by africagirl | Apr 30, 2010 | Uncategorized
The most outstanding and independently vetted safari lodges, camps and hotels in Africa are going to be honoured at the 2010 Good Safari Guide (GSG) Awards to be held at the Indaba at the Hilton Ballroom in Durban on Friday, May 7 2010.
Safari specialists, tour operators, agents and travel journalists were invited to nominate camps, lodges and hotels that they believe offer the best safari experience. The finalists will compete in categories including: Best Safari Property Africa, Best Safari Property Southern Africa, Best Safari Hotel, Best Ecological Safari Property, Best Safari Cuisine, Best African Tourism Board and Traveller’s Choice.
The panel of judges consists of highly respected independent and experienced tour operators. To see a full list of the nominees and to check out the judges, visit the Good Safari Guide website.
by africagirl | Feb 14, 2010 | Uncategorized
The Zulu men and women of KwaZulu-Natal have always been renowned for making colourful and intricate beaded creations.
These unique and beautiful trinkets are not just limited to jewellery. With great dexterity and skill, the Zulus can create almost anything out of bead, thread or wire. Apart from ornate necklaces, earrings, bangles and ankle bracelets, artisans also construct beaded bowls, cups, baskets, handbags, entire garments, sculptures and even… love letters.
Long before westerners turned to greeting card companies to communicate their love to a special person on Valentine’s Day, Zulu maidens have been following in the footsteps of their ancestors by spelling out their love with tiny seed beads. These missives, officially known as Ibheqe but typically sold as souvenirs to tourists under the appealing name of ‘Zulu Love Letters’, are rectangular beaded flaps attached to a narrow beaded band that is worn around the neck as a necklace. For tourists’ ‘sakes, the flap is sometimes attached to a safety pin and attached to a card on which the meaning of the Love Letter is explained.
All the different coloured beads used in the Love Letter have specific meanings – much like a special code or an unspoken language. Traditionally, a Zulu maiden would carefully select the colours to send a particular message to the unmarried young man who is the object of her affection. Each colour can have positive or negative connotations, so she could sometimes even use it to express anger or frustration.
Therefore black beads used in the Love Letter can either signify marriage and regeneration; or sorrow, despair or death. Blue beads could mean that she is requesting something, possibly his fidelity. On the flip side, it could also signal a feeling of hostility towards him. Yellow means health, fertility; or, negatively: thirst, badness and withering away. In this instance, red also means love and passion. On the other hand, red beads could also spell out anger, heartache or impatience. White – the colour code for spiritual love, purity and virginity – is the only colour in the Zulu Love Letter beaded language that has no negative implication.
Zulu maidens combine the colours in various ways to express a certain sentiment. Although many intricately beaded patterns are used, the main shape used in all Zulu Love Letters is the triangle. In the Zulu culture, the triangles found in beaded Zulu Love Letters have various meanings. The three corners of the shape symbolise father, mother and child. An inverted triangle signifies the unfulfilled male principle (i.e. an unmarried man). If the apex points downwards, it implies the unmarried female. If it is the shape of two triangles joined along the base to form a diamond, it means that a woman is ‘complete’ or married. (Yes, the Zulus add much value to marriage. Once married, you immediately have status in the community, therefore it is something that young people are encouraged to aspire to.) If the two triangles are positioned in such a way in that it meets at the apexes (like an hourglass) it means that a man is married.
Yet no matter how carefully one tries to interpret the meaning of the colours and shapes, the true meaning of a Zulu Love Letter is often obscured by the many proverbs and imagery of the spoken Zulu language and culture. Luckily no understanding is required in order to enjoy and appreciate such an artfully created, hand-crafted object. Whether on a safety pin or as a necklace, Zulu Love Letters make truly wonderful gifts and will serve as a lasting memento of your visit to a very special place.
by africagirl | Dec 11, 2009 | Uncategorized
This is the tale of how the Rhinoceros got his horn:
The rhinoceros was given his name because of the horn on his nose, but he did not always have this horn. He was once known as the simoneos, or flat-nosed-one, and he would snuffle his way along the ground eating the sweet grasses of the African savannah and letting the pretty birds sit on his back and eat the fat ticks behind his ears.
One day the simoneos was having a dust bath when the boa constrictor, Bo, came slithering along the path to visit him. Bo told him of the trouble in the animal kingdom. The king of all animals, Leo the lion, had eaten a hyena which had drunk the poisoned waters of the pool of Sowe. He was very ill and nothing could help him.
The simoneos was certain that there must be something that will help the king as he was still young and strong. Bo assured him that there was only one cure – tea made from the leaves of the bulewo plant. That plant only grows when the rains fall, and there had been no rain for months.
As he slept, the simoneos had a strange dream. In this dream, all the birds who always sat behind his ears and ate the ticks, whispered: “We can help you if you can help us!”
When he woke, the old and wise Strix, the shriek-owl, came forward and told Simoneos that, since he had for so many seasons allowed the birds to rest behind his ears and eat the ticks behind them, the birds wanted to thank him by making him a hero in the animal kingdom.
The birds settled on his spade-like nose and Simoneos flung them right up into the air to a height they could not reach by simply flying.
The birds soon resembled tiny ants in the sky as the strong nose and neck of Simoneos sent the birds higher than they had ever gone before. A whirring noise, like the winds in the north, broke the silence. The birds were flapping their wings while performing one great dance in the sky. Huge dark clouds hung over the savannah. Then the rains started.
The plants began to sprout and Bo squeezed some of the fresh leaves from the saplings and gave them to Simoneos so that he could use it to make the medicinal tea for the ailing king. The miracle tea cured the king and he soon sat up to speak to all those present.
He asked Simoneos to tell his story. He did, remembering to mention his good friends, Bo, Strix and all the birds, and how they had all played a part in helping to cure the king.
The king rewarded Simoneos by giving him a huge diamond. Simoneos put it onto his spade-like nose to carry it home, but – as if by magic – the diamond just stuck on the end, like a unicorn’s horn.
Simoneos discovered that he could use his new horn for all sorts of useful things, because it was so hard and strong, and the pretty birds could sit on it too! He was given a new name – Rhinoceros – which means ‘horn on your nose’. And that is how the Rhinoceros got his horn.
So, if you ever see a rhino charging, you must get right out of his way. For all we know, he may be trying to save the King again!
by africagirl | Dec 7, 2009 | Uncategorized
As the kick-off for the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup approaches, the excitement is already mounting. Fans are whipping out the face paint, buying vuvuzelas and warming up their vocal cords in preparation for the first South African Soccer World Cup. At the speed with which tickets are already being sold, it is clear that stadiums will be filled to capacity, so guests should prepare themselves for the experience of a lifetime of unforgettable soccer moments and brace themselves for fans’ ear-deafening passion.
A fluffy, young leopard with a wide smile and green dreadlocks is hardly the animal tourists will expect to encounter on the African continent when visiting South Africa during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. But that very creature, named Zakumi, will be impossible to miss. Word has it that he plans to captivate all visitors to the FIFA 2010 stadiums with his confidence, charm, enthusiasm and uniquely African spirit.
For 40 years, every FIFA World Cup tournament around the world has had its own unique mascot. The first was a lion called World Cup Willie. Willie was the mascot for the 1966 event, hosted by England.
Zakumi, the mascot for the South African 2010 FIFA World Cup, was born on 16 June 1994. This extraordinary leopard seems to already have a bit of a reputation. FIFA has described Zakumi as being “the first on the dance floor and last off it at the biggest party in the world”. But he is far more than just a party animal. With his self-confidence, pride, hospitality, social skills and warm heart, he embodies South Africa and the rest of the African continent.
So what’s the story behind his green dreads? A source has told us that Zakumi has been dyeing his dreadlocks green in order to be camouflaged against the green of the football pitch.
A witty extrovert with a hunger for adventure and football, Zakumi has already travelled the globe: riding on an open-top bus through Luxembourg, joining Spain’s national team at a training session in Brussels, and – of course – visiting every corner of South Africa to drum up excitement ahead of the first soccer World Cup to be played on the African continent.
The spirit of the World Cup is indescribable, transforming front and back yards into impromptu stadiums and streets into carnivals. The passion of South African spectators has already enveloped the country, creating hype like no other. A combination of hysteria, tears, laughter and joy are bound to ensue as the FIFA World Cup finally reaches African soil in 2010. All South Africans are sure to become mascots in their own right, and coupled with Zakumi, to delight both foreign and local visitors.
by africagirl | Dec 4, 2009 | Uncategorized
As the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup finally reaches the African continent, thousands of passionate fans are sure to follow, bringing with them the hopes of victory and all their misconceptions regarding the country’s offerings.
Any one asked to comment on South Africa is quick to mention rich landscapes, thick bush and awe inspiring wildlife. Although rightly so (after all, South Africa does have all these things), visitors often fail to recognise the depth of what the country has to offer.
Gold, the world’s first heart transplant, Nobel peace prize holders, wine routes, an enormous man-made hole and Retinal Cryoprobe are just a few other important elements making up this diverse, vibrant and passionate country.
As the producer of almost half the gold in the world, South Africa is a world leader in gold and diamonds, proving that it is a diamond in the rough, fraught with possibility.
Few people realise the medical expertise the country has housed. Some notable South African medical professionals include Dr. Chris Barnard, who successfully completed the world’s first heart transplant in 1967, and Dr. Percy Amolis, who invented the Retinal Cryoprobe used successfully on former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to repair a detached retina. That same type of surgery was also used to successfully remove a cataract from Nelson Mandela’s eye, enabling the former president to – for the first time – read a speech without glasses.
In addition, South Africa is the only country in the world to have two Nobel Peace prize winners from the same region. When they won their awards, both former president Mandela and Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu lived in Soweto, a township situated near Johannesburg.
South Africa also boasts the largest man-made hole and the longest wine route in the world.
So next time South Africa enters the topic board, one should dig deeper and consider the country’s other hidden talents, beyond the bush. Many would be surprised to discover South Africa’s other “wild” achievements.
