If you google the top ten retirement activities, you’ll probably come across a US weblog called the ‘Successful Retirement Guide’ by R. Kevin Price. Perhaps not surprisingly, his top ten retirement activities are not that far-fetched and you could indulge in any one of them in not only New York but also, for example, in Napier, the little Overberg town that’s attracting more and more retirees these days. Here’s the top ten:
- Eat
- Drink
- Be Merry
- Exercise
- Learn a language
- Create
- Learn/study/grow
- Declutter
- Set goals
Googling a bit more and you will find US reports about baby boomers and what they really want to do in their retirement. Closer to home, Bruce Cameron’s article in Personal Finance refers to Dr Woolf Soloman (TV’s Dr Paul) who talks about retirement being an ‘unnatural condition’ that can lead to psychological problems if the pitfalls aren’t recognised early on. People are more likely these days to live for up to 30 years in retirement so it’s all about ‘retiring to something new’ and not at all about ‘retiring from life’.
Retirement is more about how to live it up a little … rather than quietly going off to die a little. It’s a whole new lease of life – or at least it should be – and the things people do in retirement and that give the most joy will surely help prolong life and promote health – after all, the love of life is what we all strive for.
Living it up in Napier is possible because it’s got the lot, so it’s really up to individual residents to find things to do that give them the most pleasure.
Napier – and the Napier Retirement Village itself – has a tangible vibrancy offering a surprisingly diverse range of things to do. There are numerous restaurants as well as numerous galleries, local wineries and churches in Napier. It has its own butcher, baker, a dairy, brewery (the most southern in Africa) and a burgeoning community of artistic and creative residents. Napier has an abundance of cultural societies and clubs and there are also classes offering anything from crafts, yoga and music lessons to satisfy all sorts of eager beavers. Napier is a place worth exploring and offers the kind of life one might hope to enjoy in retirement with the freedom and choice you’ve always wanted. Amid all that Overberg beauty, lying at the foot of the Soetmuisberg and just half an hour from the sea at Arniston, one simply can’t ignore what the great outdoors in Napier offers either.
So, if you like the idea of getting away from it all but without being cut off; if you want a life less ordinary but without pressure or worry; if you want the freedom to be among like-minded people; if you fancy indulging in all kinds of activities be they popular or extraordinary, you’d be hard pressed to beat coming home to Napier too.
Napier Retirement Village offers freedom, choice and peace of mind … as well as, in case you need it, the medical support you would want too. Situated on the top of a hill, the “Ou Skool” (Old School) is an impressive building with wooden floors, high ceilings and a rich history. It’s been lovingly restored and is now the nucleus of the Napier Retirement Village. Residents of Napier Retirement Village have a choice of independent or assisted living. Independent living is either in detached Cape cottages or terraced houses in the Ou Skool’s converted woodwork building. Assisted living and frail care services are offered in the main Ou Skool building, where the nursing and healthcare services are as convenient as the library, dining and living rooms.
For more information contact Will on 081 271 0543 or visit www.napiervillage.co.za
Article prepared for Senior Service by Wired Communications