The power of the sea

As expected, the weather turned at Easter, with a galeforce southeaster followed by a very strong northwester and accompanying rain. Fortunately I stayed at home - when you live in Kommetjie, it's pointless to go on holiday for a change of scenery; you wonder, when you get home, why you had left! I pity those poor travellers on the roads joining the kilometres of traffic jams as everyone heads back home, all meeting up at one set of robots as you approach Cape Town - and particularly in our first real taste of winter.

The windows of the restaurants along the sea front at Kalk Bay once again had their windows smashed by the heavy seas, which then washed through, taking tables and chairs and all the customary accoutrements in its wake. There's no stopping the sea and this is part of the attraction of these venues - proximity to some spectacular wave action and occasional participation by the guests. It's rather like the people who build their holiday homes on stilts on the beaches of the Eastern seaboard of the USA - from time to time the sea reclaims its shoreline.

A witness to these seas said that one wave actually washed over the roof of the building - scary stuff! These pictures were taken by a Melville Harding who captured these incredible shots which are worthy of any National Geographic magazine! Enjoy them - I am sure you will feel a sense of the awesome power of the sea and how we should all have the greatest respect for this element of nature.