During our eight days in the Breede River Valley, we treated ourselves to a two-night stay at the Robertson Small hotel. Let me start off by saying that this place won the award for Best Luxury Country Hotel in South Africa, at the World Luxury Hotel Awards in both 2011 and 2012. Think about the competition they had to beat to win that for just a minute!
Now, having created the expectation, I feel I am not eloquent enough to sing the praises of this exquisite place. It was luxurious, chic and quaint with all round amazing attention to detail. It’s a special kind of place that puts a Robert Frost poem on your pillow and then proceeds to turn down the camping cot for Emma while we are at dinner! Add to that the fact that well known chef Reuben Riffel has a branch of his restaurant in the hotel , and the sheer ‘overwhelmingness’ (it is a word, I just invented it) of the place starts to become apparent.
I will let the photos below and their website (click here) speak for themselves, but a last thought would perhaps be that if this hotel sat in the centre of Cape Town, it would still stand out there. The fact that only a decades old oak tree obscured our view from the terrace to the Langeberg, and then finding this quality…we should not have been surprised, but we were. And then we were delighted. And then we started to think up excuses to come back.
When in the Breede River Valley ..... Karoux in McGregor
While strolling the streets of McGregor, we came upon a small restaurant called Karoux. I liked the unpretentious, yet very stylish setting immediately and we made a booking to return for a long, relaxed Sunday lunch. Seating was available inside in a lovely cosy room or outside, next to the courtyard, with a crackling fire to keep you warm. We opted for inside and loved the welcoming and relaxed atmosphere created by the friendly hostess. She turned out to be the wife of the chef and the two of them, with only one other kitchen hand, did everything from preparing the food, serving, discussing the wine menu and giving us “tourist tips”. I had a lovely steak au poivre with triple-cooked chips, but it was my husband’s venison Bourguignon that turned out to be the star of the show!
A holiday in the Breede River Valley
Everything is now back to normal. The school holidays came to an end and Daniel is back at school. But what a holiday!! After our short break in the bushveld, we all travelled to the Cape for a just-more-than-a-week long holiday. Daniel spent the time with his grandparents on the West Coast, and my husband, Emma and I explored the Breede River Valley, about two hours away from Cape Town.
The valley is ringed with majestic mountains and the farming areas are fertile with lush orchards and beautiful vineyards. We stopped at some of the wine estates forming the Robertson Wine Route, ate at fantastic restaurants and popped into the local museums.
Today’s blog is about the charming 19th century picturesque villages in the area. Two of my favourites were McGregor and Montagu with its many examples of Cape Dutch architecture – rounded gables, thatched roofs, whitewashed walls and “museum” green shatters. We strolled the streets, stopped often for caffeine-loading and recharged our batteries….
The valley is ringed with majestic mountains and the farming areas are fertile with lush orchards and beautiful vineyards. We stopped at some of the wine estates forming the Robertson Wine Route, ate at fantastic restaurants and popped into the local museums.
Today’s blog is about the charming 19th century picturesque villages in the area. Two of my favourites were McGregor and Montagu with its many examples of Cape Dutch architecture – rounded gables, thatched roofs, whitewashed walls and “museum” green shatters. We strolled the streets, stopped often for caffeine-loading and recharged our batteries….
Breakfast
If your regular breakfast is a bowl of cereal or a slice of toast grabbed on the way out the door for the school run, then having a unhurried
cup of coffee (or two) plus a rusk while the sun rises over the bushveld,
nothing but birdsong in your ears – now that’s the definition of true luxury…
A holiday in the bush
Our friends, Jan and Janneke, invited us to join them for an
extended long weekend at their bushveld house situated on the border of the
Kruger National Park. The house is located right next to the Crocodile River
and we were treated to daily sightings of hippos going in and out of the water,
a variety of other larger and smaller game, and all the bird species you can
shake a stick at. The most memorable was the “resident” elephant parade that crossed
the river to our side to feed on the trees 10 meters from the veranda!
Now, this alone would make for a memorable break, but to add
to all the excitement my husband got to play the fabulous Leopard Creek golf
course (twice) – his scores adding to our long-running suspicion that, if he
were a professional golfer, we would starve. As for Daniel he could not believe
that his earth-moving toys were not allowed in those vast expanses of manicured
sand!
Baby massage
For the past four weeks Emma and I attended a baby massage
class once a week. I loved it!! Of the five senses, touch is the one that’s
most developed at birth. Therefore it is not surprising to learn that this form
of sensory stimulation has a long string of benefits. It relaxes the baby and
can help with sleeping. It can ease digestion problems and teething pains, helps
with muscle development and improves immunity. But the best part is the lovely
bonding and closeness with the small little body. I felt empowered by this new
skill and can recommend it to all the new moms out there.
Below is a video clip from the local TV program, The Dr Mol
Show, that shows Tina in her studio demonstrating how to massage your baby. She
also explains the benefits for the baby.
You can read more about Tina’s Child centre on her website
or Facebook page.
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