going off-beat in the Western Cape

Going 'Off-beat'

For the broad-minded personalities always in search for the unusual there is
Soekershof Walkabout in Klaas Voogds West between Robertson and Ashton.

'Weird but Passionate' hosts; great stories; a wealth of plantlife; the
worlds' largest hedge-maze; time-travel with Albert Einstein; a stone-age
cinema; the New South African Handshake; philosophers garden and, of course,
the highly acclaimed succulent gardens with more than 2400 different species
from all over the world in the unprotected open air. Visitors can earn a
memorable reward by fullfilling a quest in the Klaas Voogds Maze.

This Maze is not a Maze in the traditional perception that you have to get
lost but is a reflection of life; walking from one story into another which
are visualised by objects, as orientating points, towering above the hedges.
However there are, as in life, also a few 'stories' you will have to look
for. And ........ visitors are invited to make their own stories.



A visit to Soekershof is hard to describe for it is a very personal
experience as can be found out in the 'love-letter' section of the
Soekershof website (http://soekershof.com).



The own Soekershof nursery distinguishes itself from other (specialist)
nurseries by providing visitors with sufficient custumised cultivation
information. Sometimes even by refusing selling a plant if, distilled from
the information provided by the client, it turns out that the environmental
conditions (climate, location, etc.) are not suitable. From statistics,
f.e., it's known that 60 to 70 percent of the succulents including cacti
sold in the Cape Town area die within months or will never prosper.



In short: The place where Klaas Voogds, James Bond and Albert Einstein
meet..........

And: everything you always wanted to know about sex .......... between
plants but never dared to ask.



A visit takes at least 1.5 to 2 hrs. Visitors are invited to bring their own
picnic.

See website http://soekershof.com for precise road directions and 'What
visitors can expect'.

__________..............__________



Real Wire-Art

The creation of the 2.5 metre high wire baobab tree at the entrance of
Soekershof Walkabout in the beginning of 2002 has an enormous spin-off for
wire-artist Messina Mussindo ("You may call me Joey").

The making of the second tree which can be found in the South African
embassy in Berlin gave the international career of Joey momentum with
various creations displayed in musea and galleries in Europe and the USA.
Work of Joey can also be found in several private collections around the
globe. The wire branch on the verandah of guesthouse Mardouw between
Swellendam and Ashton is one of the refined examples of Joey's work.

Joey has his workshop and outlet at Soekershof Walkabout and lectures
visitors of this 'primary unusual destination' about him being born in or
between the baobabs and the traditional connection between South Africa and
Australia. Above all Joey's demonstration of his so called 'one-wire-art'
shows his ability of innovation in wire-art.