South Africa - Garden Route

We packed up and bid a fond farewell to our wonderful hosts and started our journey to Cape Town. We stopped again at the Sky Villa Hotel as the weather had cleared and we could see Corinne's mountains. The next stop was The Heads with even more spectacular views and a lovely lunch at the East Head Café, before heading over to Swellendam for the evening. Our hotel was La Sosta, which was a delight and they managed to squeeze us in to their restaurant for dinner too. What a treat that was! We have been pleased with all of our dining experiences here in South Africa, but this was the Pièce de Résistance! The flavours, the presentation, the textures - did I mention the flavours? Hopefully I will remember to attach a copy of the menu. https://www.lasostarestaurant.com          https://www.booking.com/hotel/za/la-sosta.en-gb.html

Breakfast was also delicious and beautifully presented. We certainly recommend La Sosta to anyone in the vicinity of Swellendam.

On our way to Franschhoek, we stopped to view a museum in Caledon. Part of it was an old Victorian home with most of the original furnishings, including dishes, pens and blotters, wax seals, ornaments, clothing etc., while the other part was an old Masonic building which displayed the history of the area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caledon_Museum

Our hotel in Franschhoek was called the Hôtel du Vin, a boutique hotel in the heart of the town. We had a lovely walk around town then followed Corinne's recommendation and had a great dinner at the Allora Restaurant. https://www.allora.co.za

Breakfast was amazing, fruit, granola, yogurt and Eggs Benedict with a couple of cappuccinos to top it all off. So, we decided to take a walk before checking out of the hotel and found a huge market, with sculptures, paintings, sewing, jewelry, etc. etc. We bought some spices and some nuts from a charming woman who was insisting we try all her varieties.

We then hit the road so that we had time to stop at one of the wineries in the region. The Tokara Winery was recommended by Alan and it was very impressive. Dale said that the wine was good too. We had a lovely walk through the vineyards and olive orchards - stunning views. https://www.tokara.com