Barely and hour’s drive from Cape Town on the rugged West Coast, in a tranquil bay embroidered with scattered rocks, is the gorgeous fishing village of Paternoster.

With it’s picturesque white washed houses, green-gray veld and turquoise water, you would be forgiven for thinking you’ve ended up in a distant hamlet somewhere on the Mediterranean coast. Then once more, you won’t get anything more authentically South African than the local delicacy of bokkoms (salted, dried fish) – the seafood model of that other very South African treat, biltong.

Being close to Cape Town, this predominantly Afrikaans-speaking village is a popular weekend getaway destination for affluent Capetonians who prefer the unspoilt West Coast to the vacationer friendlier South Coast. In summer the nearby camping site at Tietiesbaai in the Cape Columbine nature reserve, is frequented by hardy fisherman and snorkel divers.

Although the water is generally too cold for bathing, colourful boats baking within the sun is a typical sight on the town’s unspoilt stretch of beach. On a good day up to thirty boats will be seen across the bay – virtually all of Paternoster’s humble permanent inhabitants are still solely at mercy of the ocean to provide them with food and a means of income.

Legend has it that the town’s name, which is Latin for “Our Father’s prayer”, was given by Portuguese seafarers who had bother in rough seas. Grateful for having safely reached shore, they vowed to build a church and christened the village Paternoster.

A visit to the Paternoster hotel will offer you a bit of perception into the town’s vibrant culture. The hotel’s infamous “panty bar” – with it’s walls and ceiling covered in girls’s underwear and dirty jokes – is the place you will discover sturdy fishermen watching sport on television while consuming copious quantities of Brandy and coke. Across the road from the hotel’s terrace, locals sell their catch of the day – whether or not Snoek legally or Crayfish underhandedly (it is illegal to buy or sell Crayfish or West Coast Rock Lobster with a recreational Crayfish permit).

Down the road is the Paternoster farm stall, the place merchandise includes a delicious number of homemade seafood pickles like mussels with coriander and chili or curried calamari. Diagonally opposite is the charming Oep ve Koep (the name directly translates from an Afrikaans expression in typical West Coast slang as “open for buying”) the place typical kitschy vacationer memorabilia sit between a big assortment of antique enamelware, glass containers and vintage signage.

At the beach front market indulge within the freshest fish and chips from the Seemeeu Kiosk or brave the pungent scent and buy a bunch of bokkoms – truly a delectable substitute for anchovy.

For the perfect ending to a typical West-Coast visit, make dinner reservations on the quaint Die Voorstrandt restaurant. Situated right on the beach in one of many oldest buildings in the village, Die Voorstrandt affords a taste of the freshest local seafood and unsurpassed views of the most lovely West Coast sunset.

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