A couple of swells in Swellendam

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Back on the road and we were off to Swellendam, described as having one of the best country museums in South Africa so I wasn’t expecting much, but then we found Sheet Street. You can’t imagine my excitement, a shop not only filled with towels and sheets and curtains and soft furnishings (that were tasteful!) but arranged in a proper shop with proper shop fittings, displays and light. Browsing was fun and the prices were reasonable (it’s not at all chi chi), I loved Swellendam already! The other eventually dragged me out; it’s amazing how nine months on a small island can make even the most mundane of shops, an experience. I might need to be sedated before I ever walk down Oxford Street again.

Next, was the biggest supermarket we’d been in yet, with a bakery and deli woo hoo, so we bought a proper picnic (gone were the cheese and crisp butties, in was a foccacia and brie and a small bottle of vino) and we tore ourselves away as we had some exploring to be done…
Close to our lovely guesthouse and recommended by our very friendly and hospitable hosts, were some stunning nature trails. A five minute drive away and we were at the foot of the Langeberg Mountains (I think) and it seemed we had the place to ourselves and it was beautiful. Forests sprung around us as we drove to the start of a trail that led to a waterfall and we clambered up its shady path for about 45 minutes, following the water’s path. Coming across the waterfall, it was a small but fell prettily into a series of smaller pools and having worked up a sweat, its inky waters looked inviting. I decided that I’d get in the pool even if it killed me

Esther was doing her underwater scene here
(it was very cold) as a challenge to my increasingly cowardly self. Like the pool at Stellenbosch, there were a few aborted attempts and expletives before I managed full submersion but I did it and paddled about gamely, enough time to capture it on camera and make like Esther Williams, before getting out of there as fast as I could. The other one managed only a big toe, the big girl’s blouse.

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