So there we were, slumming it in the local caravan park in the small Karoo dorpie of Willowmore, getting bitten by mosquitoes that left welts the size of saucers. But we cleaned ourselves up and joined the civilised set at The Willow Historical Guest House. It was like instant time travel – with none of the drawbacks.
The town of Willowmore was founded around 150 years ago as a gateway between the Karoo and the harbour that was soon to be developed in Knysna. The building that is the guesthouse today started life as a single-storey in 1864; the second storey was added in 1897. In its early years it was a rectory for the Dutch Reformed church, but in the 20th century it went through some interesting times, serving as a hostel for girls (when it was known as ‘The Zoo’), a general boarding house, even a grocery storeroom.
By 1990 it was the private home of one Peppi van der Merwe and his family. So his daughter El-Anne tells us as she pours a drink in the bar. She lived here as a teenager, before her dad turned it into a guesthouse (he used to manage the Royal Hotel in Willowmore too).
After a stint in Cape Town to study hospitality and gain experience, El-Anne is back as the guesthouse’s manager. ‘Much of the stuff here my dad collected over the years, and what’s the dining room today was our living room,’ she recalls.
By 1990 it was the private home of one Peppi van der Merwe and his family. So his daughter El-Anne tells us as she pours a drink in the bar. She lived here as a teenager, before her dad turned it into a guesthouse (he used to manage the Royal Hotel in Willowmore too).
After a stint in Cape Town to study hospitality and gain experience, El-Anne is back as the guesthouse’s manager. ‘Much of the stuff here my dad collected over the years, and what’s the dining room today was our living room,’ she recalls.
She’s talking about a treasure-trove of Victorian and other antique furniture and interesting objects. The bar is a clutter of old licence plates and road signs, an old post office sign, not to mention less desirable South African memorabilia like a ‘whites only’ sign. A bicycle hangs from the ceiling and photos of Paul Kruger, De la Rey and Queen Victoria share wall space with a scattering of old tins and lamps, a rack of ties over the window. There’s even an old radiogram - you know, the shiny wood-look ones with yellowish fabric speakers in the middle.
Later we sit down to a hearty dinner of comforting lamb shank on mash with pumpkin and green beans. Look around the dining room and you could be back in the early 1900s, all polished mahogany tables, riempie chairs, old china plates in patterns on the wall, silver cruet sets and hallmarked silver cutlery.
Halfway through our meal a door to the garden sighs open and it’s as if a ghost wafts in, trying to find her way back to a time and place where she was happy.
If ever you’re in the area, don’t miss a visit to this gorgeous old home in the Karoo heartland. If you’re keen on history or you simply like the elegance of times past, you’ll be delighted. Choose from rooms in the main house or in cottages in the grounds (the converted stables or hoenderhok, for instance) and surrounding streets. For something truly romantic and nostalgic, you can even have your wedding here.
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Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
More about the Karoo
Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
