with Sixt is that the share car becomes the hire car … you can take it out of the city and drive across borders…..makes so much sense!

The weather was a bit warmer so the roads were slushy and dirty. Cars look dirty because of this slush. 

The road out of Berlin was covered in a light fog which melded into the white snow on each side of the road and the view was just white. Our trip expected to be about 3 hours to reach our destination.

Scott noticed that the petrol was low and it was disappointing that we did not have a full tank to start with. After contacting Sixt, they explained that if we went to a partner petrol station we could fill the tank using the app and not have to pay ourselves as long as we did this in Germany. It was a great system.

Once close to Szczecin in Poland we needed to find somewhere to have a late lunch. The cold snowy weather encouraged us to find traditional polish soups and food.

We found the Karczma Pod Kogutem which was a traditional timber restaurant with cultural trimmings. We ordered the Hunter Soup each and meat pierogis and cheese pierogis to share. There was a self service station for bread, smaltz (pork fat) and pickled cucumbers. It was all delicious! 

Then it was time to drive the extra hour to find our farmhouse accommodation in Brzozowo. It was dark already and off the beaten track, we tried to locate our own hut but took a wrong turn. Trying to turn the car around, Scott backed into a ditch….we were bogged in snow. I had to get behind the wheel while he pushed the car. Success!

A lovely fire was keeping our farm cottage warm. It had all the comforts of home except for a television. It was decorated with traditional Polish designs and Knick knacks. There was WiFi so we could use our devices for entertainment if needed.

Scott chose the loft bedroom and Teresa had the comfortable bed in the downstairs bedroom.

We prodded the fire and tried to keep it going but realised that our fire experience was lacking and did our best.

It was lovely to go to sleep in the absolute silence of the countryside. 

Dobranoc

The second season of the Night Manager dropped yesterday! The first 3 episodes were available and then more will be added each Sunday. It’s as good as ever!

It was the perfect day to stay in the warmth and enjoy the entertainment. Scott popped down to the local supermarket to get supplies. I was particularly impressed with the frozen chocolate coated mango pieces. Herrings, pickles and caviar were also purchased along with Prosecco for an Aperol Spritz. Lunch consisted of the left overs from Kramer.

At 2:30pm it started to snow, lightly at first then increasing to a pleasing scene. I needed to get some spikes for my boots so I could walk in the snow and ice more confidently so it was decided to go to The Mall of Berlin for some retail therapy. Scott booked a share car and we drove through the snowy streets to the mall.

I purchased the spikes for my shoes and Scott bought new shoes for himself. We wandered around and purchased some other items before walking out into the lovely Potsdam Plaza with its trees of lights.

The most challenging thing about getting a share car is to find a parking spot within walking distance of your destination, especially at dusk when people have finished work. We managed to find a good park and walked through the snow to the apartment.

Dinner consisted of a selection plate of bread, herrings, ham, pickles and humus. I settled in for the night and Scott ventured to the gym.

Guten Nacht

Sleep in a warm comfy bed refreshed the soul ready to enjoy my first day in Berlin. 

The day promised to be cold and clear and it was lovely to see snow covered streets.

We rugged up with our gloves, coats and headwear and headed out for the day. Scott planned to take me to a rooftop restaurant on the East side.

We walked there so we could see the Spree River iced over as well as the canals we followed to get there.  We walked past the Eastside gallery with its ever changing artworks. Once we reached the intended venue, we were informed that the restaurant is closed on Sundays and Mondays. A frustrating and puzzling concept in Berlin and Germany is that all shopping stores are shut on Sundays. 

So we carried on, avoided the cold gusts of wind and caught the U-Bahn from Warschauer Strasse to Alexanderplatz as we knew the Hofbräu restaurant would be open for some Bavarian fare.

We chose a Beef Goulash each with beers and then an Apple Strudel for a sweet treat.

Scott reserved a Free2move share car and after walking the 800 metres to get the car we sat back and enjoyed the warmth on the drive back to Bouchestrasse. 

We have seen a lot of people with little wooden sleds for their children. 

The Kramer Restaurant was booked for dinner which had good reviews and was not far from the apartment. We braved the cold and walked to the trendy and warm restaurant.

The wait staff were attentive and friendly, a young French woman, a Kiwi woman and an Aussie young man.

It was very cold on the walk back to the apartment. The warmth of the apartment was very well appreciated.

Guten Nacht

Teresa is off to Berlin again, leaving a Sydney heatwave to join the extra cold European winter.

The check in opened at about 3 1/2 hours before the flight. I did not check in online (silly mistake)so the attendant did her best to get me the best seat available, which was a middle seat but in the upstairs economy section. She assured me that there were less children up there and a more spacious configuration of 2 seats by 4 and then 2.  

At Sydney airport, Qatar airlines has an alliance with Air New Zealand, so I headed up to await my flight. The lounge has a nice outlook over to Botany Bay and a good selection of wines, spirits and beers. The food was varied with hot and cold offerings. 

When we had to line up for the aircraft I needed to remember that I have priority no matter the zone allocated. Once boarded, I had a man on each side of me, with the one on the right being a big bloke. I resigned myself to the crammed conditions. 

Luckily, about an hour into the flight, the big guy’s chair would not recline so the crew moved him downstairs. This was such a relief as it gave us a spare seat and a more comfortable sleep. It is a 14 hour flight to Doha from Sydney, so any extra space was welcomed!

Qatar Hamad airport is new, clean and spacious and easy to navigate. Once off the plane we had to go through security again before I found the Qatar Gold and Platinum lounge to wait in until my next flight to Berlin, a much shorter journey. At 4:30 am, it was quite dark and I was looking forward to daylight so I could see the landscape.

They did ask for my physical Velocity Platinum card to confirm the expiry date, although my boarding pass did say the I was eligible. After going through the app and website trying to find the expiry date, they finally said that I could go through. I think there are still some teething problems with the new alliance of Virgin and Qatar airlines. 

The Qatar lounge had the usual offerings of hot and cold breakfast foods, coffee and tea plus alcoholic beverages. It was comfortable, clean with a pleasant environment.

The lounge was near the A1 gate and I had to find C7 for my flight. Once I got there, boarding had already started. I found the priority queue and handed my boarding pass to the attendant….and it was flagged with a ‘seating issue’. To my great excitement I was upgraded to Business class for the Doha to Berlin part of the journey! First time ever….apparently they had overbooked economy seats so frequent flyers like me were upgraded. Score!

Needless to say the hospitality and extra luxuries that Business class offered were a nice surprise. The ability to lie flat for a sleep was welcomed too! 

Arrived in Berlin to see it cold and covered with snow. 

It was so cold that the canals at the end of Bouchestrasse were frozen…. And the Berliners were out with their sleds and ice skates. I was apprehensive at first but there were so many people enjoying the ice that I had to trust that it was stable enough to walk on!

Back to the warm apartment we had some warm soup and champagne and Rosé bubbles. I had to adjust to the fact that although it was dark it was not time to go to bed as it was only 4:30pm. When I finally went to bed it was for a welcome night’s sleep ready for my next adventure.

Guten Nacht

The sun was out again. 

We strolled along the promenade towards Camp Bay. The sun was warm and the sky was that insane blue. A cool breeze kept the temperature comfortable. 

People were swimming in the cold waters of Saunders Rock beach. 

We caught a BMW X3 Uber up the incline into Camp Bay where we walked along the beach and watched the ducks waddle around under the date palms.

We perused the market wares and dodged the hard sell of paintings, bead sculptures and wood carvings. 

We made our way up the incline to the Country Club which housed the stylish Bungalow restaurant.

It was a lovely al fresco setting overlooking Camp Bay and Table Mountain. We chose a seafood platter for one (Teresa wanted the langoustines) and Scott ordered the Crispy Skin Sea Bass. We ordered cocktails but they were the icy ones and then changed to MCC and sparkling water. 

Our Uber home was a black C class Mercedes. Scott went for a swim while Teresa prepared for the trip home tomorrow.

It has been the most amazing place to visit, the sights were spectacular, the people were so lovely and the services generally outstanding. A visit to this country is full of surprises and highly recommended!

Our Uber was a late model Audi who drove us to the Gardens at Kloof through the city centre.

At the foot of Cape Town’s vibrant street was a magnificent Victorian house, the Kloof Street House restaurant which was a collection of interesting rooms and spaces, each bursting with a character of its own. This venue had a cozy ambiance while full of antiques, friendly staff and a varied menu.

The Ostrich steak was done medium rare and it was ok … hard to describe the taste… not a lot of flavour but not gamey. Scott’s Avocado on toast was exactly what he felt like. The sides of steamed local green vegetables and the baked sweet potato with horseradish lime crème fraiche were perfect accompaniments for our meals. Belinis and Bloody Mary’s were the beverages of choice.

We then strolled down the street and went into little boutiques selling men’s and women’s clothing. At the Unseen Boutique we were impressed with the quality and unique designs so we each bought a piece of clothing.

We then stopped for a drink at another hip bar and listened to the hip hop music while watching the locals.

We checked out the local Spar store and then decided to have Mimosas in the Hudson bar.

There was a bit of commotion down the road which was swiftly dealt with by the security police.

We continued along Long Street and entered a few souvenir shops that displayed items of clothing made from their traditional bright fabrics. The vendors were using sewing machines to create these items and explained that they would make anything you want when you chose your fabric. 

Continuing up Long Street we observed a lot of cannabis outlets and there were Public Safety Officers on every block looking out for tourists. When our Uber BMW arrived, one of these officers ensured that the driver was legit and assisted us into the car.

The route home took us past the colourful houses in the Bo-Kaap area of Cape Town.

Back at Sea Point, the Mojo bar was a collection of outlets like the Timeout Markets. We sat at the Mussel Monger Oyster bar and tasted their oysters with a glass of MCC (sparkling wine).

Scott decided that he wanted to try the Pina Coladas in coconuts. He wanted to take one to the Art Haus as a gift for Greg when Scott finalised his transaction for the art piece he had chosen. Unfortunately, the gallery was not open and the coconuts were offered to some people in the street.

We walked back to the unit and settled in for the evening.

Goeie Nag

We awoke to a sunny day with some clouds and a cooler temperature. We decided to walk down to the beach and strolled amongst the joggers on esplanade.

A Wiggle employee was waiting for us back home to take the car away. He had no complaints about the dust on the Mazda MX5 and there was no fuss about the extra mileage or day as Scott was happy to pay the extra charges. They were a very well organised company and highly recommended.

We then Ubered in a comfortable Mercedes Benz from the unit, through city streets, up to the Table Mountain Cablecar tourist attraction. As we snaked up to our destination we were joined by lots of buses and tour groups.

The queues were long and there were so many people milling around the shops. Apparently some people had queued for one and a half hours to get on a Cablecar. Fortunately for us,  Scott had bought Fast Track tickets online so we climbed the stairs to the holding bay and had a short wait before being crammed into a Cablecar.

The Cablecar had a rotating floor which was activated as we were whisked up the craggy edifice onto the cloud covered summit.

The summit was crawling with tourists following the various paths and fenced outcrops admiring the stunning views and taking photos. The clouds promised to dissipate so we thought we would wait in the Cafe and have some refreshments. There was a reason why this cafe had a 2.3 rating on Google, the service was slow (a surprise after all the positive experiences we have had to date) and poorly organised. Teresa ordered a Rueben Sandwich and Mimosa and was told to go to the bar with the receipt to get the beverage and the sandwich would be delivered to us. Teresa waited for over 10 minutes at the bar for a staff member to appear and make the Mimosa, after alerting another staff member of the wait. He was apologetic and assured us that the drink will be delivered to our booth. This was also when Teresa was told that the Rueben had to be collected from the kitchen part of the cafe. The cafe at this time was full of families with loud children so we found a quiet corner booth. The sandwich was typical of tourist fare, stodgy and tasteless. 

We then walked around the summit as the clouds shrunk away and revealed Cape Town and beyond. Stunning!

We dodged the queues again with our Fast Track tickets and piled into a descending Cablecar. As we were leaving the souvenir shop, some English young women asked Teresa where she had bought her outfit. 

We then caught an uber which was another Mercedes Benz, to The Nines restaurant for lunch. 

It was on the ninth floor of Station House on Kloof Road in Sea Point, Cape Town. This was a classy establishment with magnificent views, lovely decor and attentive service. 

We ordered a Margarita, sparkling water and the Seafood Platter for two.

Wash cloths were presented in an interesting fashion… a loaf shaped stone with 4 holes with liquid and 4 small tabs… which you placed in the liquid holes and they expanded to a good size for cleaning hands and face.

Langoustines have become a favourite of Teresa’s since a feast in Iceland. These were on the seafood platter along with crayfish, prawns, fish and calamari and a small bowl of citrus rice plus broccolini. This was the best meal by far of this holiday which was also reflected in the price… but totally worth it!

The rest of the day was filled with individual activities, Scott made use of the local swimming pool and Teresa caught up on her socials while drinking MCC, the local bubbly.

For dinner each evening over the past week, various delicious soups from Woolworths were selected as an easy option for eating in. They were vacuum packed and obviously made from fresh ingredients. 

It was the end of another amazing day in Cape Town, South Africa.

Goeie Nag 

It was time to say farewell to the lambs and pack the Mazda MX5 ready for a day of driving.

We did not miss having to travel one more time on the gravelled Kammanassie Road.

As we passed the town of Dysseldorp we had to look out for donkeys and sheep on the road.

People were walking to church in their Sunday finest. 

Scott also startled the ostriches on a farm we passed by tooting the horn and causing them to run around in a panic. 

We took the drive thru at Mcdonalds in Oudtshoorn and ordered coffee and a Sausage and Egg McMuffin for breakfast.

The young attendant was very friendly and we commented that we had both once worked at Maccas. She was curious about what we did now and we found out that she was studying to be a teacher. 

As we continued on the R12 and R62 highways, it felt like the scenes from the film Thelma and Louise where we were surrounded by spectacular landscapes and dwarfed by the enormous craggy mountains. It was insanely breathtaking!

We stopped for lunch at Barrydale where Scott ordered a green juice and Teresa chose the Shashuka. Die Langhuis was a charming antique store as well as a bed and breakfast. 

We then stopped in Montagu as Scott was on a mission to find a pie as good as the one he had in Hermanus.

The roads were well designed and speed limits varied between 80, 100 and 120 kilometres an hour depending on the gradient of the road. 

We finally reached the N1 which is the main route to Cape Town. We noticed that hitchhikers hold out their arms waving money to try and get a ride… we even drove past some who were holding out bunches of grapes probably taken from one of the many wineries in the region.

The N1 is a toll road and we were surprised when they insisted on cash (an internet search earlier claimed that you could pay by card) so we had to turn around and go to the office to pay and then join the tollway again. So it is a good idea to have some cash (100 rand) on you always for these unexpected situations.

Wiggles car hire have been amazing… they actually deliver and collect the car from your residence. So convenient!

Goeie Nag

The birds were chirping and the lambs were bleating as the sun rose over the mountains.

We connected with family and then decided to take a drive to find lunch.

We followed the gravel Kammanassie road to Dysseldorp and met tarred road! 

We kept the top off the Mazda MX5 convertible for most of the ride and enjoyed the spectacular mountain scenery.

We were going to drive to De Rust but the road returned to gravel so we turned around and drove to Oudtshoom and onward to the Kurana Winery. 

Scott ordered the Ploughmans Platter and Teresa ordered the Ostrich pizza. It was delicious and washed down with amber ale and a double gin cocktail. 

It was very hot but a cool breeze was a welcome respite. This winery was very popular and patronised by locals.

We drove back home on the mostly tarred roads past suburban settlements and the occasional donkeys and carts and then onto the gravel for the rest of the 20 kilometres to the farm. 

Once on our farm we opened a bottle of the MCC (South Africa’s sparkling wine) while we watched clouds roll in with occasional rumble of thunder.

We relaxed and enjoyed the peacefulness of the mountain isolation while we watched the lambs.

Goeie Nag