It’s not just the bees…

When spring arrives in our valley, it blossoms and is filled with the sound of busy bees.  It’s not only the bees who are busy:  the valley emerges from what is usually a cold and wet winter, into a flush of festivals and fun events.  This weekend was no exception.  McGregor is home to a relatively recent addition to the mountain bikers’ calender:  the Ride2Nowhere.  As I’ve mentioned before, the road past our house is the road to nowhere:  it takes you through a beautiful valley, up past the Lord’s Cellar, and into the mountains, and when you look back, it seems as though you can see forever.

View to McG from R2N

It is up the Road to Nowhere, and around through our valley, as well as the Lord’s wine cellar, that this mountain bike race takes place.

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For three days, the church hall and the ground next to it, become a hive of activity:  it’s the start and end point of each day’s race, and it is also the place where the riders and their families gather and socialise.  Village establishments provide sustenance – Carol’s Pub, Lord’s Winery and Lord’s Guest Lodge. Fiona’s Favourites was there, too.

For those of us working, the weekend was particularly special:  as we were setting up on Friday afternoon, the news came that the Lord’s 2014 Sauvignon Blanc was awarded gold in the Michelangelo International Wine Awards.  This is the third year in succession that they have won gold:   in 2012 for their 2009 Shiraz, and in 2013, two, for their 2010 Shiraz and their 2011 Pinot Noir.  What a celebration!

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Back to the bees.  A few months ago, a bee keeper from the valley was looking for places to put hives.  Following a visit, and after hearing that we have, in our two sprints, had at least three swarms traverse our property, he decided that we would have an empty hive.  The bees are busy, but our hive is still empty.  We wait…

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Long, leisurely, Lord’s

We are very lucky to live in a beautiful valley that produces wonderful wine and creates fabulous opportunities for celebrating not just wine, but its talented cellar masters and wine makers.  The Robertson Slow Festival is unique.  It is a genteel, intimate and relaxed festival that spreads itself through the valley.  People come together in a multitude of places, including working cellars – like the one up the road from where we live. 2014-07-19 15.42.26 The Lord’s Cellar is, literally, on the Road to Nowhere.  One must choose to go there –  like one chooses to come to McGregor.  You cannot decide to drop in on your way past.  That’s part of the reason we like McGregor, and Lord’s.  The other reasons are the people – and the wine!  Lord’s wines make any occasion special2014-08-09 16.46.45 Late on Saturday afternoon, we headed up the Road to Nowhere.  The day had started off cool and misty, but had cleared into a beautiful, balmy spring afternoon.  We were greeted, as always, by the ever gracious host, Jacie Oosthuizen.  Lord’s (named for the cricket ground and his passion for the game)  is his brainchild, and is a boutique winery nestled in the mountains and surrounded by fynbos.  Winter is when fynbos is at its most beautiful, so this evening showcased some of the Western Cape’s most beautiful flora. 2014-08-09 17.08.49       It was a slow, relaxed afternoon and evening of friends (new and not-so-new) and families associated with Lord’s, Jacie and his wife, the wine maker, Ilse Schutte, her husband and family who were responsible for the traditional Suid Afrikaanse poitjie kos (South African “little pot” food), home made bread and brownies…   The time flew – wonderful conversation about life and wine, live music provided by our neighbour, Konrad, that had some of us dancing…not quite on the tables, but dancing, nevertheless…2014-08-09 20.58.27

Eating to Live

Friday, 18 July 2014, in McGregor dawned:  a cold, blustery morning.  It was also the first Mandela Day since his death in December 2013;  he would have been 95.  Later that day I was  heading down to our local community service centre (aka the police station) to join a sandwich drive.

This, juxtaposed with my my rant, the previous evening, about dieting fads and food foibles, got me thinking about how privileged I am, to be able not just to have the pleasure of cooking, but of food, in all its glory, when there are people, literally down the road, who do eat to live – when they can.

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For the last two years, a young McGregorite has organised this initiative.  This must have taken Mira much more than just the 67 minutes she asked of us to give, to organise.

 

 

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So, a bunch of us, of all colours and creeds, from all walks of life, gathered at around 11h00, to make sandwiches.

By about 11h45, this happy band of volunteers had made this huge mound of sandwiches to go with the soup that came from Lord’s Guest Lodge.

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I didn’t just join the sandwich drive, I also joined the convoy to deliver the sandwiches and soup.  First, to the Breede Centre which runs a holiday programme of for local children, then on to the informal settlement and the poorest parts of our village.

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The sandwiches and hot soup, along with the treats made a difference – at least for a short while.

 

For me, there was also a weird moment.  There was a time that it would have been inconceivable that I would set foot in a police station to be part of a community initiative:  the police represented the oppressors and meted out their orders.  These orders were usually punitive and harsh;  they certainly did not include feeding people in informal settlements.

Much remains to be done in our country and village of poor and plenty, but that I, and my fellow sandwich-makers were able to comfortably join this initiative, is a consequence of Nelson Mandela who gave 67 years of selfless service.  Halala, Tata.