Spring Newsletter – October 2008
Posted by Jason | Filed under Newsletters
SPRING NEWSLETTER – OCTOBER 2008
I generally start my newsletters with the weather, but today with more world issues at stake, I decided to say that not all is “doom and gloom”, our exchange rate, for us to travel is horrendous, but for those visiting us, it is smiles all the way to the bank. Last month the US$ was under ZA R7 to $1 and today we are looking at ZA R10.01!!!!!. The British Pound is faring extremely well, with current rate today ZA R17.40 to £1. It was hovering under R15.00 for a while and previous to that under R14.00. So for those you are not into all these figures and money marketing (not laundering) it actually means, that everything in the country is either 10 times or 17 times cheaper when paying for it on your credit card, or when exchanging your money!!! SO there is NO excuse for you not to be calling me off the hook, to make your reservations for 2009! Remember our low season May – August is very very good value for money and the weather is not like Northern hemisphere winter weather!! Ask any Brit who comes here often! I have friends who will vouch for that.
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MORE ACCESSIBLE ACCOMMODATIONS & comments!
A few more accommodation venues have decided to go “accessible” and have roll-in showers! Our choice is now a slightly wider in some areas, but we are still not seeing the changes in Knysna and Mossel Bay in the Garden route ! Come guys, it is not “no hurry, no worries” I am worried and also in a hurry to get your towns up to speed with more options for our guests. Louis H and JJ, when can I stop nagging???!! Call me for SABS specs for altering your property! Or call me to get the Quad Ass details and Tourism grading council details, who can offer advise! So well done to Ora and her parents at Villa Ora in the Klein Karoo and Shamwari game reserve in the Eastern Cape, have added a room at another lodge – my guests test shower next week! When do we get more private game reserves in Western & Eastern Cape doing the same?? My wish is that all architectural students “try” a wheelchair for a 24 hour period only – not the rest of their life, like most of my guests – and then write down exactly how they felt and what they encountered in that “SHORT” period, they will never design another room with steps into showers and tight turns again! So if you know of students doing design courses get them to contact me I will even lend them a wheelchair if they are in Cape Town. The next challenge is for them to blindfold themselves and put ear plugs in their ears – WOW are they in for a shock at how “unkind” the world is. A friend of mine has had a number of strokes – Maisey – with many hours of physio she can now walk short distances, so when out celebrating this “achievement” at a local restaurant, she decided to walk to the “Little Girl’s Room” on this route, with her gait a bit shaky and wobbly, but managing really well compared to previously, she overheard some real nice people saying, “look how drunk she is”. I am sure many of you that are differently challenged, have heard cruel things like that said before. Maisey did not say a word. I would not have been such a lady !! Come to the party guys!! It is the 21st century but some places are still living in the really dark ages when it comes to accessibility. OK I will get off my hobby horse!
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NOW FOR THE WEATHER and more comments!!
Well the frog feet we grew in the Cape over the winter, are receding nicely thank you. With SO MUCH rain and so much snow on the surrounding mountains, we all felt as if we needed frog feet just to get by each day in the rain and rain and rain. As we are the only winter rainfall – May – September – area in the country here in the Western Cape, I am glad it is now October. Our dams are overflowing, but we still have water restrictions to curb the wasteful excess use, so use that hotel towel an extra day and save the environment. Many hotels in Cape Town are going “GREEN” and making a concerted effort to leave a smaller footprint or environmental disaster for our children to clean up. Keeping it in the “GREEN|” theme, how often have you thought about FROGS ! Yes, frogs! They are one of the most endangered species on the planet. So much so that our local TWO OCEANS AQUARIUM are opening a special frog section in their eco area to create awareness. So go kiss a frog next time you see one, it will of course not turn into a prince, but you will be the prince or princess, even maybe King and Queen, for just being frog friendly.
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NEW ADDITION TO THE “FLEET”
ADAPTED VEHICLE FOR SELF-DRIVE
CAPE TOWN ONLY
I have just bought a VW T4. We have also changed our insurers, so that we can allow able bodied driver without a PDP , but with an International Driver’s licence to drive it. There are however some restrictions as to how it is hired out. We are not a car hire company, but a tour operator with a different view of how we do business. One size fits all – is NOT how we prefer to arrange our tours. This is only for our guests to hire personally for their holiday here. Collect and drop off in Cape Town only. This T4 will be available from December 2008, if we do not have a confirmed res for that vehicle for our tours.
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Well from the mad lady with a brain that also works “differently” go well, smile too much, love too much and sing loudly and not only in the shower! Love and hugs to all my friends, old guests and colleagues.
Love and hugs to ALL
PAM & JEFF
Tags: aquarium, Cape Town, Flamingo Tours, newsletter, Pam Taylor, South Africa, Two Oceans Aquarium, waterfront
