Blind date during load shedding leads to unforgettable night

This past Valentine’s Day, I went on an unforgettable blind date in Addo village (as opposed to the nearby national park) in the Eastern Cape. It wasn’t meant to be a blind date – and it wasn’t in the traditional sense – but Eskom intervened and we could scarcely see each other … let alone our food. My lady friend and I arrived at Molo Lolo Restaurant and Cooking School just as dusk was descending into dark.

She commented on the romantic ambience as we were seated outside along with a full complement of patrons: there were discreet candles on the table and just a few lights on inside, most of them illuminating the hot kitchen.

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Western Europe chefs teach locals

It took a few minutes for the low rumble of the generator to register. Molo Lolo (“Hello, Lolo” in isiXhosa, Lolo being the French-born owner and principal of the school) is a skills development and upliftment project serving the generally impoverished community of Addo. Volunteer chefs come from Western Europe to teach locals on internships the fundamentals of fine dining and top-class restaurant service.

This is one heck of a learning curve at the best of times. A full house of foreign tourists during load shedding does not constitute “the best of times”. I’m not sure whether it was the wine, but my partner and I were in fits of giggles as the night wore on; imagine using your cellphone torch or camping headlamps to see what you’re eating.

There was a cheer when the power came back on and strands of twinkling lights transformed Stygian blackness into a fairy tale garden scene. Not that many people were complaining: the food was excellent – especially the starters and desserts – and the experience gave everyone a story with which to regale their friends in Scandinavia, the Low Countries, Britain and Germany (judging by the accents we could hear). Booking is essential because Molo Lolo is a real gem and great value for money.

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So, too, is Chrislin African Lodge. I’ve been going to Chrislin for more than a decade and love the place dearly. It’s a three-star, child friendly establishment embodying all that is wonderful about Eastern Cape tourism and hospitality. The property is sprawling, the immaculately kept lawns dotted with fruit trees and flower beds.

As you can imagine, the birdlife is magnificent. The cottages and rondavels – some semi-detached, others free standing – are all thatch and mud but rusticity ends at the front door: all are en-suite with shower, serviced daily, feature fridges and tea/coffee stations, plus percale linen on the beds. All the rooms have ceiling fans but our newer Sunset Hut also boasted air-conditioning and a small lounge area … the latter in addition to a stoep from which to enjoy the sunsets.

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Accomodation

Accommodation is offered on a bed-and-breakfast basis, though guests can arrange to have a reasonably priced three-course dinner at the in-house Sneezewoods restaurant. Rose-marie and I did a fair bit of dining out during our nine-day Eastern Cape road trip and by far the standout meal was the chicken butter curry prepared by Sneeze woods chef Jéan Boucher in the informal dining lapa.

One of the attractions of Chrislin is the owner-management of Linda Pickels and her son Chris, who was roped into the business when his brother David and family emigrated to the Antipodes a couple of years ago. Chris is a hunting, fishing Eastern Cape boytjie who simultaneously (with his wife Terri) operates Crisscross Adventures with verve and good cheer.

Their activity range includes guided game drives to Addo Elephant National Park, quad-biking, sandboarding and sledding, and canoeing safaris as well as sundowner cruises on the Sundays River. The river gives its name to the Sundays River Valley, a verdant district best known for citrus farming and eco-tourism. The river rises just south of Graaff-Reinet in the Eastern Cape Karoo and flows into the Indian Ocean at Colchester. It only flows through the northernmost section of park for a short stretch into Darlington Dam.

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History of the Darlington Dam

The history of Darlington Dam – and consequently that of the Sundays River Valley – revolves largely around the self-interest of Sir Percy Fitzpatrick, author of Jock of the Bushveld. Fitzpatrick arrived in the valley in 1913. He liked what he saw and bought a few farms, figuring the area was perfect for citrus cultivation. Year-round water was a problem, however, and Fitzpatrick realised a dam would have to be built. For this to happen, the citrus-farming industry would have to be far larger than it was and the adventurer launched a devious scheme. Just after World War 1, Fitzpatrick compiled a series of brochures and advertisements in the British press that aimed at enticing ex-servicemen to South Africa.

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They were illustrated with American orange orchards because there was nothing in the Sundays River Valley but bush. Fitzpatrick wasn’t popular with the new wave of settlers, most of whom had no farming experience but his ruse succeeded* and the SA government was “conned” into building Lake Mentz (as the dammed area was originally named).

Building was completed in 1922 but, due to drought, it only filled six years later … in the process submerging the hamlet of Darlington. I’ve been to Darlington when water levels were so low that tops of the old houses jutted above the surface but, this year, rains in the catchment area were so good the dam was overflowing. Not only were the concrete irrigation canals into the downstream orchards filled to their brims – it astounded Rose-marie and I to see kids swimming in these turbulent steep-sided streams – but the river was still pushing strongly when it looped past Addo into Colchester and towards the sea.

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Sunset cruise

Chris had invited the two of us and a couple of German tourists to join him on a sunset cruise from Colchester to the river mouth and the largest coastal dune sea in the southern hemisphere. Yes, you read that correctly: the Colchester dunes cover a greater area than those around Swakopmund and Walvis Bay in Namibia. With the howling winds for which the Eastern Cape is renowned, you would be forgiven for thinking you were a foot in a desert as you battled to a crest with a sandboard tucked under your arm.

Coming down is a lot easier (and much more fun) than going up. Fitzpatrick was apparently forgiven because his grave (he died in 1931) lies just outside Sundale which, together with Kirkdale and Addo, are the three settlements at the heart of the Sundays River Valley. He lies there with the rest of his family, most of whom predeceased him. The site, known as The Lookout, was subsequently donated to the community and declare.

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