南非佳餚美酒下肚，男士們心情好到以Sir Charles、Sir Dereck相稱。我們一致認為，這是我們住過最棒的旅館之一了。Saxon從飯店設施、裝潢氣氛、人員應對到服務餐飲，各方面的表現都堪稱上乘，實屬不易。Mr. Steyn 於1992年遷居英國時，就決心要把Saxon改建為一座像藝術品般、超越所有來訪貴客期待的極品旅館。他的確做到了！因為連續好幾年，Saxon都被「The World Travel Awards」選為 「World’s Leading Boutique Hotel」。
飛到南非的航線安排，較理想的幾個航空公司都沒有頭等艙，一趟長途飛行實在有點辛苦。不過，就算得窩16個小時，只為去Saxon住個3、5天，我絕對心甘情願！甚至學學Coco Chanel夫人，長期住在巴黎Ritz飯店一般，去Saxon長期租個好套房來當第2個家，也值得認真考慮呢！
www.theSaxon.com
I have often wondered what type of hotel would it take to move a hardened traveler such as myself?
Is it the Las Vegas approach of replicating famous places and scenes in a desert setting? The sumptuous extravagance of Dubai, with its new offerings of six- and seven-star hotels? Aman style, where the contrast between rich and poor is adeptly utilized to foster a deliberate aloofness from the world? Or globally recognized boutique hotels with their focus on “fashion and taste”?
In July of this year I had just finished a one-week safari, including three days and two nights at Victoria Waterfalls in Zimbabwe, and was resting in Johannesburg waiting for the next day’s return flight to Taiwan. Our group was made up of three families — five adults and five children. On the day in question everyone was both excited at all that we had seen but exhausted from the journey, our heads filled with images of wild animals and “African luxury” — the refined reconstruction of a nostalgic colonial atmosphere, with pitch black hewn wooden sculptures, dance performances driven by powerful beats and expressionless eyes and hunters trophies of great chamois hanging from the walls.
Many in the tour group had stayed in top hotels all over the world, and so were not really expecting anything special from the 24-room Saxon Hotel. Although I had booked the Presidential Suite, all I really wanted was a quiet comfortable place to rest the day before our long flight home.
But the moment we stepped through the gigantic wooden doors to the Saxon Hotel, the lush greenness of its courtyard and the mirror-like pool reflecting the cloudless blue sky washed away the dusty desert and the fatigue of the weary traveler in an instant, almost as if this was the beginning of our journey not its last port of call.
 |
The high roof in the foyer and two exquisite arched stairways at either side drew our gaze upwards to the second floor. The sunlight seeped in through the round glass arch in the center of the ceiling. Under it we found not the habitual magnificent crystal chandeliers, but large ostrich egg shells with holes drilled in them, transformed into light shades and forged iron hanging lights positioned in the shape of a Christmas tree. Hanging on the walls and decorating the tables were a wide variety of masks and carvings, with a few deliberate but well-placed examples of Chinese calligraphy. The whole hotel was filled with the vitality and natural atmosphere of Africa, though the overall feeling was also one of great attention to detail and refinement. On the left-hand side, we could see the reception and check-in desk connected to the landscaped ponds by the main entrance. It was impressive to see how the indoor lighting softened the sunlight, ingeniously linking these individual spaces into a subtle and extremely comfortable atmosphere.
The sort of beauty that melts one’s heart is not necessarily instantly eye-catching. It feels a little like seeing an older Audrey Hepburn and being able to appreciate the highly admirable inner qualities she exudes inside and out.
The front desk is nothing more than an attractive-looking office desk, hidden behind the stairs. Arriving at the Saxon one experiences a surprising sensation of dislocation. It is almost like returning home, to a place that though costly retains the sort of warmth guests long for.
Before the Saxon Hotel opened in June 2000, the building was formerly a private residence. In the 1980s the South African insurance magnate Douw Steyn built his dream home on this six hectare plot and named it Saxon. Beyond the main doors are 920 square meters of landscaped ponds which actually serve as an outdoor swimming pool. Where there was once an indoor swimming pool there is now a restaurant area located behind the lobby.
In 1990, when Nelson Mandela was released from jail after 27 years, Steyn invited him to stay at the Saxon, where he resided for the first six months of his freedom. In that period the soon-to-be first democratically elected President of South Africa turned his prison writings into an autobiography entitled Long Walk to Freedom, which has since been an inspiration to countless others.
The attention to detail in the rooms is an indication of the way the hotel is managed and guest’s needs are taken care of. There is a laundry basket for dirty towels in the bathroom, which on its own adds an extra point in my evaluation. As soon as one enters the room there is a copy of TV Guide open at programs for the day in question, with the TV remote carefully placed on top of it. Of particular use for guests is the dizzying array of sockets and adapters hidden under the desk, which probably includes every type known to man (plug sockets in South Africa are not only different from our own but also from those used in other African countries).
This is why visitors will find pictures of Nelson Mandela all over the hotel. In the corridor to the rooms hang sketches by painter Dean Simon, each one depicting one aspect of Mandela’s life while he lived here. Viewing the pictures is almost like going back in time and serves to invoke the romanticism of being close to history. Indeed, it is the legend of Nelson Mandela that gives the Saxon Hotel its irreplaceable appeal, unmatched by the countless other wonderful tourist hotels in the world.
The bar behind the lobby, together with the fish pond, heated swimming pool, gym and guestroom area beyond the corridor, were added when the building was converted into a hotel. All the rooms at the Saxon are suites and the Egoli suite, booked just for children, is more than satisfying. The Presidential Suite in which we stayed was around 2.5 times larger than the standard suite, with its own independent living room, dining room and kitchen. Sadly, I was only there one night, so I didn’t even have enough time to sit in all the chairs, never mind put the well-equipped kitchen to good use.
Each bedroom has its own distinctively decorated four-poster bed, a large bath tub behind the bed lit by candlelight and two large wash basins. The whole room is decorated in natural colors and wooden carvings I found cute and highly apropos, as opposed to fierce and intimidating. Despite the deliberate African style it does not go as far as to be pretentious or cliched. If I had the chance to purchase property in Sandton City then I would certainly seek assistance from Stephen Falke, the man responsible for interior decorating work at the Saxon.
The spa, which was expanded only in early spring this year, is also different to what one normally finds in a top hotel. Indeed, visiting the Saxon Spa & Studio was the first time I ever saw a Sound Therapy Room, filled with gongs and sound bowls (for more information on Singing Bowls Therapy please see page 74, of Vintage No. 10). I understand that the inspiration for “sound therapy” came from Tibet.The theory behind this treatment is that appropriate sound waves resonate with the water in the human body which in turn has a healing effect. |
|
 |
 |
 |
Basically, sound therapists do not perform any formal massaging and do not touch the client’s body. My body comfortably sank into the water bed and before I fell asleep I could have sworn I felt the blood in my veins moving to the sound!
When we first arrived at the Saxon hotel, service staff offered some of the children the very latest PlayStation games to play, which was a special surprise for them. Front desk staff also enquired if we would “Rather be served dinner in our special room?”
This made some sense, because most of the guests coming and going at the Saxon were dressed very “respectably” whereas we were attired in safari clothes and had only brought leisure clothing with us on the trip, so it was likely we would stand out a little too much in the dining room. With this in mind, the woman behind the desk arranged for us to eat dinner in a spacious Function Room.
After a meal of South African cuisine and wine, the men were so pleased that they started referring to each other as “Sir Charles, Sir Derek,” etc. We were all moved to say that this was without doubt one of the finest hotels we had ever stayed at. The Saxon excelled across the board with its impressive facilities, atmospheric decor, helpful service personnel and exquisite menu.
When Steyn moved to the UK in 1992, he decided to remodel the Saxon into a boutique hotel, one that resembled a work of art and always exceed the expectations of its guests. That goal has most certainly been achieved, proof of which can be seen in the many accolades the Saxon hotel has received, including one from the World Travel Awards as the “World’s Leading Boutique Hotel.”
The best airlines, for anyone wishing to fly from Taiwan to South Africa, do not have a first class cabin, which can make such a long journey a little uncomfortable. However, I would say that three to five days in the Saxon hotel is definitely worth 16 hours of slight discomfort. One might even want to seriously consider emulating Coco Chanel who resided at the Ritz in Paris for so long, by renting a suite at the Saxon on a permanent basis to serve as a second home.
www.theSaxon.com |
