February 18, 2017

Cape Town, South Africa

There are times when I really, really love my job. This is one of them. I’m by myself, having lunch in a really very lovely sushi restaurant called Sevruga on the waterfront in Cape Town (I can really recommend the wasabi stack - a kind of salmon and rice mille-feuille with wasabi seaweed. It’s amazing). I’m staying with wonderful hosts right in the centre of the city, just off Kloof Street, which is full of all of the kinds of indoor-outdoor bars and cafés that I so love to work in. The sun is shining brightly, I am finally getting a tan and my soul is being fed by the incredible Summery energy that is filling the city. I am very, very happy.

Yesterday was the final official day of our tour here in South Africa. Though the last concert was on Thursday night in Stellenbosch, the first flights home to London weren’t until yesterday evening, so we all had time to two amazing vineyards and stop for a lunch with views up to mountains and across lakes so perfect it couldn’t possibly have been real. Five of us have decided to stay in Cape Town for the weekend, and I totally get what all the fuss is about. Everyone is kind, the weather is exceptional, for us coming from England everything is excellent value and everyone is unnervingly attractive. I will definitely be coming back.

This whole trip to South Africa has been unforgettable and a real adventure. We’ve seen all kinds of cities and places (for me, the tour of Soweto was a particular highlight), making some wonderful, real friendships along the way (not least with the amazing lions, tigers and leopards we met on Tuesday) and have each gained, I imagine, at least a stone in weight, what with all of the (frankly incredible) food we’ve been given. Tomorrow I’m going to hike up Table Mountain to try to burn some of it off (haha).

In short, go to South Africa. This really has been one of the best tours I have ever been on. To everyone who’s been part of making it happen, thank you so, so much.

(PS: In case my wonderful and ever-loving parents are reading this, thank you so much for your lovely emails while I’ve been away. I promise I will reply before I come home!)