The Knysna (the “k” is silent like in “knight”) Heads are some of the most dangerous narrowest waters to sail. Deceptively wide at 300 meters between the two headlands, but only 90 meters are deep enough for ships. The waters are rough. But only at the heads.
Our boat
I recommend walking along the coastal walk, staying at one of the places with a view, and taking a boat ride. We did a sunset and cocktails sailing tour. Read more about the 300 million year old history (is that true?) of the heads here.
Always a braai (barbecue/grill).
The ride out through the heads was rocky with waves up to six feet (two meters) and not good for those who get seasick.
The estuary is all calm.
The estuary inside is so calm that it seems strange after the violent heads.
If you find that you have a hankering for souvenir shopping when staying in Knysna and it’s a Saturday morning, go to Harkerville Saturday Market. It’s on the N2 highway, halfway between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.
There are stalls with leather goods, wood carvings, clothes, figurines, bags, food, and almost anything else you would imagine at a craft fair and farmers’ market.
Many of the vendors design their own wares from clothes, bags, to tables from old wood.
They even have decent toilets out back.
But, this market is only on Saturdays and they close right at noon! I almost tripped over myself shopping!
I’ll talk about the other things to try in South Africa but when you are there, there is one thing on everyone’s mind — Malva pudding. From Woolies.
Household items in Woolies.Clothes in Woolies.
First of all, Woolies in South Africa is not like Woolworths in the USA or the UK, back in the day. No, it’s more like a Target or Macy’s with food. Or a Sears for those who remember them. Woolies is a place where you can get your grocery shopping done but also buy clothes and household items. A proper department store but on a more down to earth level.
Back to Malva pudding. It’s a moist cake served with custard or ice cream. If you like British sticky toffee pudding, then you’ll like Malva pudding as well. Malva pudding is not as sticky as sticky toffee pudding because instead of toffee sauce, it is topped with custard.
As to the origin of the name, the three theories are that it comes from the Afrikaans for a type of flower, or that it is named after a woman named Malva, or third, that it originally included Malvasia wine (Malvasia is a grape varietal, or type of grape).
The cheater/hack way to enjoy it is to buy it from Woolies, warm it up, and then serve with custard from Woolies. Easy peasy.
Not to sound too jaded, but I no longer buy magnets, keychains, or mugs as souvenirs. I try not to buy anything… and fail. Here are some of the things I looked at buying while I was in South Africa.
Traditionally in indigo colors but now found in the full range.
Shweshwe: is a fabric type. It is a thick cotton with printed geometric patterns. Read more about it on this blog. Apparently the name is the sound that the fabric makes when swishing around someone.
The original store. Okay, a well known store.
Vellies are a type of shoe that are thin soled (so you feel the earth) with leather uppers. They are a working shoe. It is a thing. These are made by many people and come in all colors. I wanted to buy the ones made by the pest controllers at the safari lodge (odd side business, eh?) but they did’t have the ones I needed in the color or size that I wanted (even though they were willing to custom make them) and I didn’t want to wait.
Our safari driver/guide wearing his well worn vellies.
Blankets: maybe it’s not special but I liked the all cotton ones I got at Barrydale Hand Weavers.
They had thin blankets, like this one, and heavier ones.
Linens: Seems odd, but household linens from Mungo are divine. All natural, handmade, locally sourced, and those other feel good goods.
Yes, we wanted everything.I even bought the apron.
Leather is apparently a thing to buy but I didn’t find any that I wanted to buy.
Artwork, especially from local individual artists, is a good souvenir.
Artwork at the farmers market.
Clothes: If you are a ‘plus size’ person, then you will find that South Africa puts those clothes in the regular shops and makes them in colors and styles that you would actually wear.
