If you are looking for a remedy for stress, I think I have just found it! It feels that we could have been away a week, yet it has only been 26 hours. We have stayed at the hotel, but there are far less expensive self-catering options in the Caledon area and a visit to the hot springs on a day pass is just as effective. If you do choose to stay at the Caledon hotel, ask for the quiet side…where rolling hills and farmlands make up a pleasant view and very few people walk past your door.
The Spa section of the hotel is the place to hang out. You can do a hot spring circuit if you want to get the full relaxation experience. Starting in the Victorian bath for the traditional soak….
From there we went to the lap pool which was frigid to say the least. So cold was it, that I only managed half a lap before giving up on that idea and quickly wading back to the steps. Next, we went up the steps to some of the hotter pools, soaking away any cold. Here is Mike in the second hottest pool – just perfect. It feels like you’ve just climbed into the perfect hot bath and never need to turn the hot tap on again.
I spent a few minutes in the hottest one. With the weather cool, it was like climbing into a really just tolerable boiling hot bath where, in order to stay in, you would add some cold water. With no cold water to add, the minute or two was enough.
From there Mike and I headed for the sauna. This becomes a social gathering place. Dripping with sweat we exchanged conversations with a guy who works in Afghanistan…. what he does for a living, where he lives, where is was staying. Then we plunged into the small ‘ice pool’ which instantly closed our pores. In, out and back into the sauna for round two. After another round of the same, we ended up back in the sauna, this time with a Christian couple who were out from the UK – a young man of around 30 who was in his penultimate year of Bible college in North London. How refreshing is that? Third time round, we chatted with a bikini clad, tattoo covered young lady who we convinced to jump into the ice pool. Our entertainment was complete in watching through the sauna window. She gingerly walked up and down the side of the pool, then she pinched her nose and jumped in. On surfacing, she shrieked and dashed back to the sauna. With laughter on our lips, any semblance of stress was sweated out. We called it a day, headed to the shower and back to our room.
This afternoon, we spent time with Stacey and Adrian and what a pleasure it was. So happy that we could do this together.
Proverbs for today:
Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
Sometimes, our hearts long for something but God has a greater plan that we may not understand. Trusting Him is the right way forward.
These are the days.
Keep the smile going.
God bless you!
In His Grip,
Helga xx 🙂