And the weather...absolutely perfect day...sunny, 70, no humidity...unlike my loft where I received an alert from thermostat that the humidity was 70%...not sure what that's about.😬
So, here are some pics!
The Orchard Farm Stall is near Grabouw, South Africa. Full of local foodstuffs.
The mandatory picture to prove I'm here.
Elgin Railway Market. There is an old steam train that I was going to take to visit this market. It usually takes 4 hours to get there and sometimes you don't make it thanks to frequent breakdowns. So after finding out it is only an hour outside CT it was our main stop.
Anywhere there's a space a stall will appear. Entrance to Elgin.
View across street from Elgin
Mountains behind Elgin
Elgin entrance
Some antiques...love this chair
Fresh local produce. What's in the bag? Well this turned into a day long story and quest! These green and purple veggies are called waterblommetjies in Afrikaans. My first thought upon seeing g them was waterlily. Essentially, yes. More later!
The shroom lady. I just wanted the mushrooms because they looked unusual but guess she wanted in the pic. 🤷♀️
The steampunk/art deco look of the main hall at Elgin. This building was an apple warehouse built in the 1940s by Italian POWs. There are huge apple orchards all over the area.
Another look at the hall. Stalls all around and upstairs had food stalls.
Dassiesfontein Market in Caledon
If you know me you know how much I wanted to bring this home! No, I have no idea what I would have done with it...but that's not the point!
One of the Market employees sleeping on the job. Just read when I looked up the proper spelling that the owners, shortly after I was here, told stall renters no more cats. The cats are truly working cats keeping the rodents under control.
The foodhall
Houw Hoek Coffee Shop in Botriver and Elize got a cameo appearance!
The view from the parking lot. Such a beautiful area.
LOOK the have the waterblommetjies! Much better pic. So they are harvested July and August normally. So, Natasha and Elize were surprised to see so many in late September. The are used to make a much beloved stew. Elize wanted me to try so badly that she was considering making me some and bringing to the hotel!
But, no need!! This little coffee shop had it on the menu!! Waterblom Brede aka little water flowers stew. It is a lamb stew so I was hesitant but didn't want to disappoint my new friends. So Elize ordered for me and I sat and waited......with my Roiboos tea
The waterblommetjies and lamb are cooked all day and plated with bones and all. The meat was very tender and mild flavor but very bland. I was somehow expecting an onion flavor since lilies are part of alum family. I asked for box and took most of it to go.
Root44 Market outside of Stellenbosch. I walked through all floors. This market was full of people, families. Food stalls, bars, some arts and crafts. Quick trip But had to take pic of the flowers. The look prehistoric and beautiful.
A stop at Oom Samie Se Winkel aka Uncle Sammie's general store in Stellenbosch. This place has anything you could possibly need for your home, daily toiletries, build your own braai/grill, vintage records, and other knickknacks.
Natasha behind the camera again. So, me and Uncle Samie.
It was an outstanding day and so happy to see outside of CT and things that aren't in tour guides. Natasha and Elize were so great we set up another day!
If you need a guide recommendation just let me know!! They go all over and will even do pick ups from airport.
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