Last week I was lucky enough to find myself staying at Tswalu for 2 nights, which is situated in the southern Kalahari - if I remember correctly they are approximately 60 kms (or was it 80 kms) from the Botswana border to the north, 200 kms from the Namibian border to the west and 200kms from the Orange River to the south - so a long way from anywhere. It is a magical area that has photographers - amateur & pro alike - reaching for their camera's. The adventure starts at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport at the Anglo American hangar......no scheduled flights for passengers to Tswalu....oh no, it is private all the way - thank you very much!!
The thing that tickled me the most was that the plane taxi's to the perimeter fence looking out on to the runways.....then someone then presses a switch & then the fence slowly rolls back allowing direct access to the runway....just like your remote controlled gate at home - is that great or what? If you look closely you can just about see my hand luggage (in silver) in the hold - somehow & don't ask me how my hand luggage acquired a name (& a personality) en route to Tswalu so now she shall forever more be known as Betsy...
We stayed at the Motse which was just perfect....here are a few pics of the lodge & the room (although room is not quite the right word to describe the accommodation....below the main area with pool deck..
In the background you can see the 'rooms' set at various intervals in the indigenous gardens for guaranteed privacy.
I loved the use of indigenous flora here.....the plants are so beautiful in their own way & most importantly of all, perfectly adapted to the harsh conditions experienced in this part of the world - very hot in summer & bitterly cold in winter.
Please excuse the quality of some of these photo's - they were taken at about 6:30 in the morning on the way to coffee & muffins before our early morning game drives so not as vibrant as those taken later in the afternoon...they keep you quite busy here so I wasn't feeling particularly frisky either at that time of the morning....
As mentioned earlier I think 'room' is a gross misnomer for this gorgeous accommodation - why, in the UK you would happily accommodate a family of four or five in this amount of space. In Africa this generous proportion houses one or two people at most.....bliss. For me one of the most luxurious features of the rooms was the fireplace in the bedroom.....the nights can get very chilly in winter in these parts.....what a wonderful treat to come back from dinner & find a fire cheerily burning in the grate with an enormous stack of wood next to it to keep it going all night if you can keep awake. I've added it to the list of things I NEED in my dream home....when I eventually get round to building it......
Just loved the subtle colours here - echoing the distinctive red Kalahari sand, the dry grasses & the sky outside your window.....which apparently was just what designer Boyd Ferguson intended..
Seriously you could quite easily move in & never leave...
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