Sunday, September 25, 2011

Babylonstoren, South Africa

Sigh. This sounds like my kind of holiday. 'Intentionally unscripted' is the mantra for time spent at Babylonstoren in the Cape. One can lounge and truly wind-down on one of the hammocks attached to giant trees, or pick one's own salad on a stroll through the remarkable fruit and vegetable garden, and enjoy it for lunch. Sounds rather blissful, doesn't it? Karen Roos, one of my all-time style icons, is responsible for creating this heavenly 200-hectare farm hotel dating back to 1692. A disused kraal was converted into the restaurant Babel (see below), and renowned South African food fundi, Maranda Engelbrecht describes the fare as "Not looking for different things, but simply looking at things differently". The menu is ever-changing as plat de jour, or rather jardin is the order of the day. Pick-clean-serve is the approach with practically zero carbon footprint. Kind-of reminds me a bit of Villa Augustus in the Netherlands...








The Library is vintage Karen Roos - filled with curiousity cabinets and carefully chosen books, antique botanical prints all bathed in an almost Deyroll-eqsue green.


Images from here and Elle

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