Tours of historic Stellenbosch start at the Tourism Bureau, in Market Street. That's across the road from the magistrate's court, and the first thing you might notice when you arrive at the bureau is knots of folk shouting through a tall gate in the wall behind the court. Our guide resolved this mystery; the shouters are friends and family of prisoners in the court cells, trying to pass on messages of support or opprobrium to those within. It's a sort of Stellenbosch version of "check your mate".
You might have difficulty tearing yourself away from the Tourism Bureau. It's one of the best of its ilk, astonishingly loaded with info of every kind and staffed by most enthusiastic and helpful officers - a welcome change from the sort of languid boredom that greets you in far too many little dorpies!
The Stellenbosch Bureau complex also houses the Toy and Miniature Museum, more reasons for dragging your feet.
When you eventually manage to tear yourself away, pay careful attention to your guide. Ours was Siertske van Wyk, a treasure-chest of info and enthusiasm.
She was also the unproclaimed holder of the world record for walking rapidly backwards while freely dispensing facts and figures about this fascinating town.
Siertske must have one of those third-eye things in the back of her head, because she also expertly avoided approaching pedestrians, lampposts and pavement edges.
Oldest restored house in SA
First stop was the Burgher House, built in 1797. It's the head office of a famous winery, but most of the building is maintained as a museum and is open to the public. The winery has done a pretty good job of the museum, but it seems they haven't got everything right. Just minutes after we left, the building was surrounded by loudly-toyitoying demonstrators. Siertske led us rapidly backwards across The Braak, and we never found out what the fuss was about.
"Braak" means "fallow field", and was originally left as an open space to separate the original town from the "Kruithuis", the Powder House in 1777. The Braak thus acted as a very effective firebreak when an unplanned fire destroyed most of the thatch-roofed town, but the Kruithuis and its barrels of gunpowder was saved.
East of the Braak the 1 500m-high Jonkershoek Twin Peaks loom. The full moon, Siertske explained, sometimes rises directly between the Twins. Should you be lucky enough to observe this, rush up Plein Street, cross Andringa and look for the statue of the cat on the left. Stroke the cat and make a wish; if the cat purrs your wish will come true.
I think I'll stick to wishbones, myself. Nevertheless it's interesting that Stellenbosch has remembered its rat-catching cats with their very own statue.
We crossed Bird Street and turned up Dorp. Dorp Street, Stellenbosch has wall-to-wall historical monuments, even more than Church Street in Tulbagh.
It also has lots of traffic, deep water ditches and narrow pavements, and we had a few anxious moments as Siertske manoeuvred expertly backwards through the oak trees.
Massive lofty spire of the Moederkerk
Out of dorp and into Drostdy we cruised, for a good look at the Moederkerk with its massively-lofty spire. Down Church Street is the Schreuder House, the oldest restored house in South Africa, an intriguing glimpse into life three centuries ago. Schreuder House has survived successive fires because it has a fire-proof ceiling beneath the thatch - a thick layer of sand covering stout boards.
There's much, much more, and I won't steal any more of Siertske's thunder by recounting any more of her delightful stories, but her two-hour tour makes a very fine and fascinating walk.
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