The Bamboo Guesthouse

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I had to call three times for directions (each time cringing a little more deeply), but Jaynie finally got through to me with, “and if you don’t make it this time you forgo the bottle of red under your pillow”. Moments later I arrived and closed the door on the hubbub of Knysna.....

.... All around me wooden slatted walkways divided and ordered a jungle of plants and fountains, a pool, a pond and a boma (in this case a homely outdoor restaurant and bar). Jaynie and Gordon have transformed an ordinary garden of lawns and flowerbeds into their own mini-Eden, burying seven spotless rooms in a relaxing garden that grabs the senses and deceives the eye. Guests and hosts alike benefit from the tranquility, manifest in Jaynie’s smile (as warm as they come) and Gordon’s obvious contentment as he braais away behind the bar. But beware: from his work-station come rustic feasts to challenge the most voracious appetite, wines to lure the most disciplined off task, and stories to leave the most hardened traveller incredulous. There’s something of Mick ("Crocodile") Dundee about Gordon and I felt a tad pale and urban next to him. This was not helped in any way by accepting a two-hour full-body massage with Catherine (an exceptional visiting masseuse). But I got over it. A night drifting to sleep on a mountain of cushy bed pillows, vaguely aware of frogs croaking one minute and birds chirping the next, made this weak urbanite feel terrific.

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