....back from the Sea

My soul is full of longing for the secrets of the sea,
and the heart of the great ocean sends a thrilling pulse through me.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Quotes

10 days flew by and I'm home again from a lovely holiday with good friends in Plettenberg Bay. We spent some time in the Tsitsikamma forest and Nature Reserve.

There is an amazing tree in the Plaatbos Nature reserve that is a magical part of this enchanted forest, tall and strong with a kindly face it silently watches all who pass.

There are Rain Spiders who spin leaves into their huge webs that hang from the branches, the spider clinging to the underside protectively waiting for the young to hatch

 

...and how beautiful is the ocean at the Storms River mouth, it inspired the colours for the ColourSpun Cotton Club

 

 

 

Have a Happy Day :)




Me Jane???!

Just so that no one is confused, I did start out writing this blog about the time I spend in my studio. I spent a great deal of time in my studio, worked very hard  and got through an extraordinary amount of work last year so I decided to take a little break and and spend a couple of weeks away - relaxing and proof reading the English copy of my book.  Well, to my horror (and then delight :) ) I forgot my mobile and specs at home so all I can do is relax, or so I thought.

On Wednesday we went on a leisurely tractor tour through the Tsitsikamma forest down to the old Storms river bridge and had a lovely lunch.

One of my friends wanted to do the canopy tour but didn't want to go on her own, so I agreed to go too. I don't quite know what I was expecting, but it was definitely something much lower and slower!

There were 8 of us in our group, plus 2 guides and a photographer, we got all kitted up and were taken to the "launch pad".  Two of the guides went ahead and then we were off - one at a time to the first platform up in the tree tops, I was already wondering what I had gotten myself into. When we were all perched on this little wooden ledge way up there, the one guide very proudly told us that none of the platforms are bolted or nailed on. They are all carefully tied on so as not to damage any tree! I suddenly discovered that I'm not as environmentally friendly as I thought I was as I wished for huge steel bolts screwed into the wood.

Then we were off again, flying through the trees. It was very scary and very exciting, 30m up in the canopy and I think I could possibly be talked into doing it again.

What an exhilarating experience - a huge amount of frightening fun! :)

Beautiful Cape Town

We live in a beautiful country and one of my favourite cities is Cape Town. Today my special cousin, who is lucky enough to live there, sent me this amazing link - Cape Town - fullmoonhike - don't forget to drag your mouse up and down and side to side to get the full picture.