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Writer's pictureCathie Rooyen

Bethulie overnight

Wednesday 2nd March 2022 I'm putting the date on to help my sister keep order lol! I might be grateful for it myself later too. Today I woke up in the small town of Bethulie which is near the Gariep dam. Bethulie has a strange energy to it and I couldn't really understand what it was. I stayed in a stunning bnb which I had to show on video but the town itself didn't 'grab' me. I walked in the bnb farm gardens and marveled at the sunflowers that were sunning themselves better than at sunset yesterday. 


I had arranged a personal tour but it was only starting at 11am so I didn't really know what to do. I drove out to the small station and then I noticed a beautiful bridge in the distance.  I had to drive to it but photo opportunities weren't great to get a good picture.  Only later did I hear that it was the Orange River and on one side 2 other rivers, the Caledon and Gariep merged into the Orange. The bridge is 1,125m long and 51m high which means it's the longest bridge in South Africa.  (I'm posting the picture from a Facebook page here)

I then met the passionate professor Trudie from Bethulie who led me through the Pellissier Museum and I left her feeling pleased that I had met someone who loved the small town. I didn't get inside the Royal Hotel which had no signage, no open doors and looked rather defensive.  (The last 📷 on the right)

My internet didn't lock on so I was driving to Bloemfontein without my GPS and fortunately I had the thought to pull off and check the map book. I was busy going the long road so did a u-turn and traveled to the N1 on a rather good road. My internet came back as I was facing the many trucks on the national road and I was cursing the demise of the railway system. I drove into my very comfortable bnb with no hassle and have laid on my bed since then. 

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