Olivia and I spent this weekend at the Old Mac Daddy luxury trailer park, another cool initiative by the hip team that brought Daddy Long Legs and The Grand Daddy to Cape Town. We were looking forward to getting out of the city and relaxing, obviously with lots of sun, sleep and gin in the mix.
We kicked off the journey in true Thelma and Louise style with headscarves and shades, with Olivia declaring herself the Thelma, ‘because she gets Brad Pitt’. I retorted that Louise gets the cat’s eyes, and that Geena Davis ended up looking like a man, but we both knew it was a weak comeback. We then argued about whether or not Elgin is pronounced El-gin (like the liquor) or El-gin (like the… nothing). I favour the liquor pronunciation and, even though a local later sided with Olivia, I stand my ground. And we were off!
We spent the entire weekend either reclining or eating – the resident restaurant, Brinny Breezes, is run by the same team that serves up New York-style fare at Hout Street’s Boo Radley’s, and we made ourselves right at home. Continental breakfast is included in the nightly rate, and is served in the central building, which is a light, airy structure clad entirely in blonde wood, a term which sets Olivia’s teeth on edge, and which I subsequently used all weekend. She preferred to call it ‘Scandinavian’. The sirloin with garlic and parsley butter was so good that we had it both nights. We made our own plan for lunch, venturing to Houwhoek farmstall just off the N2 for fresh bread, local cheeses, salad, ham and their infamous millionaires shortbread (which didn’t last long).
The pool is the hub of Old Mac Daddy, and we spent all of Saturday lounging, sipping G&Ts and paging through magazines in between dips. We briefly considered renting bicycles and helmets and cycling the 8km to Paul Cluver for a wine tasting and to replenish our stocks, but by late afternoon we realised that this was, in fact, a complete joke.
We played Uno instead. I should have learnt my lesson by now, because Olivia is truly the world’s most competitive games player, inventing rules as she goes along and cackling with glee when laying on a ‘pick up 8’. No remorse whatsoever. I also dipped into the OMD library, which offers a user friendly selection of bestsellers, classics and a few wildcards, like the wildly sexual book about cavemen that Olivia recommended. Classic recommendation.
The trailers are spaced out on a tree-filled hillside, connected by a series of walkways. Each one has its own American-style postbox, and is attached to a cool living area that features an ensuite bathroom, deck and lounge. We ate lunch under the trees, read and lolled about in our lounge and marvelled at the intricate, hand-painted flora that adorned the interior of our trailer, The Dream. Each and every flower and leaf is different from the next and the overall result is both trippy and beautiful. The bed was surprisingly comfortable and we loved all the little foliage-related touches throughout The Dream.
The farm itself is beautiful – green and expansive with views of lush vineyards and blue skies. Lilypads, lakes and shady spots add to the farm’s innate charm and there is endless opportunity to plop down with a book and disappear for an hour or two.
It crossed our minds that, as the youngest people there, and being two girls on a weekend away together, the other guests might think we were, well, a couple. Our sharing of a sunlounger all day to due to limited space around the pool didn’t do much to discourage these suspicions. Nor did our smiley insistence that we were best friends, which was surely perceived to be some sort of coy cover up.
Ah well.
What’s a weekend away without a bit of scandal?
The Pessimiss 