We are staying for the weekend at a little place known as Paternoster about two hours drive north of Cape Town. They say it is so called because centuries ago, Portuguese sailors were heard to cry out in prayer as their ships were tossed against the rocks. In the still waters of the bay, these rounded rocks look like whales resting in the sun.
Yesterday, we dropped Margaret off with Sandra Oliver in Velddrif, a town on the mouth of the Berg river well known for its dried fish, its amazing variety of birds and the salt flats which look like empty rice fields. The fish are hung out to dry along the river bank, a process that takes two weeks. The salt is harvested and then made edible in a Cerebos plant at the approach to this very Afrikaans working town. A long way further north is the Namib desert and the vast expanse that is Namibia. The border is a 14 hour drive through a largely unpeopled landscape.
Robert and Sally Weatherall from Appletreewick are with us. He says the little town of Paternoster is the most integrated he has ever seen. In contrast to most other settlements in South Africa, the black and Cape Malay coloured people live in attractive white dwellings in the centre of the town alongside their white neighbours. There are no chilling signs declaring “Armed Response” posted on high security gates here.
Sally, who knows a thing or two about places to stay and eat, was stunned by our little guesthouse on the shore. The Dunes, as it is known, is indeed a gem. And Suzi’s tiny restaurant in the town surpasses the best the Cape can offer. Lamb burgers with pomegranate, Baboti made with a variety of lentils, clams in angel hair pasta, a perfect milk tart. And it was there, too, that we were entertained by Dave, a 74 year old teenager who regaled us with mesmerizing tales in his ex-policeman cockney accent.
In the afternoon, we were guests at a birthday party at the Dunes. Gavin the host invited his neighbours and friends to celebrate with him. It was an intense bite from the rich mixture that is South Africa. A bereaved Margaret from Northern Ireland making a new life, Wendy from Cape Town married to a wrestler called Bronson, Lisa whose family come from Greece has a vine and olive farm with her husband in Stellenbosch, Frank from Eindhoven who moved here from Holland to follow his heart. We spent a hugely satisfying time with this intimate little gathering.
Today we head back to Cape Town and another kind of reality.
Yesterday, we dropped Margaret off with Sandra Oliver in Velddrif, a town on the mouth of the Berg river well known for its dried fish, its amazing variety of birds and the salt flats which look like empty rice fields. The fish are hung out to dry along the river bank, a process that takes two weeks. The salt is harvested and then made edible in a Cerebos plant at the approach to this very Afrikaans working town. A long way further north is the Namib desert and the vast expanse that is Namibia. The border is a 14 hour drive through a largely unpeopled landscape.
Robert and Sally Weatherall from Appletreewick are with us. He says the little town of Paternoster is the most integrated he has ever seen. In contrast to most other settlements in South Africa, the black and Cape Malay coloured people live in attractive white dwellings in the centre of the town alongside their white neighbours. There are no chilling signs declaring “Armed Response” posted on high security gates here.
Sally, who knows a thing or two about places to stay and eat, was stunned by our little guesthouse on the shore. The Dunes, as it is known, is indeed a gem. And Suzi’s tiny restaurant in the town surpasses the best the Cape can offer. Lamb burgers with pomegranate, Baboti made with a variety of lentils, clams in angel hair pasta, a perfect milk tart. And it was there, too, that we were entertained by Dave, a 74 year old teenager who regaled us with mesmerizing tales in his ex-policeman cockney accent.
In the afternoon, we were guests at a birthday party at the Dunes. Gavin the host invited his neighbours and friends to celebrate with him. It was an intense bite from the rich mixture that is South Africa. A bereaved Margaret from Northern Ireland making a new life, Wendy from Cape Town married to a wrestler called Bronson, Lisa whose family come from Greece has a vine and olive farm with her husband in Stellenbosch, Frank from Eindhoven who moved here from Holland to follow his heart. We spent a hugely satisfying time with this intimate little gathering.
Today we head back to Cape Town and another kind of reality.
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