Was a veritable who's who of Cape Town!
So Saturday night rolled around, and I decided the occasion warranted spending more than 10 mins getting ready. So I coloured my hair, painted my nails and got myself 'dolled-up' and ready.
A asked me to fetch him (his car is being serviced) at 18:50 ... dinner was scheduled for 19:00! He likes to be late. Always. I said no ways, why rush and be late? But I could settle on 18:45, without having a seizure. So it was agreed. So off I went - actually a bit late - only to find him still chugging up the hill on his bike at 18:40! Men!!
So he had to dash into his house and do a speedy shower and change, while I waited, and we left at about 18:55... On the way there as I was driving I asked him, just to vent my ever so slight annoyance that we were indeed late. 'So just what caliber of person WOULD you consider to be important enough to actually be on time for..?'
He thought for a second and then said, 'You'
HAHA, full marks.
He went on to say, 'Cos you're the only person I'd really get in trouble with for being late'. Smart guy after-all...
Anyway so we arrived at the Mount Nelson a fashionable 10 minutes late, and walked up to the Garden room where we were met by the lady with guest list. Having established that we were on the list and meant to be there she waved us through. Where upon Andrew said to her 'let me see the guest list' since we had no idea who would be there and if there were to be 20 or 200 guests. I start scanning down the list reading names I recognise:
and and and
So I turned to A and said, 'Oh we know lots of these people!' and then turned to the guest list gate-keeper and said, 'They just don't know us...'
LOL.
As we walked in Mike Bloomberg was there already and greeted us warmly and I had a long chat to his partner Diana Taylor. Who is simply lovely inside and out.
We were at pre-designated mixed up seating and I was placed between a UCT Economics professor Corne Van Walbeek, and one of the Bloomberg's London staff Luca Machi, Head of External Relations and opposite Emiliano Sante, Bloomberg Head of Product Development/Sales for EMEA, and Clinton Ephron (no relation to Zach he says!) all 4 of whom provided fun, entertaining and interesting conversation.
We discussed business, politics, travel, bosses, food and sport.
The sportsmen were rather quiet and un-participatory, but provided good eye candy anyway. Especially Ryk Neetling. My word that is one good looking and well built man! Johann Rupert is certainly bold and outspoken and threw in a couple of real clanger-comments during the evening, which came out sounding way worse (and discriminatory) that they were ever intended. I had to translate his intent to 3-4 people as he did have a good point, it was just SO badly and crudely put that no one actually seemed to catch it.
I must say it was one of the most enjoyable evening I have had recently. It was relaxed, warm, friendly and rather fun. I had thought it might be awfully staid,formal and awkward but it was anything but. I got to mingle and chat with Mike Bloomberg afterwards and even bantered with him a bit when comparing notes about how jet-lagged I was after my epic and arduous journey back from the states in January after being trapped in Florida thanks to the polar vortex. Where we ended up having to drive across Florida, flew to Nashville, then to New Jersey, then drove to JFK, and then had a 16-hour long flight of continuous turbulence to Johannesburg, and then finally flew to Cape Town, where I pretty much collapsed once I got home. His response was a jesting and good natured, 'Oh don't you have a private jet..?' To which I chirped, 'No, I am still working on that!'
I am very privileged and grateful to have had the opportunity to go along and be part of such a high-profile dinner, what a marvellous opportunity that was!
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