Tag Archive for 'grahamstown'

Winter Tour of Epic Proportions

Published on July 28, 2011 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

The last three weeks have gone by ridiculously quickly and I feel like I’m still lost in the Grahamstown time portal, but somehow, in between my five shows, many a “catch up” coffee / milkshake / brandy, and some all-important business meetings, I even managed to catch some theatre and live music!

After Grahamstown, real life becomes a strange, slightly dulled beast and nothing quite measures up for a while. As with every tour, the shows have been good and bad. 5 on Ryneveld in Stellenbosch (very rad place if you haven’t had the pleasure yet) is not a “show” venue but more of a chilled, background music type venue, but I had a cool evening there anyway playing to an attentive audience who bought some albums (a pretty good indication of one’s impact). I’ll definitely play there again because the management is a pleasure to deal with, and as far as background music venues go, this one is definitely one of the best by far. The Alma Café in Rosebank is one of my new favourite spots in Cape Town. Super small and intimate, you can fit a max of about 35 people into the old supply store, which provides the perfect setting for my ramblings about life, touring and the meaning of it all between songs… The sound is fantastic and enveloping and the owners are a dream to work with. The audience come there to listen, and do so in silence because it’s that kind of venue. It’s rad. My set at Barleycorn was also good fun on Monday. Sometimes I’m pleasantly surprised by an unexpected wild card, but for the most part, the impact of my shows really does seem to rely on the type of venue that I’m playing. Despite being a “free show” on my tour, I dig playing the Barleycorn when I’m in Cape Town because of the kind of platform it is. There’s always someone new in the audience who hasn’t heard you and the audience really are there to listen. Despite a disappointing start at Dorpstraat in Stellenbosch 3 weeks back and a weirdly quiet (but thoroughly enjoyable) weekend in Napier, it feels like I’ve accomplished a lot. One more show in St James on Friday and I hit the road again…

Nobel Square, Cape Town Waterfront

Besides the shows, I’ve been busy doing all sorts of other things while I’ve been in town. Two of my Argentine friends (from Machitún) were in Cape Town for a week and I spent some time showing them around Cape Town (as much as a Durbanite can anyway). I managed to fit in 2 days away in Noordhoek with a friend, which is something I try to do whenever I’m here – the idea being to take a forced weekend off, although this time I did much more work than I intended. I snuck in a compulsory trip to the Old Biscuit Mill this past weekend as well, something that should be done as often as possible. It’s a vibe. Origin coffee, honey liqueur shots in chocolate cups, breakfast panini’s, and pink bubbles make Saturday mornings that much more exciting!

I’ve also caught some great shows while I’ve been here. Karen Zoid kicked off her 10 year anniversary tour at The Fugard Theatre (dreamy theatre) last weekend. I was supposed to catch a show of hers at the National Arts Festival last year but missed it because of a radio interview so was quite stoked to get another chance, particularly in this space. It was rock ‘n roll, with a side of goosebumps I didn’t really expect… Bed On Bricks, my favourite band of hooligans, played at Silvertree (Kirstenbosch) the following night and rocked it, as always. I don’t often pass up an opportunity to see these boys live. They never disappoint. I also managed to catch a production that I was hoping to see in Grahamstown this year but never got to, Shakespeare’s R&J at The Fugard Theatre. As an ex-drama student, you can imagine how many adaptations of Romeo & Juliet I’ve been subjected to. This one is really worth seeing, with a ridiculously talented cast in an absolutely beautiful space. Loved it!

Shakespeare's R&J

It’s strange trying to sum up tours into paraphrased episodes, but that’s the gist of it so far. It’s been a great tour overall and I’m very excited about some super cool prospects that have surfaced… Two more shows and I’ll be back in Durban for all of 3 days, and then I jet off to Oppikoppi 17!! After an evening out at the Gibson Guitar SA Launch Party last night (very cool to catch up with some of the coolest kids in the CT industry and discover the radness that is Cape Town band The Rescu), I’m now back in bed and trying desperately to will myself better. The festival sickness that took over four weeks ago is still lingering and, besides today, I don’t see much chance in the next 10 days for any kind of rest. Such is life on the road.

Report From The Road

Published on July 17, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Grahamstown withdrawal is no laughing matter. Aside from the festival sickness I managed to contract, I’m left with an empty space in my artist heart that misses the intensity and energy. Thankfully, the remainder of the Winter Tour of Epic Proportions and the album admin I’m busy with is distracting enough.

The 10 hour drive from Grahamstown to Cape Town on Monday was easy enough, despite the crazy late night of celebrations and farewells the night before. It doesn’t really feel like I’ve been in Cape Town for a whole week already though. I stayed in bed for 3 days straight, catching up on admin and trying desperately to recover before the next spell of gigs kicked off. I had a great acoustic session on MFM 92.6 in Stellenbosch on Thursday (save some technical glitches) before a rather disappointing show at Dorpstraat Teater. The intensity of the National Arts Festival and the support system I had there is a hard act to follow, but playing to 4 people is soul destroying. I take some comfort in the fact that it’s ‘varsity holidays at the moment and most gigs in Stellies are quiet as a result (bad planning on my part). Hopefully next week will prove that theory correct as students head back, and my second show in the student town will be better supported…

I heart Napier. A chance discovery on my last Western Cape tour, this ridiculously small town in the Overberg (total population 4000), has become my favourite stop on my touring route. A weekend of shows there this past weekend was exactly what I needed. The Suntouched Inn is a pleasure to perform at, so much so, that it doesn’t matter how big the audience is, so a quieter weekend than my sold out show there a few months ago, didn’t bother me in the least. It’s just a rad weekend and makes this feel more like a holiday. The owners are a pleasure to work with and make my job seamless, the staff are loads of fun, the vibe is chilled, the pizza is ridiculously good, and the audience is perfectly attentive. This venue could teach most venues around the country a thing or two about hosting live music; about mutually beneficial relationships; about respect. I heart Napier. I now have a badge that says so.

Back to Cape Town I go… and I hear my Argentinian friends are coming to town this week =)

Exquisite Intensity Ends (NAF2011)

Published on July 11, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

It’s all over. My bags are packed and the town is almost back to its normal deserted self (save about 900 school kids who just arrived for schools fest). I made it! 15 days, 9 solo shows, relentless 15-16 hour shifts every day, far too little sleep, countless rehearsals, an Ovation Award, rad reviews, old friends, new friends, loyal fans who came back for more, blackouts, dead batteries, life-changing collaborations, beautiful moments, a festival parade, a breath-taking closing festival performance, and somehow managing to sing my way through what feels like Laryngitis by gulping down entire bottles of honey (thanks Liam). Rock ‘n roll…

Machitún

Machitún has to be one of the most intense and rewarding experiences I’ve ever had. The show wasn’t without minor hiccups (and a power blackout mid-song) in its premier on Saturday evening, although with our final dress rehearsal being rained out on Friday night, our opening show was technically the first run through we’d ever had! On Sunday though, I could feel the magic from the second the show started. As the official closing show of the festival, there was always going to be a little pressure and with a 2000+ strong audience, I think we delivered as perfect a show as we could’ve hope for. I still haven’t seen the show myself, not properly anyway, and can’t wait to get the video so that I can see the magic from the front. I’m going to miss my new friends from Argentina and all their passionate foreign conversation. But I’ll see them again soon… We celebrated it all in pretty impressive style afterwards over a 3 course dinner with the Ambassadors of Argentina and Italy, the festival director and the crew until 2am. Considering the 10 hour drive I have ahead of me today, that was not the brightest idea.

My last shows went surprisingly well considering the sick and fast-fading voice. It’s probably not ideal for my voice in the long run to sing like I have been the last few days, but I’m intoxicated by the power of the stage at the moment. I can hear a choir of voice trainers in my head screaming bloody murder. The sexy husky voice I’m rocking is not ideal when you still have 8 shows ahead, let alone a career I’d like to maintain… Despite my aching body and restless mind, I would do this all again in a heartbeat, and I’m sad to leave. In a way, I’m grateful to have a tour after fest because going home after this intensity would be a harsh reality. A different kind of intensity awaits. The National Arts Festival might be over, but the tour has only just begun! Onward, to Cape Town…

Intense Wins (NAF2011)

Published on July 8, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

My shows are going really well and I’m super stoked with the reviews and audience response, and beyond chuffed with the Standard Bank Ovation Award!!! Hi5! I feel like the last two years of intense work have just got an official thumbs from “the man” and it feels pretty damn rad. No time for celebrations though, time to put up more posters now that the rain has finally stopped!!

Every day is an intense blur at this festival, but Wednesday’s schedule gives you a pretty good glimpse into “a day in the life of a NAF artist”. It started with morning promos around the Village Green and some more poster putting, a Rhodes Music Radio interview at midday, a 3 hour Machitún rehearsal, an MNet Moments of Magic promo – which basically involved me walking into a restaurant in the middle of town singing to dining festinos (surprisingly fun, believe it or not – I even got them singing along to Nina Simone) – a full show at the Graham Hotel, followed by a 20 minute slot at the Jiggered Magazine launch. Throw into the mix a 35kg piano and a festival sickness, rinse and repeat for 11 days and add obligatory late night visits to The Long Table (because you must!). BOOM.

I may not have had time to watch nearly as many productions this year as I would have liked, but there was one show I was not missing – BOO! And by some miracle I managed to get my grubby little paws on a front row seat! It was epic! I keep missing their shows when I tour around the country and have been a HUGE fan since we were sharing festival stages when I started out in the industry in ‘98, so for a brief moment I felt like I was reliving my youth. I also managed to catch Chris Chameleon’s solo show at Cuervo Music Room tonight. Pure. Freaking. Genius.

The weather hasn’t been playing nice this year and we’ve had to cancel every on stage rehearsal with the full cast of Machitún thus far. For an outdoor production, it’s not ideal, particularly when you’re collaborating with so many different players from so many different backgrounds and levels of experience. Music rehearsals have been going well though. To be honest I expected it to be more difficult to find the balance between this traditional Xhosa choir and the electronic music that Ernesto Romeo (Musical Director) creates, but the moment where it all clicked together came relatively quickly. And it was a pretty magic moment to witness. Hearing two styles that are so vastly different, intertwine so bizarrely well was a riveting moment for me. To be honest, I had my doubts in the beginning that all this collaboration would come together. I thought it would be a lot harder to figure out everyone’s place in it all and I don’t know if it’s because I have some (albeit limited) background in both styles that I can appreciate how powerful that moment was. It was truly spectacular and beautiful. The masks for the stiltwalkers are looking awesome (did I mention there are stiltwalkers?), the drummers are finding their rhythm (it’s late, forgive me) and the weather man is making vague promises of clear skies for the weekend. Better late than never.

Ernesto and Javier (Machitún’s Director) chose one of my songs to rework into the production – Not Alone, which is a track off the new album – I’m crazy stoked. I’ve reworked the melody over a new chord foundation that Ernesto’s put together, and we’ve added a spoken word intro (courtesy of Efese who we met at Balisto Productions – the studio shack – last week), with a haunting Xhosa translation of the chorus sung by Nomphelo, the Sakhuluntu choir leader. It’s ridiculously cool. I haven’t had a chance to see much of the acrobatics in this show because I’ve been so busy with the music and choir and my own shows, and the rain has been messing with most plans for onstage rehearsal of any kind, but the glimpses I have stolen are pretty mind-blowing. I really need to get back into shape…

Intoxicating Intensity (NAF2011)

Published on July 4, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I signed up for this experience last year. No idea whatsoever. I thought I had an idea of what I was getting myself into this year. Still no idea whatsoever. The National Arts Festival has to be one of the most intense experiences an artist can endure, and on so many levels, it is making me a better artist. I know I said the same thing last year and I prepared myself for intensity, but time fades the colours a little and you forget how intense the experience really is. This year, even more so, with Machitún added to the mix.

Rushing around like a crazy person – flyering cars, doing radio promos and dodging growing festival crowds within the time capsule that is Grahamstown during festival – does have its down side though, and I managed to slip and injure my wrist before my shows even started! Pablo – one of the Argentine acrobats I’m sharing a digs with – wrapped it up and has worked some kind of healing magic to get it fully functional again. Apparently my tendonitis is a lot worse than I thought though, and needs some serious attention. Anyway. The cool thing about it being so cold in Grahamstown is that when you fall on your ass and you’re wrapped up like an Eskimo, it cushions the fall a little… Not clever. Speaking of cold, I owe my utmost gratitude to the inventor of the electric blanket, a Mr S.I. Russell (for those who were wondering), and to my sister who had the foresight to own one that I could steal for this winter trek through the Not-Durban towns of South Africa. It has literally saved my Durbanness.

Three shows in and so far, so great! My first house was about 50 strong (more than I expected to open with) and so beautifully responsive. The sound in Cuervo Music Room is ridiculously rad this year – enveloping and powerful – and I think I have a new favourite sound guy to join me on my world tour! One of my shows was alongside a Cape Town based group called The Mee Brothers who deliver beautiful songwriting worth checking out. I had an awesome Sundowner feature at the Monument on Saturday evening – just a quick 10 minute promo, but the audience sang along to “Oh Boy” like they’d written it themselves. It was rad. Between Machitún rehearsals, shows and promos, I’m losing track of time, although that’s inevitable during fest as the hours and days become an anonymous meshing of intensity (I need another word for this craziness but there isn’t one). I found myself falling asleep on the couch outside my second show venue last night, which resulted in frantic running up and down High Street in search of Red Bull at 21:55. I really need to chat to them about a sponsorship at some stage…

Today was my one and only day off throughout fest and I had big plans to sleep in, chill out, catch some shows, and recoup some level of normalness. It ended up being another day of far-too-early rising, admin catch up, poster putting, flyering, networking and madness. I didn’t manage to catch a show I was desperate to see today (the only day I could see it) – 3 Acts of Love with Richard Antrobus, who moved me to tears in Hats last year – because it was sold out (cool for him, bummer for me), but I did manage to catch some comedy courtesy of David Newton, Is It Because I’m Jack featuring friends I met at Aardklop last year, and I was moved (as always) by Guy Buttery’s wizardry on guitar – or whatever you call the instrument he plays!

This intensity is beautifully intoxicating.

Intense Begins (NAF2011)

Published on June 28, 2011 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

The craziness of the next month has officially begun. The drive from Durban to Grahamstown, not a drive I was looking forward to at all, was a breeze on Sunday, through the almost deserted towns of the Transkei that usual bustle with raging intensity (I’ll be planning future tours down this way around the blissful cruising of Sundays in the future). I arrived at the house where I’m being hosted by the cast and crew of Machitún, an outdoor production from Argentina (more about that as the festival unfolds), and have settled into my space for the next two weeks, in amongst a whirlwind of activity and sound. Ernesto (the music director / composer for Machitún) is permanently creating this incredible electronic music from his room down the hall and the crew primarily speak in Spanish, a passionate and beautiful language… It’s almost like being in college again, but I understand a lot less.

How much prestik does it take to put up 300 posters? A lot more than one might think. For those who’ve been to the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown before, you’ll remember the intense sea of posters that colour the streets and buildings of this otherwise very chilled town. I put up almost half my posters on day one of my “poster putting mission” and only twenty in, already had “prestik thumb” – the technical term for the rawness that results primarily from pushing down the corners of countless posters. Last year I paid someone to do it because I wasn’t going to be in town early enough to do it myself, but I wasn’t happy with the job they did, so this year I made a point of being here early, and they’re standing out nicely in an already-intense sea of colour, so I’m stoked.

After a chilly 5 hours of “poster putting”, I joined the Machitún crew for a “township tour” into Joza. First stop, Balisto Productions, a fully functional studio shack. DJ Steel and Efese (aka Fanatik-Us) played us some tracks off their latest project, which they’ll be releasing during the festival, and I was blown away by what these guys are achieving with the gear that they have. From there we headed to Sakhuluntu, the primary school in extension 9, where the cutest bunch of local kids (who will also guest in Machitún) entertained the Argentines with some traditional singing and gumboot dancing before the mama’s treated us to dinner. What a day.

Balisto Production, Joza

The next two weeks in Grahamstown are going to be non-stop and with a 3 week tour following the festival, I have my work cut out for me. I’m almost numb from the cold and my Durbanness fears harder days and nights to come (although I have a little more perspective after last night in Joza), but it’s ridiculously rad to be back and my Durbanness will deal!

My Durbanness #2

Published on May 30, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

It’s that time of year again. Time to challenge my Durbanness with real winter.

After last year’s tours to Joburg, Cape Town and the big one in Grahamstown slap bang in the middle of the big freeze, I jokingly swore off touring in winter and promised myself I would stay in Durban for the majority of this year’s edition. The only problem is that the National Arts Festival last year was an experience I can’t resist doing all over again. And so, my Durbanness returns to be challenged to its core.

And guess what… it’s snowing already and it’s not even June yet. Last year I made a big fuss before I left about the fact that I hadn’t yet seen snow in my lifetime and that I was hoping to experience a first at my festival debut. I changed my mind half way through. It was more than cold enough without the snow! I’m sticking with the “anti-snow during the festival” policy. I’m dying to see the white stuff but following my trip to Hogsback last month, I’m even more convinced that Durban girls are just not cut out for real winters and am quite happy to wait for a non-touring holiday that doesn’t involve flyer drops, posters or trekking through a town with a giant piano on your back.

This year, the festival promises to be a little different to last year. Sure, it will be cold. That much I know. The crazy intense work levels will be the same, if not heightened. There are incredible shows that I wouldn’t miss if you paid me (that’s almost entirely true) and I can’t wait to laugh and cry and be moved all over again. My concerns with attendance after last year’s less-than-favourable outcome are still there, but knowing what I’m going into and having an idea of where I went wrong makes a big difference. I have a total of nine shows and some cool promo opportunities lined up to get the word out, so business wise there should at least be a marked improvement from last year. But there’s something else too…

A game changer for me this year is a guest appearance in another show which I’m thrilled to be featured in. Machitún, an outdoor spectacle involving flying acrobats, stilt walkers, fire and other craziness that I know will blow my mind, is a production from Argentina. A friend of mine runs an artistic exchange program between South Africa and Argentina called Proyecto 34°S and one of her many exciting projects is this production. When she called me up to feature on vocals, I couldn’t resist the opportunity and am super excited to work alongside Ernesto Romeo, live electronic music extraordinaire. Aside from what I’m certain will be an incredible experience, a very realistic advantage is that I’m shacking up with the cast and crew for the two weeks which saves me a huge amount of stress in terms of cost this year.

My Durbanness will just have to deal with two weeks of crazy cold ‘cause this festival is going to be off-the-hook cool.

Intense, At A Glance

Published on July 6, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

No amount of preparation could have readied me for what I have experienced over the past two weeks. A few people have asked me how the National Arts Festival was, and my response is simply this: “Intense”.

I arrived in Grahamstown expecting to be blown away by a festival that has certainly lived up to (and possibly exceeded) its reputation in my mind. In all honesty, I didn’t really know what to expect, and as I drove into that small out-of-the-way town in the Eastern Cape, the nervous excitement was almost overbearing. I have to admit to it all being a bit of a blur now… a blur of flyers, posters, shows, early mornings and crazy late nights of brandy and laughs… and cold that challenged my Durbanness to its core (unfortunately it didn’t snow, although now I’m not so sure I would’ve enjoyed the added intensity). About five days in to the festival (which was fifteen days in total), it felt like I’d been there for months. The amount of work and determination that goes in to performing at this festival is wild, and nothing like I imagined. But that’s not to say I didn’t have the time of my life!

Attendance at the festival this year wasn’t quite what was hoped for, possibly due to overestimating the impact the World Cup would have, so to be honest, financially for me it was a bit of a disaster. Having said that though, if I had to do it all over again, I absolutely would. I met incredible people, caught up with old friends, experienced theatre and music that literally moved me to tears, I laughed ‘til it hurt, and on the business front, I made amazing industry contacts that will serve me well for the future, and scored some pretty sweet press reviews. I can’t wait ‘til next year!

The early stages of making a living as a musician are, at the best of times, a financial challenge, so prioritising what you spend your money on is paramount, and at an Arts Festival it’s obviously all about the Art and experiencing as much of it as possible. So living off a supply of cereal and soup (and the kindness of family and friends who popped into the festival for a few days at a time, treating me to slightly more nutritious options) for two weeks was only a small sacrifice in comparison to the incredible talent I witnessed.

My tastes at the moment generally lean towards lighter entertainment so I focussed quite a bit on the comedy talents showing at the festival – Paul Zerdin, Rob van Vuuren, David Newton and Dekaf – all of whom had me in stitches, lifting my spirits when the hard slog of the fest was overwhelming.

On the music front, I managed to catch sets by Guy Buttery (which was truly beautiful), Karen Zoid, Autopilot, Nibs van der Spuy, Gary Thomas and a super rad band from Jozi that I now highly recommend, Outside The New (who also won an Ovation Award at the festival). I’m looking forward to possibly collaborating with these crazy boys in the near future, and have to say I’m too keen to make some noise again. As a musician I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I’ve never attended a jazz concert before, but that has now been rectified. I only made it to one jazz offering – Melanie Scholtz and The Love Apples – purely because, as a musician, I can only put up with so many solos before I start losing patience and interest. Don’t get me wrong, once I managed to focus my attention away from the fact that the pianist was very skilfully playing my dream piano (a beautiful shiny Kawai), I really did enjoy the show, but perhaps I need to be exposed to a bit more jazz to fully appreciate the vibe.

I loved the other productions that I made it to (“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”, “Extra-Ordinary”, “Rumpsteak” and “Stilted”) and am more than satisfied with my detox sacrifices. But on the last day of the festival, after my final performance, possibly feeling a little emotional about the whole experience coming to an end, I treated myself to one last production and it was the perfect end to my festival. “Hats”. It’s physical theatre, which, even as a drama major, is not something I’ve ever had the chance to experience prior to the festival. The two cast members are incredibly talented and watching their physical theatrics in itself was a treat, but their execution of the story caught me unaware and I found myself moved to tears by its beauty. It was an emotional encounter that could not have been more perfectly timed.

Truly explaining the festival as a whole, and my full and overwhelming experience of it all, is not possible. So these small moments and thoughts serve only as a glance into an intense two weeks that taught me so much more about myself and my craft, and further add to the awesome ride that is this life on the road. It was intense.

30 Going On 18

Published on June 20, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

I’ve officially entered the crazy world that is Grahamstown and The National Arts Festival for the next 2 weeks.

I studied at UKZN in Pietermaritzburg from ‘98 to ‘00, and walking through these university halls takes me back to those care-free days of missing lectures and all night parties that are now a fond and distant memory. I’ve checked into the Rhodes University Residence and am feeling very much like I’m back at college, about to endure a never-ending year of torturous study (prophetic words, I’m sure). The rooms are clinical and a little bigger than mine was (which I will be sure to take up with the Dean at UKZN should I ever have the chance), the gardens are manicured, the air is cold, and there is an electric excitement floating around the halls that unnerves me slightly in anticipation of what is to come.

My days at Uni are a very distant (and sometimes slightly hazy) memory, one that I cherish, so I’m feeling a little reminiscent. I would love to study again, and there are a few courses on the list that I’ll eventually have time and money to do. I’ll get there…

But for now, this maze of corridors that is my home for the next two weeks will remind me of days gone by… days when the shower temperature taunted me with its inconsistency, the noise in the halls kept me up at all hours, and the warden stared menacing down her nose as we stumbled back to res at 4 in the morning.

I’m 18 again, if only for these 2 weeks.

My Durbanness

Published on June 15, 2010 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

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Two days ahead of my departure for the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape, and I hear of snow on my horizon! I’ve never actually seen the white stuff up close and real, and won’t deny that the extreme possibility of finally experiencing it is making my heart very happy… but I’m a Durban girl, and I fear that my Durbanness may be in for one serious challenge!

I’ve lived in Durban all my life, in fact, apart from a couple years at ‘varsity, I’ve lived in the same house in Umhlanga all my life, and I love this time of year in Durbs. The humidity subsides and is replaced, for the most part, with perfectly clear, mild winter days and cosy winter nights, with just enough chill factor to make it count. Last year I spent most of South Africa’s winter on tour in Cape Town, following stringent warnings that my Durbanness would be defeated by the cold, wind and rain… but I survived. This winter, I fear I may not be so lucky. I was in Cape Town a month ago and the cold had already set in to challenge my Durbanness, which resulted in my learning to build a rather respectable fire every night (a handy skill I’m most satisfied to finally have mastered), but there is no fireplace waiting for me in the Eastern Cape…

I’d probably say that cold for a Durban girl is about 14°C. My first stop in East London enjoys the mighty temperature of 5°C today, while Durban remains a (just) bearable 16°C. Armed with every layer imaginable and blankets galore, I pack my bags and ready myself for what is sure to be the coldest few weeks of my life thus far, thrilled by the prospect of experiencing my first white winter which, I’m almost certain, would make it all entirely bearable. To be that cold and not be rewarded with snow would be a travesty and a sign of utter disrespect on the part of the weather gods. Bring on the white stuff. My Durbanness can take it.