That its creators call Sterrekopje a \u2018healing farm\u2019 might seem disingenuous, given its sumptuous appointment and breath-stealing setting. Yet the term perfectly denotes the richly nurturing immersion in nature, creativity and reconnection that is the property\u2019s most unique luxury.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Few are the places in South Africa\u2019s fertile Cape Winelands that don\u2019t elicit wonder and amazement. From \u2018aahs\u2019 to \u2018oohs\u2019 and the occasional \u2018whoa\u2019, the region\u2019s scenery puts a spark in the eye and a smile on the face. And to many, gazing at mountains that tower majestically over sweeping plains breeds a desire to scale, if not dominate, their surroundings. But descend into one of the valleys that run through this extraordinary part of the Rainbow Nation, and you\u2019ll find there\u2019s a gentler way to view this landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I know this because, as I stroll barefoot through an untamed garden overflowing with romanticism, the presence of mountains on all sides evokes a much more tender sensation within me. I feel embraced, protected, looked after. Perhaps it\u2019s easier to let your own guard down when there\u2019s a guard of ancient rock all around you. Just one nearby elevation stands out. It\u2019s an unassuming hill, above which stars will soon begin to twinkle. A starry hill<\/em> \u2013 \u2018Sterrekopje\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt almost feels like you\u2019re being cradled here in this sort of womb, especially at nightfall, when a pinkish hue sets over the mountains,\u201d says Fleur Huijskens who, alongside her partner in life and love, Nicole Boekhoorn, welcomed the first guests to their \u2018healing farm\u2019 in March 2022, after some two years of renovation works. \u201cWe\u2019re just a few minutes from Franschhoek, but you get this sense of being totally in your own little bubble.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019re sitting in a pair of deep armchairs by a fireplace in the open kitchen as I look over my shoulder. The chef, Edwin, is preparing dinner for us from behind a pile of freshly harvested vegetables that look as if they\u2019ve slid right out of the bottom section of an illustration of a healthy-eating food pyramid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of the 50 hectares Sterrekopje comprises, some seven form a produce garden, and each day I follow the invitation to pluck berries or pick flowers with a childlike joy. There are no menus here; instead, Edwin consults with me on my current cravings and creates homegrown and seasonal meals that nourish both body and soul. And, although the farm is very much about living healthily, I happily oblige as Marlon, our waiter for the night, suggests a glass of sweet lavender cordial from the estate or another of Chenin blanc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This story first appeared in The California Cool Issue<\/strong><\/a>, available in print and digital. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe hope that through what we offer here we get you out of your head, and back into your body,\u201d Fleur goes on. \u201cBecause when you\u2019re able to reconnect with your body and listen to it, everything is fine, and nothing will be in excess. You can have a glass of wine. And you can have your morning coffee. But we\u2019re so disconnected from our bodies and from nature that we have coffee just to keep going. It\u2019s all about doing and going. Here, we\u2019re about pausing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I can tell she has a point when speaking to a young family from New York who, after the arrival of their second-born, have temporarily settled into one of Sterrekopje\u2019s 11 sanctuaries and suites. What they were hankering for in a trip to the Western Cape wasn\u2019t the thrill of adventure, but the soothing of a slower pace. It\u2019s something that Nicole herself spent a long time looking for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After successfully running a company for seven years \u2013 an endeavour that left her feeling somewhat unfulfilled \u2013 she went soul-searching and retreat-scouting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSome retreats were amazing and back to basics, but the accommodation was very simple. Others were high-end luxury wellness hotels, yet staying there felt clinical and impersonal. Why couldn\u2019t there be a place that feels profound, but has a very comfortable setting at the same time?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That place, it turned out after an international search, was an ageing 17th-century farmstead outside Franschhoek, which, if given some love and attention, showed potential to be truly one of a kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m good at helping Nicole translate her vision when it comes to the concept and philosophy behind Sterrekopje,\u201d says Fleur, taking a sip of tea made from an aromatic local fynbos herb called buchu. \u201cAnd then there were others who were really good at implementing our ideas for the garden and the interiors, which were inspired by destinations from India to Egypt and from Kenya to Morocco. The entire farm was really a collaborative effort, and everyone we worked with was either a friend already or has become a friend in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The work paid off: Fleur and Nicole\u2019s eye for interiors has earned them the acclaim of the world\u2019s leading interior design publications. But what makes Sterrekopje so easy on the eyes isn\u2019t an adherence to design rules or a knack for chasing down the latest furniture trends at Salone del Mobile. Instead, there\u2019s something unexpected wherever you look, an element of play and joy that manifests in boldly patterned fabrics, large-scale murals or, in a particularly original instance, a fringed parasol in the bathhouse. In my personal sanctuary, this spirit is encapsulated by an impressive painting of a circus performer with two albino pythons around her neck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The pandemic had the world in its grip. But for us, it presented an opportunity to lose ourselves in this project\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat painting is by a local artist called JP Meyer, who\u2019s very funny and charming,\u201d says Fleur. \u201cWe wanted to inject a bit of humour into the space. A lot of guests walking in would never expect to see this kind of painting, not least because the colours are quite naive. But it\u2019s the contrast between an artwork like that and everything else you see that makes the interiors so cool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Contrasts also feature across Sterrekopje\u2019s grounds, for which Fleur and Nicole invited renowned gardener Leon Kluge to create what could be called a productive playground. Strewn around the estate, you\u2019ll find an orchard, vegetable patches, ponds, a sunken garden and a boating lake, interspersed with a yoga yurt, tree swing, water features and countless secret nooks designed for reading, resting and recharging. One sunny morning, Leon takes my fellow guests and me on a walk around the grounds and, despite having been on the farm for a few days, I see countless corners I hadn\u2019t yet discovered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen we began working on this project, the pandemic had the world in its grip,\u201d explains Leon as we stroll around the herb garden, the fragrance of parsley and rosemary wafting in the air. \u201cBut for us, it presented an opportunity to lose ourselves in this project, and we\u2019re very proud of how much work we got done with just a few people in a short period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Amazingly, in spite of the tremendous amount of thought and labour that have gone into Sterrekopje\u2019s gardens, I find that they still exude a sense of wilderness and free-spiritedness, as if one day they had simply grown into their perfectly imperfect, unconstrained shape. This quality, I understand, reflects Leon\u2019s signature style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the garden\u2019s appeal is arguably also down to the animals that call it their home and belong to the Sterrekopje family. There\u2019s the cheeky duo of pet pot-bellied pigs, Croissant and Frangipani, who use every opportunity they get to roam around the grounds (and, I hear, occasionally find their way into the main house in search of belly rubs). Between them and Sterrekopje\u2019s chickens, dogs, cats and a couple of wonderfully sociable cows, Frances and Georgetje, loving interaction with animals and therapeutic cuddles are very much the order of the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere\u2019s an animal rescue in Rayton that has a lot of pigs and cows,\u201d says Fleur. \u201cWhen we got Croissant and Frangipani, I called them and said we\u2019re getting cows, and explained that we have someone here to help us with the animals. I asked whether he could go up to Rayton for a few days to learn from the sanctuary. We made a donation and he was there for a week.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n More than anything, the animals offer a real-life quality to the farm, and their being such a part of the family is as endearing as it is authentic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSouth Africa really lends itself to this sort of thing, to re-establishing our connection with nature\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.outthere.travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Facebook-shop_California-1024x1024.jpg\")
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