In the recent days of doom and gloom in South Africa, we took to the road and once again realised what a truly beautiful country we live in.
We travelled from Cape Town on the coast, through the arid expanses of the Karoo, and up north into the bush veld, where the vegetation is lush and green. For the umpteenth time I fell in love with the incredibly varied countryside, which is as diverse as its people.
The first stop was De Waterkant, Cape Town where we stayed in a recently opened boutique hotel in Napier Street – The Grey. Immediately I was transported back to Morocco with vibrant blues, greens and mosaics in evidence everywhere. The rooms were small, but the use of space was really clever and it was extremely comfortable as long as no swinging of cats or leaping from the chandeliers are on the agenda!
A quick stop at home en route and then a day’s marathon drive up to Rustenburg where we overnighted. On the way the landscape was ever changing and from the barren, but beautiful Karoo we entered flatter lands scattered with scrub bushes and grasses that caught the sunlight as they rustled in the wind. Hectares of sunflowers with their heads following the last rays flanked the road as our day’s drive came to an end.
From Rustenburg it was an easy journey to our final stop on a game farm in Steenbokpan, Limpopo. We travelled through countryside forever changed by mining, to areas of undulating hills and thick, bush vegetation. The farm is in the process of being renovated and we stayed in one of the lodges that have just been finished. The area is full of old trees and high grass after the recent good rains and a place where peace and quiet reigns. Aside from the chattering of birds there is little to distract one. Time takes on an ethereal quality as the days meld into one, each finding its own rhythm. The night time ritual of sitting around the fire and cooking under the stars is a perfect and natural end to the day.
After a time of wandering the veld, game viewing and relaxing, we were ready for the long drive home. Setting off in the early morning light I confirmed to myself once again that there is not another country I would rather live in than this, our beautiful and diverse land!
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