Merry and Happy

Dear friends, wishing you a Christmas filled with love and peace. I hope the coming year will be everything you hope and wish for.

We are currently on our amazing road trip in the Caprivi, Namibia. More about that in 2013.

All my love...

Antique route

We've been looking for some decent Vintage/Antique shops in Pretoria. The Husband, Detective Kotze, investigated and stumbled upon this site. It features 12 Antique shops in a radius of about 5km just north of Church street. There are many more in this area so keep your eyes open. We found the raddest items in the vicinity including two stunning chairs, an old shop display case (which we've been after for years), a sauce boat and some old Empisal sewing machine parts. Now that we are completely broke, it's your turn to investigate and lose yourself in nostalgia.
Here is a screen shot of the site. Click on the image to be re-directed to the home page:

Also, here are a few Instagram shots of the desirable items and some of the loot:

Yes, these babies now reside at house Kotze in Sunnyside.

Kook 'n tekkie part II

As you might have realized by now, I am very interested in the subcultures of this city. There is a beauty in the reality of people - I love to see what makes them tick and it does not necessarily mean it has to be something that I will be passionate about as well.
So, the husband and I were on our usual scouting about (this time an empty public swimming pool, a new obsession of mine) when we saw the signs: There was a race on in Mahem! We were very excited since we wanted to see this for a while. You can read about the first post here. 
These people are quite serious about the races. They follow and admire certain drivers as if they were saints or gods. Obviously we were not kitted out for this - you need at least one coolbag, a blankie and as much as possible cheap hard liquor to mix with Cream Soda or rip-off Cola. Cheap, nasty cigarettes (preferably a carton per family) is also a necessity for extra street cred.
You need to DRESS for this occasion as well if you are a lady and anywhere between the ages of 12 and 29 and single. (If you're 30, you are already eligible for grandmother-hood) Tease the hair and heavy-duty make-up is an absolute necessity. If you are a guy, Crocs are acceptable.

Let me not spoil this with words, here are a few shots for you to see for yourself. Definitely recommended for some good Saturday night entertainment. If you're not into the racing, the people watching is even better.

Be warned - obesity is huge (excuse the pun) around these parts of town. I can understand why - the cheese griller and chips come highly recommended.

Location: Cnr Van der Hoff Rd and Richard's Bay Ave.

a week in words and images

Well, it was my birthday on the 15th. I decided to make cupcakes for the peeps at work and being my un-domestic-self I scavenged for a good (non-googled) recipe. I discovered this book that my mom got me when I was 6 or 7 with aspirations of a well-mannered domestic goddess for a daughter...
Things didn't quite turn out that way but I still enjoy making these cupcakes from scratch every now and again. So, why not on my birthday?

Do you remember this book? All you South African girls growing up in the 80's, being members of the Daan Retief book club? Those were the days... *sigh*

After a lot of hand mixing (since electronic mixers don't agree with me...I've broken about five in my life) these lovely golden cakes popped out of the oven...mmmmmm

Schnuki also contributed her bit by being under my feet all the time and licking up all the icing and flour that found the way to the floor, resulting in a funny looking Dalmation-Dachshund

We went to Isabella's cake and food shop (as if the cupcakes weren't enough) for lunch. Had a lovely time and it was also quite a laugh having the very manly colleagues there against the very feminine, pink backdrop. They serve a killer roast lamb sandwich there if I could make a recommendation.

We also went to Bellbottoms this weekend. For those of you who are not familiar with this amazing little place, it is an antique / vintage shop in Pierneef street with the most amazing quirky vintage finds. It is always nice to go there and get completely lost in nostalgic feelings and things. 

There we go - a lot of local for the week. 

Cosmos

Every year around this time, the Highveld blooms in the most spectacular soft colours. This brings some nostalgia, since I spent my childhood in the old Eastern Transvaal (Now Mpumalanga), where the dull landscape was temporarily transformed by a lacy pink and white carpet. I remember sitting in the back of my parents' station wagon, mesmerized by these lovely flowers, speeding by in blurs of white and pink.

Today's photos were taken by my talented fiancée, Thys. Enjoy!