Visit to Graaff Reinet..

Lunch with a legend....

I couldn't resist stealing a pic or two of these gorgeous sunflowers, supplied to the coffee shoppe by a local farmer's wife!!

We spent the day in the famous town of Graaf Reinet. It was nominated "Town of the Year in 2012" and also visited with the 'famous' Ira Maasdorp. She has featured in many magazines, books and TV shows; for her vast knowledge of the Karoo, Anglo Boer War and Antiques.


Aunty Ira is a wealth of knowledge and one never tires of her conversation. She knows something about every piece of furniture in her antique shop as well and some pieces have quite a history! We had lunch at this very quaint and beautiful nursery / florist / coffee shoppe!! Too delightful for words! These sunflowers were on the She owns the popular antique shop Reinette Antiques which lies on the main road through the town. You cannot miss it as it has 2x horse-drawn carts on the verandah / stoep. The house is very old and in 1947 when the King and Queen visited South Africa, they stayed in this house.

Ira Maasdorp.....a legend. One of my favourite people!

We had lunch with aunty Ira at this quaint coffee shoppe / nursery in Graaf Reinette.

We will pop into her famous antique shop tomorrow!
Thanks for stopping by!

The Karoo

Driving back from Mossel Bay....

Good morning.....

Hope you are all well? I can feel that temperatures are starting to drop during the evenings, which means that we are approaching Autumn one of these days! That would be "fall" for many people in other parts of the world.

As I was saying yesterday, we jumped into the sea and later headed back towards Aberdeen, in the Karoo. My dad in law was also anxious for us to get back as I think he was a bit lonely and missing us!

Some pics I took along the way back to Aberdeen. The Karoo is no longer a dry desert!! Hot!! Yes!! But very green and even lush in some places!

I did not have much time to take lots of photographs along the way as we were in a hurry!

WE stopped along the way when I saw some wild geese and tried to catch (camera) a mother goose with her brood, but they fled when they saw us stop the vehicle! They had been swimming in this pond! You can actually see her almost in the centre of the photograph, with her brood trailing behind her!!

I picked up this leopard tortoise along the road and moved it into the veld. Was too close to the pain road for my liking! My daughter (who's studying nature conservation) says its on the endangered list and one of the "small five"!! It insisted on wading through this puddle of water!

 As one turns into Aberdeen, you see the Camdeboo Mountains! Such a glorious view!

 Thanks for popping in! See you tomorrow! Hopefully I will show Aunty Ira's beautiful Antique shop!!

Hey!!!! I'm back again! Hope you are all well?

Before I continue with this post, I just have to mention that I feel very humbled having you all follow my Blog!! Thankyou very much from the bottom of my heart!! I believe that I am blessed to have the following people who also have their own Blogs or fb pages and ask that you pop in and pay them a visit! It will be worth your while! I love them all and follow them daily!! I also follow many other Blogs but will post their addresses at a later stage.  If I have left anybody out, please notify me immediately so I can add you to my list!

www.The Old Cupboard Door.blogspot.com,
www.deeatthecarlton.blogspot.co.uk,
www.tikisquiltroom.tumblr.com,

Rouge Cerise,
gdslayton,                             ...... please LIKE their pages on fb. They are also gorgeous!!
mrslianepearl,
Maude Motsdecoutoure,
Hekel/Crochet Accessories

 As I was saying earlier on, my blog is about life in South Africa and closer to home.....my heart ....... and all the things and people who matter to me and have formed me into the person I have become and who I believe God wants me to be! I LOVE being surrounded by beautiful things but also beautiful PEOPLE.
Thankyou all who touch my life and keep me going!! I love every person who reads my Blog and appreciate YOU!!

Anyway, let's get back to Mossel Bay.......

After our shopping and browsing, collected the (awkward & heavy!) Barber's Chair and chest, we headed down to the beach! Determined to wet our toes...to say the least....we jumped into the sea. The water was surprisingly warm - for the Atlantic Ocean!

The bay was very calm that day, so peaceful and serene. I just love the colour variations on the water.

Adrie and I both have a wild side to our natures ; more of a 'free spirit' and don't really care what other people think...... as you can see in these pics.

Is she gonna go in or what??

Shall I go in..?

Okay...

No!!!!.... I'm not having a 'widdle',!!!... just looking for shells!! Lol!!

I just love water and the sea! I grew up along the South Coast, Kwa Zulu, Natal, and my heart yearns for sea, salt and seagulls! Love swimming, playing in the waves and of course taking photographs!

 Thanks for stopping by once again! See you all tomorrow as we head back home and visit aunty Ira Maasdorp's amazing antique shop in Graaf Reinette!
Take care.

As promised....... Mossel Bay....

Hello, it's me again! I think I did mention that we did a short trip to Mossel Bay while we were in Aberdeen? Anyway I had to collect an old Barber's Chair and chest from a beautiful Antique shop in the town. So we left dad on Sunday afternoon and took a slow drive through Willowmore, Uniondale, George and then on to the Bay! We arrived in the late afternoon and found a beautiful guesthouse to spend the night in. I can't believe that I never took a pic of that guesthouse, but took one of The Green Door Lodge down the road!! I just loved the light contrast against the dark night. We passed this place whilst looking for a restaurant. Isn't it just beautiful?

I did at least capture the air vent in our room, with its ornate cast iron (i think?) cover.

Breakfast the following morning consisted of a selection of fruit juices, cereals,  yogurts, cheeses, coffee/tea, toast, jams and ......... this plate of food!

A view from outside our guesthouse the following morning!
But still no pic of our beautiful Historical homestead!!! ohhhh!! damn!! Sorry guys!

After breakfast we popped across the road to this fabulous Antique shop for a "quick" browse.
Adrie posing in front of an old car outside the shop door.

My turn....

 After much browsing and some shopping, we collected the chair and chest. They almost did not fit into my car!! Much squeezing and planning took place as i was determined not to leave anything behind!
Much to my horror... oil started leaking out from the base of the chair; onto my beautiful clean carpet, but we managed to control it with an old rag. Can you see the chest right up front? Just behind the front seats?

After much ado, we decided to have a quick "dip" in the sea before heading back to Aberdeen!

See you tomorrow.

Life in Aberdeen.....

Hello again!
I just want to share some heart-warming pics with you. These are of the locals 'doing their daily thing'.

The refuse bags are still collected the old fashioned way; by tractor and trailer. Plus we are greeted by friendly faces cheering us on!

Garden rubble and offcuts are collected by an old man who drives his donkey cart and charges a minimal fee to cart your garden refuse away.

Our neighbours kindly allowed us to cool off in their 'farm dam' / swimming pool. We really needed this after all the sanding, scraping and painting!!

Their pretty and secluded garden. ....view from the pool!

We decided to take a long walk one evening and caught this beautiful sunset! The colours took my breath away! It's as if God just slapped a bucket of rainbow paint across the sky! I'm humbled at how awesome He is!

Some TLC needed here.....

.........and here ......and they would turn into Karoo gems!

I really appreciate how the locals take pride in themselves and sweep the pavement on a daily basis. I also noticed that there is no litter lying around on the streets. Most of the roads are gravel, but that doesn't matter to them!

Thanks for stopping by! See you again tomorrow when we jet off to Mossel Bay for the day!