Vandana Bhatia on Winter in Cape Town!

She was the first person I profiled for my Profile Corner, so it's not surprising that she is the first guest blogger I have on here too. The gorgeous Vandana Bhatia very kindly took out time to write a few words on her trip to Cape Town to give you guys tips on where to go, what to eat and what to see in the scenic city. Vandana was there with her family over New Years and from the sounds of it, has probably got the city pretty high up on her "favourite places to visit" list so read on for some insider tips from her vabulous vacation!

Lively beaches, beautiful scenery, gorgeous weather, fabulous beach houses, outstanding service, exquisite food and of course... the wines. Aah the wines. If you've never visited I suggest you start accumulating those miles and push Cape Town to the top of your destination list. You won't be disappointed. With its immense natural beauty, a myriad of things to do and places to see, you'll be spoilt for choice. 7 days are easily fulfilled here (or 12 in our case) and you'll still be compelled to return.

Things to do: rent a villa (Kia Ora or Villa Yvette, Clifton Road), climb to the top of Cape Point to witness the merging of the Indian & Atlantic Oceans (and take pictures of the baboons on the way), go for a drive at night up to Signal Hill, try the seafood linguine with truffle and the half metre long pizza for lunch at  The Grand at the Beach (and discover the cute gift shop), take a ferry to Robben Island to relive Mandela's imprisonment and the apartheid era, people watch at the Virgin Active Gym (what I really mean is ogle at the hotties), join the Capetonians for a cappuccino at Giovanni's (and take home some fresh cheese with their homemade fig jam), explore the boutiques in the trendy Cape Quarter (and pick up great accessories from local designers), buy meat from the local butcher on Kloof and invite some friends over for a braai, buy an exotic skin clutch bag, discover a cute little restaurant in Constantia (our fave -La Colombe), Stellenbosch or Franschhoek (our fave - Reubens), rent a bicycle and ride around Camp's Bay, opt for a healthy, organic brunch at Manna's, obsess over the super quirky crockery designer Carrol Boyes, go wine tasting to one of 600+ vineyards (our favs -Ernie Els Wine Estate and Hamilton Russell Vineyard Estate), take the funicular with spinning floor to Table Mountain (and take cheesy souvenir pics), have dinner at The Duchess, go paraglidiing (or not and say you did), have high tea with scones at the Table Bay Hotel or Ellerman House, watch the most breathtaking sunsets while listening to your in-house pianist, waddle with the penguins at Boulder's Bay, have a boozy brunch at Paranga's (preferably on a Sunday as the locals do), stock up on Charlotte Rhys products (South Africa's answer to Jo Malone at a fraction of the price), and finally, realise you've started saying 'ja' instead of 'yes'.

Right, now time to fulfill those New Year's resolutions of a healthy diet. Ja.

                                                   Some pictures of Villa Yvette (above and below)
 

 

The Grand at the Beach

 

La Colombe

 

The View from Table Mountain

 

View from Table Bay Hotel

 

The always impeccably dressed Vandana while in Cape Town

Thanks so much Vandana for this very informative piece! You've got me (and I'm sure my readers too) very envious of your lovely holiday. Now if only you'd succumb and do my 7 day fashion diary, life would be so much easier now wouldn't it??

And guys Vandana is soon going to have a blog out of her own where she covers all the latest Fashion trends and the best of all the lovely brands she sources from the world over (including some insider tips and exclusive offers)  for her Odyssey Trunk Shows. Will alert you guys when she has that up and running.. Have gotten a sneak peak already, and it's looking great!