Julia At Large: Belated Random Happenings #2

The Friday VAC activity for November 18^th was a trip to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens for a picnic of champagne and strawberries. The weather was absolutely perfect and we had a great time relaxing on the lawn. Life has been really rough here in Cape Town…

Relaxing on the lawn.

Jen, Oliver, and Vanessa with Table Mountain in the background.

Sam, Jen, and Bree.

After Sly fell asleep we surrounded him with the empty bottles. He got some good stares from other tourist groups.

Right next door to our house is a restaurant called the Gypsy Café. When I first moved here it was a strange place where people sometimes stood outside roasting meats and offering to throw in free cocktails if you bought their gypsy chicken. Then the place was bought by new owners, who kept the name, but renovated the inside into an adorable little café. Now the Gypsy Café opens for dinner with their menu scrawled on large chalk boards and stays open until three or so in the morning. I’ve been wanted to go to this mysterious place next door for a long time and when Jen and I heard that they had snails on their menu we had to go. The snails were cooked in an amazing bleu cheese sauce and were completely delicious, plus the appetizers were on special for R20 or about $2.50. We will definitely be back there soon.

So excited for snails!

Along the lines of food I have to write home about boerewors. They are the South African version of a hot dog, but (sorry U.S.A) so much better. Boerewors are a sausage made of minced beef and spices. Every night the vendors set up small stands and start selling “street meat” and onions on rolls. Besides being able to get this amazing dish for 10R all night, the best part of boerewors is that the vendors have about ten sauces available, which must be used liberally and all at once. I am definitely going to miss street meat when I leave South Africa.