The Lost Years: 2015 (Cape Town)

I went over a decade without updating this blog, and I missed out on a lot of meals, a lot of travel, a lot more.  I was thinking about that recently.  It would be nice, perhaps, to have some sort of blather about some events from the past, perhaps for you few readers, perhaps for the sake of edification somehow.  And when I thought about where to start digging back in, I didn't at all consider chronological order or significance.  No, what came to mind was how nice it would be to revisit the South Africa trip from 2015.

In August 2015 I made a long trek with multiple stops to Cape Town to attend the IFLA World Congress being held there.  I'd never been to an IFLA conference before then, and I haven't been back.  At the time I thought it might be an interesting professional opportunity, and it was in its way, but it wasn't a library world I needed to be part of again no matter what city they might go to.

Still, I thought that Cape Town would be a pretty cool place to go to a conference.  And, of course, I added on some vacation time so as to make the most of the long trip.  Even better, a few days after I got there, Conrad arrived.  So while I had some time at the conference without him, I had most of my time in the country (and most of that in Cape Town) with Conrad.

I liked Cape Town.  It's a beautiful city, and its setting is a large part of that.  I'd seen Table Mountain in photos before, but photos don't do it justice.  Heading into the city from the airport, the driver pointed out zebras on the mountain slopes.  The first couple of days in Cape Town were grey and rainy,

and the mountain was kind of socked in,

but we got some great views of it after that. 

I thought it was especially cool when you could see clouds pouring over it, an effect that the locals apparently know as The Tablecloth. 

Clever!  And by the end of the trip, we had taken the tram up to the top

(with me keeping myself as calm as possible since I do not care of gondolas or trams like that and the heights that we end up swinging above)

for the chance to roam a little, admire the scenery below,

the wildlife up there (those are dassies),

and the flora,

much of which is endemic to the mountain and only the mountain.  So fantastic.

Cape Town is a city, and in some ways, just a mundane city. 

The conference center was not too far from our hotel, and I would walk to and from each day, in among plenty of people going to and from that business district for work.  Those parts of the city felt much like what we would know here in North America.  There were historic parts as well, and we visited them a little. 

We saw some fine neighbourhoods whilst on a bus tour, and we saw all the razor wire atop fences and walls around expensive homes.  Was the city unsafe, we asked at the hotel.  No, they told us, but the levels of income inequality and poverty meant that there was a homelessness problem, and panhandlers were far more likely to accost a pedestrian than a mugger.

To be honest, we stayed within a very small area, the V&A Waterfront. 

Dining, shops, hotels, tourist attractions.  It was a vibrant, lovely place, and I liked our hotel a lot. 

The aquarium was down that way,

the Springboks (rugby) experience was just uphill. 

Heck, even the gay bar

that I went to one night for a drag dinner/show with other LGBTQ+ librarians was pretty close. 

We dined well all around us (though I decided not to post food photos from the trip, at least not in this entry).  Leading along the oceanfront away from where we stayed was a long boardwalk that took me past a stadium

and then onto other neighbourhoods that seemed very nice. 

I was still running at the time, and I took advantage of that to get some miles under my feet early in the mornings there.

I know Cape Town has had some problems since our visit, specifically with water shortages.  If I went back, I would see it differently, and doubtless some of what I liked so much last time is changed or gone.  But I would go back, happily.  It was a marvelous city to visit.  I may never do IFLA things again (almost certainly not, in fact, but who knows?), but I appreciate that attending that conference gave me the chance to go to South Africa and see that little corner of it for myself.

my swim for the week

I've actually been able to devote slightly more time and on a regular schedule to swimming in the past few weeks.  A whole mile today, but some shorter intervals mixed into that, and a longer endurance swim to start.  Not bad.

And, of course, that means I have to miss a swim this week, which will set me back a little.  It's off to Sacramento tomorrow, so no Thursday swim.  Darn it.

Ah well.  Be happy, Peter, that you had the swim that you did today.

Oscars Sunday

Oh, don't worry.  I offer no commentary on the Oscars one way or another.  They made for an entertaining show, and congratulations to the winners and nominees.  Be proud of yourselves.

We gathered together at Van's to watch the event, all four of us.  Oh, Olive enjoyed the attention,

but eventually settled down to her favourite corner to lie there, relaxed.  Van set out food to graze on, we had cocktails and Champagne, and capped the evening with some ice cream sandwiches we put together. 

Indulgent!

I am impressed with myself that I saw at least a half-dozen films that received nominations this year, though.  That's more than in most recent years!

arepa and decaf latte

I may still be all by myself (well, with Olive) until this evening, but I did get to Amara this morning to enjoy a bit of breakfast.  My usual:  the avocado, egg, and cheese arepa - hold the cheese - with a side of guasacaca and a decaf oat milk latte.  Yum!

And now for the boys to come home so we can have regular life for the few days until I go to Sacramento!

again, a reminder

This girl is beautiful.  That is all.

a swim in time

I'm taking care of Olive this week, so I've shifted a lot of my work to remote.  And that means I have some flexibility in my hours - I can take her for a walk if needed, and then work a little later, for example.

So it was that I was able to pop over to the pool yesterday afternoon

for a bit before getting back online.  Another short swim, yes, though I made it to a mile.  Not pressing anything, not tough sets.  Just getting some good back and forth in.

As I swam, the clouds came in.  Dark clouds.  I didn't think there was rain in the forecast, but I was surprised.  As I walked to my car after the swim, there was a great peal of thunder.  Thunder!  We so seldom get that.  I got back to the condo, showered, checked in on work stuff, and then after a bit, I was ready to order sushi to bring back to Van's and eat while I watched over the little girl.  And, of course, right when I wanted to go, that was when there was a short downpour.  More thunder, some lightning, more rain.

Oh, not too much rain by comparison to what we've had this winter, no.  And every drop helps, though maybe we could go two weeks or so until the next rain?  Ah well.  I still wandered out into the mean streets of Pasadena and got my sushi ordered.

A swim in time, a walk that wasn't.  I'm no sugar, though, I didn't dissolve!

end of an era

Conrad and Van are in Vancouver, and I am not.  Yesterday they sorted the things that are being shipped down to Pasadena and got them ready for pick-up tomorrow.  Today they (and Marie has been there, too) worked to get all of the furniture out, save for a few pieces that the new owners have purchased from us.  By early afternoon, the place was pretty much empty.

And so that's it.  The end of an era.  We own the condo for two more weeks, but I won't see it in that time (my passport is off in Ottawa for renewal).  Last September (or was it October?) was the last time I saw it.  Staged, ready for sale.  And that was it.

We bought the place in 2007, taking possession in May of that year.  Marie moved in, and we would use the spare bedroom every time we visited.  After our wedding in 2011, Conrad and I took it over, and until 2019 we were able to use it any time we wanted, just walking on in and settling in.  We had a fully furnished second home there.  We kept clothes there.  We needed nothing.  And I loved it.  The views, the space.  We had Christmases there and birthdays and more.  So many mornings running and walking in and around the city from there.  Every time we started our day at Safari.  Every time we wandered up to Mamie Taylor's for a good dinner at the bar.

And then in 2019, the condo association voted to remove the rental cap on the building.  Just like that, we were vulnerable to the empty homes tax, and we were forced to rent the place out.  September of that year we had a tenant move in.  I didn't see the place for four years, not until last fall when the tenants moved out and we began the work of putting the condo on the market.

I'm so happy that Conrad and Van and Marie got so much done.  I am happy that the stress of selling is behind us, and we can invest the gains on the sale into our retirement.  But I sit here before dinner in Pasadena, feeling melancholy.  I wish we still had the place, but only if we could use it.  I wish we didn't have to sell - I know we don't HAVE to, but we don't want to be landlords.  I wish I could have seen it again.

Thank you, Vancouver condo, for so many good memories.  I will miss you greatly.

Joyce

It's been quite a handful of weeks in terms of dining outside of Pasadena.  I sort of feel like I need a good spell of dining again at local favourites to make up for it!  San Laurel, Otium, Verse, Ladyhawk, and more.  Now let's add Joyce to the list.

This past Monday night was supposed to be an opportunity for us to get together with Denny.  We'd already postponed twice, and when it turned out that Tuesday was going to be an early morning heading to the airport, it looked like another postponement.  Instead, I invited Denny to join me alone in DTLA (not exactly midway between him in WeHo and me here in Pasadena, but equally a nuisance for each of us to get to) and found a promising-looking place on OpenTable:  Joyce Soul and Sea.

First off, it was great to see Denny again.  It's been too long.  We message fairly regularly, but it just goes to show that even though we live in the same metro area, it's not always easy to align schedules and make it to the same parts of the metro without hassle.  It was the same for us with some friends back in Chicago, so I'm used to it, but I regret it.  Ah well.  We made it to dinner, taking seats at the bar/kitchen counter.

I liked Joyce.  I would go back.  I would not take Conrad.  The music was loud, the room was loud, and even leaning in to listen to Denny, I still had some difficulties.  But I would take Van.  Or meet Denny or another friend there.

Drinks?  Great!  Nice bar there,

some good options.  I started with the Florida Highwaymen (a whiskey sour, essentially, and tasty),

then tried the Mother of Pearl Martini (fine, I still insist that a martini should be gin),

then closed with a Hanky Panky (bartender's suggestion, a good after dinner closer). 

Denny had three other cocktails of his own, and all of them hit the spot for him.  No wine for us - I didn't know the ones on the list, and cocktails were more my mood.

Desserts?  Awesome!  We ordered the beignets,

but the server punched in the blueberry cobbler. 

So we were gifted a dessert while they fixed that mix-up, and the server charged us only for the cobbler, the lower price.  I think I liked the beignets slightly more, but I'd happily have that cobbler again.

Oysters? 

Superb!  Very fresh, not too briny.  Neither Denny nor I added any lemon or hot sauces - purists, I guess.  Loved them!

The other items?  Fine!  I liked the pork belly most,

which is funny because I often avoid that on menus.  It's a fatty cut, and if not cooked well, it can be too much fat, too rich.  The few cubes we had were nicely cooked, meaty, but also well balanced with the glaze and the fresh herb.  I liked the duck confit,

but the jerk flavour was a little odd to me.  Not bad, and no unexpected, but something that I didn't immediately love.  The macaroni and cheese

was curiously not cheesy enough for what I was hoping.  I liked it, I ate my share, but I wanted it to be cheesier and saucier.

Service was friendly.  It was easy to get there - a short walk from the 7st St./Metro Center station on the A line.  That makes it a little more likely I'll return.  And for sure, I will get those oysters again!

my week with Olive

Not quite a week, actually.  Most of a week.  The guys are up in Vancouver, packing up the condo, which has sold.  I cannot be up there because my passport is currently in Ottawa for renewal.  Bad timing.  But the good timing is that I can stay with Olive this week, give her some affection, take her on walkies.  We did two walks yesterday,

and so far we've had a little longer one this morning. 

We'll see whether it rains later, but I'll hope that I can get her out for a second walk this afternoon.

Such a sweet girl, right?  Her daddy will be home on Saturday, and I'll go back to being chopped liver or something in her eyes.  For now, though, I'm happy to lavish some love on her.

briefly

And I mean that:  I swam a short swim.  Better than no swim.  Just glad for a window in my Tuesday morning to dash off to the pool.

And that was me, checking in!  A quiet week with Olive ahead while the guys are up in BC without me.

steak

I had a lazy weekend.  Well, a lazy Sunday.  Necessarily so in that case - Saturday was indulgent, I admit.

Van came over for dinner and a movie (the three of us watched Barbie), so I cooked up some steaks for us.  Filet mignons, and sizeable ones.  Wait... filets mignon?  Neither looks quite right.  On the other hand, the steaks, while of moderate quality, cooked up nicely.  I roasted two garlic bulbs and added the cloves into mashed potatoes.  Atop the steaks I put a simple little relish of tomatoes, shallots, and thyme.  Some steamed asparagus, and Bob's your uncle!  Dinner!

Not shown:  the walnut gateau Breton and cheese for dessert, the cocktails, the wine.  As I said, and indulgent night, but a good one.

oh, look, more rain

I know, I know.  I live in SoCal.  I shouldn't grumble about rain.  And I am grateful for it.  After a soaking wet February, we're already an inch deep in precipitation here in March.  We've met our annual average and surpassed it for a second year in a row (though last year was wetter).  It's just that we need the rain to space out more.  Smaller daily totals but more days with rain spread out over more weeks.  At least it's cool weather to boot - snow on the mountains is very much needed even if the mountains above Pasadena aren't really high enough to get all that much snow these days.

But most importantly, it's a nuisance when the rain disrupts our morning walks!

Cry me a river, right?  We set out in what looked like an end to the rain for the morning, and in ten minutes found ourselves turning around.  No Amara this morning.  We stopped into a new coffee shop, Nostalgic Cafe,

run by our friends at Mama M Sushi and picked up lattes to go. 

And then home to take shelter long enough until Delight opened at 9:00 (Nostalgic didn't have any pastries yet this morning).

Of course it seemed to rain the hardest when I set out for the bakery.  Of course.  The sidewalk at one point was flooded,

and I had to turn back and head down an alleyway instead. 

The kicker?  I came out of Delight with pastries, and no rain and brightening skies greeted me.  Sigh.

I'm drying off, sipping decaf, blogging and such.  We have errands later, and may it have stopped by then.  The week ahead promises to be cool but not wet.  Still, maybe in two weeks or three weeks we can get more rain?  Just a bit of drying off until the next round?