The Western Cape and Winelands
We’ve compiled the best of the best in The Western Cape and Winelands - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Elim
Little has changed in the last 200 years in the Moravian mission village of Elim, founded in 1824. Simple whitewashed cottages line the few streets. All the residents belong to the Moravian Church. You're welcome to attend services, when just about the whole town turns out in their Sunday best. Elim is the only town in the country that has a monument dedicated to the freeing of the slaves in 1838. It's also home to the country's oldest working clock and biggest wooden waterwheel. There's a tourism office near the waterwheel with a small museum detailing the history of the village. Grab a bite in the tearoom next to the waterwheel. Elim is 36 km (22 miles) west of Bredasdorp.
Off the R319 between Cape Agulhas and Bredasdorp, South Africa -
2. Genadendal
The neighboring village to Greyton is Genadendal, a Moravian mission founded in 1737. The first school in the interior opened its doors in 1738. In 1838, the first Teachers Training College in South Africa was established. Seeing this impoverished hamlet today, it's difficult to comprehend the major role the mission played in the early history of South Africa. Some of the first written works in Afrikaans were printed here, and the Coloured community greatly influenced the development of the language as it is spoken today. None of this went down well with the white government of the time. By 1909 new legislation prohibited Coloured ownership of land, and in 1926 the Department of Public Education closed the settlement's teachers' training college, arguing that Coloured people were better employed on neighboring farms. In 1980 all the buildings on Church Square were declared national monuments, but despite a number of community-based projects, Genadendal has endured a long slide into obscurity. You can walk the streets and tour the historic buildings facing Church Square. Ask at the Genadendal Mission Museum for somebody to show you around.
Genadendal, Western Cape, 7234, South Africa028-251–8582 -
3. Malgas
On the dirt road from Bredasdorp is the small hamlet of Malgas, a major port in the 19th century before the mouth of the Breede River silted up. In addition to a tiny village, you will find the last hand-drawn car ferry in the country. It's fascinating to watch the technique, as the ferry operators "walk" the ferry across the river on a huge cable, leaning into their harnesses.
Malgas, Western Cape, South Africa -
4. Onrus
Head back toward Kleinmond, continuing on the R43 toward Hermanus and across the Bot River. The R43 swings eastward around the mountains, past the not particularly attractive fishing village of Hawston, one of the Overstrand communities hardest hit by abalone poaching and drug peddling, and the small artists' colony of Onrus. The Onrus lagoon is a great swimming spot for children; the water is always a couple of degrees warmer than the sea and is safe for the newly waterborne.
Onrus, Western Cape, South Africa -
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