FREE RANGE FOLK

THE URBAN TRANSPLANT

‘The toughest adjustment to farm life is not living around

the corner from Woolies,’ laughs Kerry Buchanan from

Kezlyn Cottages, who swapped the office for agriculture in Bergville. ‘This farm is part of our family legacy and our vision for this farm stretches beyond us to our son and future generations.’ She says the farm holds lessons for city slickers: ‘Find joy in the quirks of

nature. An early-morning walk through a herd of cows with their calves can be an

incredible start to your morning routine.’ Of the city

she left behind, she says she misses ‘the energy and hustle and bustle’, but adds, ‘now that I’m raising a family, there is nowhere else

I would rather be’.

THE RURAL LIFER

‘Mpembeni is a beautiful rural area surrounded by green mountains and the fence of the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi game reserve is about 3km away,’ says Zamani Nonduduzo, who runs a rural homestay on Airbnb that she calls Awesome Zulu Village. ‘It is a special, very peaceful area. I have been living in the village since I was a child, when we used to collect water from

the river and we had no electricity. We’ve got livestock and we milk the cows. This gives us sour milk for maas and we have chickens

for eggs. We also have some fresh produce. Guests can harvest these and we cook together. Our guests can join us when we milk the

cows or feed chickens.’ From R465 pp, airbnb.co.za/

rooms/33926599