Soul Searching In The Midlands Sa's Spiritual Hub

The Natal Midlands... and surrounds is a popular holiday destination on most local travel bucket lists, but it’s much more than that – it’s a place to recharge your spirit. Dotted with unconventional restaurants, shops and places to stay, there’s a deep sense of spiritual richness there. And the intrepid artists, quirky entrepreneurs and kind community make it a unique place to rejuvenate.

- Marli Meyer

Meandering from Howick to Nottingham Road

We started our weekend in Howick, then meandered through autumn trees. There were interesting stops & chance encounters with the friendly locals. These were standout stops for us:

The Everything Store

You can find almost anything you might need on a road trip, camping adventure or braai, here, but the real highlight is the enamelware. There are beautiful plates, kettles and serving dishes or tea sets in unusual colours. And it’s very affordable. When you pack for your trip, leave space to trek back with some of this enamelware.

Spiral Blue

This little trinket shop captures the spirit of KZN’s creativity. With interesting jewellery from India and Indonesia and wraparound skirts in magnificent fabrics, it’s worth a browse even if you don’t buy. Paul Goodwin (aka Pobsie ) runs the place and is great to chat to about the area or to help identify the stones on the rings you pick. Next door is Earth Treasures, owned by Heather Poulsen. It’s filled with cabinets of crystals, precious stones and minerals (from sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar) that claim to cure all kinds of ailments (calmness, heart disease, intuition) and are beautiful just to look at. Look out for the metallic bismuth crystals that look like the little castles from fantasy novels.

Steampunk Coffee