Time out is 23
& Traveltime is 16
10th August 2023
The day for celebrating our 23rd Anniversary with Time Out and our 16th Anniversary with Traveltime was booked a good while ahead of time! It was to beat the Hotel Sky in Lower Long Street Cape Town.
Little did we know that we would have a huge worry as the day approached. Taxis in the city went on strike as the Cape Town City Council started what we as residents were in full support of! (They impounded many unroadworthy vehicles & taxis being operated without the correct permits and in many cases, the drivers who were not legal on the road with the correct licensing, also had their vehicles impounded)
On the Monday before our function the remaining taxis caused mayhem on the roads – blocking vital areas (access to the CTIA and other strategic areas – with stone throwing being reported and busses being burned. As organisers of a function where we have everyone’s total safety at heart, this caused us a big headache! We sent out emails to our transport provider – they assured us that the route we were using was along suburban roads and into the centre of Cape Town – areas that would not be a problem. So late Tuesday 8th August we decided to still have the function at Hotel Sky.
We started off with our annual presentation in their Sky on Long venue, on the 27th floor! On arrival the group was served a Full Cream Sherry or orange juice and they were directed us to chairs placed cinema style, which led to a great time being had by all, as we sat and recalled the past year with a video presentation, lovingly prepared by Brian – always a hit with the group! Carol thanked everyone for their support over the past year.
It was then time for lunch and we all went down to the Infinity Restaurant on the 26th floor where a buffet lunch was set out for us 😊
Menu:
Starter:
Chargrilled baby marrow, basil, red bell pepper, buffalo mozzarella salad
Main:
Dessert:
A very delicious buffet which was plentiful, as bowls got topped-up as they were finished. Top marks to the chef and staff at the hotel for providing us with this delicious spread. The staff at Hotel Sky stayed in-house to give the guests the same standard of service whilst this strike was on. Food suppliers were not able to do their normal deliveries, so they coped admirably.
The absolute joy of what was started so long ago is that we still have so many of our original people travelling with us & this is encouraging in times when, sadly, tourism is not what it used to be. Economically and politically, many people are hard pressed financially and it has been encouraging to us as organisers of Time Out & Traveltime, about the gratitude that is poured over us!
To end we all, need to remember.
Thanks to Google who provides us with the correct tools to do just that!
There is a wonderful saying about life by Winston Churchill:
Success is not final;
Failure is not fatal;
it is the courage to continue, that counts.
END