Where in the world are we?

Hello and welcome to issue 5 of the langeberger with fly-on-the-wall coverage of daily life at the Lodge. Today I want to step back so to speak and dwell on the bigger picture starting with our location in South Africa. It's true to say that most of our guests stay for only one night, they are passing through, on their way to somewhere else, which often turns out to be the Garden Route.
However, guests who have stayed at the Lodge for 2 or more nights and have explored the Overberg region have invariably found the experience very rewarding. (In future issues I plan to suggest some day-trips from Swellendam to help guests get the most from their stay.)

Why stay in Swellendam?

Situated mid way between Cape Town and George, Swellendam – the third oldest town in South Africa – is a convenient overnight stop for travellers following the Garden Route.

Attractions include:

Good restaurants
Historic buildings e.g. the Drosdty Museum
Art galleries and potteries
Attractive, tree-lined streets
Golf course

Joy and I are always delighted delighted to help guests choose a restaurant, or suggest some things to see and do in and around town.

Activities nearby include:

Walking
Horse riding
Golf
Fishing
Canoeing
Cycling
Bird watching

How to find the Lodge

Driving directions from the N2:

Take the exit signed “Swellendam West, Ashton, Worcester R60”. Turn right at the first 4-way stop into Voortrek Street – the main road through Swellendam. Continue past the Old Mill restaurant and Langeberg Academy on the left. Langeberg Guest Lodge is approximately 400 metres further, also on the left.


Co-ordinates:

Latitude: 34 1’ 50.4” S Longitude: 20 25’ 51.08” E

We guarantee you a warm welcome at the Lodge.

But for now it's time once more to say:

Adios amigos,

Chris

"They don't go and they don't stop..."

Hello and welcome to issue 4 of the langeberger, your candid chronicle of everyday life at the Lodge. I decided it's time to show a couple of photos of Joy and me: there we are posing astride a Harley softtail Heritage Classic. I like Harleys having owned and ridden (as opposed to just polished) an H-D Road King, but devotees of modern sports bikes sometimes say mean things about them. One Grand Prix wannabe in his one-piece track-day leathers once said to me, "...trouble with Harleys is they don't go and they don't stop!" I have to admit it's a good sound-bite, but all it means is they are not super quick and they won't stop on a sixpence. Sounds a bit like yours truly. Tell us something we don't know!

How did we come to be perched on the Harley? The bike and photo were courtesy of Ritchie, a guest from Scotland who had set himself the challenge of returning to motorcycling in his mid-fifties and what's more making his return in a foreign country. As if the adrenaline spike needed another boost he had psyched himself up to make a bungee jump from the Bloukrans Bridge at Storms River, Eastern Cape. I believe this is the longest bungee 'drop' in SA (aficionados may be able to confirm this). It may interest you to know that Ritchie's regular job is 'risk management'.

Well Ritchie, we hope you made it back to Scotland all right, and if you happen to read this, we'd love to hear from you.

Until the next time,

Adios amigos

Chris

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PS Joy has a story to share about bungee jumping:

"Some years ago - don't ask me how many - when my children were small we stopped near a river bridge whilst on holiday on the Wild Coast, Natal. We encountered bungee jumping for the first time and we watched for a while,fascinated. My husband and I returned to the car leaving the kids rooted to the spot. Later my son reported that he had observed the man in charge refuse to let someone make the jump. Why we asked, did he give a reason? Yes, said my son, the man said, "I know you, you're the guy who s**t on my ropes last time you were here. I'm the guy who had to clean it off. You must get your own ropes - you're not using mine!"

"Owls" at the Lodge...

Hello again and welcome to issue 3 of the langeberger bringing you once again the lowdown on life at the Lodge. Here are some more photos of our facilities plus reminiscences prompted by leafing through the pages of our Guest Book.

One comment that made me chuckle was from a guest from Israel who wrote in our book: "Excellent hospitalisation!" I wondered how I should broach this with Joy, who would be mortified if anyone suffered undesirable effects after one of her breakfasts!! On the other hand, his party of travellers had enjoyed themselves and to a man looked as fit as the proverbial butcher's dog, so I'm sure we are justified in saying that for "hospitalisation" read "hospitality".

Another linguistic slip which still makes me smile occurred during breakfast one day when a member of a party of Norwegians said,

"Chris, are you aware you have a problem with owls?"

"Owls? I haven't seen or heard any owls since I've lived here."

"Yes, there are some of them in our room this morning..."

And then it dawned on me...

"Ants" I said, "Do you mean ants?"

Which he did, of course. But in case you're wondering if we are supporters of Insect Relief at the Lodge, remember the acronym TAB. It stands for "That's Africa, baby!" And so it is. A quick spray of something nasty soon sorted out those ants.

Well, it's been nice talking to you again, and all too soon it's time to go.

Adios amigos,

Chris

The Lodge - Part two

Hello again and welcome to issue 2 of the langeberger, the ongoing saga of life at the Lodge. Today's posting continues to describe facilities and services available at the Lodge and aims to add a bit of human interest too.

Let's start with the accommodation for guests: we have 3 double rooms with king-size beds; 2 double rooms with twin beds, and a 'family' room with a king-size bed and 2 full size single beds.

All rooms are ensuite and have:

• tiled floors
• rugs
• reeded ceilings and wooden beams
• ceiling fan
• tea and coffee making facilities
• coffee table
• hairdryer
• TV and DVD player
• easy chair(s)
• dressing table (doubles as computer workstation)
• original artwork
• percale bed linen

Our bathrooms are spacious, light and airy, with:

• stylish basins and taps
• walk-in showers
• Egyptian cotton bath sheets and hand towels
• robe hooks
• duck boards
• terry cotton bath mats
• face cloths
• various soaps, gels and shampoos

The 'family' room has both bath and shower.

We make a promise to guests that: 'your room will be comfortable and spotlessly clean', and we (I should really say Joy) makes it her business that this standard is maintained. Appreciative comments in our Guest Book bear this out many times over.

Before I sign off I would like to give credit to friends and family who have helped with the project; they are:

Steve, my old mate from university days way back when: we made the headboards for the beds together.

Peter, an old school friend with whom I re-established contact via the Internet: we made the coffee tables together.

Richard, my brother, who helped me out with the building work when the going got tough.

Many thanks to you all: there will always be a welcome for you at the Lodge (not to mention a few jobs to be done!)

Well, that's about it for now.

Adios amigos,

Chris

Langeberg Guest Lodge

Hello, and welcome to my very first posting on my first web log: issue 1 of the langeberger. My subject today is Langeberg Guest Lodge our guest house in Swellendam, Western Cape, South Africa. Otherwise known as the Lodge.

But first some introductions: I'm Chris and my wife is Joy and as our blog develops over time more details of our lives will naturally emerge.

Currently I'm working with a web-site designer to get our own site up and running; the text is already written and the photographs assembled. So it's convenient to share some of the information with this blog.

I built the Lodge from scratch, having purchased the land in 2004. Building work commenced in February 2005 and we opened our doors to paying guests in November 2006, so we have just celebrated our first anniversary as a guest house. Joy and I run the business ourselves and live on the premises (guests stay in garden cottages, separate from the main house). We employ two maids and a gardener. Joy manages the domestic side of operations and cooks an excellent breakfast, while I alternate between the roles of host, waiter, washer-up and handyman. As Joy puts it, "There is no job description..."

We're proud of the facilities on offer here:

• Cape Dutch style homestead
• 6 garden cottages for guests
• salt water swimming pool
• lapa (covered poolside shelter)
• landscaped gardens of indigenous plants
• braai (barbecue) area
• secluded seating areas
• secure off-street parking

I look forward to writing more about life at the Lodge in future 'postings'. So until next time it's:

Adios amigos.

Chris