Hello Sailor!

As my friend Smutty so succinctly puts it: hou my vas!

Finally made it to Hello Sailor for dinner.

We had:

Chicken liver paté with sourdough toast.

Disco Fries.

( skinny fries, mushroom gravy and cheese, melted under the grill. So wrong and yet... so right )

Vetkoek - light as clouds with crispy edges, curried mince and sambals.

Lamb cooked slow in a complex gravy of tomatoes, rosemary and cinnamon.

A bottomless glass of Merlot.
A toast to my dear Mom who turns 75 today.
A toast to Winter and tummy rolls.

That's chef Maggie in the background, like a dervish in the kitchen. This is my kind of place.

Twas a perfect rainy night in Observatory. Hipsters and muscle cars. Dragon breath walking back to my car.
Full as a tick.

and Fi. This is for you.

Flying without a net.

We once had a birthday party together, the lovely Virgoan girlfriend and I. We served bottomless White Whiskers and the Martinis were dirty. There was chocolate ganache cake with figs, and as much liquorice as a girl could wish for. Spun sugar and candlelight. The big surprise: the Magician... I introduced him to my baffled friend and watched as he entranced her, soon drawing a crowd. He bent spoons, he turned back time, he made us all a-flutter. He was a brilliant illusionist, but my favourite part was watching the faces around me - they were filled with such incredible child-like wonder, all of the world-weary cynicism left aside for a while.

And that's exactly what the circus did for us tonight.

Scented with jelly tots and buttered popcorn, this troupe of grown-up children entertain... I was by turns on the edge of my seat, then laughing so hard my ears ached and then having bouts of dislocating cold shivers. Juggling so strange and offbeat, it should have been a mess, but it was perfect. Bodies being tossed and tumbled into the air, zooming like paper aeroplanes, the flinging of ropes.

Lightning Bolt Drummer Girl in the Red Boots:
you left me breathless.

Ghostly Trapeze Acrobats: you made my heart stand still, my palms all sweaty.

Guy with Arm Muscles who Floated Horizontal from the Bar: well. You made my heart beat again.
 

We whooped and we whistled and we ahhh-d and we oooh-d.

How will I ever sleep tonight?

❤

What do you do when you're feeling blue?

You take a last look at photos of a place you'll probably never go back to, have a good long cry and decide:

Then, you go and see a rockin' rockabilly band.

Them Tornadoes. I'm their number one fan.

How can you not like this trio of madcaps? Simon Perry on the bull fiddle with teeth. Matt Ferguson - he stands and bangs the snare. In a kilt. And the inimitable Ian Arrow, main snake charmer. Him with the rubber limbs. They were joined for a few numbers by Lonesome Dave on the harmonica. That man is the king of the harp.

Their happiness as they make this music is ridiculously infectious.

And the roof of the Grand Daddy Hotel was the perfect place for it.

She wore them with a popeye dress.

Spotted in the stairwell: a dress made of maps. One flight up there is a suit.

Oh. And: happy birthday Elvis!
❤

Thanksgiving.

So obviously we don't get the day off here in South Africa. My Favourite American Family celebrated with a dinner this evening. My - what a feast!

 

After being on set since 4h30 this morn, I was so excited to see the turkey that I lost focus. But that little girl's eye says it all. 

The friends were there in all their finery.

We ate and we drank and we ate some more. My very first taste of pumpkin pie. I say hmmmm and lick my lips.

So thanks to the Wampanoag people, thanks for rice and whiskey and music and airplanes. Thanks to that tearing mad woman who nearly ran me over the other day in Kloof Street. She made me realise how lucky I am to be here. Thanks to the Mother and the Father and the Daughter and the Visiting Cousin and all of the other great cooks in the world.

And good night to you lovely people.