This winter, we followed the instinct that draws so many South Africans inland to the Karoo’s wide skies, still nights and unhurried way of life.
There’s a reason the Karoo fills up in winter. It isn’t the obvious kind of beautiful. But once you’ve spent a night under its stars, or driven into a late afternoon that turns the plains copper and amber, you understand the pull.
In this issue, the Stellenbosch Visio team found ourselves drawn there too, and not by accident. Winter is when the Karoo makes the most sense: the air is sharp and clear, the roads are quiet, the fires are lit early.
What we found was a region far richer and stranger than its reputation for emptiness suggests. Ancient fossils that rewrite the story of life on Earth. A bioreserve being patiently restored from drought-stricken farmland.
We met warm-hearted people who invited us into their homes and their lives as intrepid farmers, entrepreneurs and visionaries. And we are proud to share that with you in a special section on the heartland of our country (p. 97). Wat is die Karoo vir my? ’n Wolklose hemel met eindelose sterre. ’n Stilte wat alles stiller maak, maar jou nooit eensaam laat voel nie.
’n Lamsboud in ’n ou Aga-oond. ’n Voordeur sonder sleutel. Bure wat onverwags die agterdeur oopstoot vir warm moerkoffie en ’n kuier om die kombuistafel. Skielik is jy lus vir vakansie daar waar tyd stilstaan.
Kom saam Karoo toe!
The rest of this issue – the wine, the food, the design, the fashion – all carry something of that same spirit: the value of slow things, made well, rooted in place.