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I say supposed guesthouse because this is so much more than just another guesthouse or B&B. There may be just a dozen rooms and three or four suites but they have been well planned and well thought through. The relaxation is encouraged, and although close to the centre of Windhoek the view from the terrace is over the countryside surrounding the town, its ridges and hills practically bare of settlement.
As a transition from the bustle of Johannesburg or Cape Town, an adjustment from the frenetic pace of a European or American City, then a pause here is worthwhile before venturing to the Wilderness.
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Terraces - here the dining terrace and (click to see) the bedroom terrace - form the public areas of the hotel
Terraces extend naturally to the plunge pool area which is also the access to the spa treatment areas. Click to see the guest lounge
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The silence at night is almost as intense as the darkness that reveals the African night sky. Its dark cobalt is shot through with so many stars that their number is infinite. There are so so many that they in themselves are a wonder that we have lost in the light pollution of our great cities. A pause in travel gives time to slow down, to relearn the art of watching and listening.
"terraces that look out across the newly planted 200 tree olive grove"
Rooms are generously sized and have terraces that are shaded by horizontal blinds on runners that provide shade from the sun, terraces that look out across the newly planted 200 tree olive grove, and provide a perfect spot for reading or writing. There is a small plunge pool, for cooling off in the summer (our winter months - this is the Southern hemisphere) when it can get oppressively hot, surrounded by loungers to which smiling staff bring cold drinks.
Lingering breakfasts are taken on a terrace where canvas curtains keep out the morning chill from a space heated by those ludicrous steel umbrella heaters that seem so pollutingly unnecessary in Europe but are so worthwhile here. Here too is the lounge where a drink can be taken before dinner, although the small kitchen makes for a small menu. True to the guesthouse roots the hotels will provide a taxi service to local restaurants, which include the Namibian Institute of Culinary Excellence, funded by a German safari outfit to train Namibians in the culinary arts.
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