A relaxed conclusion

We take it easy during the last weeks of our South Africa trip, staying on the tourist paths, wanting to enjoy the landscape, culture, and good wine one last time before our journey and sabbatical year come to an end for good. Our first destination is the Midlands, the gentle foothills of the Drakensberg. Green slopes, rivers and ponds, lush pastures with cows and horses, prosperous farms, and picturesque villages give us the feeling of being in England or Scotland, especially since the weather has become cool and rainy. The area, developed and influenced by the English, is known for the Midlands Meander, a kind of holiday road that winds through the countryside. Created by local artists and craftsmen in the 1980s, the Meander connects villages, museums, galleries, workshops, farm shops, restaurants, and small, stylish accommodations. We let ourselves drift, visit more or less talented artists, tasteful farm shops, and unspeakable knick-knack shops. A 'must-see' is the visit to Capture Side. Here, on the R103, Nelson Mandela was arrested on August 5, 1962. 50 years later, an impressive monument was erected: 50 steel columns between 6 and 9 meters high create Mandela's portrait when viewed from a certain angle. A long way to the right viewpoint informs on 27 tablets for each year of captivity about Mandela's long journey to freedom, a small museum provides background material.

We are slowly approaching a small highlight of our Africa trip, even though it is hard to determine a highlight with so many experiences. Before our trip, we got ourselves a wildcard, i.e. an annual pass for all nature parks and reserves in South Africa. In a newsletter, we learned about a special event in the Golden Gate Highlands National Park. A weekend in this particularly beautiful park with overnight stay in a hotel, breakfast and dinner, and two extraordinary concerts. Treat yourself. But before the concert weekend, we will first visit the town of Clarens, one of the most beautiful and nicest towns in South Africa. Here, too, we can expect plenty of cozy cafes, arts and crafts stores, and above all, lots of knick-knacks, everything a tourist desires. Luckily, we are only allowed to take 20 kg of luggage per person on the plane, which dampens the shopping fever and saves our wallet. In the evening, we take a little car trip to the Golden Gate Highlands Park. This park is famous for its spectacular sunsets, and since the sun is shining from a bright blue sky, we want to see this spectacle. And indeed, as the sun sets, the rock landscape shines in all shades of gold and red, and the park lives up to its name. Now we are even more looking forward to the weekend in the park.

There are problems during check-in, the management of the Golden Gate Classics has actually messed up our reservation and is now trying to transfer us to a hotel in the next town. We are disappointed and angry and not ready to accept this. 'Contenance' was yesterday, and we make our dissatisfaction clear to the manager, which soon leads to us getting the bridal suite and being able to stay. But this bumpy start is really the only thing that is not great about this weekend. On Friday, we enjoy an incredible buffet and then experience two South African jazz greats, Nduduzo Makhatini and singer Lindiwe Maxolo, in an intimate concert. We meet Veronica and Neill, who share their wine with us and with whom we arrange to meet again the next evening. On Saturday, we first go out into the fresh air. We appreciate the beauty of the park during a short hike before resting to be fit for the evening. The start of the classical concert is delayed as a heavy hailstorm comes down. But it doesn't cause any further damage, and during the waiting time, we are treated to delicious canapés. On the classical stage, the Free State Symphony Orchestra plays, singers from the Gauteng Opera Ensemble do their best, and conductor Kutlwano Marode moderates so amusingly and wittily that even for a classical music sceptic like Barbara, the evening is a real pleasure. During the break, there is another magnificent buffet, and we reciprocate Veronica and Neill for their wine contribution from the previous evening and enjoy another unforgettable evening.

We have had a bit too much wine tonight, and getting up the next morning is correspondingly difficult. We want to slowly head towards Cape Town, but of course, we want to properly appreciate the sights along the way. Therefore, our first overnight stop will be in Beauford West, from where we can quickly reach the Karoo National Park. We arrive early at our accommodation and actually manage to take a short evening drive in the park. The next morning, our alarm goes off at 5 o'clock, and at 6 o'clock, we are back in the park to discover the many antelope species and mountain zebras in the first morning light. After the many spectacular animals in the previous national parks, antelopes and zebras may be a bit boring, but the mountainous desert park in the Karoo, where few visitors venture, is a gem and has a very special atmosphere. We like it a lot.

Afterwards, we head to Oudtshoorn. Here, our goal is not the ostrich farms for which the town is famous, but the Meiringspoort and the Swartberg Pass. The range of small and large Swartberg mountains separates the Great Karoo in the north from the Little Karoo. Meiringspoort is a picturesque and fascinating gorge that can be crossed on a well-built road. The highlight is undoubtedly one of South Africa's rare waterfalls. The size and infrastructure of the parking lot indicate that it is the tourist highlight of this area. Fortunately, there is hardly anything going on when we arrive, and of course, we also climb up the well-built path. The pretty little waterfall flows into a natural pool, and from the surrounding rocks, some youthful heroes and heroines dare more or less elegant jumps into the cool water, cheered and admired loudly by dozens of spectators. We also enjoy this spectacle for a while and then continue on our way through the gorge.

The next day, we cross the Swartberg Mountains on the Swartberg Pass and drive to the small artist town of Prince Albert. This road, built by architect Thomas Bain together with 250 prisoners between 1883 and 1886, is now one of the most beautiful mountain passes in the world. On the 27 km long stretch, you climb the 1,583-meter-high pass in numerous hairpin bends with stone boundaries protecting you from deep abysses. The untarred road forces a slow pace, allowing us to enjoy the spectacular views in peace. Upon arrival in Prince Albert, we take a short walk through the town and treat ourselves to a piece of homemade cake in the garden of a small restaurant. On the way back, we drive over the pass again and enjoy the view from the other side.

Actually, we want to skip the Cape Peninsula, as we already spent a lot of time there in 2014. But as luck would have it, Sibylle's cousin and his partner are also in South Africa at the same time, and since we never manage to meet in Freiburg, we take the opportunity for a small family reunion in Africa. We pick up Jürgen and Michaela for a joint dinner at their hotel and find out that they have reserved a table in the same restaurant as us for tonight. We tell them where we've been, and it turns out that we stayed at the same bed and breakfast in Oudtshoorn just two nights apart. With so much harmony, it can only be a nice evening! But we really have to repeat this meeting in Freiburg!

Since we are already here, we use the next day for an extensive tour of the Cape Peninsula and once again succumb to the beauty and wildness of this unique landscape. We like it so much that we drive to the Cape of Good Hope again the next day. The beautiful blooming fynbos, the roaring sea, the steep cliffs, and the windswept trees provide the perfect backdrop for a final hike in Africa.

We spend the last three days in a villa in Stellenbosch. Here, we have more than enough space to unpack and rearrange our suitcases, to pack our souvenirs carefully, and to consume our remaining supplies. Our kitchen has a washing machine and a dryer, and there is even a clothesline in the garden. So, we will come home with clean laundry. We spend a lot of time in our villa and our beautiful garden, visit one of the flea and farmer's markets that take place everywhere on weekends, and take a short trip to the sea. But actually, we use the time to calm down and come to terms with the fact that our sabbatical year is finally coming to an end with this trip.

We can't believe how quickly a year goes by. But when we look back through this blog, we can read and see again what we were allowed to experience and marvel at. We wrote this blog to give as many friends, relatives, acquaintances, and neighbors as possible the opportunity to accompany us on this journey. We were surprised and very happy that so many people followed our blog until the end. And of course, we were also very pleased with all the praise for our photos and our texts. And now, as our year is almost over, we realize that with this blog, we have given ourselves the greatest joy. After all, our dear Anna Oldenburg not only followed but also edited and processed our blog and provided it to us as a PDF. So now we have a real, own book in our hands not only from our South American trip but soon also from our South Africa journey.

That's it for us. We say thank you once again to everyone who encouraged, accompanied, and supported us, making this sabbatical year what it was for us:

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