Published: 18/01/2012 by Alison Beere - www.CapeTownMagic.com

Any one who knows him will tell you that my husband is seldom at a loss for words. But when it does happen, his eyebrows still manage to speak volumes.

On this particular occasion they shot swiftly towards his hairline and the words "He has got to be kidding us?" were writ eloquently across his forehead.

"Why?" you might well ask.
I'll put you out of your misery...

We had just made the acquaintance of Joseph at Auberge Rozendal and along with a mischievous, welcoming grin, his first words were
“Please accept a complimentary glass of our house speciality...
...digestive vinegar!”

As it turned out, kidding us was the last thing on Joseph's mind. Instead, digestive vinegar turned out to be the first of a number of delightful surprises in store for us during our recent romantic getaway sans kids.

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A getaway was well overdue - it had been a hectic few months
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Between the coming and going of in-laws, parents, commuting business partners, and the usual ferrying of kids to and fro, there had been little time for Rest and Recuperation. Added to that, my brother and his wife owed us a weekend of child-minding and those sorts of debts are best collected while fresh.

With a sigh of anticipatory pleasure we booked and planned our escape.

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Oops! Not so fast...
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We might have known that Murphy's law would kick in as Saturday dawned. That school function we had thought would be over by 11am... ? It was only starting at 1.30pm.

And the light aircraft which only had one functioning wheel and needed to be moved from one place to another - that urgently needed to be done that day, too.

Urgh! As it turned out we could do that second chore on the way, because we were heading right past the airfield to get to Stellenbosch.

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What was the attraction in Stellenbosch?
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Apart from the fact that it's one of our country’s oldest and most characterful towns, it's also so very close.

And being THE original Winelands town, it's brim-full of Cape Dutch history and architecture which makes it a fun place to explore on foot at a leisurely pace.

The establishment we decided upon was Auberge Rozendal, which is part of an organic wine farm on the outskirts of Stellenbosch. In short the perfect blend of town and countryside, space and convenience.

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Town and countryside is what makes the Cape the perfect destination
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The fact that within easy reach of the city's convenience you can reach the countryside and get away from it all in a very short time.

I love to have wide open spaces around me even when I am not miles from civilisation. It's partly to ensure that the kids will have room to run wild without disturbing other guests, but it works just as well for me when the children don’t form part of the picture at all.

And that’s why Rozendal first caught my eye - it looked like just that sort of place. When the opportunity came up Auberge Rozendal was always going to be somewhere I wanted to check out first hand.

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Did our choice live up to its promise?
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It certainly did!

It was perfect for a peaceful, reconnecting weekend away. Without aspiring to be the height of luxury, it’s just very, very comfortable.

(As an aside, I always have my eye out for family-friendly accommodation and this is perfect inter-leading family rooms that mean you end up tiptoeing past a sleeper couch en route to bed.)

We arrived on Saturday afternoon – a little frazzled and somewhat later than we had planned. We opted to eat In House, which gave us plently of time to settle and take a nap before stretching our legs with a brisk walk through local environs. Finally it was time to freshen up and head for dinner.

And that was when we met Joseph.

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Joseph – the man of many cattle
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Joseph is the maitre d’ and chief waiter in the dining room. Clad in an African caftan, he was a characterful and charming host.

I recognised his regional accent and it tickled him no end when I identified myself as a fellow Zimbabwean.

Unlike many of his countrymen, Joseph is not a recent economic refugee - it turns out he has been in South Africa some 20 years, working all along for the same family. And he has travelled with them throu gh Europe, giving him valuable insight into what overseas visitors might expect.

Joseph's wife has clearly put her years in hospitality to good use because she runs the kitchen and produced a delicious salmon trout tartare as a starter, followed by pan-fried fillet - cooked slightly beyond our instruction of medium rare, but succulent nonetheless. We washed all that down with a bottle of Rozendal’s own organic red before indulging in a rich chocolate mousse and heading for our room.

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A starry stroll made a tranquil end to the day
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And with the complete absence of street lights and city noise, we awoke the next day feeling refreshed and cocooned from the world.

We enjoyed a hearty breakfast (taken indoors, although fellow guests proved hardier and enjoyed the cool Spring morning out on the terrace and then set off to wander around the heart of Stellenbosch.

We poked our inquisitive noses in to every corner of the Botanical Gardens (what a lovely conservatory thingy they have) as well as Kerk St, Dorp St and the like. Our single disappointment was that the local Tourist Information bureau had run out of English versions of the self-guided walking tour pamphlet – we had been looking forward to making good use of that...

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So, what were the highlights of our weekend?
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Joseph, the one and only! In the course of numerous conversations we discovered that he is the proud owner of 500 head of cattle which he visits and tends once a year.

the farm's digestive fynbos vinegar. It's matured for 12 years in oak barrels and has an amazinng soothing effect on the digestion!

the enormous owl that swooped in and scared the life out of the guinea fowl that were rootling around under the huge old oak trees... and then in turn got the firght of its life when it realised that two hum ans had not only invaded its patch but were also watching it intently!

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Stellenbosch in summary
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Stellenbosch is the perfect weekend destination or add-on to a visit to Cape Town.

It is just 35 minutes away and combines old-time charm and historical architecture with a fairly laid-back, country atmosphere.

You can see much of the town on foot in the course of a morning, and there are loads of interesting nooks to explore and eateries to choose from.

For the more active, the Jonkershoek nature reserve is nearby offering great mountain biking and hiking.

Whether you travel with or without children and regardless of whether you feel your digestion needs the help of vinegar, the Auberge offered us a refreshing change of pace and we recommend it unreservedly!

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Next Step:
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Visit www.CapeTownMagic.com for more information about holidaying around the Cape Peninsula and Winelands...

:)