Moyo

Sunday, November 5
The next few days were filled with meetings and networking. This meeting has really allowed me to meet my fellow counterparts in other parts of the world. My old boss from the IPC, Andy, who now works in London, was also at the meeting. I told him as we were walking from the conference center back to the hotel that I was really glad that he couldn’t go to Barbados last year and that I got to go.

Prior to the first afternoon session, I went with a colleague from Poland participate in a City Bus Sightseeing tour. It was about 2 hours and we got to sit on the upperdeck of a topless bus. It was really fun and was a great way to see the city and learn a bit of history as well. Sights along the tour included, the Waterfront, the City Markets, the Castle of Good Hope, District 6, the Cape Town Museum, Table Mountain, Camps Bay and Sea Point.

After the meeting, a rep from the World Anti-Doping Agency, Rod, took myself and a colleague from Canada and New Zealand to this African Café called Moyo. The world Moyo means “Soul” in Swahili. The café was settled in the Drakenstein Mountains in the region of StellenBosch, a major wine region in South Africa. Not far from Cape Town are the biggest winelands of the country. This African Café was beautiful. I am sure my mouth dropped to the floor when I walked into the giant tent with dim lights and laterns and blankets over the chairs for when it got cold. We then walked into a different area of the estate and in the trees were lanterns, and waterfalls and fountains lined the walkways. Near every wine bar were bed-like couches with little coffee tables nearby. The ambiance established by the café was brilliant. The food at the café was excellent – meats (buffalo, ostrich, pork, ribs, etc.), fresh fruits and vegetables, potatoes. It was really good. The wine made in South Africa is wonderful as well. It is too bad that I was flying through London and my baggage was limited and that I couldn’t bring some back with me. Through the course of the evening, traditional song and dance was performed and they came around and painted your face. I have a flower on mine and yes, I took this picture of myself.