Driving out to spend the weekend at Mokoya Lodge, I had a sense of Déjà vu about not only the road that we were travelling on, but the sign at the entrance to the property seemed familiar.
An interesting fact about the final part of the drive is that although you technically leave Gauteng, and you can see the “Welcome to the North West” sign, but we had to turn left before that sign, leaving us on a road that was in the no man’s land between the two provinces.
The moment that you turn left to head towards the entrance, you will see the “Welcome to Gauteng” sign. Not a big deal, but one of those cartographer idiosyncrasies that make me smile.
It turns out, that we had stayed here before! Back in May of 2013 although my wife has absolutely no recollection of our stay, I have photographic evidence to prove that we did.
We stayed in Room 16 on our last visit, this time we were staying in Room 12, one of the garden cottages.
Although there placement might seem random, they have been constructed in such a manner that none of the large trees on the property has to be felled. Trees that I have pictures of in 2013 are still standing a decade later.
Each room is individually furnished and ours consisted of a bedroom that led to a bathroom.
The bed was large and the linen superb. Luckily both my wife and I travel with our own pillows as we found those on the bed to be too soft. But pillows, like mattresses and art are subjective. And what might be soft for us, might be OK for others. So it is a comment rather than a criticism.
A cane chair in front of a hand-built stone wall was the only seating in the room. But there were chairs and a table outside on the deck that overlooked the garden,
And seeing that there was no TV in the room (a most welcome break from the box) I spnt time sitting outside reading and watching the plethora of birdlife that the beautiful gardens offered.
This paneled passage between the bedroom and bathroom caught my attention as it was totally unexpected.
There is a tea and coffee station on the shelf next to the bedroom door and aside from the towel rail, there is also open hanging space on the opposite wall that is just out of shot.
Leaving the bedroom and walking to the shower/toilet it felt like I was going below ground although in reality, both rooms are on ground level.
Shower, toilet and basin…all neat and tidy with good water pressure and almost instant hot water in the shower.
I do like the fact that the shower rose is placed in the ceiling so that it feels like you are standing in a tropical downpour, rather than a regular shower.
There was no bat in this particular room, but that did not bother either of us as, given the water issues currently a bath is a luxury.
BTW: The water on the property is sourced from a borehole and it safe to drink.
There are Canna Lilies to be found all over the property.
Were you aware that in South Africa the wild canna lily (Canna indica) has been declared as an alien invader plant which cannot be grow and should be removed from gardens.
FYI:
Canna can be used to treat menstrual pains and as used as a medicine for malaria.
The beautiful Morning Glory is in fact an invasive weed that if given the opportunity will invade bushland and riparian areas and can be a serious environmental threat in warm moist areas where it chokes out native plants.
It derives its name from the fact that the beautiful, fragile flowers unfurl in the morning. However, beauty can be fleeting as with this plant. The flowers last less a day and begin fading about two hours before the sun dips below the horizon.
Did you know?
The morning glory can be symbolic of strength, giving a person the power to realise their hopes and dreams. These flowers are resilient, and they pass this power on to their recipient. It’s believed that the ability to grow through adversity resonates through the flower.
A river runs through it? Well not quite. The Magalies River runs along the lower boundary of the property.
Looking from the verandah of the Sweet Thyme Restaurant towards the swimming pool and the Function Lapa.
If you suffer from OCD, then this wall will drive you to distraction.
Not only is every clock showing a different time, the black-faced clock on the left was also hanging off true. I could not change the times on the various clocks, but I did manage to make certain that the black-faced clock hung correctly before we left.
Is this a breakfast of champions? I don’t think so. However, if you are a Canadian, you will recognize this a simplified Canadian BOC…or a South African version of that breakfast form a country far away.
The correct one being bacon in a pancake soaked in maple syrup. But this comes a close second…and delicious to boot.
This colony of Ibis were heading out of their evening roost, and heading off to wherever it is that Ibis go during the day.
Did we follow? Nope! Both my wife and I decided that lying in the shade near the pool and enjoying our own company while reading was the best way to spend our time.
That being said, there is a lot to do in the area if you are in the mood to be adventurous or you just feel like exploring.
And although there was a lunch menu available, we chose to share a bowl of chips and save our appetite for dinner.
To find out more about what the lodge offers, click on their logo above.
For those that were not aware, there is an extension to the Travel & Things Blog in the form of ‘In conversation with‘ a YouTube channel hosted by David Batzofin and filled with a plethora of interesting interviews with a variety of people.
To visit the channel, click on the ‘In conversation with’ image above.
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