Good afternoon folks, this is Steve in Global Traffic Chopper 4 (better than Chopper 2) with your evening rush hour traffic report from around the world.
Valencia, Spain - Well, things aren't looking too good from up here. Traffic is moving, but there's someone double parked in the main circle with their flashers on, yet they neglected to leave their car unlocked so locals could move it out of the way. That's snarling things up pretty good along the side streets, and people are just laying on their horns. I recommend you take the highway around the city, and if you're looking for parking, mind the electronic signs that give you real time information on the number of spots left in each of the city's main parking structures.
Eastern France - I don't recommend heading up into the French Alps this evening, because many of the roads are closed due to Tour de France race activity. We've got a couple of motor homes that have tried to, but have unsuccessfully pulled off the road, making it hard for traffic to get by. On the way up some of your steeper inclines, you've got a mix of slow moving motor homes, cyclists and people on foot that are keeping things below 5 KPH. On the highways, however, once you get through the ridiculously expensive tolls, it's smooth sailing at 130-150 KPH. Just mind the speed cameras and the slow moving semis.
Morocco - If you're planning on trying to drive in Casablanca, Marrakech, or Rabat, I highly suggest you make sure your horn is working. Also, you should take a extra dose of courage (or say a few extra prayers) this evening before flinging yourself into the traffic circles here. It's pure lawlessness out there, folks. Watch out for slow moving Mitsubishi vans painted in bright colors with Nike and Alpine stickers all over them. I'm not sure that these drivers can see out their windows with all the adornment. Also, traffic is pretty backed up at the random security check points, with all the plain clothes informants looking for people on their cell phones or bus drivers who don't have the proper speedometer calibration papers. Keep a keen eye for the trucks packed two and three times their height with payload. They're liable to tip on you at any second.
Dubai, UAE. - Traffic is gridlocked on the main highway this evening due to the exponential and unrestricted growth of this area. If at all possible, stay at the office until 11:30 PM, and at that time, you'll be able to creep home at 10 KPH. If you're A/C's not working, well, bring a towel because you're going to sweat your body weight while you sit in 130 degree heat this evening (after the sun's gone down).
Egypt - The word of the evening here, people is "movement" as in, keep moving. And use that horn. Traffic is completely jammed up but, miraculously, it keeps moving. Kind of like water through a pipe. The pipe is COMPLETELY full, yet the water seems to keep flowing through it. Keep a mindful eye for unlucky pedestrians who are forced to cross the road. They're most likely tourists who don't know how to cross the road and will step into on-coming traffic. On Ring Road, there's a bit of a back up due to a wedding procession that's weaving in and out of traffic, lighting off fire works from moving cars. I believe, yes, that's a camel on the highway. Tonight, if you're still in traffic, remember to not turn on your lights unless you get to a security check point, you don't want to unnecessarily blind people with your misaligned headlights. To keep traffic flowing, make sure to have your paperwork ready, especially if you're headed to the Sinai Peninsula.
South Africa - Traffic is moving slowly tonight from Jo'Burg to Pretoria. There's a Toyota Tazz in the right (passing) lane, and with 40 HP, it's not able to keep up the pace of the 14 BMW's, 3 AMG Mercedes, 1 Lambo and an Aston Martin behind it. Further towards the wine regions, there's some questionable driving from people who've obviously been tasting wine all day. In Cape Town, the parking attendants have gone on strike, causing people to forget how to park. But overall, most people are following traffic laws.
Kathmandu, Nepal - Things are a mess tonight. With the Maoists quitting the provisional government, traffic has come to a stand still because of the demonstrators. Oh, wait, no, this standstill could be due to the car sized pot holes. The motorcycles that continue to pass on the left, right and center aren't helping anything either. They're like the cement between bricks that keeps the bricks stationary. There's also a plethora of different sized vehlcles (TukTuks, small Suzuki Taxis, SUVs, Full sized trucks) crowding the streets because of the petrol shortage. The back roads aren't much better, where an SUV has tried to pass a pick up truck on a blind turn on a 1 way road. This one's going to take some time to sort out. Everyone's out of their car discussing how to get both vehicles through and it seems that they're being very amicable with each other.
Overall, despite the horrendous traffic, everyone is a very good driver for their conditions. Accidents, as car as I can see, are fairly minor and fairly infrequent. Have a wonderful commute everyone.
~S
Monday, September 24, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
South Africa - Almost Full Potential
I’m not sure how to spin this in the most positive way possible… so please forgive me if I offend anyone from SA (this is merely an observation). Like I stated before, I loved South Africa and would recommend it to anyone who would want to travel to possibly the most beautiful place on earth (NZ and SA are neck and neck in my book).
However, South Africa saddened me, as I’m sure it also does for many of the people living there. In this country there’s one big problem that hangs like a rain cloud over Table Mountain on an otherwise sunny day: crime. And I’m not just talking petty, take your wallet theft, but violent, “Smash and Grab” (and sometimes stab or shoot) crime. Most of the locals we spoke with had been “hijacked” once or twice, and most knew of someone who met a slightly more grizzly demise at the hands of a thief.
I suppose I was so sensitive to this, because after visiting places like Morocco and Egypt, South Africa had more money, infrastructure and “western” technological advances than they knew what to do with, but is unable to quell the rise of violent crime. It’s really sad to see a country like this with potential that many other countries around the world long for (ie tap water that you can drink in most cities) and see them struggle with the distribution of wealth, unemployment and crime. They say that apartheid ended back in the 1990’s officially, but the after-effects and separation of wealth are still very evident.
On a positive note, most everyone in SA is looking forward to the advances in security and clean up efforts associated with hosting the 2010 World Cup Football (Soccer – SA calls it soccer too…). There’s a ton of activity going on in Jo’burg, Durban and one other city (I think Cape Town, but don’t quote me on that) to make the cities ready for the influx of tourists in 2010.
Ed addition: Bill brings up a good point, look at all the progress that they've made in the last 20 years, with the end of apartheid, and where they are now. Let's hope that the rise in crime is only a pot hole on the road to unity.
~S
However, South Africa saddened me, as I’m sure it also does for many of the people living there. In this country there’s one big problem that hangs like a rain cloud over Table Mountain on an otherwise sunny day: crime. And I’m not just talking petty, take your wallet theft, but violent, “Smash and Grab” (and sometimes stab or shoot) crime. Most of the locals we spoke with had been “hijacked” once or twice, and most knew of someone who met a slightly more grizzly demise at the hands of a thief.
I suppose I was so sensitive to this, because after visiting places like Morocco and Egypt, South Africa had more money, infrastructure and “western” technological advances than they knew what to do with, but is unable to quell the rise of violent crime. It’s really sad to see a country like this with potential that many other countries around the world long for (ie tap water that you can drink in most cities) and see them struggle with the distribution of wealth, unemployment and crime. They say that apartheid ended back in the 1990’s officially, but the after-effects and separation of wealth are still very evident.
On a positive note, most everyone in SA is looking forward to the advances in security and clean up efforts associated with hosting the 2010 World Cup Football (Soccer – SA calls it soccer too…). There’s a ton of activity going on in Jo’burg, Durban and one other city (I think Cape Town, but don’t quote me on that) to make the cities ready for the influx of tourists in 2010.
Ed addition: Bill brings up a good point, look at all the progress that they've made in the last 20 years, with the end of apartheid, and where they are now. Let's hope that the rise in crime is only a pot hole on the road to unity.
~S
The Time Zone Thing - Nepal
So I thought that all time zones were based off of hourly differences from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), where the East Coast of the US was behind by 5 hrs, Germany was ahead by 1, etc etc etc… However, I thought wrong. The local time here in Nepal seems to be about 5 hours and 45 minutes ahead of GMT. How does that work? I guess, if you think about it, it makes sense, because even with time zones, part of your time zone is getting darker earlier or later than other parts. Maybe Nepal decided that 5 hours ahead of GMT was too little (sun rose at 4 am or something) and 6 hours was too much (it wasn’t light until 9am). Strange. If anyone knows the real reason, please chime in.
~S
~S
Safely in Nepal, out of the comfort zone again
Interesting how easy it is to get comfortable in a place where they speak your language, look like you and obey the simplest of traffic rules – and South Africa was that place for me. We had an absolutely wonderful time in SA, Jo’burg, Soweto, Kruger, Cape Town, but the one thing that sticks out in my mind is the wine lands. Whichever region we visited, the people were extremely friendly, welcoming us into their homes (ok, they were guest houses and that was their job) and taking a vested interest in what we were doing. A number of the couples that ran the guest houses we stayed in were almost like “away from home” parents – doting over us when we had laundry to do, suggesting (but never pushing) places to visit and eat and helping us to organize activities. At the last place we stayed in Durbanville Hills, the owner, unbenounced to us, called Durbanville Hills Winery and arranged a private tour (and free tasting) for us with a contact she had out there. At another winery, we met the head wine master and chatted with him for an hour or so AFTER his wine workshop was over. He even recommended a contact that we should look up in New Zealand when we’re there. While I don’t expect this type of attitude everywhere we go, it was so nice for me to meet fellow wine enthusiasts who were helpful to us because they knew we loved wine, not because they wanted our money.
It’s this exact type of situation that makes it hard for me to return to a country where the focus is definitely back on us, not because of our general interest in Nepal, but because of our money. However, if I’ve learned anything in the past 3 and a half months of traveling, it’s that functioning outside of our comfort zone is a must for personal growth. For instance, worrying about meeting our basic needs on a day to day basis is not something that we do often in the States (or Europe or SA for that matter), and when you come out of an environment where you’ve been stretched, you’re so much more grateful for your current situation and have a more keen eye for helping those around you.
~S
It’s this exact type of situation that makes it hard for me to return to a country where the focus is definitely back on us, not because of our general interest in Nepal, but because of our money. However, if I’ve learned anything in the past 3 and a half months of traveling, it’s that functioning outside of our comfort zone is a must for personal growth. For instance, worrying about meeting our basic needs on a day to day basis is not something that we do often in the States (or Europe or SA for that matter), and when you come out of an environment where you’ve been stretched, you’re so much more grateful for your current situation and have a more keen eye for helping those around you.
~S
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Dinner Recipe - Self Catering Style
We thought we'd share a typical dinner recipe with ya'll - something that we found very enjoyable and very simple, since we're staying in "Self Catering" accommodations with limited cooking facilities.
It was a chilly Spring evening and kind of rainy, so a perfect night for, yes, Soup.
Ingredients:
1/2 an Onion, chopped
3 small green chilis, chopped
1 can of tomatoes
1 can of butter beans (no sugar added)
4 small zucchini, diced
1 small eggplant, diced
6 medium mushrooms, sliced
Your favorite seasoning
Olive Oil
Procedure:
1) Put the pot on your "all in 1" oven/cooktop/convection oven. Turn the burner on about 4 out of a possible 6.
2) Once the pot is hot put some olive oil in the bottom and "sweat" the onion. When it's almost done, add the chilis and cook them a bit. The oil reacts with the chili and adds the essential HEAT to your soup.
3) When you're about to burn the onion, add the can of tomatoes and butter beans. Turn the heat down to 3. Stir frequently, because your mixture is trying it's darndest to stick to the bottom of the pot (and you don't have the proper cleaning tools to clean burned tomato off the bottom of the pot)
4) Add the zucchini and simmer for 7 minutes. Stir once or twice.
5) Add a pinch of your favorite seasoning (we used a garlic, oregano, Parmesan, MSG mix)
6) Add the eggplant and mushrooms, simmer for another 10-20 minutes. This step all depends upon how hungry you are. If you just can't stand it, the soup can be eaten immediately, once all the veggies are hot.
7) Top with cheese, accompany with toast, whatever leftovers you may have. The goal is to eat EVERYTHING you've purchased, no waste.
Serve with your camping utensils because your self catering unit lacks a proper serving utensil.
Accompany your soup with a good Pinottage - we tried it with a chilled Sauvignon Blanc, but the conflict of hot and cold hurt our teeth.
Once you finish your dinner, soak your pot immediately to begin loosening the burned stuff from the bottom. Finish your wine while the pot soaks. Clean up the dishes with your "all in 1" rag and camp suds or dish soap.
Cheers!
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
A good read - Nelson Mandela's Long Walk to Freedom
I just finished reading the longest, but best book I've read in a long time. Nelson Mandela's Long Walk To Freedom. Reading it here in South Africa was especially apropos, because this man, along with others in the ANC has had such a hand in changing the recent history of this country. After reading the autobiography, I also seem to understand more of the daily news here, as many events that are reported on still refer to members of the ANC that went through the struggle to end apartheid with Mandela.
Nelson Mandela is a truly remarkable human being. Escaping from an arranged marriage in his late teens, his book details the twists and turns that his life of fighting for black's rights took in the time leading up to, during and immediately after his 27 year imprisonment. Keep in mind that he was jailed in his 40's, so some would argue that he'd already done enough for one lifetime. However, while in jail, he kept himself strong, alert and engaged with a combination of daily exercise, continued education and a network of contacts that kept him informed about the outside world.
Especially inspiring to me from this book are the following things:
1) His ability as a story teller: Not once during this highly political book did I think, "Oh gosh, I'll just skim the next couple of pages past all the political stuff." He managed to weave the complete story together in a way that had me turning pages like this was a Grisham novel.
2) His optimistic perspective: Spending 27 years in jail has got to be tough on the psyche, but somehow NM (at least in his book) always found the bright side. He kept himself alert and fighting for his rights throughout his whole time here. It paid off - conditions for him and his colleagues improved considerably by the time they were released. He also tried to see the best in his captors and frequently talked about the glimmers of humanity that they showed, rather than the racist SOB's that they were.
3) His diplomacy: NM never was silent about his perspective, but spoke his views in a way where even those who were against him would listen. More often than not, he got what he wanted.
4) His leadership skills: Especially in times of tension, he had an uncanny sense of when to let things blow over, to take passive action or to take full violent action. Not with out error, he usually realized when his ideas were wrong and learned from them. Seldom did he make the same mistake twice.
5) His listening skills: Just as many listened to his perspectives, NM listened politely to his opponents, hearing and trying to understand what they were trying to say. Very seldom did he crack under abusive, bullysome treatment. After they had spoken, NM was very adept at finding a win-win or middle ground on which all parties could agree.
6) His forgiveness: After 80+ years of apartheid in South Africa, he was able to forgive the whites here and try to work with them to achieve an end to apartheid. Even when publicly criticized by FW DeKlerk during the final negotiations, he'd speak his mind then try to continue negotiations without holding a grudge.
7) His humility: NM would usually state when he was wrong, learn from it and move on. He didn't seem to dwell on the fact or lose confidence in his decision making abilities when things didn't quite go the way he'd envisioned. He also freely admitted that his family life was sacrificed in choosing the life path that he did. It's a shame, because with all the above character traits, he'd also make a very good family man.
8) His network of contacts: Throughout the book he surrounded himself by very intelligent people of all races, and made alliances that would prove worthwhile in the ANC's struggle for freedom. This sometimes caused strife with organizations that wanted solely Black power for South Africa, but NM saw that this was everyone's country, and had alliances with Blacks, Indians, Coloreds, Whites, and communists.
Give it a read if you have a chance!
~S
Nelson Mandela is a truly remarkable human being. Escaping from an arranged marriage in his late teens, his book details the twists and turns that his life of fighting for black's rights took in the time leading up to, during and immediately after his 27 year imprisonment. Keep in mind that he was jailed in his 40's, so some would argue that he'd already done enough for one lifetime. However, while in jail, he kept himself strong, alert and engaged with a combination of daily exercise, continued education and a network of contacts that kept him informed about the outside world.
Especially inspiring to me from this book are the following things:
1) His ability as a story teller: Not once during this highly political book did I think, "Oh gosh, I'll just skim the next couple of pages past all the political stuff." He managed to weave the complete story together in a way that had me turning pages like this was a Grisham novel.
2) His optimistic perspective: Spending 27 years in jail has got to be tough on the psyche, but somehow NM (at least in his book) always found the bright side. He kept himself alert and fighting for his rights throughout his whole time here. It paid off - conditions for him and his colleagues improved considerably by the time they were released. He also tried to see the best in his captors and frequently talked about the glimmers of humanity that they showed, rather than the racist SOB's that they were.
3) His diplomacy: NM never was silent about his perspective, but spoke his views in a way where even those who were against him would listen. More often than not, he got what he wanted.
4) His leadership skills: Especially in times of tension, he had an uncanny sense of when to let things blow over, to take passive action or to take full violent action. Not with out error, he usually realized when his ideas were wrong and learned from them. Seldom did he make the same mistake twice.
5) His listening skills: Just as many listened to his perspectives, NM listened politely to his opponents, hearing and trying to understand what they were trying to say. Very seldom did he crack under abusive, bullysome treatment. After they had spoken, NM was very adept at finding a win-win or middle ground on which all parties could agree.
6) His forgiveness: After 80+ years of apartheid in South Africa, he was able to forgive the whites here and try to work with them to achieve an end to apartheid. Even when publicly criticized by FW DeKlerk during the final negotiations, he'd speak his mind then try to continue negotiations without holding a grudge.
7) His humility: NM would usually state when he was wrong, learn from it and move on. He didn't seem to dwell on the fact or lose confidence in his decision making abilities when things didn't quite go the way he'd envisioned. He also freely admitted that his family life was sacrificed in choosing the life path that he did. It's a shame, because with all the above character traits, he'd also make a very good family man.
8) His network of contacts: Throughout the book he surrounded himself by very intelligent people of all races, and made alliances that would prove worthwhile in the ANC's struggle for freedom. This sometimes caused strife with organizations that wanted solely Black power for South Africa, but NM saw that this was everyone's country, and had alliances with Blacks, Indians, Coloreds, Whites, and communists.
Give it a read if you have a chance!
~S
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Kruger NP - Rooooaaaarrrrrr!
I hope most of you have caught up on our pictures but the blog is trailing behind by a few days...
While we were on the East side of South Africa we took the opportunity to go to Kruger National Park. We were trying to plan this outing in Cairo while Steve was ill and there are so many options out there it's hard to know the best. Kruger really isn't the most economical place to visit especially if you pick a scheduled safari. Somehow we stumbled upon the absolute best option for us which was renting a car in Jo'burg and then booking lodging right outside the park.
So after exploring Jo'burg for a few days we headed to Kruger and checked-in to our lodge with the intentions of setting up some game drives with their guide. Thankfully the owner and guide upon hearing that we were on a budget, suggested that we drive ourselves into the park and see what we could find. If we felt like we weren't getting what we desired then we could book a drive with the guide.
The first day in the park we went at "the wrong time of the day" which was late morning through the afternoon. The best times reportedly were either first thing in the morning or very late afternoon. With that in mind we went to just cruise and enjoy the park. The guide pointed us to a good road to try out which was a dirt drive right off the main road at the Crocodile Bridge entrance. We crept down this dirt road at about 5 km/h, both hanging out the windows scanning the terrain for any signs of animals. We were rewarded with our patience and first off saw some rhino, then a few giraffe, zebras were also around, the never ending impalas, warthogs, kudu, and then some elephant (very close!)..oh, and I can't forget all the hippos, crocs, and various birds. As you can tell we were very lucky!! By the end of the day we had even seen a leopard far off in a tree eating its prey, a cheetah sitting on the banks of the river, and then a second leopard about 15 meters from our car walking along blending in and out of the brush. It was amazing!!!!
We ended the day with all this beginners luck and we started to fret that we would leave the park without seeing any lions. Although everyone we told about our findings said that even if we didn't see lions we had seen more in one day than some people do in weeks or even ever. I forgot to mention that the first day we also saw (cape) buffalo a variety of water buffalo.
The second day we went right when the gates opened at 6AM armed with a picnic basket of coffee and scones that the lodge prepared for us...completely roughing it as you can see. :-) It was neat to see the different kind of animal activity in the morning when it was still dusk and slighter cooler. We only had a few hours before we were going to head back for breakfast and saw nothing new until the very end when we turned around on the road and headed back to the gates. A lone lion was wandering along next to the road, she appeared and disappeared so quickly that I don't believe we even caught her on camera. But she completed our Big 5 sightings!
Once again later that day we went back into the park and from our photos you can see that we indeed did see more lion...I believe the total count for that day was 10 and they were soooo close! The cats were my favorite if you couldn't already tell. Our last sighting of the day was leopard who was napping close to the road. After we spotted him he decided to wake up, stretch, and then start his daily shower routine. Even though I wanted to just sit there and watch him for hours we had to high tail it down the dirt road to make it out of the Park before they closed the gates. Take note of our "safari machine" the Toyota Tazz and then imagine flying down a dirt road at 80km/h hoping that no animals decide to wander across your path because without power steering there wasn't much steering "feel", if you catch my drift (no pun intended).
While we were on the East side of South Africa we took the opportunity to go to Kruger National Park. We were trying to plan this outing in Cairo while Steve was ill and there are so many options out there it's hard to know the best. Kruger really isn't the most economical place to visit especially if you pick a scheduled safari. Somehow we stumbled upon the absolute best option for us which was renting a car in Jo'burg and then booking lodging right outside the park.
So after exploring Jo'burg for a few days we headed to Kruger and checked-in to our lodge with the intentions of setting up some game drives with their guide. Thankfully the owner and guide upon hearing that we were on a budget, suggested that we drive ourselves into the park and see what we could find. If we felt like we weren't getting what we desired then we could book a drive with the guide.
The first day in the park we went at "the wrong time of the day" which was late morning through the afternoon. The best times reportedly were either first thing in the morning or very late afternoon. With that in mind we went to just cruise and enjoy the park. The guide pointed us to a good road to try out which was a dirt drive right off the main road at the Crocodile Bridge entrance. We crept down this dirt road at about 5 km/h, both hanging out the windows scanning the terrain for any signs of animals. We were rewarded with our patience and first off saw some rhino, then a few giraffe, zebras were also around, the never ending impalas, warthogs, kudu, and then some elephant (very close!)..oh, and I can't forget all the hippos, crocs, and various birds. As you can tell we were very lucky!! By the end of the day we had even seen a leopard far off in a tree eating its prey, a cheetah sitting on the banks of the river, and then a second leopard about 15 meters from our car walking along blending in and out of the brush. It was amazing!!!!
We ended the day with all this beginners luck and we started to fret that we would leave the park without seeing any lions. Although everyone we told about our findings said that even if we didn't see lions we had seen more in one day than some people do in weeks or even ever. I forgot to mention that the first day we also saw (cape) buffalo a variety of water buffalo.
The second day we went right when the gates opened at 6AM armed with a picnic basket of coffee and scones that the lodge prepared for us...completely roughing it as you can see. :-) It was neat to see the different kind of animal activity in the morning when it was still dusk and slighter cooler. We only had a few hours before we were going to head back for breakfast and saw nothing new until the very end when we turned around on the road and headed back to the gates. A lone lion was wandering along next to the road, she appeared and disappeared so quickly that I don't believe we even caught her on camera. But she completed our Big 5 sightings!
Once again later that day we went back into the park and from our photos you can see that we indeed did see more lion...I believe the total count for that day was 10 and they were soooo close! The cats were my favorite if you couldn't already tell. Our last sighting of the day was leopard who was napping close to the road. After we spotted him he decided to wake up, stretch, and then start his daily shower routine. Even though I wanted to just sit there and watch him for hours we had to high tail it down the dirt road to make it out of the Park before they closed the gates. Take note of our "safari machine" the Toyota Tazz and then imagine flying down a dirt road at 80km/h hoping that no animals decide to wander across your path because without power steering there wasn't much steering "feel", if you catch my drift (no pun intended).
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Wine Tasting Results... Our picks now at a store near you!
We had a great time at the Franschhoek wine festival last Sunday, tasting wines from 7 or 8 different vineyards, which varied in quality and price. It was interesting to see the differences between wines that were essentially made with grapes grown in the same valley.
The Franschhoek valley grows mostly red grapes, and some vineyards here do their own bottling, while a majority (there are vineyards everywhere) sell their grapes to the bigger producers. Anyone selling a Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay is probably using grapes from the higher elevations and rockier climate closer towards Cape Town.
Our picks:
Graham Beck Pheasants Run Sauvignon Blanc 2006. Whereas most SB's hit you
with a strong floral bouquet right off the nose, this one is more subtle and "real" tasting with more mineral and grassy tones rather than an overwhelming floral or citrus bouquet. The other "regular" Graham Beck SB was just OK after the Pheasants Run bottle, as were all other SB's that we tried that day.
Graham Beck Varietal Shiraz 2003. Because this is a 2003 Shiraz that was just released this year, it's had some time to mature and its tannins to polymarize. To those who don't know (no worries, a wine tasting class gave me the explanation why), when a wine's tannins polymarize, they form long chains which give red wine that spice, bite or pop. A more mature red tends to linger on the pallet longer and is paired well with fattier, spicier meats. This wine also has a slightly figgy taste to it, says Jesse. It stood out in our minds compared with all the other Shirazs that we tried.
Graham Beck is imported into the States by "The Country Vineyard" based out of NY ( I think).
Our last vineyard, Lynx, was a relatively new vineyard started by an ex-solar engineer from South Africa. Fed up with the way things were going at this company, he quit and decided to start growing grapes. When asked how he acquired his knowledge of grapes and wine making, he replied that he "Read a book or two and talked with some locals, who were more than willing to share tips, tricks and pointers on how to grow grapes successfully." At first he sold his grapes to bigger producers, then decided to keep some for himself and try his hand at wine making. Two and a half years later, he's producing award winning wines. This was i
nspiring for Jesse and I to know that it is possible to completely switch careers, from engineering
to wine making and at least enjoy what you're doing. (Note: the question of being profitable didn't come up, so I can't say he was doing well).
Lynx Shiraz 2006: A very good young Shiraz. Because we tasted it at the end of the evening, our pallets were blown out from all the wine we'd tasted, however, when drinking a bottle last night, we weren't too far off the mark. This was a slightly sweeter, but still nicely spiced Shiraz. With another year or two on the shelf, this would be fantastic.
Lynx Xanache 2006: I'm not a fan usually of red blends of wine, but for some reason, this wine really appealed to my pallet. 50% Cab Souv, 40% Merlot and 10% Cab Franc grapes make for an extremely tasty red wine. I'd say that it could be easily overpowered by stronger meats (ie: lamb or SA dried meat, Biltong, as they call it) but when you're looking for a red that can be drank solo when you want a red, this one's a winner.
Lynx Port Year Unknown: We talked with the owner of Lynx for a couple hours after the official festival was over, but he was gracious enough to show us around his limited cellar. Toward the end of the evening he disappeared and came back with two glasses of "unknown" wine. First considering that he was serving us home made moonshine, he reassured me that this was an experimental wine that had been made from some shiraz grapes that his harvesters had "missed" harvesting at the right time. When the grapes had shrivled up into raisins, he harvested and pressed the grapes, making an extremely wonderful port wine. Mostly dry, with a hint of sweetness, he calls it his "raisin wine". The bottle that we bought from him is unlabeled, so I don't think you'll find it in the states, but look for a Lynx Port in years to come if you're looking for a good Dessert wine.
~S
The Franschhoek valley grows mostly red grapes, and some vineyards here do their own bottling, while a majority (there are vineyards everywhere) sell their grapes to the bigger producers. Anyone selling a Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay is probably using grapes from the higher elevations and rockier climate closer towards Cape Town.
Our picks:
Graham Beck Pheasants Run Sauvignon Blanc 2006. Whereas most SB's hit you
with a strong floral bouquet right off the nose, this one is more subtle and "real" tasting with more mineral and grassy tones rather than an overwhelming floral or citrus bouquet. The other "regular" Graham Beck SB was just OK after the Pheasants Run bottle, as were all other SB's that we tried that day.Graham Beck Varietal Shiraz 2003. Because this is a 2003 Shiraz that was just released this year, it's had some time to mature and its tannins to polymarize. To those who don't know (no worries, a wine tasting class gave me the explanation why), when a wine's tannins polymarize, they form long chains which give red wine that spice, bite or pop. A more mature red tends to linger on the pallet longer and is paired well with fattier, spicier meats. This wine also has a slightly figgy taste to it, says Jesse. It stood out in our minds compared with all the other Shirazs that we tried.
Graham Beck is imported into the States by "The Country Vineyard" based out of NY ( I think).
Our last vineyard, Lynx, was a relatively new vineyard started by an ex-solar engineer from South Africa. Fed up with the way things were going at this company, he quit and decided to start growing grapes. When asked how he acquired his knowledge of grapes and wine making, he replied that he "Read a book or two and talked with some locals, who were more than willing to share tips, tricks and pointers on how to grow grapes successfully." At first he sold his grapes to bigger producers, then decided to keep some for himself and try his hand at wine making. Two and a half years later, he's producing award winning wines. This was i
nspiring for Jesse and I to know that it is possible to completely switch careers, from engineeringto wine making and at least enjoy what you're doing. (Note: the question of being profitable didn't come up, so I can't say he was doing well).
Lynx Shiraz 2006: A very good young Shiraz. Because we tasted it at the end of the evening, our pallets were blown out from all the wine we'd tasted, however, when drinking a bottle last night, we weren't too far off the mark. This was a slightly sweeter, but still nicely spiced Shiraz. With another year or two on the shelf, this would be fantastic.
Lynx Xanache 2006: I'm not a fan usually of red blends of wine, but for some reason, this wine really appealed to my pallet. 50% Cab Souv, 40% Merlot and 10% Cab Franc grapes make for an extremely tasty red wine. I'd say that it could be easily overpowered by stronger meats (ie: lamb or SA dried meat, Biltong, as they call it) but when you're looking for a red that can be drank solo when you want a red, this one's a winner.
Lynx Port Year Unknown: We talked with the owner of Lynx for a couple hours after the official festival was over, but he was gracious enough to show us around his limited cellar. Toward the end of the evening he disappeared and came back with two glasses of "unknown" wine. First considering that he was serving us home made moonshine, he reassured me that this was an experimental wine that had been made from some shiraz grapes that his harvesters had "missed" harvesting at the right time. When the grapes had shrivled up into raisins, he harvested and pressed the grapes, making an extremely wonderful port wine. Mostly dry, with a hint of sweetness, he calls it his "raisin wine". The bottle that we bought from him is unlabeled, so I don't think you'll find it in the states, but look for a Lynx Port in years to come if you're looking for a good Dessert wine.
~S
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Winelands of SA - beautiful but no wi-fi
Macs hate South African Wi-fi. Whatever settings they use for their ADSL routers do not agree with our laptops. We end up plugging in using a hard line or using the standard computers that are provided. Coffee shops and places with "commercialized" wi-fi seem to work just fine, however home connections and Macs are like oil and water.
So we've made it through Jo'burg, without getting "hijacked" and went to Kruger National Park where we saw a ton of wildlife (all the big 5 multiple times and MORE) and now, we're in the Western Cape (Franschhoek) at a guest house, right in the middle of the winelands. The weather is quite cool and rainy here right now (a welcome change from Dubai, Morocco and Egypt) and hopefully tomorrow it will clear so we can go do some wine tasting. Actually, who am I kidding, you don't need sunny weather for wine tasting... at least we don't.
~S
So we've made it through Jo'burg, without getting "hijacked" and went to Kruger National Park where we saw a ton of wildlife (all the big 5 multiple times and MORE) and now, we're in the Western Cape (Franschhoek) at a guest house, right in the middle of the winelands. The weather is quite cool and rainy here right now (a welcome change from Dubai, Morocco and Egypt) and hopefully tomorrow it will clear so we can go do some wine tasting. Actually, who am I kidding, you don't need sunny weather for wine tasting... at least we don't.
~S
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)