The Nellie had her face lift when the lounge was revamped and since then, The Mount Nelson has been in constant upgrade. The job is now almost over. With the launch of the new-look Ballroom – think deep red carpets and cream brocade on the walls, the room is ready to again take its place as Cape Town’s premier venue.

Aside from too loud music, the launch event was fabulous. Food stations were at the centre – I’ve raved before out their salmon (one cured, the other smoked) with plump oysters, Vietnamese spring rolls (not fried), prawn and peanut stirfry, lamb cutlets and loads of Cape dishes – individual boboties, samosas and good things to munch. Crowning glory were multi-layered caramel and choc shortbread (think billionaire shortbread) biscuits. Nothing I saw at the Ritz London impressed me more. We really have something to be proud of in The Mount Nelson Hotel.

I said the job was almost over… The Grill Room needs to be turned into a nightclub so chic and sophisticated that even Annabel won’t get in.

Is luxury about froufrou finery or is it, as my friend Bradley Bordis suggests, a transcendent experience? I think it’s about space – a larger physical reality than usual; about mental space knowing that we are well taken care of and, to quote The Ritz London, about the details.