My Cederberg story - Olive Niewoudt

In June 1940, London was no place for children. World War II was in full swing and the German forces were targeting the British capital. It was in these circumstances that the eight-year-old Olive Smithewaite, together with her mother and brothers, boarded a ship which was to sail to the far tip of Africa. Thus began Olive's journey in a new world, a journey which would take an interesting turn when, fourteen years later, she visited the wilderness area of the Cederberg with her brothers. Its harsh landscape and rugged terrain evoked in her a sense of freedom and belonging.

Since her marriage in 1955, the Cederberg area has always been her home. "The Cederberg shaped my heart, my soul and my life," writes Olive, thinking back over more than 60 years of her own memories and the stories she heard from and about the people who inhabited this unique region of South Africa.