Back at the hotel we picked up our case and checked out, rather wishing we were staying another night or two. Our next stop was Stellenbosch and, as there is only one road in and out of Arniston Bay, we retraced our steps through Bredasdorp stopping for photos on the way of anything that took our interest.
Driving through Napier this juxtaposition of Marilyn Munroe with the Dutch Reform church rather made me chuckle.
This style of housing is very typical of the area.
I loved the haystacks.
The manmade Theewaterskloff (dam) near Villiersdorp which provides 40% of Cape Town's water.
We then drove the Franschoek Pass and the view was stunning.
Franschoek was a charming little town but very touristy and high class. We stopped for a cuppa and toasted sandwich and had a wander around. The buildings were in the style we'd already seen.
The main industry in this area is of course wine and there are many, many vineyards.
In fact we are staying on a vineyard - Lovane Boutique Wine Estate and Guesthouse, a couple of miles outside Stellenbosch - which sounded fantastic when we booked. Unfortunately we are not allowed to walk around the estate and they don't even produce their own wines there, but just send the grapes off elsewhere.
The accommodation was adequate rather basic in a Germanic sort of way, being square blocks of adjoining self-contained rooms.
We were in one of the upper ones and had an amazing view of the Simonsberg Mountain range opposite although there was a really strong wind blowing the whole time.
Rather like Table Mountain, it had its own tablecloth which flowed over at times.
We drove into Stellenbosch for a pizza on the first night and had a wander around the town. It was much larger than Franschoek and, being a university town, much less posh.
This statue is apparently titled Old Mac Digging for Happiness.
The next day we drove about half hour to Paarl to the Afrikaans Language monument built in 1975 to commemorate an anniversary of the language receiving official recognition. I have no idea what the various parts signify but it was a peaceful and beautiful place.
And the views of the surrounding countryside were fabulous.
You could see all the way to Cape Town with Table Mountain and Lion's Head clearly visible.
We'd also planned to visit the Paarl Mountain National Park but due to a fire the road was closed as was the park .
The variety of seed heads amazed me, they're very architectural and would make fabulous dried flower arrangements (with a bit of silver/gold spray paint)
A lovely aeonium
Driving back towards Stellenbosch this wheel out stop sign amused me.
We decided to have a late lunch at Stark Conde, another winery set in a beautiful location. A few repetitive photos but to be honest we couldn't have chosen a better place for our last meal; we ate outdoors on the edge of the lake and then wandered around the beautiful gardens.
We really couldn't have had a more perfect afternoon.
We had to be at the airport at 0700 tomorrow for our 1000 flight and rather than ask for a breakfast box which are generally rubbish we decided to just head for the airport and lounge. It was only a half hour or so drive and the roads were fairly quiet until we got nearer. En route we passed the massive Crossroads Township (where the lady on the boat Day 1 lived). Arriving in the lounge just after 0700 we were rather miffed to discover that alcohol wasn't on offer until 0930 by which time we would have boarded, so we had to delay our customary champagne breakfast until we were onboard. It was the same coffin class as the outbound flight and although the food and the staff were lovely I must remember to research the aircraft type before I jump on a "bargain fare" again.
We both thoroughly enjoyed our trip here and would love to return to a) see whales and b) visit the garden route when the proteas are in full flower. And of course there's the possibility of safari which is highly recommended here (although I'm concerned it might be a little like Etosha for our liking).