Parys: Paris in South Africa

Sunset from the banks of the Vaal River

This past weekend, a friend and I had the wonderful opportunity to visit and stay in Parys. I must say, before we started planning for this trip, I had never really heard of Parys and so it was surprising that my friend chose this as a potential destination. Me, wanting to be spontaneous and all, decided that I would not question the choice and would go with the flow but I must be honest, I googled the place and got acquainted with it (just to get me to look forward to the trip). What I read on Google and reviews from tourism sites really got me excited to visit this supposed ‘quaint town’ and I must say the reviews do not even do the town justice. It was an absolutely amazing experience and I can’t wait to go back... very soon, if I may!

But in the spirit of rumbling, I have to start with the journey to Parys. So we left Pretoria in the evening and for those that live in the Gauteng Province of South Africa, you all know the traffic story. The last time I saw that much traffic and cars was when I was in Beijing and was wondering where they were all coming from and headed to. But by the time we got to the MTN towers, it got so much better and the rest was a smooth ride. Now on the topic of traffic, I have often wondered whether just expanding roads was the only solution to traffic jams and if not what other solutions could be adopted. And as I was sitting on this traffic (on the newly expanded N1 highway), I wondered whether certain solutions like allocations of when certain cars can be on the road like they have in Beijing would be an option or whether making the public transport system more user friendly (almost a door to door, reliable service would help). I suppose with the new mechanisms they are putting in place for the Rea Vaya buses and other modes, only time will tell.

Ok, back to the journey... It took us less than 2 hours to arrive to Parys and this fact alone made me fall in love with the town. I have never been the type to enjoy long distance trips by any mode of transport. We had booked ourselves at a lovely guest farm called Lavender Hills just on the outskirts of the town and as we were approaching it, I could not help but notice the beautiful landscape and the significant change in the air I was breathing (did I say I fell in love with the town then). Staff at Lavender Hills is just so hospitable, it felt like home away from home and the food was specially prepared to your liking. What my friend and I loved the most was that it never mattered what time you woke up, you could have brunch/ breakfast whenever you wanted to. The rooms were clean and spacious, and if you are the self catering sort of a traveller, you will be happy to know that each room is fitted with a full kitchen, privacy is guaranteed and they even have a braai area just outside the rooms. What was also absolutely amazing for me was that they had domesticated animals on the farm (goats, donkeys, sheep, dogs) and one would be walking from the one area to the next and suddenly, a sheep appears (what a photo moment). We had an opportunity to really bond with the restaurant staff on the one night and shared a few drinks with them while reminiscing about city life, what we did for a living. What a lovely bunch of people... 

How cute are these sheep!

When we arrived, a child (I kid you not more than 15 years old) was at the reception and for those who know me, I questioned my friend why a child was waiting on us (I take my activism wherever I go!). It is a question that continued to plague me until we sort of found out that the child was a member of the family and that sort of normalised it for me. Also, if you are the type that needs your food served a particular way (i.e. if you ask for tea, you expect the sugar, teaspoons etc to be by your table before the tea is served... and I am sort of like that), it may not be your place. It did not frustrate us at all though.

I would say Parys is truly the Paris of South Africa. It’s a very quaint, small town whose main amenities lie on Bree Street (if you are an art, antiques, coffee shop and lovely restaurants fan, it’s your place (and my friend and I are). But if you like to see more than a street when you travel, Parys may not be your place. The town is well known for that meteor that fell over it and a dome (Vredefort) was created thereafter. If you go to any hilly place on the town, you can see the formation of the dome in the formation of hills. If you are an outdoor person, then they have killer hiking trails and one can engage in river rafting, mountain biking etc etc. And if you are like us (this time around) and want to just go somewhere, switch off your phone and relax, it provides you with that as well. We had a chance to picnic on the Vaal River (thanks to the owners of the Dell) which divides the town and watched the sunset there (absolutely a must). I do have to add that we had some difficulty finding bottled water from the only supermarket (Spar and Tops) and only found that at a Vetkoek shop but that wasn’t too much of a train-smash.

So if you are looking for a home away from home, near Gauteng and with wonderful people, hit the N1 to Parys. It’s an unregrettable experience!