Baden Revisited.

A view of Baden from the monument

Suzi wanted to visit her cousin, Louise, on the farm; so I decided to go with her... and here we are in Baden. We flew to Cape Town last Saturday and were picked up by Martin and Carine for the journey back to Montagu and then Baden. I have been staying with Kathy and Eric, and Suzi has been staying with Louise and John - although we see each other frequently.

Tomorrow (Thursday) I return to Jo'burg and on Sunday Suzi will fly to Buenos Aires for the Argentine Open. She is very excited as this is her first visit to BA since she was nine years old. She does, however, have a network of friends who are already there (including Alex Vidal, Clare's first real boy friend).

We have had a great week here in Baden and I, for one, am looking forward to returning here again one day in the not-too-distant future. The weather has been glorious and that, together with the stunning scenery, has meant a very relaxed and restful week. That is not to say we haven't done our fair share of walking!

On Sunday, Eric took us into the ravine where we followed the dry river bed to a small waterfall and some enchanting pools among the rocks, fed by fresh mountain springs: then today, Wednesday, we walked with Louise to the next valley where there are more lands belonging to the farm. We also climbed the hill to the monument. The monument was built because, in 1981, there was a huge flood that swept away all the graves from the farm graveyard.

They managed to find some of the stones, so they built them into a concrete spire, high on a hill, so that they couldn't be washed away again.

The photos above show a view of Baden from the monument; Suzi by a small waterfall in the ravine and lastly, the stunning view from Louise's stoep - lucky Louise!!!