Goodbye to Temenos and McGregor

And so we came to the end of our stay in the peaceful retreat of Temenos and left the village of McGregor, most reluctantly, it has to be said.  A few fleeting pictures as we left include a posy of pink daisies and dark blue lavender at one of the shrines in the gardens

A mother duck quacking her way through a profusion of daisies in pursuit of her duckling, happily paddling in a lei water furrow.

Strolling along one of the dusty roads in the later afternoon this glowing diamond light of cobalt and ruby caught my eye.

The stained glass fanlight window of a Victorian house, framed by white wood work and a honey-coloured wooden door, show off an intricate lotus blossom pattern.  When did we stop making such exquisite entrances to our houses?

The colour I remember most from my visit, pink in all its hues, soft, saturated, sizzling, muted, or bold.

We left McGregor rested in body and spirit and ready to face the remainder of 2009.  I hope that 2010 will be a year of peace, happiness and prosperity for everyone.

Country lanes

Wandering along the quiet roads and lanes of McGregor with my camera, I lapse into a blissful state of contentment, unconscious of time, frequently coming to my senses just in time to avoid tripping over a pothole or the uneven ground.Small wonder with scenes like this.

 The tree with the bright red flowers is a flamboyant (I think, I hope) and here is a close-up of the flower.

At the end of a lane, an early blossoming orchard of apricot trees.

Keeping a watchful eye on all who pass, this dignified ginger and white beastie refused to make friends.

Afternoon shadows dance across the soft coloured cream and blue cottage with its matching spiked potplants.

These cement-lined furrows are part of the lei water system which irrigates the gardens of McGregor and provides a soft bubbling background for birdsong and insects.

 Purple wisteria tumbles over the fence of this little cottage in a fragrant, colourful shower.

A cottage frontage so perfectly elegant that it just has to be a small antiques boutique.

This picture of the red vine leaves was actually taken during winter several years ago but I included it to show how there is alway colour in McGregor no matter what time of the year it is.

A guest house named Oblivion and there have been times this past year when I could have done with some of that.

The night watch.

The story of Temenos

Temenos is a sanctuary of tranquillity and beauty set in the country village of McGregor.  The beautiful gardens offer little corners and refuges tucked away behind rose gardens, near tinkling water features or where ever a quiet spot for meditation, rest and renewal presents itself.  People come here to embrace the silence, meditate within groups or by themselves.  Should you need guidance it is there.  Should you need solitude you may have it.  All this in the most fragrant and exquisite of gardens grown from almost bare veld by the hard work and vision of its owner.

 

The duckpond, its inhabitants currently catching up on their sleep, while the yellow weaver birds continue nest building at a frenzied pace.

One of the colourful inhabitants of the pond taking advantage of the empty space.

Fresh flowers picked from the garden by the staff adorn the various statues and fill the vases in the guest cottages each day.

It's difficult to resist another picture of those scintillating geraniums.

To my mind pea hens always look rather distrait, like society hostesses not sure of the guests' names.

This is Picasso, an early morning visitor each day, who jumps over the open stable door of the cottage and shares coffee and rusks.  Breakfast completed, he then settles down for the first of many naps of the day.  Although we felt extremely honoured on the first morning, we gathered that he had his rounds each day and visted at least two or three other cottages.  Not such an honour after all.

http://www.temenos.org.za/

Arriving in McGregor

 My husband was going to attend a workshop in a small country town called McGregor and I decided that for once the office could look after itself.  I would go with him and wander around the village with my camera, at my leisure, returning to our beautiful lodgings for refreshment and rest whenever the need overtook me.  And was I glad that I did!

McGregor is a tiny mid-nineteenth century village nestled at the foot of the Riviersondereind Mountains.  It's a peaceful place of  whitewashed and thatch roofed cottages.  Cold water bubbles along irrigation furrows and wisteria and jasmine scent the air with their heavenly fragrance.  Blossoming fruit trees, bougainvillea, roses and lavender provide patches of colour and birdsong is the loudest sound to be heard.  Largely and thankfully undiscovered as yet, the road into and through the town is tarred but the remainder of the roads are still dirt. The preserved architecture is largely Cape Dutch with few modern buildings to spoil the appearance of the village.

This is one of the views from the far end of the town, where interestingly enough, the road just comes to an end, perhaps in some way accounting for the isolation of the village and its subsequent preservation.

While driving around, the light suddenly became extremely dramatic and this scene had me leaping enthusiastically out of the car.

And, speaking of dramatic, I don't know what words I could use to describe this wisteria, so I think I must let the picture speak for itself.

Imagine that you owned the key to this blue door.  Imagine unlocking that door, pushing it open with your baguette and winebottle-laden basket and then imagine ...

 Finally, as we were looking for our accommodation we saw this - tender pink daisies and sharp-edged grey stones, a striking combination.