Beginnings End

As I write this bittersweet post, I do so with a heady dose of thrilling anticipation of my exciting new career path ahead of me; whilst desperately trying to swallow this growing lump in my throat.

After 4 fantastic years of a "Million Thrills"; it is with a heavy heart that I wave a fond farewell to my Sun International family.

Whilst it's true that I have been terribly spoilt and privileged, to have called the fabulous grand old dame, The Table Bay Hotel my home for so many years and all the great breakfasts/lunches/dinners/coffees & cocktails shared with clients and colleagues alike

                   

that  I will undoubtedly miss. I will dearly miss the people within these four walls infinitely more.

Above: My Sales Team at Xmas

   The Table Bay Chefs in this pic: LT - RT Chef Bobby (patisserie extraordinairre); Chef Stelios & Chef Jason Franco (Camissa's gourmet whizzes)                                      

I have been incredibly blessed to work with such an amazingly talented team of people.     Each one unique to their role in our Sunsational Family!                                                                                   

I want to thank each and every one of my colleagues; clients and peers for being a part of my journey.  

For generously imparting their knowledge; graciously sharing their wisdom & expertise with me; for their support & commitment on my “Sell Hard” reality TV show series this and many many more I extend my heartfelt gratitude.

The invaluable skills & experience gained and the unforgettable memories I will keep forever close to my heart.

Up until my very last day I was spoilt by my colleagues with this beautiful red cake (with glitterry red curlies on top made especially for me by my fave chef Bobby of Table Bay in honour of my own red curls) 

roses, food, card and the most stunning crystal candle sticks! Really I couldn't have asked for a better team.

I'm so touched by the outpouring of love and fond messages from my clients, and the beautiful nibbles and wine hamper received from one. 

Reminds me why I so love the tourism and travel industry....I love people and these are my people...love you all so much!

Sad as is it to leave this chapter behind, I am very much looking forward to my new role as Twitter Travel Sales Account Executive. 

Though I may be trading my hospitality hat for a digital marketing one, i'm still very much going to be around in travel.

Catch you all in cyberspace...on Twitter @thejax_1 and linkedin  ....for now i'm going to have my cake & eat it too!

Cheers!

Tempting TASTE

A feast for the senses, this delicious food festival is not one to be missed!

Lucky lil old me had the good fortune of attending this annual fest for a 3rd year in a row. 

Basically it's a smorgasboard of samplers and the currency at the festival is called a "crown". one trades these "crowns" (tickets as shown below) for food. 

1 Crown = R5

Sadly this year my 2 favourite vendors Beefcakes Restaurant and Lindt Chocolate Studio were nowhere in site :-( 

Despite this tragedy;  I forged on like the dedicated foodie that I am and not only treated my tastebuds to the delectable bite size more-ish moresals on offer:

  

Delish butter chicken from Jewel of India  and melt in your mouth ribs from Beluga Restaurant; 

but also savoured the cool jazz sounds of my uber talented muso friend Mr Elton Goslett on the Cape Town Angels Stage.

Being in the hospitality industry has it's perks and of course I'd be remiss if I didn't punt my own brand The Table Bay Hotel's chic brasserie Camissa. Where one could savour ostrich tartare, Springbok stew and a south african favourite peppermint crisp dessert.

Rounded off with a lovely glass of the house red or white wine.

Those lucky enough to stop at the stand, also received a 50% off voucher for your next visit to Camissa - which i'll definitely be using!

 

There were some good cooking  classes on the go by Robertsons spices where (and I only learnt this much later, like after I left the show) guests got 6 FREE Robertson spices after the "making your burger demo!

Not to mention the mixology drink labs, from Bacardi to the yummy frozen Manhattan I tasted from Original Shaken Cocktails!

Last but definitely not least I fell in love with these very funky contempory art human head wine coolers.

Wouldn't mind one of those in my home!

If you didn't get a chance to vistit the TASTE festival this year 10 - 12 April 2015;

there's always next year!

Bon appetite!

Liebster Award

As a newb to the blogging world, I Am absolutely chuffed as cheese to be nominated for this awesome award by the Charming Charnelle Coco Avontuur from In The Loop with Coco beauty blog

  

The purpose of the Liebster award is to create some exposure for your up and coming bloggers with less than 200 followers.

The Rules are as follows:

These are the questions Charnelle asked me:

How long have you been blogging?

I just started in January 2015 so that's 3 months

What do you enjoy the most about blogging?

I love sharing my experiences with people all over the world

How often do you blog per week?

I don't have set times, I blog as & when I'm inspired 

What was your main struggle when starting up your blog?

Figuring out how to use my iPad *giggle* I'm a pc girl!

Who is your favourite blogger?

I don't get too much time to read blogs, but when I do it's usually industry related. Meaning travel. I recently came across this blog by a guy who left his desk job to travel across Africa & not by plane. I totally love it!  www.traveltall.com

Oh wait I have 2, the other is the fabulous Sex in the CT with Manni Bradshaw

What are your blogging goals?
I'd love to one day be one of those "digital travel nomads" who gets paid for their travel blogs, in essence paid to travel.... :-)

What is your favourite thing about blogging?

I love recounting my experiences by putting it into words. It's very relaxing.

What is the worst advice you have received about blogging?

None

What is the best advise you have received about blogging?

Just do it 

What advise can you give about blogging?

It's like writing in a diary, a very public diary. Be real be you don't make up false stories, unless you're a comedian or scriptwriter. Funny thing bout the Internet if you present a fake story or review the truth will always find you out.

Have you ever seen/ heard of my blog before?
I first saw your blog when my friend Mademoiselle Nomad added me to your Facebook group, Cape Town Bloggers

11 Random Facts about Me

1. I'm a BIG Froyo Fan! (frozen yoghurt)
2. Michael Schumacher #F1 + fast / vintage cars = HUGE Love
3. Convinced I was born in the wrong era, Love love love the vintage 50s Americana Pinup 
4. I love baking cupcakes...yes I'm that domesticated ;-)
5. I sing in the shower (& my car... ;-)
6. My mouth is bigger than my heart
7. I've lived in 9 cities...that's 3 different continents
8. Pro female empowerment
9. Intrigued by human nature
10. Owned my first business at 15
11. Started playing piano at age 4

I'm sorry I don't get to read too many blogs, so don't know of too many newbies to nominate. But I'm paying it forward by nominating these blogs:

1. Sex in the CT with Manni Bradshaw
2. Make it Rayne 
3. A foreigner in Cape Town

My 11 Questions for you are as follows:

1. Why did you start blogging?
2. Are you a full time blogger? 
3. If Yes to Q2, how did you do that? & why?; if no what is your full time occupation?
4. Who inspired/inspires you the most?
5. Do you have a favourite blogger, if so who?
6. Have you read my blog?
7. Where are you from?
8. If you got 3 wishes from a magic genie, what would they be?
9. PC or MAC?
10. Which do you find easier: connecting to people through your blog or connecting with people face to face?
11. Do you have an online screen name? if yes, what is it?

I look forward to learning some more about my fellow bloggers and will definitely need to make some time to read some new blogs!

Last but most certainly not least, a very BIG Thank You to Charnelle for this award! :-) 

Love & Lightness xxx

Myog magic

Over the last few weeks Cape Town has been experiencing a serious fry your eggs on the pavement special kinda heat wave. What better way to cool down other then taking a dip in the body numbing Atlantic waters, or by satisfying your sweet tooth with some Froyo ? (frozen yoghurt for those not in the know ;-)

The latter being my personal favorite choice!

 I'd like to thank Myog frozen yoghurt for so generously rewarding my obsessive food tweeting by selecting me as fan of the month! What does F.O.M receive, you ask? Well lucky lil 'ol me received a Myog hamper which consisted of a really snazzy cooler bag, soda can holder, 2x badges, 2x refrigerator magnets and 2x discount vouchers.

I treated myself to 1x large yummy coconut & raspberry froyo sans toppings & cashed in one of my vouchers. So creamy and delicious, one easily could be mistaken for thinking this indulgent treat is grossly calorific. Not so! In fact Myog froyo is 98% FAT FREE! Yip you heard right...so go on to your nearest Myog and munch away, guilt-free!

What makes it so great? Besides the obvious, is that it's right on my doorstep; closes at midnight & during the week after 8pm you can UPSIZE for FREE! thats right. ..pay for Medium & get a Large! Not to mention the super friendly staff!

If your tastebuds have not had the pleasure of experiencing Myog Frozen Yoghurt yet, I strongly urge you to rectify the situation by promptly taking yourself to your nearest Myog.

Happy Days

Just like that lovable 70s American sitcom "Happy Days" or even better the forever happily ever after "Brady Bunch", I've just realised that I've had an incredibly great week!

Ironically on this very auspicious eve of Friday the 13th,

I've come to appreciate how, well you may say 'lucky' but I say blessed I am/have been this week...well month..no wait in fact my whole darned life.

You could say I was born under a 'lucky' star.

Often we get so wrapped up in our every day stresses we forget to  stop, breathe, appreciate & be grateful for what we have.

I am the worst culprit of this. Being a totally driven perfectionist, instead of appreciating everything around me, I'm constantly on the lookout for improvement.

When the whole time I should just be trusting the process & just 'Be'.

Whilst admiring the gorgeous sunset from my balcony this evening,

I realised how blessed I have been.  I have everything I NEED. A roof over  head, a simple set of wheels to get me around, a job that pays me well, insures my health and enables me to fulfil my creativity & allows me to travel and this Amazing View!

I have always had everything I needed to survive. Some call it luck, I say it's Divine Intervention.

Now this is not a religious post, but when you look up and see that magnificent artwork emblazoned in the sky, it's hard not to believe that something greater is behind that.

I'm living proof that everything/ everyone has a purpose. Nothing is a coincidence.

Ok so before I rattle on about The Universe, and I could easily, let me just stop and say a great BIG THANK YOU!

Thank you to my mom for always listening; Being there for me..her love & support have kept me sane.

Thanks to my gal pals and sister, for your friendship and encouragement.

Thanks to my job for providing a decent wage & simultaneously challenging me

Thanks to all those who are no longer a part of my journey, the hardest yet greatest lessons I have learnt through all of you that have helped me to grow

But the biggest shout out goes to The Abundant Universe - for always giving me exactly what I need!

May your weekend be filled with many happy moments and hope you take time out to enjoy each sunset in your life!

Reason. Season. Lifetime.

AUM

A LUSH-ious Affair

On a rather average dreary day, on another unfruitful trip to the mall it was there where I was lured by this tasty temptress.

Every other time I've been to the Waterfront, I've done my best to stay clear of her knowing full well the devastation to my wallet that would ensue should I stray just a second too long in her charming company.

But this day was different. 

I needed some uplifment. I wanted some assurance. I needed to see her.

Compelled like a moth to a flame, I purposefully strode in her direction.

No sooner had I stepped inside and I was greeted by a heady daze of delicious scents and sunshine smiles.

ahhhhhhh....this is the stuff!

That peaceful sense of calm...my happy place.... I had arrived...

From Happy Hippies to Glittery Rock Stars, she holds them all in her eclectic embrace.

Wiccy Magic, Karma Kream, Lovely Jubbelies and bath bombs in every flavour imaginable, all 100% vegan friendly and not tested on animals :-)

With so many wondrous lotions & potions to choose from it is really hard to leave. 

But, alas, as we all know all good things sadly do come to an end.

So finally after much deliberation, I settled on my own 2 little pieces of heaven to take with me before making my way.

"Honey I washed the kids" & "Rockstar" Soaps

Thank you to the lovely Nicole & Ayanda, for their excellent friendly service and making my trip to LUSH all the more enjoyable! Loved your hair ladies - simply stunning!

Nicole & Ayanda of LUSH V&A Waterfront

For your own trip down LUSH Wonderland do stop by either V&A Waterfront or CanalWalk if you're in the Western Cape. Anywhere else in SA you can check them out on www.lush.co.za and for www.lush.com Internationals, well you guys should be all to familiar with LUSH already!

Happy Lushious shopping

The Best Address in The Cape

You simply cannot say that you have experienced The Best of the Mother City if you have not passed through the doors of this Grand old Dame.

This renowned Five star landmark in the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront was opened by none other than the late great Madiba himself back in 1998 and still remains a firm favourite with locals and celebrities alike.

With more than 260 food options on her breakfast menu alone; served from The Atlantic room with its breathtaking view of Table Mountain, it’s not hard to see why The Table Bay Hotel is known as The Best Address in The Cape.

If a breakfast buffet is too much for you, and you’re like me, the decadent daily afternoon high tea from 14h30 – 17h30 offered in the luxurious lounge will more than sate your sweet tooth! Patisserie Chef Bobby Kumar creates masterful works of art with sugar. Here you can also find halaal friendly and gluten free options.

But what I’m most excited about is the newest restaurant Camissa Brasserie, it’s not your typical stuffy leather clad European bistro with overpriced Parisian fare. 

This hidden little gem serves up lekka local South African flavours that will not break the bank. Affordable luxury at its best compliments of Chef James Franco & Chef Amari de Jager!

During the summer months there is currently a sundowners cocktail special at this restaurant from 5 – 8 pm every Friday eve in February & March 2015; where you can get 2 cocktails for the price of one whilst listening to the soothing sounds of classical pop duo Accoustic Element.

Why sit in traffic, if you’re a local yokel like me, when you can sip rush hour away in style!

If you’re not a foodie with a fine palate and would rather prefer some pampering, fear not for there is also a Camelot Spa on hand to massage away your stresses. It is open to the public so you don’t need to be a hotel guest to enjoy these treatments, although after a delicious meal and a relaxing back rub you might just find yourself checking in!

Reservations at Camissa Brasserie is reccommended and you can do so by contacting the hotel directly on 021 406 5000 or email: ilse.barnard@suninternational.com

@thejax_1 on twitter

Photos courtesy of Sun International