South African Country Life – September 2019

KarooandDeRustin particular.Thisis
wheretheyhatchplansto uplifttheirvillage.
Likewhatto dowiththebeggarswhoused
to trollupanddownthemainstreetandhiton
thetouristsforsmallchangeforwhitewine.
“Werecruitedtheregularbeggarsandasked
theCommunityPolicingForumto checkthem
forcriminalrecords,”JanVenter,a devoutDe
RustCoffeeClubber,willtellyou.“Theones
whopassedwerehiredasofficialTourism
Assistants.
Theyarepaidminimumwage,dressedin
distinctivevestsandissuedwithwalkie-talkies.

Theyrunthestreetandkeepit honest.”

Sittingnextto Janis PieterSchoeman, who

farmsonbothsidesofDeRust.Stick around

foranothercappuccinoandyou’ll hear the

storyofhowPieterusedto drive his ostriches

downthemaindrag(it’snotcalled Schoeman

Streetfornothing)to getfromone paddock

to theother.

Nowadays,theostrichestravel the short

distancein style,onthebackofa livestock

truck.That’sbecause,sincethebird flu of

2011,EuropeanUnionrestrictions apply.

Andlet’sfaceit,couldyouimagine a flock

of pecky ostriches dancing down the high street

of a chocolate-box town?

“But I sometimes have to run other stock

down the road,” Pieter admits. De Rust still

has its occasional beast parade, starring red

cattle, wool sheep, Pieter Schoeman and

his doughty stockmen. At the same table is

Willie Immelman, who has been in tourism

for most of his working life and currently has

a love affair with the plants of the region, the

legendary pelargonium family in particular.

A drive with Willie around the outskirts

of De Rust, up a hill and down into a little

ABOVE: Pieter Schoeman and his cattle are a regular feature on the main street of De Rust.
BELOW LEFT: You’re now on the fringes of Ostrich Country. RIGHT: Loraine Burger outside
her shop Karoo Rouge.

TOWN OF THE MONTH ◗ DE RUST