After our lovely break away to Warmwaterberg we left in convoy with Meg and Tom and made our way home to Struisbaai.  But not before stopping in Barrydale for breakfast.   If every you are in this neck of the woods, be sure to stop at Barrydale as it has a number of interesting shops and eateries.

The sunny weather had turned to chill and cloud and even a spit and a spot of rain but this did not dampen our spirits.  Tom and Megan introduced us to The Blue Cow.

Yes – we were pleasantly surprised

Waterfront?  In Barrydale?

Yes – the coffee shop overlooks a wonderful pond all set about with willow trees

The pond is boiling with carp begging to be fed by the patrons

It is a very pretty place

Mr Cape Weaver is busy building a nest

The grey heron knows where he can get a fine meal

Our meals were mighty fine too.   It began to rain so we moved to a dryer part of the deck.   It was really cosy because of a stove burning in the corner.

Jenny our charming hostess – nothing was too much trouble

The Earl enjoyed an omelette and was given his favourite strawberry jam to have with his toast

Tom and I had the Farmer’s Breakfast

Megan was delighted with her chicken and mushroom pancake

See our happy faces – The Earl – Me – Meg and Tom

The next day the weather in Struisbaai was perfect.  Clear sunny skies and the sea was azure, calm and enticing the men to get out there and catch some fish.   Willie from Shipwreck Coffee Shop joined them.  When Megs and I rose from the comfort of our cosy beds we took a walk to have breakfast at the pre-mentioned eatery.

Megs had the biltong omelette while I had my ‘usual’ Mini Ontbyt

I’ve mentioned our favourite coffee shop many times of my blog but I can’t emphasise enough how amazing their coffees are.   And their breakfasts and confectionary are to die for!

After breakfast Megs and I made our way to the most picturesque harbour in the world (Just saying!)

After enjoying the sunshine we returned just in time to greet our men who were full of excitement over the amazing day they’d had at sea.  Let the photos tell the tale.

The biggest yellowtail caught but a great white shark was hungry too so he chomped it in half!

Tom and Willie with broad fishermen smiles

Hurry up and take the photo – This fish is too heavy for The Earl

The Samsung Galaxy takes awesome photographs.   We were very proud of our fishermen and enjoyed some delicious sashimi for supper that night.

But all good things must come to an end so off Meg and Tom had to go the following day. Till the next time!

This week’s Fun Photo Challenge calls for All one colour.  Here are a few I thought might fit the bill

Familiar Chat in The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

Tawny Eagle with prey

Sossusvlei, Namib Desert, Namibia – from the air

I am participating in Stream on Consciousness Saturday this week.  The prompt is Language.

I have always being interested in Language – any kind of language.  It first started with my own – I believe I learned to speak at the right age and didn’t have any articulation problems.  At school I liked grammar – so many kids hated it – but I was quite fascinated about how a language was built up. Spelling wasn’t that important to me but I got the gist of the rules and if I made mistakes – they were more through carelessness and concentrating on another aspect of the task – like getting the writing right or answering the question correctly and mainly in writing a creative story.  These skill are different to the structure of language which only comes naturally much later in life.  My grammar was perfect in a grammar lesson and I always got full marks for a spelling test.

Some people are very snobbish about using correct grammar and spelling in their daily speech and writing – I like using the correct form but I believe communication is way more important.  I taught little kids and loved their creative spelling – they could ask for help with words but it was much better for them to apply their own skill and of course I could understand what they wrote.   It was the content that was important – the little story they were writing or the questions they were answering – let the rules come later I would tell them if they got upset that something was wrong – you’re using your own brain to get your message across.  Language is also a living thing – it changes over time – it grows and usually becomes much simpler.  And isn’t it amazing how the same language can be spoken so completely differently in different countries or even regions?  Language defines us.  It encompasses more than just words – it embraces culture and personality too.  Why do we think of the French as romantic lovers and Italians as having passionate operatic personalities.   Surely their language is partly why?

In South Africa there are 11 official languages – Yes – ELEVEN.  And their speakers are all different in many ways – culture, creed and diet.    I speak only two of those languages – English being my mother tongue and Afrikaans I was taught at school.  I do not speak nor understand the other nine – but it would be useful to at least have a few words in Xhosa which is spoken by many people in the Eastern and Western Cape.  Of course most of them know English so we get by communicating in my language.  But to really understand another culture, it helps to speak their language.

We, as English speakers, I believe, are lazy about learning other languages – EVERYBODY  speaks English – Why bother?   And now with all those translate apps it’s not even necessary to have a phrase book in a foreign country.   But what a lot we miss if we don’t at least try to learn a few words and phrases.  I am grateful that I  learned some Italian before I visited that country.    I found that not everybody understood English!   My husband landed up in an Italian hospital for three weeks.  The nursing staff and therapists did not understand English!   It was difficult but I kept calm and spoke as much Italian as I could!

Of course there are so many different types of language beside what is spoken – there are software languages, the language of love, body language and sign language.

Without language we could not communicate, learn, create or progress.  Yet nobody really knows how we learn it.  The older a language the more complex it is – modern languages are easier to learn.  The smarter we get the simpler we make things and yet our knowledge grows and our technology becomes more amazing.  And it all started with Language.

If you have animals or have ever watched creatures in the wild, you will know that animals communicate too – just in a language that most humans do not understand – yet your pet understand yours!

I love language!

via Daily Prompt: Pink

Today’s Daily Prompt word is Pink and I dedicate this post to my wonderful late mother – Nitana Elizabeth Pnematicatos nee Chimato

My mother had a thing against pink – not as far as the colour for clothing etc was concerned – no – it was the pink (or red) colouring in drinks for kids that she abhorred.  She was convinced that drinking anything pink would make her offspring sick.  If we went to a birthday party she’d say – don’t drink anything raspberry or strawberry flavoured – it will make you sick.     If we were out for milkshakes, she would not allow us to have one if it were pink.   I didn’t think to question it at the time. I believed her and in fact the one time I did try a strawberry flavoured milkshake – I brought it all up.  But then I did have food fetishes so it could have been purely psychological.

One Mother’s Day I made a card for her and wrote this rhyme in it.   Today would have been her 89th birthday and this coming Sunday is Mother’s Day.

Mom’s Aversion to Red or Pink

Mom had an aversion to a drink

That had the colour red or pink

Insisted we must never take

Red cold drink or pink milkshake

She taught us how to use the loo

The tricky art of tying a shoe,

How to add up sums in tens

And to  drive a Mercedes Benz.

We weren’t allowed in the sun’s ray

For two hours after 12 midday

She did not want our skins to fry

So made us white sunscreen apply.

She  along with our dear dad

Taught us what was good and bad

To always go the honest way

And make sure our bills we pay.

And when it came to what to drink

There’s no way we would ever think

Of taking strawberry or red

For fear of bringing up in bed

So we have learnt to use sunscreen

Be polite, honest and clean

Above all though we know our drink

Must never be of red or pink.

(May 2005)

Happy Birthday and Happy Mother’s Day, Mom.  May you be enjoying some PINK Champers in heaven!

Mom wearing PINK  with her sister, Leonie in Australia

Here is my contribution to The Daily Post Weekly Photo Challenge

These photographs were taken at 13th Waterhole, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in June 2015.  We were lucky enough to see a pride of 11 mothers and cubs early one perfect morning.

Here is my contribution to  Cee’s Fun Photo Challenge   This week the topic is Isolated Objects.

What could be more isolated than a landlocked sailing ship!

This one is used for film shoots in Cape Town.