We thought we’d take a moment during our quieter winter period to show some gratitude to our suppliers, the people that create the beautiful produce that we serve with pride. We very seriously support local. It’s very close to our heart. It’s a way of paying our guests’ generosity forward and helping to sustain our local country community. This month, we focus on The Earth Centre Swellendam, our corner ethically-sourced veggie, fruit,...
The Hidden Letters in Swellendam South Africa
This is a very special romantic story and one I’m so happy to share.
Even before we’d discovered Swellendam South Africa, Richard found this old couch on one of his antique store trawls in 2002. He bought it. It sat in a pile of building rubble for the many years that we’ve been restoring and building our Schoone Oordt country hotel. This past winter, whilst breathing new life into the rooms, kitchen and garden, Richard also found the time to ‘potter’ on restoring the couch in his workshop.
This is what it looked like lying outside Schoone Oordt and pre-restoration:The restoration project of this beautiful old piece of furniture is perhaps a story enough, but what makes this truly memorable, is that two old letters dating back to World War Two were found hidden down the side. Obviously stuck there in anger or pain and forgotten. They conjure a story of love, of hurt, of betrayal and leave us wondering whatever happened to the people in the story. For privacy reasons, we haven’t posted the letters so that you can read them, but if you recognise the writing, do let us know, we’d love to return them to their rightful.
And after many hours of pottering in Richard’s true perfectionist style, here is the finished couch proudly displayed in our beautiful Honeymoon Suite. Thank you for the gorgeous pictures Wander & Sonette Bester (our management couple extraordinaire!).
Further Reading
We are beyond grateful for everyone’s support. Thank you! We had a good summer season and a not so bad winter season after all. Obviously not the same as usual, but enough to keep us going. A HUGE thank you for that. So grateful for our truly wonderful team who knuckle down, work exceptionally hard and pull through with huge smiles and warm supportive hearts. Speaking of fantastic staff… Look at what...
I’m sure that you’re all tired of hearing about the GourmetGetaways, but this is a quick thank you to all that joined us. Thank you for your appreciation, your enthusiasm and your support! They were a roaring success and truly assisted us in making it through these very quiet winter months.
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