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Vanessa and Ryan Sandes share their journey as new parents
Vanessa and Ryan Sandes share their journey as new parents
Vanessa Haywood and Ryan Sandes talk beating the baby blues, his new book and the joy that young Max has brought to their lives!
When actress Vanessa Haywood and ultra marathon champ Ryan Sandes had a baby boy called Max, he was always going to be raised not on smartphones and video games but the great outdoors.
Leading off the renowned Bain’s Kloof pass, Bastiaanskloof Valley was our destination. Here in the UNESCO Boland Mountain World Heritage Site, India House is an escape tailor made for a Nature-loving family. Named after its turquoise front door, imported from Gujarat, India, it’s a three bedroomed getaway in stone, open timber rafters and French oak. One which co-owner Caroline Swanson has turned into a magnificent guest-house.
Just the place for the couple who met at the Knysna Oyster festival 7 years ago and whose last 15 months have been defined by a new addition to the Sandes clan.
The silence is the first thing you notice in these three en-suite bedrooms. There’s under- floor heating from bed to bath to see you cosily through the coming Winter months and to encourage you into the glorious, fynbos surrounds – an outdoor shower. It’s Ryan Sandes country for sure. He’s the first person to win every race in the 4 Desert Series and to take an ultra trail running title on each of the seven continents. But that’s not all… Since choosing life with Ryan over a move to London to pursue her film career, Vanessa has studied digital marketing, opened an agency and they’ve become a family of four.
A guest house warmed by fire and candlelight took Vanessa back to her childhood on a wheat farm in Mpumalanga. For a more personal portrait of her husband’s life, you can now read all about it in his new book, Trail Blazer.
Taking a rich and varied life in their stride, these compelling South Africans never fail to add a fascinating chapter to their story, each time we see them. Here’s to the next one!
