Events - Inspired Living SA

Events, Exploring the Cape, Lifestyle, Out & About, Travel

Knysna Oyster Festival 2013

As you know Knysna is one of my favourite places to visit in the Cape, so I thought I would let you know about the Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival 2013, which is happening soon!

The Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival will be celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, between 28 June and 7 July this year! With more than 100 events on the programme, there will be fun for everyone.

“Knysna has long been regarded as the pearl of the Garden Route,” said Festival Manager Nicci Rousseau-Schmidt. “And with pearls being the traditional gift for 30th anniversaries, the 2013 Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival is sure to shine as it presents attendees with a wide array of activities and events.”

“On the menu is a smorgasbord of events to thrill and delight the most discerning of gourmands, wine aficionados and those who appreciate the finer things in life, such as the Admiral’s Ball with the SA Navy Dance Band – the perfect opportunity to display your own pearls and dance the night away. The Festival enjoys a wonderful relationship with the South African Navy, who are attending once again and, along with the Admiral’s Ball, the Navy Band performance is not only an event not to be missed, but the perfect grand finale to the Festival.”

“Showcasing over 40 top South African wine producers as well as bubbly from the Cap Classique Association, the Knysna Wine Festival & Night Food Market invites you to meet local winemakers, taste their current releases and learn more about the latest trends in wine making,” said Nicci. “And it only makes sense to pair this extremely popular event with the Night Food Market which is sure to offer tasty titbits to enjoy – and line the stomach!”

“The Pick n Pay Flavours of Knysna challenges restaurants in and around Knysna to compete in a variety of categories for recognition by judges and the public,” Nicci continued. “The event allows them to showcase their talents in what promises to be an evening of culinary delights and gastronomic greatness.”

“Various restaurants will also be identified as Oyster Hotspots. Here you will be able to sample oysters a la natural, as well as oysters cooked according to the restaurant’s own original recipes.”

“And of course we cannot forget about the oyster shucking and eating competitions. Regularly drawing record amounts of participants and spectators, these events are known for their fun factor. On 3 June 2012 Sonya Thomas, also known as ‘The Black Widow’ of competitive eating, ate 47 dozen – 564 in total – oysters in 8 minutes!” Nicci exclaimed. “This record was set in New Orleans, but I can’t help but wonder if we’ll find someone who can better that attempt at this year’s Festival…”

“So train your taste buds and stock up on the milk thistle,” she urged. “This year promises to not only satisfy your taste buds, but to astound them.”

“28 June to 7 July is sure to be the best 10 days of your winter,” Nicci concluded. “Especially if you spend them in Knysna at the Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival, South Africa’s largest lifestyle, sporting and family event. With over 100 sporting, lifestyle, foodie and kiddie events on offer – each of which benefits local communities and charities, the festival truly offers something for everyone. All you have to do is arrive – we’ll take care of the rest.”

Please visit the Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival website for regular updates to the programme and more details on the event, or contact Knysna Tourism on 044 382 5510 for more information.

Top Image Source: Knysna.org

Cape Town Lifestyle, Events, Lifestyle, Out & About, Proudly South African, Wine Farms

Groot Constantia New Wine Label

Last week I attended an event at Groot Constantia Wine Farm. You may recall posts I have written about Groot Constantia in the past. The stunning vineyards, amazing wine and historical buildings are what the farm is renowned for. [Read more…]

Cape Town Lifestyle, Children, Entertainment, Events, Family, Kids Activities, Lifestyle, Out & About

Famfest Fun April 2013

Today I am bringing you news about a fun new festival, happening in Cape Town, it is something exciting for families and friends alike! It is the first ever FamFest, which takes place in Constantia, on Saturday April 27 2013. You can expect the beautiful sounds of a music festival and the wonderful goods of a market, with the added spectacle of a circus and you are still only half way there.

Director and Co-founder of 4Leaf Agency Frankie Hannigan, a father of three young boys, imagined FamFest into existence with children at the forefront and the festival prides itself on being 100% child-friendly.

Taking place on the Claremont Cricket Club fields in Constantia (next to Virgin Active Gym), the festival gates open at 10 am and close at 9pm, after the screening of a family-movie at an outdoor-cinema.

FamFest has four zones – a Kids Zone, a Teen Park, a Chill Out Area and the Main Stage – which flow seamlessly into each other. The Kids Zone, staffed by child minders, offers fun activities and entertainment for younger children. The Teen Park will include an acrobatic show, break dance demos and lessons, gladiator jousting, a mechanical rodeo bull, bouncy horse racing, Foosball and Air Hockey tables. There will also be a partly shaded Chill Out Area where families can relax and re-energise.

K, Ray and the Bird and the Rob Thompson Trio are two of the confirmed bands to light up the Main Stage – suitable for adults, this zone includes fully stocked bars with a great selection of wines.

The drink stalls are geared towards the youngsters including a selection of juice stalls, ice tea providers and slush puppy machines. Keeping food options simple, FamFest offers good old-fashioned, hearty selections to keep both young and old going.

Health, Safety and Security are paramount and every child is given a wristband on entry, with parents/guardians asked to write their telephone numbers on the wristbands. There is a clearly visible meeting point, with announcements made throughout the day to ensure smooth operations. There is also on-site medic.

We are very excited to be giving away a “Family Pack” of tickets to FamFest, to one lucky reader, which includes 2 x Adult Tickets (Including a cinema ticket) and 2 x Under 18’s Tickets (Including cinema tickets).*

To win these tickets please pop over to our Facebook Page and post: “Win FamFest Tickets from @4LeafAgency and @Supermomblog” – remember to tag yourself so that we can contact you if win! Or if you are not on Facebook the tweet: “Win FamFest Tickets from @4Leafagency and @supermomsablog” The winner will be announced next week Thursday.

Tickets are also available from Quicket, however there will be limited tickets at the gate on the day. Tickets for the Open Air Cinema Screening can be purchased separately to the festival ticket or as a package.

Visit the FamFest website for more information. Alternatively contact 4Leaf Agency on (021) 462 1529.

*Disclaimer: Anyone may enter to win the FamFest tickets but please be aware that the event is taking place in Cape Town, therefore the winner will need to be in Cape Town at the time of the event. Super Mom Lifestyle or 4Leaf Agency are in no way responsible for transport to or from the event.

Be Inspired, Events, Family, Healthy Living, Healthy Living, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Out & About

Reach To Recovery Conference 2013

Last month I attended the 17th Reach To Recover Conference held at the CTICC in Cape Town. I must admit that never having attended something like this before I was uncertain what to expect. Cancer is an issue that hits quite close to home, for me, having lost my own mom to Cancer when I was quite young!

The theme of this years conference was Together We Reach and the focus was breast cancer from the perspectives of the patient (both the newly diagnosed and those with metastatic spread), the survivor, the partner, the family, the community, the breast cancer activist and the health professional. How we can reach together to improve the quality of life for women and men with breast cancer.

In essence the conference was aimed at women and men across the world to gain a better knowledge of breast cancer, a better understanding of the needs of low-resourced areas, how to improve service delivery and support for patients, survivors and families, to find sustainable solutions that can be used across borders, to increase networking opportunities to facilitate skills and knowledge transfer and last but certainly not least to empower survivors who are advocates for their rights.

My main aim for attending the conference was to gain more knowledge myself because I believe that knowledge is power and without it we are unable to help and support those around us. Having two daughters of my own I am aware of the responsibility as a mother to ensure that they are informed and have an understanding of the threats that this disease poses.

As a woman of 40, one may think that you know everything you need to about Breast Cancer(BC) but in my opinion unless you are directly affected by BC, you know very little. Attending the conference definitely left me feeling more knowledgeable on the topic but I must admit I did find it quite overwhelming trying to grasp the severity of this global problem! With over 1 million deaths caused by cancer each year the stats are devastating and with BC being the most diagnosed cancer in woman, it is definitely something that we all need to know more about.

There were many doctors who spoke at the conference, all specialists in their own right and extremely passionate advocates in the fight against Breast Cancer. It was great to hear from such a diverse range of people and in essence they all had the same message – it is vital to empower yourself and know your risks and most importantly not be ignorant, like an ostrich with you head in the sand.

It was very interesting to learn that although Mammograms have their place in diagnosing BC, there are other methods that are as, if not more successful and that mammograms are more successful in diagnose of BC, in patients over the age of 50. Another interesting factor was self or clinical examination can be as beneficial when diagnosing BC, so it is important to be vigilant with these things, making them part of your everyday life. Make sure you have regular checkups and if you know you are at risk, genetic testing is a good option!

So what did I take away from this experience? I now have a more balanced understanding of what the risk or contributing factors to BC are. I also know that it is important for patients and survivors to share their knowledge and experiences with those around them, as it may in turn help someone else who is suffering with Breast Cancer.

Cape Town Lifestyle, Events, Food, Lifestyle, Out & About

TASTE OF CAPE TOWN 2013

~TASTE OF CAPE TOWN A CARNIVAL OF POP-UPS, BREWS, CULINARY HEIRLOOMS AND REBEL CHEFS~

I am super excited about attending the Taste of Cape Town next month so I thought I would let you know what to expect from this gastronomic event.

The Pick n Pay Taste of Cape Town is held in association with Orbit Sugarfree Chewing Gum and is heralded as the region’s most celebrated carnival of the senses will run from 11 to 14 April 2013, at the Green Point Cricket Club.

What Can You Expect at the Event?

XO, sea cucumber, sea truffle, kimchi, miso and tom yum butter. Snotvis, tataki and a lucky star pie: the exotic and the indigenous, the trendy and the traditional will all be popping up at Pick n Pay Taste of Cape Town, along with rock star chefs and their dedicated followers, micro brewers and chocolatiers.

This year festival goers will also have a modern guide, the new Taste app for smart phones, so they can traipse between flavour hot spots dotted around the foodie playground without missing a beat.

“Part of the collection of Taste Festivals taking place in 18 world cities, the Cape leg of the international celebrations will once again enthral food lovers, flavour hunters and the city’s social set with its unique format of part-party, part trend-spotting, part gourmet-shopping and full-on feasting,” says Justine Drake, festival-organiser.

Drake also foresees that the pop-up restaurant concept added to the festival last year will have foodies in awe. “It brings with it a very adventurous way to enjoy the diversity of tastes Cape Town is known for.” Taste-hunters can try dishes as diverse as champagne poached oysters and seafood bredies, a dish named ‘Message in a Bottle’ and miso glazed short rib with fresh kimchi. The pop-up dining experience brings rebel with a food cause Bruce Robertson of The Boathouse, Luke Dale-Roberts of The Test Kitchen/The Pot Luck Club, La Colombe with Scot Kirton and Tanja Kruger of Makaron Restaurant at Majeka house.

In addition to the pop-ups, the eleven restaurants chosen to represent the spectrum of tastes of the Mother City dish up their signature creations in started sized bites. The Restaurants include: Henrico Grobbelaar of The Twelve Apostle’s Azure Restaurant, Natasha Wray of 96 Winery Road. De Grendel Restaurant debuts at the festival with Ian Bergh, Shaun Schoeman of Fyndraai Restaurant on Solms-Delta, Signal Restaurant at Cape Grace with Malika Van Reenen, Sanel Esterhuyse from Savour at 15 on Orange, Jewel of India’s Dayanand Shankar Poojary , Beefcakes Burger Bar, represented by Wonderful Ndhlovu, Il Leone Mastrantonio and Daniel Toledo Dash Restaurant and Bar at the Queen Victoria Hotel with Craig Paterson and Stefan Marais of The Brasserie.

A brand new initiative at the festival – Taste Craft Beer Project – will showcase more than 18 of the country’s best quality craft beer on tap. This collection of micro-breweries will be on hand to quench the thirst for craft beer, with each brew paired with dishes featured at the festival.

“With so much to enjoy, guests simply can’t let go, returning several times over the four days to savour it all,” says Drake.

[Read more…]