Casablanca Cafe is an old-fasioned Cafe with posters of legendary Hollywood movies on the walls.
The sun is low on the horizon as we drive into De Rust. There’s not a breath of wind and the air is filled with the gentle chirr-chirr and crick-crick of insects.
The main road is a long downhill. First there’s a shimmering farmdam on the left. The dam is full – it’s been a good year for rain. Then there’s a sign that asks truck drivers not to use their air brakes. And then you spot the first Pam Golding sign – as close to a rural seal of authority as it comes. You can buy a house in De Rust for about R600000 and a plot for about R450000 – hey, that’s under a million!
In a way, De Rust has always attracted people wanting to take a rest. Even before it was a village, its location in the shadow of the Swartberg next to the Groot River was the ideal spot to outspan before tackling the formidable Meiringspoort with a wagon and a team of oxen.
The original horse trail through the poort 1 was laid out by Petrus Johannes Meiring, in the days before there was a pass over the Swartberg. Luck was on Meiring’s side when he arrived in the Olifants River valley from Worcester early in the 19th century. He got a job on a farm named De Rust, at the mouth of the poort. When its owner Martinus Bekker died, Petrus married his widow and became master of the farm.
The village was laid out in 1900.
Meiring is a common surname in De Rust, and so is Schoeman. Schoeman Street (above) is only a kilometre long but it is the heartbeat of the town. It’s where you’ll find the post office, the Groen Bliktrommel, a grocery store, the bank, a handful of restaurants, shops, a gallery and the tourism bureau.
The first De Rust resident we encounter as we step out of the car is Abraham Afrika, who has bunches of purple sewejaartjies for sale. “R20 a bunch… no, for you two for R20,” he cajoles. I buy two.
The first Schoeman we meet is 84-year-old Oom Tom, who has a gallery in his house 2.
At the De Rust Tuisnywerheid we get a warm reception from At and Sannie Botha 3 . They sell some of the best dried fruit and nuts around, as well as giant
watermelons.
We’re lured into the Village Trading Post by a cool spray of mist outside the door. It’s owned by Niekie Eksteen and Soan Jacobs. Originally from Centurion, they drove through De Rust in 2006, saw a house for sale and moved in three months later.
At The Plough, also on the main road, you can tuck into a hearty 300g ostrich (R42) or a delicious plough platter (R45) 4 .
The Casablanca Café is a real old-fashioned café with colour posters of legendary Hollywood movies such as The Wizard of Oz, Twilight of the Gods and, of course, Casablanca 5 .
“They’re all original posters,” says owner Roy Shamley. “When I was a schoolboy I used to go to the bioscope and ask for them.”
Armed with a pamphlet on old buildings and a map from the tourism bureau (at the end of Schoeman Street), I find myself at the Bakhuis, where Ilse Pringle makes the most beautiful glassware 6 .
“We don’t bake bread here any more, just glass,” Ilse says.
But this was once a real bakery, where Mrs Dora de Villiers baked bread for the whole district – including Klaastroom on the far side of the poort and even Prince Albert, about 80km away.
De Rust is full of historical buildings – all within walking distance. Vredelus, the original farmstead, is at the bottom end of town. Before the church was built, the local congregation often held the communion service under the mulberry trees on the farm.
They must have been a hardy lot, because it gets seriously hot in De Rust in the height of summer. “You can fry an egg on your bonnet,” the attendant at the town’s only pump tells us. Even the chocolates at Herrie se Plek have to be stored in the fridge.
Carlo Maclahlan at the tourism bureau says you should lie on your bed until 4pmwith the fan on – only then does it become bearable to step outside.
A place where an afternoon snooze is mandatory? This sounds like our kind of town...
1. Look for a mermaid
Meiringspoort, the legendary passage through a dramatic cleft in the Swartberg, starts about 2 km from De Rust.
The road through the poort is 21 km long and crosses the Groot River 25 times.
The causeways have interesting names such as Skelmdrif, Perskeboomdrif, Ontploffingsdrif and Laastedrif. (Get a brochure at the tourism bureau in town for the stories behind the names.) There are quite a few picnic spots in the poort, but it’s mandatory to stop at the waterfall, about 11 km from De Rust. Only five minutes’ walk from the parking area, water tumbles 60 m into a deep, dark pool where, according to local legend, a mermaid lives.
During the floods of 1996, the story was that the mermaid had been washed out to sea. A local radio station reported that she was captured and put in a tank at the CP Nel museum in Oudtshoorn, causing a bit of a stir. But the elusive mermaid remains at large.
One of the reasons the mermaid legend is kept alive in this area is because local rock art features creatures with fish tails. A seer claims to have made contact with the mermaid, and found out that her name is Eporia…
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2. Liquorice allsorts
Dysselsdorp lies 13,5km from De Rust on the road towards Oudtshoorn.
You can’t help noticing “Die Kruisberg”. On top of the hill is a white church, reached via a twisting footpath known as the Via Dolorosa.
This little Catholic church was built in 1978 by the priest, Father Rankel, and parishioners. On Good Friday every year, people from all over the country gather here for an Easter pilgrimage.
There’s a lovely view of the village from the top of the hill.
Dysselsdorp’s liquorice factory, which is open to visitors, is the only one of its kind in South Africa. The liquorice plant (Glycrrhiza glabra) flourishes on the banks of the Olifants River outside Dysselsdorp. You can also pop in at the dried fruit factory.
Contact: Book in advance to visit the liquorice factory. Call 083 922 2474.
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3. Beautiful redheads…
The best place to see De Rust’s famous RedHills (Mons Ruber) is on the farmRietvallei, about 10km outside De Rust. The red hollowed cliffs are one of the few instances where Enon conglomerate, a reddish, muddy type of rock, is visible above-ground.
In 1925 the Prince of Wales visited and was apparently so impressed that he insisted the rest of the royal family also come and see them. Princess Elizabeth (the future queen) and her parents returned in 1947. The Queen Mother was performing a ceremonial ostrich feather- cutting in the area when an inquisitive ostrich stole the limelight by pecking at a diamond earring worn by one of the ladies-in-waiting. Fortunately the earring landed on the ground, and was retrieved before the ostrich could swallow it.
Photographs of the visit can be seen at the small museum section in the farm’s wine-tasting room.
Contact: 044 251 6550
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4. Grand old things
Drop in at Schoeman’s Gallery in Roberson House to see Tom Schoeman’s collection of antiques. An architect named WB Robertson designed the house in 1903 for the pretty young bride of a Mr du Plessis.
“That was during the time when ostrich feathers were still expensive, but then the bottom fell out of the market and everybody went bankrupt,” Tom explains. “They thought ostrich feather would always be in vogue. When I bought the place, it was falling apart.”
Tom has been running the gallery for the past 16 years. During this time he has amassed an impressive collection of antique porcelain, Oriental carpets, books, records and sheet music. Look closely at the portraits on the wall to see if you can spot the picture of Tom at age 21.
Contact: 044 241 2185
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5. Take a donkey drawn taxi
Have you ever taken a ride on a donkey cart?
The people of De Rust are very proud of their donkeys. In 2004 they founded the De Rust Donkey Awareness Project as well as a club for donkey owners.
The donkeys in the project are all still working animals. They pull carts that carry people, wood and all sorts of other goods. Thanks to a few sponsors, they’ve been able to buy materials for leather harnesses for the new carts, and the old carts were rebuilt and repainted.
The donkey carts are also used for parties and weddings. Find them behind the tourism bureau.
De Rust is on the N12 and the R62, and is a perfect overnight stop. It’s 35km from Oudtshoorn, between the Swartberg and the Kammanassie mountains.
Meiringspoort is celebrating its 150th anniversary during the De Rust Ostrich Festival from 11 to 13 July. The Meiringspoort Half Marathon is held on 18 October. Use De Rust as a base if you’re attending the Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees around Easter (it’s close enough to Oudtshoorn but far enough from the festival’s hustle and bustle). Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy fishing, birding, 4x4 trails, cycling or hiking. Find out more at the tourism office.
Keep in mind there is only a Standard Bank ATM in town.
• Jeremy and Sharon Witts- Hewinson, owners of the Klaarstroom Guest House beyond Meiringspoort, will make you feel right at home in this restored Victorian house. Contact: 082 488 8370; www.klaarstroom.co.za
• Susan and Anton Schoeman’s Die Gat guest house is about 3km from De Rust on the road to Middelplaas. It’s one of the oldest buildings in the region. You can sleep in a real ox-wagon, which the kids should find a treat. Contact: 044 241 2406; 082 779 1672
• Jan and Maggie Fourie’s Oudemuragie Guest Farm is birdwatching and hike a trail. Th scenic Oudemuragie road will take you to the Cango Caves, only 35km away. Contact: 044 241 2146; 072 158 8309; www.oudemuragie.co.za
• The Stompdrift Dam Water Resort, 6km from De Rust, has a restaurant and offers lots of activities. Stay over in a chalet, a tent in the bush camp, a hut in the safari camp or your own tent. Contact: 044 241 2087; www.stompdriftdam.co.za
• The Oulap Country House, in the Olifants River Valley, belongs to the well-known filmmaker Jans Rautenbach. Pop in and listen to some interesting stories. Contact: 044 241 2250
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Comments
Submitted on 3 January 2011 | 08:35:07
Ek is op soek na n eksemplaar van die donkie engel geskryf deur tom schoeman. Ek sal dit baie waardeer indien iemand my daarmee kan help. Martie Muller.
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