Three weeks ago we were all braggy about Nancy Doll’s connections in the art world. As it turns out that was before we even knew...
Mark Coetzee, incoming director of the (fabulous) Zeitz MOCAA—and yep, a friend of Nancy’s—has now been in touch to give us a little inside scoop.
Zeitz MOCCA’s opening date has been moved from spring to summer. If we’re going all that way, do we will really want to miss Zeitz MOCCA?
So there’s that.
Nancy, co-trip sponsor Benjamin Briggs of Preservation Greensboro and I were already doing a deep dive on changing up our trip dates when Mark was back in touch to say ‘please come October and I will be happy to help pull together some special experiences for the group’.
Can you imagine??? And even more to point--how could we say ‘no’?
So, dear reader, we have done it.
Same amazing trip (only perhaps now even more amazing…) just different dates~
October 15th to 21st, 2017.
Springtime in Cape Town.
What could be better than this…can’t imagine a single thing…
Check out the full itinerary below
Oh and want to get in some 'virtual' travel to South Africa before next fall?
Then come to our next Travel Talk at Scuppernong Books, 304 South Elm Street, Greensboro, NC, on Thursday, November 17, at 7:00 p.m. when we will discuss Nobel Laureate Nadine Gordimer's novel Burgher's Daughter.
Set in 1970's, this once banned book addresses South Africa's anti-apartheid struggles and references such real events and people as the Soweto Uprising and Nelson Mandela.
The Nobel Committee said of Gordimer when awarding her the prize in 1991 that this was in recognition of 'her magnificent epic writing which has in the words of Alfred Nobel been of great benefit to humanity'.
Burgher's Daughter is a shining example of her both her storytelling powers and 'her magnificent epic writing'.
Hope you can join us!
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
SCROLL DOWN FOR ADDITIONAL OPTIONS INCLUDING A SEVEN DAY SAFARI, A FOUR DAY WINE COUNTRY TOUR AND/OR A FOUR DAY SAFARI
OCTOBER 15th to OCTOBER 21st, 2017*
*Please note that these are new trip dates
Offered in partnership with Preservation Greensboro and Weatherspoon Art Museum
$4350
Includes 6 nights accommodation, double occupancy, 6 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 4 dinners, 1 high tea and all trip-related guides, admissions and transportation costs. Does not include airfare, airport transfers, alcoholic beverages (with the exception of those included in the vineyard tour) or activities listed as optional. Single supplement $950
ACCOMMODATIONS :: MOUNT NELSON HOTEL
SUNDAY OCTOBER 15th
TOUR BEGINS AT 1:00 p.m.
WELCOME MEETING
WALKING TOUR
A chance to get acquainted with the complex history of Cape Town through a guided walking tour that introduces some of the city's key historic sites
TABLE MOUNTAIN CABLE CAR RIDE
The top of Cape Town’s iconic landmark provides spectacular views of the city, the South Atlantic and Robben Island
EVENING TEA AT THE MOUNT NELSON
‘The best high tea in the world’ may be a grand statement but it is one that is often said of the tea at the Mount Nelson. A charming--and satisfying--end to our busy first afternoon
MONDAY OCTOBER 16th
MORNING STROLL THROUGH THE BO-KAAP HISTORIC DISTRICT
Initially home to Cape Town's Cape Malay population, this 200-year old neighborhood of cobbled stone streets and brightly colored houses stands as a reminder of the global trade routes that have shaped this city over the centuries
An award-winning museum, District Six documents the forced relocation of 60,000 residents and subsequent destruction of their homes after this residential district was declared ‘whites only’ in the 1970’s
Lunch :: NOOKA
Nooka’s magic is not that is vegetarian—which it is—but that it gets rave reviews from everyone—including committed carnivores—it's that delicious!
Slave Lodge is in one oldest buildings in Cape Town and while it has been many things over the course of centuries it is now an outstanding museum dedicated to slavery's dark history
This well-preserved urban estate dates from the 1770’s and is renowned not only for its architecture but also for the Fehr Collection of pictorial Africana and for its parterre gardens
DINNER :: KLOOF STREET HOUSE
Great food with a fun, funky vibe and just steps from The Mount Nelson
JAZZ EVENING
It's just a bit early to announce which performance we will attend but trust us--of the many reasons to come to Cape Town—jazz is right up there near the top of the list--and we plan to sample some of the best!
TUESDAY OCTOBER 17th
ZEITZ MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
‘Cape Town is about to become home to one of the most influential art institutions in the world’—and we will be amongst the first to view this major new museum set to open in 2017
LUNCH :: AMADOD ABRAAI
We enjoy a braai—or as we might say here in the States 'grilled everything'—at this very local spot in Woodstock
GALLERY VISITS
We may refine (or expand…?) the list below depending on exhibition schedules but as you will see there is no shortage of choices—and these and other galleries excel in exhibiting both emerging and established artists from South Africa and abroad.
WHATIFTHEWORLD, GOODMAN GALLERY, 34 FINE ART GALLERY, GALLERY MOMO
And AVA
DINNER :: SAVOY CABBAGE
One of Cape Town’s freshest and best dinner spots
WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 18th
We tour the National Gallery’s collection of traditional art which includes some 3000 objects from South Africa and the African continent
LUNCH :: DASH
Delicious with views—need we say more?
STUDIO VISITS
A chance to meet with some of Cape Town's most influential and interesting artists
DINNER :: BISTROT BIZERCA
Bistrot Bizerca--it's is a little Italian, a little French and all Cape Town with its sophisticated and eclectic choices
THURSDAY OCTOBER 19th
KIRSTENBOSCH NATIONAL BOTANICAL GARDENS
On other side of Table Mountain of Cape Town, the Kirstenbosch is one of South Africa’s great treasures
LUNCH :: KIRSTENBOSCH CAFÉ
We keep things simple and yet delicious with our lunch at the Gardens’ cafe
A tasting and tour at the Manor House among the oldest and one of the finest of the Cape Town area wine estates favored by Frederick the Great, Charles Dickens and Napoleon
We return to Cape Town in time for this lively arts event.
DINNER :: OPEN
FRIDAY OCTOBER 20th
PRIVATE COLLECTION VISITS
This is a very special perk of traveling with the Weatherspoon Art Museum and the well connected Nancy Doll—special access to notable private collections. What can we say? She knows people…
Fridays are definitely the days to visit this open air market when in addition to Pan African wonderful crafts and other goods, venders don their traditional garb to haggle their wares!
OPEN LUNCH AND AFTERNOON
DINNER :: BELTHAZAR
It’s a Studio Traveler tradition to have a 'big night out' and this will be no exception. We celebrate our time together at the wonderful Beltahzar on the lively, happening V & A waterfront.
SATURDAY OCTOBER 21st
A destination that probably needs no introduction, this decommissioned prison where Nelson Mandela was held for 27 years now bears eloquent witness to the struggle to end apartheid.
CAPE TOWN PORTION OF THE TRIP ENDS LATE MORNING
FOR THOSE WISHING TO EXTEND THEIR TIME IN SOUTH AFRICA WE OFFER A VARIETY OF OPTIONS. PLEASE NOTE SAFARI OPTIONS ARE OFFERED THROUGH ALLYSON ENGLISH OF TRAVELINK, 336-544-5981. SEPARATE DEPOSITS ARE REQUIRED. TERMS AND FULL ITINERARIES CAN BE ACCESSED THROUGH BUTTONS BELOW. DEMAND FOR THESE HIGH SEASON SAFARIS IS EXPECTED TO BE HIGH AND SPACES ARE LIMITED. A FURTHER NOTE--THE SEVEN DAY OPTION DOES NOT INCLUDE HOTEL COSTS FOR THE NIGHT OF October 21, 2017.
STELLENBOSCH AND FRANSCHHOEK
WESTERN CAPE WINE COUNTRY
OCTOBER 21st to 25th, 2017
$1750
Includes 4 nights accommodation, double occupancy, 4 breakfasts, 3 lunches, 3 dinners, and all trip-related guides, admissions and transportation costs. Does not include alcoholic beverages except of those included in vineyard tastings. Single supplement $450
Join us as we go in depth with tastings and touring in the one of the world's great wine regions with vineyards in and the charming, historic towns of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, scheduled to allow for Option Three, an additional optional 4-day safari extension.