A couple of friends of ours were telling us recently about participating in “Mystery Weekend” in the town of Franschhoek. If you have been reading this blog you know we LOVE Franschhoek so it didn’t take long for us to say “yes!” when we got the email that “Mystery Weekend” was happening again.
Here’s the deal: you wire money to some random person via email to secure your spot as a participant in the weekend. You’ve now (hopefully) paid for two nights of accommodations, meals and multiple activities around town. You don’t know where you are staying, eating or drinking until you arrive and receive your box of vouchers for the excursion. Our friends Tina, Tony, Kelly and Darren were game to participate as well and were the first to arrive and pick up “The Box.” I received a text from Tina as we were driving out there that we’d be staying at La Cabriere for the weekend and they’d meet us there. I immediately google it and all looks good. Off to a good start!
Once we arrived we were shown to our room which was perfectly lovely and had an amazing view of the Franschhoek Mountains. Little did we know that since we were last to arrive we were given a “standard room” while Kelly, Darren, Tina and Tony were lounging in their suites. Being last to arrive, it’s only fair we got the smallest room, but I will continue to hold it over their heads regardless.
After dropping off our bags we headed out for our first “mystery” at the Franschhoek Cellars. Wine and cheese tasting. Yes, please. We were warned that dinner would not be included in Friday’s activities and I made the classic mistake of thinking “I don’t need dinner, there are plenty of olives and cheese to snack on.” Ugh, no. Too many olives and too much wine made for an unpleasant start to Saturday.
Thankfully our second “mystery” was breakfast in town. It was completely beautiful outside and our guest house was walking distance to town; we took the 20 minute walk in and the fresh air did wonders for my “olive” hangover. Since it was so nice out, Kip and I followed breakfast with a walk though the Huguenot Monument gardens before we went to our second “mystery” of the day.
Since Franschhoek is smack in the middle of the South African winelands it would be odd if one of the activities didn’t involve a vineyard. We met up with Tina and took the very long walk to Richard Branson’s newly purchased vineyard, Mont Rochelle. Great wine but the farm is still a work in progress. Kelly and Darren were already half-way through their tasting but were real pals and stayed around for another glass while the rest of us did our tasting.
You’d think we would be finished eating and drinking by now, but nope! After a quick rest back at the guest house we got ready for dinner at our final “mystery” of the day, Foliage. Foliage is newish in Franschhoek having only been on the scene for about a year. The restaurant was cozy and warm and full of delicious aromas. It was an interesting menu (zebra dumplings anyone?) and the dishes were artfully prepared. Each plate was carefully crafted by a chef that was clearly having a good time. Three courses and some more wine later, we rolled ourselves home.
Sunday started a lot like Saturday, with a necessary coffee and breakfast at the guest house. Once full, yet again, we packed up and took the quick drive back to Cape Town. It was a fabulous weekend with new friends. I would say, “can’t wait to do it again,” but more and more I am reminded our time here is quickly coming to an end.
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