Gamamadi Guest Farm was a special time for me. A brief night’s stay in the Karoo (en route to Cape Town from Jozi) turned into a real break from reality.

With a lovely sidekick in tow, we had only a few hours in the afternoon to relax and soak up the farm atmosphere but in that time it felt like neither city (destination or departure) were important. The karoo has that impression on you, I think. The stillness, the scrub vegetation, the dry air, the simplicity – it was a perfect respite from the journey, but more so from busy city life! Our host, the most pleasant farmer’s wife you can imagine, spoiled us with sandwiches, coffees, lamb pies, desserts, and most of all: warm hospitality. She was a ‘heart of gold’ human, born to make people like us take stock of life.

The farm had goats and sheep and angora’s and other fancy things we forgot the names of, and I would think an existence out here is plain yet profound. It made me long for a simplicity with my photography – and by that I mean, doing one thing well, and with a peace in my heart. Anyway,this semi-philosophical nonsense aside, the 24 hours we spent there really struck us as timeless, and bound to no place or people. I’d highly suggest taking a trip through the Karoo slowly, as we did, and using the stillness and silence to reflect on your life.

Sadly, when we woke up the next morning, we were to learn that four people had died in a car crash an hour or so before (Gamamadi being just 800m from the N1). Onviously, they were in a rush somewhere. How chilling… and how good a reminder to stop, take a rest, reflect, and enjoy the home-made lamb pie.