Hermanus - Whales, Kiters, and Cheesecake

South Africa/ Day 13 (Saturday)/ Part II - 3.9.2016 - Hermanus

The Hermanus Beach Villa, where we are staying for two days, is located right by the sea. Salome, the hostess, was waiting for us as if she knew we were arriving. She welcomed us kindly, took us to her reception office, asked if she could book a restaurant for us, and began the tour of the house.

She showed us the cozy lounge where we would have our breakfast. The fireplace was blazing, the view of the sea was fantastic, and then we went outside. With a beach map in hand, she explained where to find the various beaches, where the best spots for whale watching were, and the different beach hiking trails. Everything went quickly. It reminded me a bit of the first day at boarding school: Salome, the governess, and us, the freshmen, or better yet: she reminded me of Diana Löser from "English for You." It was somehow funny, bizarre, but still warm-hearted.

And guess what: we were initially supposed to get a small room without a balcony, but the nice lady gave us the suite instead - at no additional cost!

So she led us to the suite, and we were speechless. Salome seemed to know that already, as she waited for our reaction with a mischievous smile. Then she wished us a pleasant stay and left us alone! We first conquered the large terrace with wicker chairs and loungers and enjoyed the view. And now for the highlight: the first thing we saw was a whale! Just a few days ago, we had booked an expensive whale-watching boat trip to see a few dorsal fins, and here they were jumping wild and free in the sea for us!

Our suite is very bright and cozy, with a 180-degree panoramic view, box spring beds, a fireplace, rocking chair, couch, and a modern bathroom.

After the obligatory coffee, we strolled on one of the hiking trails between trees, small water streams, and the beach to a Dutch restaurant, where we had coffee verkeert and looked out at the extremely wide white beach of Hermanus. A little further along the beach, a lake almost meets the Atlantic. Only a narrow strip of sand separates the two. The wind conditions there are so good that at least 10 kiters were on the water, whom we admired after a short walk.

Back at the hotel, there was a knock on our door. 'Housekeeping. My name is Tito,' said a young man, and we let him in. Tito immediately reminded us of the movie 'The Birdcage.' We chuckled as he energetically made our beds, drew the curtains, and placed a bedtime treat.

We wanted to give him a tip, but he declined and said we should remember his name and leave a tip upon check-out if we were satisfied with his service.

On our terrace, we then saw the sun set behind the mountains in a fiery red color. Hermanus is located on the Atlantic. After the southernmost point of South Africa (about 80 km east of here), the Indian Ocean ends.

Our house chef had reserved a table for us at 'Pear Tree' at 8 p.m. Earlier, we couldn't get a table because everything is full here during whale season, especially on weekends. Changoo from Zimbabwe served our table at the small restaurant. Very friendly and eager to answer all of our questions, such as recommending a South African restaurant and providing information about store opening hours. Once again, we were amazed that the food here, in terms of creativity, presentation, and taste, could compete with a German Michelin-star restaurant. For less than €10 per main course! For dessert, we ordered a strawberry cheesecake. It consisted of three scoops of delicious cheese arranged next to cookie and cake crumbs, with strawberries on top: as sorbet, small cubes, dried slices, and sauce.

A beautiful day came to an end, and we were looking forward to the next one, as our weather apps had promised plenty of sunshine.

One more thing I wanted to mention:

We had read before that South Africa has the strictest smoking laws and that smoking is almost prohibited everywhere. A man from a tour group told us that he wasn't allowed to smoke on the balcony and had to go in front of the hotel. We did not have this experience. We always asked beforehand and were allowed to smoke on the balconies and outside in cafes and restaurants. The only exception was in Tsitsikamma, where the 50s style cafe had designated smoking areas, a bit away from the main area and without any shade. In Cape Town, it happens a bit more often that smoking is not allowed even in the outdoor areas of restaurants and cafes.

Smoking is prohibited in public buildings and enclosed spaces, as it is everywhere else.

See you soon...
Tatjana

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