The training schedule falls apart!

The week in SA continued in the same vein, with food and wine being consumed at an alarming rate! My training schedule was not doing well - I had to do two 4.5 mile runs plus cross-training on the days I wasn't running. I'm not sure strolling around an apple orchard or sauntering amongst the grapevines carrying a camera could really be classed as cross-training? If you think travelling to a warm country will be good for training think again - the great thing about being in Britain at this time of year is that you have to go out running to stay warm!

And how could I possibly not eat the amazing food that was put infront of me? Even the typical South African braai (that is normally a complete meat-fest), was impossible to resist, with large flat mushrooms stuffed with cheese, chargrilled nectarines with feta cheese, and a wonderful home-made cheesecake that our host Johan insisted we ate the South African way, with a little red wine poured over the top - it was unusual, but delicious.

But the whole purpose of this trip was to learn about great South African fruit, so we did spend time wandering the vast apple, pear and plum orchards, and learnt about the varieties that are sent over to us in the UK. Interestingly the research showed that a lot of people don't buy South African fruit because they think it is grown artificially. Having visited at least three farms I can assure you there is nothing artificial about the glorious orchards that spread out for miles, with the fruit ripening naturally under the intense African sun.

We did manage to fit in a quick visit to Aquila Private Game Reserve near Touws River, with time for a safari to see the wildlife of Africa - they have giraffe, zebra, elephants, rhino, leapoard, cheetah and lions - and you will get to see them all - the reserve is not that large and there are fences to ensure they don't leave! The highlight of the safari was the stop for fizzy wine as the sun went down - we couldn't escape the alcohol even there!

On our final day we visited Langa Township, something I would highly recommend if you visit Cape Town. It's hard to say how it made me feel so I will leave it up to you to visit and judge for yourself. After this the plan was to drive up the West Coast Road towards Langebaan for a ten course lunch at Die Strandloper Seafood Restaurant. This was the final straw and we all voted against it! There really is only so much food that can be eaten, and for me, with no exercise taking place, my body was starting to rebel! The thought of returning to cold, grey England was a depressing one, but if I am to make the Paris half-marathon I need to get myself back in shape pretty quickly - only two weeks to go!