Paarl Gimnasium

Paarl (; Afrikaans: [ˈpɑːrl̩]; derived from Parel, meaning "pearl" in Dutch) is a town with 285,574 inhabitants in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is the third-oldest European settlement in the Republic of South Africa (after Cape Town and Stellenbosch) and the largest town in the Cape Winelands. Due to the growth of the Mbekweni township, it is now a de facto urban unit with Wellington. It is situated about 60 kilometres (37 mi) northeast of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province and is known for its scenic environment and viticulture and fruit-growing heritage.Paarl is the seat of the Drakenstein Local Municipality; although not part of the Cape Town metropolitan area, it falls within its economic catchment. Paarl is unusual among South African place-names, in being pronounced differently in English than in Afrikaans; likewise unusual about the town's name is Afrikaners customary attachment to it, saying not in Paarl, but rather in die Paarl, or in die Pêrel (literally, "in the Paarl"). Paarl gained additional international attention when, on 11 February 1990, Nelson Mandela walked, with live international television coverage, out of Victor Verster Correctional Centre (now known as Drakenstein Correctional Centre) in Paarl ending his 27 years of imprisonment, and beginning a course to South Africa's post-apartheid era and, notably, to multi-racial elections. Mandela spent three years in prison here living in a private house within the walls. Today, a bronze statue of Mandela stands outside the prison. Paarl hosted 3 matches from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003. The headquarters of Ceres Fruit Juices is located in the city, although its namesake and source of much of the fruit, Ceres Valley, lies around one hour's drive to the northeast. The district is particularly well known for its Pearl Mountain or "Paarl Rock". This huge granite rock consists of three rounded outcrops. Paarl Rock consists of intrusive igneous rock.

Labori High School is a school in Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa.

The Toringkerk in the Paarl was separated in 1875 as the NG congregation Noorder-Paarl from the NG congregation Paarl, also known as the Strooidakkerk. Like many other congregations, this congregation also owed its origin to mutual struggle and division. In addition to the longing for better spiritual cultivation in a town that was already growing too large for just one NG congregation, the deeper-lying cause of division in the Paarl was the awakening of a national consciousness among the Afrikaners in the second half of the 19th century. From the struggle for the maintenance of the Paarl Gymnasium, the famous free church school for Christian and mother tongue education, founded in 1858 by Rev. G.W.A. van der Lingen, was established. What was described at the time as a "small island in the sea of anglicization in the country", the municipality of Noorder-Paarl was founded. The congregation was a strong supporter of the school from the outset and even accepted financial responsibility for the Paarl Gymnasium for the first 11 years of its existence. Because the members of the congregation consisted of people who cherished the above-mentioned ideals for church and people and lived scattered all over Paarl, it is understandable why Dr. Andrew Murray and his fellow members of the ring commission at the time requested the church council of the Paarl to have the congregation separated without boundary lines. The church council agreed not to put any obstacles in the way of secession; otherwise, there would certainly have been a split in the local church for the sake of the ideals of the Afrikaans language. On 26 July 1875, Noorder-Paarl was separated without borderlines and with 377 members. A few weeks later, the Society of Real Afrikaners was founded in the congregation to work for the recognition of Afrikaans as a written language and for the translation of the Bible into Afrikaans. All but two of the original leaders of the G.R.A. are members of the congregation. The Tower Church, a tower that is 57 m (187 ft), was only completed in 1907 and declared a national monument in 1982. The membership was over 1,800 in 1990, but 1,300 in 2007, due to changed settlement patterns in the town. By 2014, it had dropped further to 1,181.

La Rochelle Girls' High School, (Afrikaans: Hoër Meisieskool La Rochelle) in Paarl is the oldest girls' school in South Africa (tied with Rhenish Girls' High School in Stellenbosch).

Paarl Boys' High School, known in Afrikaans as Hoër Jongenskool Paarl (also known as Boishaai) is one of the oldest schools in South Africa, built in 1868. The school is situated in Paarl, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The first headmaster of the school was George Jeffreys. Effective as of 2007, the headmaster of the school is Derek Swart.

Huguenot railway station is the main passenger railway station in the town of Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa. It is served by Metrorail commuter trains on the Northern Line. It is also the second stop out of Cape Town for Shosholoza Meyl inter-city trains originating or terminating there. Although there is a railway station bearing the name of "Paarl", it is located in an industrial area in the southern part of Paarl, and express and inter-city trains do not stop there. Huguenot station has three tracks for passenger trains, accessed by a side platform and an island platform connected by a pedestrian bridge and subway.

The Strooidakkerk is the third oldest congregation of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa. The congregation was formerly known as Drakenstein. The congregation's origins are a result of the arrival of the French Huguenots to South Africa in 1688. They initially belonged to the NG congregation of Stellenbosch, but in 1691 they were formed into a separate congregation, then Drakenstein. The first place of meeting was located somewhere in the vicinity of Simondium in a small building of wood and clay that some described as a "dirty hut" or "a giant". Here the Rev. Pierre Simond, who came to the Cape with the Huguenots, preached in elegant French, until he preached his last sermon at the Cape in April 1702 and returned to Europe. Under the leadership of Rev. Petrus van Aken, a proper church building was erected in 1717, partly with the help of a bequest from the well-known Henning Huising. It probably stood on the north side of the present church building, where the grave of Rev. R.N. Alting (minister from 1784 to 1800) is. In 1805, the present church building was erected in the old Cape Dutch style, which is still known today as the Strooidakkerk and is the oldest church building in South Africa still in use as such. The Pentecostal vigil, which is today a custom throughout the Dutch Reformed Church, originated from a week of prayer between Ascension Day and Pentecost Sunday in 1861.

Boland Park is a multi-purpose stadium in Paarl, South Africa. It is currently used mostly for cricket matches and hosted three matches during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. Boland cricket team and the Paarl Royals both stage home matches at the ground. The stadium has a capacity of 10,000 people.

The Afrikaans Language Monument (Afrikaans: Afrikaanse Taalmonument) is located on a hill overlooking Paarl, Western Cape Province, South Africa. Officially opened on 10 October 1975, it commemorates the semicentenary of Afrikaans being declared an official language of South Africa separate from Dutch. Also, it was erected on the 100th anniversary of the founding of Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners (the Society of Real Afrikaners) in Paarl, the organisation that helped strengthen Afrikaners' identity and pride in their language. The monument was used as a filming location for the Twelfth series of Doctor Who.

Mbekweni is a township situated between Wellington and Paarl in the Western Cape province of South Africa. As of 2011 it had a population of 30,875 residents in 8,339 households. Paarl, Mbekweni and Wellington form a continuous urban area within the Drakenstein Municipality.

The Spice Route Paarl is a popular tourist destination located in the city of Paarl, South Africa. Make sure to check in with vendors regarding specific operating hours. The farm is open 7 days a week but each vendor adheres to their own operating hours. The name Spice Route dates back to the historical mariners who used to trade Eastern spices to Europe along the "Spice Route" for spice trade in the 15th century. The Estate gives visitors the opportunity to explore local foods, beverages and goods, that are produced in a traditional manner supporting the local community while spreading the taste and spirit of South Africa out to the world. Its cellar production and wine tasting is conducted of red and white wines from the local Malmesbury and Darling wine yards, which received national and international attention.