If it's November, it must be time for the Cherry Festival. This annual event has been re-launched to ensure even more fun and enjoyment for the family, with something for everyone.
This year the festival, the oldest crop festival in South Africa, will take place from November 18-20 and it promises to be bigger and better than ever before.
There will be a stellar array of artistes on hand to entertain, with no fewer than three Idols veterans in the line-up ? Heinz Winkler, Pieter West and David Fourie ? as well as Nadine, George Longane and The Campbells. They will be joined by Ficksburg's JP van Vuuren.
Carmen Niehaus, food editor of Huisgenoot/You, will show foodies how to cook with cherries and asparagus.
Cheese aficionados will learn how to make cheese in their kitchens by attending one of the workshops on this subject.
New this year is the introduction of a theatre at a "satellite" festival in Rosendal, presented as the Rosendal Kunstefees, in collaboration with veteran TV actor Chris van Niekerk.
Apart from puppet shows, audiences will be treated to a number of plays - Seks in the Suburbs, The Love of Seven Dolls and Die Ryk Weduwee - as well as an assortment of classic movies.
Another innovation is the concept of fly-ins from Lanseria Airport in Joburg and Wonderboom Airport in Pretoria to the airfield outside Ficksburg. This means that those making use of this travel won't have to drive from Gauteng to the Eastern Free State, but will be able to fly down for the day. Also new this year are tours to the Fertility Caves - see www.cherryfestival.co.za - which has been organised in addition to the tours to cherry and asparagus farms.
All tours can be pre-booked through Computicket.
Families with small children can rest assured that the young fry have been well catered for with a huge variety of entertainment scheduled to keep them busy.
On the sporting front, there is the annual Cherry Golf Classic, the Cherry Bowls Tournament, the Cherry Mountain Bike Challenge and the famous 23km Cherry Mountain Run.
- For more information on Cherry Festival events, go to www.cherryfestival.co.za.