Bare feet in the sand: Cape Town beach style

When you've come through a long northern winter and find yourself waking to a perfect late summer's day in Cape Town, the desire to feel warm sand under your bare toes becomes overwhelming ...

At Clifton beach, on the Atlantic ocean side of the peninsula, the sea is pretty freezing and the currents strong (hence not many people in the water, above). You need to go to the warm Indian ocean side for swimming and surfing beaches. But the combination of mountains, sea and beach bungalows to die for is unbeatable right here ...

With no crowds at this time of year, there's plenty of space to stake out your umbrella and get busy doing this kind of thing ...

At lunchtime we discovered a place where you can eat in style with your bare feet in the sand ...

(perfectly tender grilled calamari)

... while watching the yachts bob in the bay.

The Grand Café & Beach is the result of the kind of creativity and imagination you find everywhere in this city. A derelict corrugated iron warehouse on an unpromising bit of shore-line near Cape Town harbour was transformed into a simple venue for eating and drinking, the beach was cleared and cafe tables and chairs laid out on the sand under umbrellas.

We loved it so much we went back in the evening. Can you think of a more perfect spot than this four-poster bed with velvet cushions to get comfortable and watch the sun set over the sea ...?

What I love about this place is the informality combined with touches of luxury - kelims, chandeliers and overstuffed armchairs sit comfortably on beach sand ...

a collection of bizarre new and found objects strewn on the beach holds the attention of children free to play and explore ...

or watch the passing parade of boats, from battered old dhows floating dreamily by ... 

to sleek ocean liners steaming out of the port ...

This is Cape Town beach style and I'm mad for it ...