This appeared on a random iPod playlist of mine just now and – given where I’ve been this weekend – I thought I’d share it. It might already be 5 years old, but it’s still sounding fantastic.
Ironically, this video for The Inside is filmed on The Inside of a cooling tower. But if you’d have been a 6000 miles… reader back in March 2013, you’d already have recognised that, of course.
After being away for the long weekend and the rigours of the kids’ Science Week to prepare for, plus a myriad of bugs to grow in the lab, I’m only finding time to catch up on the other blogs I read. Top of that list, as regular readers will already know, is BrianMicklethwait.com.
Post lurgy, and with Spring in the London air, Brian took us on a walk along the Thames to Battersea. He took some great photos too, as you’ll see when you click on that link. But it was the seventh one that stood out for me:
Firstly, I should note that this isn’t as “nice” as some of the other images. But just because it’s not showing “the river… adorned by bright reflections” or “world class roof clutter” doesn’t mean that it’s not a valid photo. It’s taken to share information rather than because it’s pretty. It’s something I find myself doing more and more too – photos of the blackboard shopping list in the kitchen or details of a show or something else I see on a poster for later investigation. Quick and easy.
But if you’re in SA and you’ve looked at that seventh image, then you’ll have seen why is stood out for me.
A 516 square foot, one-bedroom apartment, for £1,400,000.
Look out! Here comes the conversion:
That’s 47.94m² for a cool R25,474,034.59.
Twenty-five. And a half. Million. Rand.
‘Ow Much?!???!!??!?!
I recognise that we’re not comparing apples with apples here. I recognise that this is prime London real estate, but let’s just see what R25.5 million would get you over here, shall we? I popped in at leading SA estate agency Pam Golding Properties for a quick look.
Well, if we’re going down the apartment route, why not buy this place?
It’s over seven times the size of the London offering, has 4 en-suite bedrooms, overlooks all four of the beautiful Clifton beaches and comes with two (count them and weep) two parking bays. You’d also have R500,000 spare cash to buy a nice outside table, which would put you one up on the current owners.
But apartments are so boxy, aren’t they? Especially when, for the same money, you could buy your own BOUTIQUE WINE FARM AND EQUESTRIAN ESTATE:
At 42,505 m², the property size is a mere 887 times the size of the Battersea flat, (although the actual living area is just 17 times the size). That pool is 11m long though, meaning that it’s about the size of the R25.5m London apartment. But what else do you get?
With majestic mountain views as a backdrop and entrancing vineyards gracing the surrounding slopes, one could imagine you’re in the south of France. Enjoy the romance of your own award winning vineyards (Savignon Blanc, Merlot, Shiraz and Viognier), without the labour if you wish, as it can be leased out.
Constantia Nek Farm graces a valley on the back slopes of Table Mountain National Park with a large home, several stables and 3ha of vineyards. Riding in the restricted Orange Kloof area of the park is allowed with a special permit.
The Property also includes a granny flat, two large sheds/workshops, extensive parking, three garages, large spring and perennial stream fed dam, and adjacent staff quarters on the Houtkapperspoort side of its Southern boundary. Amenities include an 11m pool with electronically operated cover and solar heating and heat pump and large, cool wine cellar. The grounds and vineyards are irrigated via a seven station computerised underground system.
And again, you’d still have R500,000 spare for a nice outside table.
Or you could look at the Thames from your shoebox. It really is your call.
Like I said, I know that I can’t legitimately compare these properties. But with London prices and frankly terrifying exchange rates, it makes for an interesting – and, as an ex-pat, rather distressing – juxtaposition.
Still. Where would you rather be?
Actually: Night Shot (And Some Thoughts About ‘Togging On A Game Reserve)
Sifting through the several million photos we took at Sanbona, I think I’ve managed to kraal a significant but reasonable number of them into a Flickr album. Some were easy to include, some less so. But I use Flickr so that I’ve got a record and a memory of what happened, rather than to show off my photographic prowess. Using that second method would have taken a whole lot less time. What the group ends up with is a combination of the best shots and the best of the rest – it’s not always easy to photograph uncooperative wildlife. For an example, only 1 out of every 100 birds of prey that I see is facing me. Unless I don’t have a camera with me, of course. Then they all face me. Bastards.
That said, we were lucky enough to get very close to a lot of stuff, including cheetah, elephants (twice), rhinos and lions (and even a semi-cooperative bird of prey at one stage), amongst other things. So there are plenty of them.
But while you’re out and about looking at these things, you have to remember to make a decision: do you want to experience the animal there and then, or do you just want photo memories of it?
For me it was a bit of both, and so once I’d grabbed a couple of shots, I stopped and just watched, observed and listened (albeit with the camera ready to shoot again).
Obviously, you can take a bit more time over the shots of things that don’t move.
We also used our phone cameras while we were away. Firstly, so that we could email the kids something each evening and secondly (and photography snobs may want to look away now) because you can actually grab a decent shot every now and again. Oh, and it enables you to do things like this while someone else is using the “real” camera.
The place we stayed at was amazing. The setting was amazing. The staff were amazing. The food was amazing. The ranger was particularly amazing. It was, as you might expect, having read the previous five sentences – an amazing experience.
You can endure enjoy the full Flickr album here.
If all has gone well (and (at the time of writing this) I have no reason to assume that it won’t have done), I will be enjoying a long weekend break with my wonderful and long suffering wife in celebration of our tenth wedding anniversary.
We’re leaving the kids and the beagle in safe hands and heading out to a private game reserve a few hours inland (obviously) from Cape Town. It’s in the middle of nowhere, and I have no idea what the connectivity will be like from there, although I’m reliably informed that “there is a wifi”.
Readers of 6000 miles… will be glad to know that posts on here will continue over the weekend and (depending on that connectivity) may be supplemented by further ‘tumblr mode’ offerings.
Have a great long weekend. I know I’m going to.
I’m going to look at some wildlife this weekend. I hope, anyway. Wildlife is exactly that: wild, and sometimes it doesn’t want to be looked at. Mostly, when it doesn’t want to be looked at, wildlife hides away, but sometimes, wildlife fights back and even the most unlikely of wildlife can be deadly.
I’m not talking about lions, hippos, rhinos or elephants here – you look at them and you think DANGER! Teeths, tusks, horns, speed, weight, bulk. DANGER!
But tall isn’t scary. When you look at a giraffe, you just see bewilderingly puny looking legs and neck. Giraffes don’t look dangerous. They look like one of those string and wood toys that you push the base on and they collapse. You let giraffes play with your kids’ cuddly toys:
No. Giraffes aren’t dangerous. Or are they? Because here’s what was waiting for me on the pisspoor TimesLive site this morning:
Cyclist trampled to death by giraffe
The giraffe probably got irritated by some typically arrogant RLJ’ing behaviour.
A Sunday afternoon cycle ride for Braan Bosse of Nigel, on the Far East Rand, ended in his death when he was attacked by a giraffe at the Thaba Monata Game Lodge, in Bela Bela, Limpopo.
Lodge owner Marily Abatemarco believes Bosse, 46, was trampled to death.
Rather unusual, though, right? I thought so too.
But then, somewhere deep in my memory, I found this:
Seventy-year-old Schalk Hagen died without telling anyone exactly what happened to him. Now the prime suspect in his death is a giraffe.
I was quite ready to cower away from the lions and the elephants this weekend. Now it seems that I have to hide from the bloody giraffes as well. Seriously?
You don’t get this sort of danger in the UK – sure, you might come across a vaguely irritated badger or a mildly disgruntled fox, but they’re not going to smash your skull in, eat you or jump up and down all over your rapidly spatchcocked corpse just because they’re anxious to be seen to be living up to their “wildlife” moniker. I didn’t move here for this – if I’d wanted constant animal-related danger, I would have chosen Australia. (Spoiler: No, I wouldn’t – it’s full of Australians.)
Anyway, my new plan is to stay in the short scrub, where there is limited danger of unforeseen giraffe attack (aside, of course, from the extremely sneaky limbo giraffe) (but fortunately they’re pretty rare in the Western Cape).