Himeville Travel Guide

This oddly quaint structure is located just opposite the Himeville Arms and commemorates Himeville's war dead from a number of conflicts.

In comparison to most war memorials, there are mercifully few names - until you think of Himeville's tiny population and realise that even these few casualties would have caused devastation amid this small and tightly knit community.

Years ago, I stayed in the Himeville Hotel, but I can't for the life of me recall exactly when or why I was there, as it's not really on the way anywhere.

I can't remember any specific detail from my stay other than the fact that the food was excellent, so when it came to choosing a lunch stop after our nerve jarring descent of the Sani Pass, I was curious to discover whether my memory was still justified.

I am happy to report that all these years later, the food is still wonderful.

The Himeville Hotel is one of those timewarp places that you still occasionally stumble across in the corners of the former British Empire: if you've travelled to the Eastern Highlands of Rhodesia (which still has an air of only reluctantly now being Zimbabwe), then you'll instantly recognise the ambience. Sitting on the terrace perusing the menu, there is a sense that it has remained largely unchanged since the 1970s - better still, the prices are reminiscent of Johannesburg in the 90s!

Favorite Dish: We were a group of eight eating from the pub lunch menu, and everything we had was excellent.

The kids chicken nuggets were freshly prepared morsels of crumbed chicken (not the prefab frozen affairs served by most establishments), and the menu also included seldom seen child pleasers such as bacon and banana toasted sandwiches which may also appeal to adults yearning for 'nursery food'.

The rest of the group opted for more conventional burgers and toasted sandwiches, which were also excellent - in particular, my bacon, brie and chicken burger was excellent. Just be warned that the ham appears to be of the tinned (as opposed to the thinly sliced deli variety) variety, which may or may not be to your taste.

It's worth noting that despite the apparent sleepiness of the establishment, the service was speedy.

Highly recommended - and next time I'm stopping for supper!

The Sani Pass is the only way to cross the Drakensberg escarpment on Lesotho's eastern border with South Africa (which, interestingly enough, totally surrounds it) - thus, it is an international border, and you require a passport to cross from one to other. If you want to be pedantic, the pass itself is technically 'no man's land', as the Lesotho border is at the top of the pass, and the South African border is at the bottom, with an intervening distance of 9km. This is reputed to be the longest distance between corresponding border posts on an international border in the world, although I am open to correction on this point.

Looking at the photo, I'm sure that you will agree that it would be a shame to drive all the way up this, only to be refused admission, so make sure that you have checked that you have a (valid) passport with you before you set out, lest you have to drive back to collect it!

It's worth noting that as Lesotho and South Africa are part of a common customs area, you are not required to present any ownership documentation for your vehicle.