Kaapsehoop {travel}

There is a little town in South Africa that has only about 200 residents, where you are greeted with a signpost that its children, dogs and horses run free - it is the only place in South Africa where wild herds of horses occur, with the closest other place in Namibia.

This is Kaapsehoop. Or Kaapschehoop. 

It has a bit of an identity crisis.

Pic via Visit to The Park

About 35 kms from Nelspruit, the only telltale sign that there is a little dorpie in the rocky koppies is the roadsigns. I asked Flip to stop about one kilometre outside the town to take pics of the koppies and I didn't even notice it.

The dorpie was started when gold prospectors found some of the precious metal, but it wasn't as abundant as nearby Pilgrims Rest or Johannesburg. Could you imagine if you Johannesburg was situated here?

Upon arrival we settled in the garden of the Bohemian Groove Cafe, where owner Andrea Fourie told me all about the pleasures and gripes of living in a little dorpie. We enjoyed a few hurried drinks, as the sun was setting and we still wanted to see some of the town, and the cold was tiptoeing its way over the horizon. The fact that it is some 1 468 m above sealevel means that it can get real cold - but is also a good thing, as it keeps the mosquitoes at bay in the malaria-ridden Mpumalanga. Andrea's American Bulldog Pablo invited us in with his charm and was a sweet treat for me, as I am a huge dog fan and was already missing my furries at home. He was very happy to see us.

Funny story: I went to use the ladies when we arrived while Flip got us a table. When I walked outside, I saw the dog first and then the very handsome stranger. I was approaching the stranger to ask him if I can play with his dog when I realised that this handsome stranger was in fact my husband. He wore a hat, which I'm not used to. 

With plenty of charming little guesthouses, I think this dorpie will make a brilliant little weekend breakaway, as it isn't too far from all the picturesque attractions in the lowveld. {More on these attractions to come in the next few weeks}, I was just in love with the crisp, clear blue sky, the autumn-red Sycamore trees that coloured the dusty streets, the little ticky tacky houses on the hillsides, the air-so-fresh it burns your lungs, the people and the art. It was like a little piece of heaven.

It is true that dogs roam free in the streets, as we were surrounded and accompanied by all the town's dogs on our walk. I can only dream of retiring in such a fairytale setting.