A tranquil day out at Maropeng

• August 29, 2011 | Mildred Thabane

This past weekend my partner and I decided to escape the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg and headed to Maropeng for a relaxing Saturday afternoon. I must admit that not much planning went into our trip, just a brief click through the website before we jumped into our car and headed for the Magaliesberg.

After a blissful two-hour drive – free of traffic – we arrived at Maropeng and instantly felt like we’d left all our troubles behind. Surrounded by veld and blooming vegetation we felt the stress seep away and immersed our senses in the beautiful views. We could see nothing but nature for kilometres in all directions – pure heaven!

The Tumulus Restaurant was not too crowded, and with temperatures reaching 24 degrees Celsius we opted to sit on the outside deck to take advantage of the cool, fresh air.

Our friendly waiter, Dominic, was quick to offer us drinks, and, having worked up our appetites on the drive, my partner ordered lamb shank in a delicious tomato-based sauce and I went for a fillet steak with cranberry sauce. The portions were huge and the prices very reasonable. We tucked right in and found that the food tasted as scrumptious as it looked.

After sharing a cooling ice cream we headed towards the viewing deck of the Tumulus building for breathtaking views of Maropeng and its surrounds. As we stood there, we really felt as if we were in a remote area where time stands still, far from the bustle that is Gauteng.

Our visit to Maropeng was exceptional and the service was friendly and out of this world. We were quite sad to have to leave the tranquillity behind and promised ourselves a full tour on our next visit.