20 December 2012

{Girls Weekend in Parys}

Last weekend, my partner in crime and coworker {Gillian} and I set off for a much needed girls weekend in the quaint little countryside town of Parys.  Nestled between rolling farm hills and just an hour's drive from Jo'burg, we were both surprised that we had never made time to visit the town before and decided that it was about time we changed that!  We had been planning the trip for months, so were so excited when the day finally arrived to heave our suitcases into my little blue ford fiesta and hit the road.  


Parys is known for its artsy cafes, cute antique shops, and generally laid back atmosphere.  Here's a summary of sorts regarding our stay as well as some recommendations for future visits.

TO STAY


During our time in Parys we stayed at Kapstok Guesthouse, located just a couple blocks away from the town centre.  The accommodation is unique in the sense that guests sleep in a 120 year-old residential home containing beautiful stained glass doors, long hallways, and nice spacious rooms.  We felt very comfortable throughout our entire stay and all basic amenities were included.  Guests are allowed full use of a self-catering kitchen and secure parking is included in the rate.  The care-taker, Aldray, is also one of the sweetest women you'll ever meet and is always available to answer any questions or provide recommendations.  Rates are currently R275 per person per night {about $35}, making it quite an affordable option as well.  For more information and online bookings, see their site here.  For alternative accommodation options in Parys, see here.

TO EAT


Parys has a no shortage of quaint little cafes and gourmet bistros, making it a foodie heaven!  I think I must have put on about five pounds in the course of our two and a half day stay.  My very favorite meal of the trip had to be the breakfast captured in the above photo, Eggs Florentine from Hoi Polloi, a more gourmet, fusion type of option.  We also enjoyed two meals at O's Restaurant which is well known for its delicious pizzas and is ideally located on the banks of the Vaal River.  O's also has an awesome River Deck Bar for after-dinner drinks!  In terms of night life, Parys is quite limited {as one might expect}.  But, Gillian and I did enjoy a couple of drinks and some good old fashion sokkie {an Afrikaans long-arm style dance} at Moments Sports Pub located on the main road.  We actually had quite a blast testing out our Afrikaans skills and taking a twirl or two around the dance floor :)  

TO DO


As I said before, Parys is quite well known for its little antique shops and numerous art galleries.  We spent Monday morning exploring the bulk of the shops in the area and enjoyed browsing through all of the little treasures and beautiful paintings.  A morning or afternoon will be enough to see everything in this regard.  Parys is also home to several health spas, although we didn't find time to book ourselves in for a treatment and for the adrenaline junky river rafting looks like a lot of fun!

OVERALL

Overall, we really enjoyed our time in Parys and I'll definitely be taking Jurgen back for at least a day trip.  The one thing I will say is that a day or a night will probably suffice in terms of exploring everything in the area.  Two nights was a bit long {unless you've booked yourselves in for spa days, etc}.  Also, being the small country town that it is, we were surprised when we headed out for dinner at 7:00pm on Sunday to find the streets completely dark and all of the restaurants closed.  We ended up finding one franchise open, but that was it.  Upon enquiry, it seems that this is the case every week - so plan to eat take aways or cook your own meals on Sunday evenings.

Thanks for an incredibly fun weekend Gillian, can't wait for the next one! ;)

13 comments:

  1. I cannot get over the color of the sky in all of your photos! seriously amazing.

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  2. So glad you girls had fun - nothing better than a girls weekend away! Would never have put Parys on my list of places to visit... x

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  3. That looks so fun, and such pretty photos, you're a talented photographer!

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  4. Sounds like a perfect girls weekend to me!

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  6. Looks like a blast and I'm drooling over those Eggs Florentine. Wow.

    XO,
    Catherine

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  7. WOW I have to make time to go to Parys!
    Especially because it is so close to Joburg!
    http://johced-ourjourneytoeverywhere.blogspot.com/
    xxx

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  8. You are so cute!!! That breakfast looks insanely good. Yum. I hope you have an amazing holiday season.

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  9. Sounds like a fun weekend with a girlfriend. I need to do that soon.

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  10. Great post! And couldn't have asked for anyone better to 'vat' Parys with!!

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  11. Parys doesn't particularly hold good memories for me, but this looks great!

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Thanks for the love!