Fancy milkshakes and why I leave my blog posts so late in the week

The good thing about leaving my weekly blog post for later in the week is that seeing all the photos again makes me yearn for weekend… which, by the time I press ‘publish’, is that much closer. And so, without further ado, I present photos of what I’ve been up to since my last update. Key among them? Milkshakes at the Protea Fire & Ice (though not the supersized ones we had at the Melrose Arch Fire & Ice a few years ago, click here for a reminder!)

Thursday, 23 October 2014: SAARF AMPS presentation at the Protea Fire & Ice

Interesting ‘art’ if you veer to the left once passing reception at the Fire & Ice

Pretty chandeliers in the hotel room – empty as I got there early

Hotel breakfast pastries! Ignore the coffee spilled in my saucer…

Saturday, 25 October: Cubana breakfast, winning at the casino, Fire & Ice milkshakes, Mochachos selfies

Wonderful ‘healthy’ breakfast concoction at Cubana in Blouberg (we were so early we were the only ones there… this is becoming a habit)

Wonderful ‘not as healthy’ breakfast concoction that Husband opted for – is eggs benedict with a salsa-ey sauce on potato-ey scones for R29. Very good value but go hungry!

Then we decided to toss R20 into the slot machines at Grand West Casino. Ons het gewen! Those are excited/happy faces, if you can’t tell.

FANCY milkshakes at the Fire & Ice (yes, we went back) to celebrate our casino winnings. This is the Rocky Road, with chunks of cherry, chocolate, and marshmallow – and this is the half size, we’d still be sitting there if I’d ordered the full.

Mochachos selfie. Just because.

This time I took a Mochachos selfie too… and entered the competition to win a car. Fingers crossed!

Sitting on a soft dune at Dolphin Beach. The weather was magical but the wind was vicious, didn’t stay long.

If you’re a fan of Magnum ice creams (tick) and a fan of red velvet cupcakes (tick again), you’re definitely going to try the special edition Red Velvet Cupcake flavoured Magnum… especially if your local Pick n Pay has a ‘two for R30’ special.

Sunday, 26 October 2014: Kauai breakfast, sushi, cake and packing

Look at that face, being subjected to a healthy breakfast at Kauai… you’d almost think it wasn’t his idea to go there in the first place. (It was)

Look at the blue blue sky! No filters, I promise. This is the warm rock pool you reach when you happen to cross the beach outside the Blue Peter at low tide.

All that walking and paddling made us hungry. Husband stemmed his hunger with salmon sushi…

… I went for the ‘R28 cappuccino and cake slice’ special at our local Foodlover’s Market. That’s white chocolate cheesecake, so yummy

Boxes! Essential if you’re moving house in a few weeks, as we are…

Doesn’t scrolling through all that make you long for the weekend? Good news, it’s just around the corner! 🙂 See, told you I was onto something by leaving my blog posts so late in the week. You can thank me later.

Boomslang-ing in Kirstenbosch and take 2 of how to eat a Mochachos burger

This past week has been filled with time-taking-up things, but you know what they say – you always make time for the things you love. And so, here’s my weekly blog post! Last Saturday we decided to get back into our hiking ways (click here if you don’t remember we have actually been bitten by the ‘get active outdoors’ bug before). And the best way to do it? Well, we could have joined my lovely new colleagues, who were doing a 6am sunrise scramble up Lion’s Head… but we’ve ticked Lion’s Head off our list and the thought of sleeping in held too much appeal. So instead we started the day with a long breakfast, then drove to Constantia for an adventure – we walked from Cecelia Forest into Kirstenbosch Gardens, to see if we could sneak on to the Boomslang ‘tree canopy’ walkway my former minion blogged about a few months ago. And sneak in we did! Once you’re in Kirstenbosch, no-one checks your ticket (shhh!) The hike was about 4km in total and just enough to get the blood pumping.

But it seems despite feeling like we were glowing with good health we actually overdid it all on Saturday, with just too much weekend packed in to one day… so of course my immune system fought back and on Sunday I woke with (another) awful head cold. Instead of feeling sorry for myself we decided on an easy day, the highlight of which was getting Husband to demonstrate how to eat a Mochachos burger (again – click here for a reminder of his first demonstration). But enough of my rambling and on with what you’re actually here for – the photos!

Saturday, 11 October 2014: Hike into Kirstenbosch, Boomslang tree canopy, celebratory drinks

Hike snacks – Energade and chocolate-almond-sesame bars. Yum

You don’t get a sense of the danger this photo should invoke – Husband’s standing on a log that could give out at any point and send him tumbling to the depths below

Victorious! This was about halfway through the hike, we’d reached one of the highest points. The half-empty bottle of cold drink bottom left is not ours. We didn’t even finish the Energades we brought along for the hike

Beautiful sub-dappled flowers, with Devil’s Peak in the distance, on our way in to Kirstenbosch

Standing on the Boomslang – it shudders and drifts in the breeze so you have to make sure you have a firm footing

The man in the middle of the walkway is Husband

Celebrating our successful hike with a ‘naughty XXX’ chocolatey shake of sorts at a spot in Sea Point – delicious. My ideally shaped milkshake glass

That’s not just Coke, it’s a Long Island Iced Tea at our local Cubana in Blouberg, where we supped that night. The chicken burgers (not pictured) were little marvels.

Sunday, 12 October 2014: How to eat a Mochachos burger, Strand Street

How to eat a Mochachos burger, step 1: Pick it up in both hands and make a Very Excited Face

How to eat a Mochachos burger, step 2: Take a bite. Don’t be shy, get the whole face involved!

How to eat a Mochachos burger, step 3: Chew thoroughly and enjoy those utterly delicious spicy flavours

How to eat a Mochachos burger, step 4: Pause to flap your wings before repeating step 1

Bonus – the fun didn’t end there! Here are a few snaps from events I attended during the week:

Wednesday, 15 and Thursday, 16 October 2014: World Design Capital 2014 Design House Exhibition, Movember launch event and sunset luxury apartment cocktail party

My favourite piece from the World Design Capital 2014 Design House Exhibition, on at the Sea Point Stadium last week

Me, looking a little like Alice in Wonderland at the Design House Exhibition, according to my colleague who snapped this shot – see, birdies again

Haaa! He’s not sneezing – Husband refused to make a pretend moustache himself at the Movember event we attended this week, so I improvised

A delicious glass of Pierre Jourdan Rose with scrummy little canapes at a sunset event I attended this week (different to the Movember event, obvs)

That’s all, folks! Still a bit sneezy so not joining my Impi challenge-participating colleagues on Sunday. Instead planning a relaxed, no-stress weekend. Enjoy yours! 🙂