A personal experience of living in the Overberg, Western Cape, South Africa. Copyright images: Herman van Bon Photography
Between Swellendam and Bredasdorp
(Retrospective 2019)
A poem by J’burg based writer/poet Jenny Santiago written in 2014:
Still your mind … Delight,
Contrasts and wonder.
Take your time, do not hurry –
Reflect and ponder.
Let your soul run free,
Filled with nature’s glory.
As Land, Mountains and Sea,
Now reveals the Overberg’s Story.
Landscapes painted – Green, Gold,
Plush red, yellow and brown.
Fynbos, Wildflowers, Cone bushes,
Sunlit Canola field, cascade down.
Rugged Mountain ranges,
Two giants colliding in open sea.
Memories of yesteryear, Ship wrecks –
Guarded treasures, you’re now the trustee.
Myriad of small little towns for you to seer.
Grabouw, Caledon, now in Napier,
An unlikely man builds a giant sundial here.
Stars and shadows of the sun his only teacher.
Bredasdorp, Aniston, down to L’Agulhas and Struisbaai,
Two towns separated by a bend called Spookdraai.
Where the ghosts of a man and young woman are said to roam.
Spirits of discontented souls, shipwrecks once their home.
L’Agulhas, place where the wind is molded and made,
Agaze you watch, Indian and Atlantic’s constant crusade.
Slanting rocks, resembling a thousand needles.
Windswept, rugged, beautiful, a lighthouse its steeple.
West of Elim – East of Gans Bay lays Baardskeerdersbos,
Named after a spider causing you hair loss.
While you sleep it prays on your hair.
Popular myth? Spend the night in open air.
Thank you Overberg for sharing your Story.
Souls now filled with beauty and glory.
We will meet again, place of guarded treasures.
An experience beyond all measures.
One of the numerous places off the beaten track in South Africa: Napier Mountain with its magnificent views that even on a hazy day (when the pictures were shot) reach 50 kilometer and further (with a 300mm lens). Imagine seeing 10,000 square kilometer below your toes while making a turn of 360 degrees. That includes the Southernmost tip of the African Continent and places like Elim, Struisbaai, Caledon and Arniston. And at the foothills in the valley is Napier. Another ‘attraction’ in the mountain is a walk to the Bat Cave. It’s a moderate hike but watch out for the bee swarms once you enter the cave.
Recently national South African broadcaster SABC aired a series of 2 about the Overberg village of Napier; the village from which this blog is operated. Other Overberg villages broadcasted were Swellendam, Bredasdorp and Stanford. The difference is that the Napier series shows a great mix of people from all walks of life. That makes this place very special.
