'One of the most valuable things we can do to heal one another is to listen to each other's stories' Rebecca Falls

What a week this has been! I don't believe that I have ever met and engaged with so many new people in one week as I have this week. The reason has been that we have been 'co-erced' onto the Calitzdorp Tourism committee for helping to market and brainstorm the upcoming 'Calitzdorp Uncorked' Event: 18 - 20 June 😁  

And it has been such fun! We first visited all the wine farms in the area and, of course, came away having tasted some delicious wines, gins and ports and were also introduced to some new ones. We also came away with a little more insight into the wine making process ....

One of the many interesting pieces of information we learnt was that the wine farm Du'SwaRoo was orginally owned by a WBHS old boy. He thus named the farm after the places he had lived in : Du 💬 Durban ; Swa 💬 South West Africa and lastly Roo 💬 Karoo. When one takes time to engage with people and listen to their stories, one learns so much 💓

We tasted and ate the most delicious and varied food from some of the many local eateries. We came away from each place, marvelling at how in this small community, we could be treated to so much warmth and genuine hospitality.💓 One of the reasons we moved here, I suspect!

And that was not all that Calitzdorp has to offer we discovered : the nurseries, knowledgeable people about the history of the place, creative spaces which people have set up to explore their talents in the cultural and artistic fields and interesting personalities like Deon who maintains the local NG Kerk bells which chimes every 15 minutes (click on this link for more fascinating History of the NG Kerk bells ) and Christolino who has set up a Community based project growing vegetables.

And then after a hectic day it's just beautiful to be home💓 

We've had one or two cold inside nights and realised that winter is a-coming!

In between all the busyness, we have also decided to 're invent' our pathway as it was becoming worn and Claudette and my mum were finding access to the house a little challenging. Oom Tuis and his team have been amazing to work with (they built our carport ) and so it was lovely to welcome them back 😀 Their laughter and chatting fills our space and, once again, we are reminded of how priviledged we are to be in contact with these warm, generous souls.

Before

Collecting stones and sand! Who needs gym!

Getting there

I was so touched today when Johann , one of the workers, brought me an olive tree to celebrate Freedom Day as he noticed that I was always in the garden. A gesture that was so unexpected and came straight from the heart. One small kind gesture goes such a long way - I learnt from him today💓

One of the other things that I could not live with anymore was the DUST😓

We saw at a friends home that they had placed wood chips all around their home so not only would it keep the dust away but it was a good way to mulch. So off we went to Oudtshoorn and filled 12 bags with wood chips. 

We also planted another acacia tree which we hope will grow and give some shade in the future

And if that was not enough 😁

I was contacted by a local school in Oudtshoorn for an interview

for a locuum Grade 2 position starting in June for four months!

I was so so nervous 😂😂😂 

but I got the job !!! I'm really excited about the prospect of being back in the classroom after so many years and Grade 2 was always my best year.

So opportunities arise when you are least looking💓💓💓

As I was writing this Blog, Michael came and asked me if I wanted to see something really special so I wandered out into the garden and there ,flowering beautifully under the protective shade of other plants was a delicate flowering Aasplant (Carion Plant)

It made me think of how we can learn from nature. Its mere exsistence is dependant on its cohabitation with it's neighbouring plants and it's environment, Just imagine if we worked like this in our communities: helping, protecting and depending on each other, what a wonderful world we could live in. 

So from me in the karoo 💓💓💓

'If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old' Peter Drucker

Both Michael and I feel unbelievably priviledged to have been able to make this move and thus celebrate each day - the good with the bad! We have been lucky that we have had only a few 'bad' days and during those days we have had to embrace the challenges as learning experiences 😎

Being free to travel without work restrictions has been a wonderful bonus and one we intend (whilst we can!) to do as often as possible. 

So on a glorious Tuesday morning last week we slowly made our way to Cape Agulhas/Struisbaai for a two night stay 💓 and it was way beyond our expectation: AN ABSOLUTE MUST 💓💓💓

Our first stop was at  'Diesel and Creme' in Barrydale to taste their world renown, scrumptious, mouthwatering milkshakes

Tradouw's Pass (Info on the Tradouw Pass) was our next stop. It really is a beautiful pass and for me, the little village of Suurbraak is just my best. Luckily we had been told that the locals collect water from a spring which comes straight from the mountain so we came prepared .. 

The water was delicious - how lucky are we to still be able to collect clean, fresh water straight from it's source!

We reached Agulhas ( a 3 1/2 hour trip) and stayed at our little self catering cottage: Agulhasthebestview! And it certainly did 😀 We even were able to braai fresh fish which we had bought from the local fish market!

For the rest, I will let the pictures speak for themselves!

The Lighthouse, originally built in 1848, was inspired by the Egyptian pharaohs. It has subsequently been refurbished and stands proudly above the rocks shining it's light across the oceans for all to see. It rotates every three seconds and is truly a remarkable structure. Unfortunately, due to COVID, we were unable to walk to the top but apparently you can, so we will have to visit again! 

The 'Southern Most Tip of Africa' Monument is a masterpiece and made me think of what creative people we have in our world. I wondered whether, if I was their teacher,  I would've catered to their needs and enhanced their creative potential. Someone must have.💓 At this point, the two oceans (Atlantic and Indian) are said to meet. We were thus lucky to swim in both!

The famous Japanese ship was wrecked in 1981. This is amazing to see as it slowly gets absorbed back into the sea.:

 

  

Early morning swims were had in the tidal pools. This was a glorious experience and one in which we were totally immersed into the new dawn.

The harbour boasts stingrays which are completely unperturbed by humans. They swim undaunted, hunting and eating whilst we watched. It was an amazing experience to see these creatures completely in tune and happy in an environment where boats and people come and go. Stingrays in Struisbaai (and it's exactly as it is portrayed in the video)

The pools and beach are beyond incredible. I can't remember when I last swam in such crystal clear water and walked on such a pristine beach. The sounds of the pebbles washing back into the ocean was incredible.

Of course, the town always has something different on offer:

 

Wine pairing with ice-cream!

The flowers

And then always to end the day : Sunset

All I can say is that if you EVER get the opportunity to visit this beautiful space grab it with both hands. Michael and I left wondering why we hadn't come here before and why we had heard more about the beauty in other countries than we had heard about Agulhas/Struisbaai!

We arrived back home to see that our carport was complete and I can only thank the workmen who , with hardly any electrical equipment, managed to create this structure : the attention to detail was remarkable. 

We have been coerced (volunteered!) onto the Calitzdorp Uncorked committee so we are hard at work trying to give others a glimpse into why Calitzdorp is such a special place to live in. SOOOOOO .......... if you are in the area over the weekend of the 18-20 June make sure you book a space ! It'll be a great event. I will keep you posted as we unveil more 😁😁😁

Sending love, peace and joy into the universe for all always but especially during this time for the people in the Cape who have been affected by the devastating fires.

From me in the Karoo  💓💓💓