Clarens: Most peaceful place I have traveled to...
Last weekend the residents of Tuksdorp spent the weekend in Clarens, South Africa. Clarens is a quaint, quiet mountain town. The town is nestled in the middle of the mountains, so towering around the city are massive, beautiful mountains of rolling green grass. It is breathtaking. It is about a four hour drive from Pretoria, and a trip I will be taking again.
On Friday night we had dinner at the “mom” of Tuksdorp’s house. She lives in both Pretoria and Clarens. .. so jealous. Brad Pitt also owns a house in Clarens, which is proof that it is one of the most beautiful places in SA because he could buy a house anywhere, right?! We had a lovely dinner and a beautiful night. The second day we woke up and left for the Bokpoort Ranch where we went for a trail ride on horses. It was a “textbook” ranch. It had been in the family for three generations, and they offered all kinds of guided activities, my favorite being horse riding of course!
There were 20 of us who went for the ride; the majority of which had never ridden before. This slowed us up a bit, but it was nice to go slow and take in the whole scenery. Occasionally those of us who are more experienced would gallop off for a bit. Galloping up the mountains brought me back to my childhood days of trailriding in Colorado.
I really don’t think I have ever been as light-hearted and content as I was in Clarens. Above is the picture of my “happy spot” where I set by myself following the riding to just take it all in. I can’t wait to be back in that exact spot and to feel the same contentment and peacefulness I did at that moment. It is a precious feeling.
I also can’t wait to share this place with my friends and family. I know my mom and grandma will fall in love with it as much as I did.
That evening all of the students went to the pub for drinks except for four of us. The four of us who stayed back just wanted a chill night of peace and quiet. We went for tea and talked for a bit. I took the opportunity to lie out on a picnic table and look at the stars. In the quiet night with all of the lights off the stars were as bright as day; I even saw a few shooting stars. It was the perfect ending to the perfect day!!!!
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