Traditionally, talking about the weather indicates that topics for conversation are running low. However, in Cape Town, the weather is a popular topic for locals and visitors alike. The reasons being its unpredictability and extremeness and the fact that it’s a major factor in the success or enjoyment of many events.
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| Click here for gallery of Cheese Festival 07 |
The Cheese Festival is one of those events that need a sunny day to be enjoyed fully. It’s just not the same when you can’t sit in the picnic area, enjoying the sunshine, wine and tasty snacks. So obviously it was a major concern when the weather report predicted rain from Thursday to Sunday of that weekend. Experience has taught me that the weather is never that consistent, so I took the risk and told everyone to come to the Cheese Festival with me on Saturday. It did rain Thursday and it did rain on Friday, a number of people lost their nerve and pulled out, opting instead for a Sunday visit in the hope the rain might stop by then. Then Saturday arrived, and what a day it was: Sunny, warm and wind free, the perfect day for a Cheese Festival.
This is at least my 5th Cheese Festival. I have developed a modus operandi which seems to work well: We arrive at about midday (this is NB because if you arrive too late you can’t get tickets as they sell a limited number) and do a quick (45min) recon. During the recon we’re looking for nice lunch options like bread, cheese, wine, pesto and anything else that looks tasty. Then we buy what we need and go and have a relaxing picnic in the sunshine. Later in the afternoon, we go cheese tasting and pick up any products which we like, this year I got some olive oil, gorgonzola cheese and bread.
The festival this year was similar to last year except it has grown. They have some new tents filled with stands and there are many more tables and chairs in the picnic area so you have a better chance of snagging one. The live music is still not great but still adds to the atmosphere. They should have bands like Coda and Breakfast included, that would really be special and they can certainly afford it at R65 a ticket plus R5 for the wine glass (they must make more than R50 000 just from the wine glass sales).
The ‘petting farm’ is great for kids to ‘meet’ cows and goats (which I think is important, but that’s a post for another day) and there is plenty of space for the kids to run around as well. The Cheese Festival is definitely a full day of entertainment. I’ve always felt that it’s a great outing and good value for money, now with it being bigger than ever it’s even more so.
You can see pics from the Cheese Fest in my Gallery.