Weskus Wonders

The Bond’s hit the road again to celebrate Heritage Day and the annual flower explosion on the West Coast of South Africa. Timing for the flower event is a bit tricky as the best viewing changes from year to year and on cloudy days the flowers fold up. We flew to Cape Town after attending the 10th Anniversary of the Peace Corps in South Africa and the new volunteer’s swearing in ceremony in Pretoria. A great kick-off for the botanical tour of the West Coast was a stop at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens in Cape Town, a world heritage site. The garden starts low and extends up the side of Table Mountain with acres of protea, succulents, cycads, fynbos and wildflowers, all in bloom. What is your favorite protea? The tiny red pin cushions, the vibrant orange and yellow or the obscene pale pink King with large beetles consuming its pollen? The panorama of Cape Town unfolds as one strolls up the grand grey mountainside.

We headed for the West Coast with no plans or itinerary. However the stay provided a rich assortment of sights and entertainment. The West Coast of South Africa is scenic, unspoiled and lovely. It reminded me so much of the Central coast of California with huge stretches of sand dunes, wildflowers, wild bluffs, breakers and little development. I felt at home and at peace in our small cottage by the sea in the fishing village of Paternoster, named after the prayer said by all fishermen as they go to sea. Paternoster is a 2 hour drive north west from Cape Town along the coast, going through wetlands, very small villages and unspoiled beaches. Paternoster is composed of whitewashed cement houses with tin roofs that look directly out unto the bay and sand dunes. The beach is covered with white and black clam shells that break down into fine sand. Hot pink wildflowers with black centers provide gaudy decorations for the scrub growing in the dunes. The beautiful beach is perfect for long walks to look for right whales, and enjoy the surf and the interesting white rock formations in the bay. After being confused for a year by the sunsets on the east coast of Africa, the sun set over the ocean providing beautiful sunsets and a sense of familiarity for a homesick So Cal Gal.

Paternoster was a great base for exploring the Weskus (West Coast). The first day was spent seeing the miles and miles of wildflowers and beach at the West Coast National Park. Yellows, purples, pinks, whites and oranges in beautiful tapestries silhouetting the rolling hillsides and beach. The northwest corner of the park known as the Postberg is open only during flower season. The fields of flowers are accented by the huge breakers crashing against the rocks in this rugged area.

Sunday we stumbled on the Cultivara Festival in Paarl. This is a three day festival of the arts combined with a food and wine festival. (a great play on this wine production area and the arts). We missed the Messiah by University of Stellenbosch but were able to get tickets to see the Two Blondes, Beethoven to Abba. The two fair haired damsels played classical and popular hits on two matching grand pianos with a running commentary in Afrikaans. Great listening and great music! We headed over to the Food and Wine tent after the piano concert for some live jazz, west coast wine tasting, chicken curry and strawberries with wonderful thick cream that has no rival in the US. The whole town of Paarl is used as a venue for the festival; the piano concert was held in the auditorium of the police academy. Paarl is named for the rounded granite peaks that surround the city that in certain light look like pearls.

Heritage Day (Sept. 24) produced surprise entertainment in Darling (wildflower central) and a confirmation that one person can change the world for the better, albeit in a quirky way. Pieter-Dirk Uys holds stage in the Darling train station (Afrikaans Perron) as Evita se Perron with satire that helped bring down Aparthied. He has daily shows with his monologue about world politics and injustice, always peppered with plenty of humor. He is dressed in full formal drag and is convincing as the saucy aunt that tells it like it is. Some of his best quotes “Apartheid is the pigment of the imagination”, “Hypocrisy is the Vaseline of political intercourse” , “The Future is Certain, the Past is Unpredictable.”

The Cederburg Mountains loom and beckon to the north of Paternoster so our last day was spent driving to the Cederburg for a rugged drive through the peaks and a hike to view the San cave paintings. The dirt road traversed wild geologic formations to a high plain where the caves were found. The four km trail leads to 10 cave sites with painting of mythical people and animals. Amazingly they resembled the cave painting we viewed in the Drakensburg Mountains 1000 km distant. The viewing is like a treasure hunt- the stone walls are intimately examined until the forms take their shape. Many of the paintings have several figures superimposed on each other. Dates are between 200 and 3000 years old. The San people were killed with just a few survivors remaining and very little known about the ancient culture or the significance of the man-beast forms. However, it is great fun to explore the caves and hunt for the treasure.

This trip had no preplanned itinerary or must-do requirements. It may be that the Peace Corps experience has taught that serendipity can be the most rewarding experience in life. The flowers may have been a little late for best viewing but we had a ball! We look forward to a trip next week to Kruger National Park with our son Erik for game spotting. Keep you posted!