What happened to Emgwenya?

My boyfriend and I are spending the weekend at a lodge outside of Emgwenya. This area is STUNNING. The landscape is truly breathtaking and we’ve had such a nice time hiking and taking a break from the city.

We drove into the town of Emgwenya looking for a bottle store and a place to eat. What happened to this place? You can tell that there was once a cute, vibrant Main Street but half of this town is now boarded up.

I love exploring this area and have spent weekends in Dullstroom, Sabie, and Kaapschehoop. People are capitalizing on the beauty of the area and there’s a decent tourism component in those areas. Parts of Emgwenya look almost apocalyptic.

I’m not trying to be a downer on South Africa. I’m just seriously curious about how a place as beautiful as this is could be struggling so much.