Harley Davidson in the group

My friend Dick phoned me earlier in the week to say they would like to visit us on Friday because he had something he wanted to show me, a bike he was thinking of buying and they wanted to have lunch at the "Seafood Shack" in Velddrif and then a beer at the Phoenix bar. He had read about both places on my blog and was keen to visit them. We arranged to meet at the Engen One-stop on the R27.

I was very surprised to see that they had ridden up from Capetown on a huge Harley Davidson Electra Glide! Certainly a very impressive looking machine and a nice colour too.

Janet particularly liked the large and very comfortable "couch" and the sound system was absolutely incredible, while riding next to them we could hear the music quite clearly.

I had previously booked for our lunch and when I warned Leon that there would be three motorcycles parked outside his restaurant he said; "There goes the neighbourhood!" Actually I was pleased to hear that he had recently had a visit from a bunch of bikers who had also read my previous blogpost.

The fresh Hake and battered calamari rings was an excellent meal washed down with a pleasant Chenin Blanc, the company was good and we spent a very enjoyable couple of hours chatting and just generally having a good time.

Klaas was still there and Janet cosyed up to him to try and get his box of wine away from him but he was having none of it.

After lunch we rode across the little town to Des' shop on the banks of the Berg river. The sign above the door says "Opening hours nine till fed-up." Des sells a lot of interesting stuff, craft items and second hand collectibles, his little shop is a treasure trove of eclectic items. His wife Marina has an art studio next door, well worth a visit.

Ever hospitable, Des offered us a beer and some wine for the ladies while we browsed.

The manequin next to Janet is holding out a bunch of "Bokkoms", dried and salted mullet or "haarders" which are a very popular part of West Coast snack. Quite salty and dry they are an acquired taste, I like them and have eaten them regularly. In the short time that we were there several people stopped to buy a bunch.

We spent about an hour visiting with Des and Marina and then it was time to mount up and head for the Phoenix bar on the way home.

The Phoenix is a nice bar, well appointed and comfortable and is a regular haunt of ours. The owner, Danny who some say resembles the actor Daniel Day-Lewis, is a biker himself so the bar is popular with the local bikers as well as those passing through.

Being mindful of the fact that we had already had a couple of drinks and that we still had to ride home, we only had one drink there. Frank, Dick and Janet all stayed over at our house for the night so the party continued there. A great start to the weekend.

Dick and Janet are now going to have a look at the BMWK1300GT, I'll bet I know which bike they will buy - watch this space.