Friday Braaiday

I confess to not being much enamoured of the traditional braai, possibly because I prefer vegetables to meat and the accompaniments don't fit into this category. I've found a way around this and now make baked veg in the oven rather than salads, which can be rather harsh on the digestive system.

Charred chicken doesn't feature on my menu of choice either and perish the thought that someone should declare a coil of boerewors perfect when the skin is not crisp. I can say without favour or bias that my son is in the running for top braaimaster, as his skills at meat-turning are unsurpassed in my experience. No blackened boerewors or scorched sosaties will come off his grid and the rest of us can just loll in the shade while he sweats it out for our gastronomic pleasure.

This evening was the culmination of a very warm day brought about by a berg wind drifting down to the coast from the inland plateau, and it would have been a crime to cook indoors. To live in these surroundings, under milkwood trees bursting with fresh green growth, with the warm pink glow of the setting sun on the rocks of the Slangkop headland, must surely be one of life's greatest pleasures.