AA Traveller Autumn 2022

Aretha Strydom in herrose
labyrinth.
You'll spot severalbirdspecies,
includingflamingoes, at
Chrissiesmeer.
Cattle grazing in Meyer Street.
wood and corrugated iron structure had
alarge billiard table and the sandstone
blocks on which the table rested can still
be seen in the Billiard Room today.
The hotel burnt down in1936, but
in 2012, itwas restored according toits
original specifications. The Gin Shop
boasts with the words “gin and spirits
since 1886”, and this is true. Inthose
years, transporters used gin as atype
of medicine.
Itake aseat atthe bar and order a
berry and sage tipple. It’s made by the
owner, Marian Bezuidenhout, and is
known asHighveld Gin. We talk about the
other flavours that are currently available:
spicy lemon and pomegranate with mint.
We also talk about how the town has
changed since my last visit in2019. “Since
then, new places have opened and closed
again. With the ban on alcohol last year,
we also suffered,” Marian admits. But
one thing that has remained unchanged
is the town’s ghost stories. “Apparently,
there isasoldier that walks the streets
late at night,” she chuckles and motions in
the direction of the lake and the Jailbird
Guest House.
At the Jailbird Guest House, you can
stay in the town’s original jail. You have a
choice between two cells with heavy doors
and tiny windows. The first cell was built
in 1880 and the second was built in the
1940s by Italian POWs.
“You can clearly see the difference.
This was the first one –itwasn’t built that
well. The second cell is the work of astone
master,” the owner, Marietjie Blignaut,
explains with her border collie, Lilly, at
her heels.
Acommunal kitchen and bathroom
now stand where the old police office
was, with the title “Charge Office” on
the door. The Jailbird offers hostel-style
accommodation and isdeal for afamily.
“I prefer it if strangers don’t have to
share the amenities,” Marietjie says as
she walks past her vegetable garden
next to the jail. On the other side of her
fence, lies the wetlands and Chrissie’s
large lake.
ALLAROUNDTHE LAKE
The small town with its sandstone
structures is charming and all, but the
biggest drawcard lies just outside of
town.Chrissiesmeer is 9kmlongand
3kmwide, with amaximum depthof6m.
Esbie Bezuidenhout, the owner of
John Jack Inn and the Billiard Room,
says that one year during Spring Day
celebrations, she and agroup of friends
walked all the way around the lake. Even
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AUTUMN 2022 | AA Traveller