GETTING TO KNOW THE NORTHERN CAPE

Home to the ancient San people, the Northern Cape is about wide-open spaces

An utterly beautiful coastline and a number of unique national parks offering the tourist a very different experience of the South African landscape. This province boasts a colorful history and a variety of cultural tourist attractions and is particularly well known for its incredible annual floral display that takes place in Namaqualand.

Overview

The Northern Cape lies to the south of the mighty Orange River and comprises mostly desert and semi-desert. The landscape is characterized by vast arid plains with outcroppings of haphazard rock piles. The cold Atlantic Ocean forms the western boundary. This region covers the largest area of all the provinces in South Africa yet has the smallest population. The last remaining true San (Bushman) people live in the Kalahari area of the Northern Cape. The whole area, especially along the Orange and Vaal rivers, is rich in San rock engravings. The province is also rich in fossils.

The first people of the Northern Cape were the San, who were gradually pushed out of the area by the arrival of Europeans, and other African tribes.  The Dutch came to the area to mine for copper under the famous Cape governor Simon van der Stel.  Mining has always defined the history in this part of the world and, when diamonds were discovered in Kimberley, unprecedented growth took place in the province under the leadership of men such as Barney Barnato and Cecil John Rhodes.  In 1899, the Northern province was the scene of the Anglo-Boer War, where Kimberley was one of the first towns to be besieged by the Boers.

Climate

Apart from a narrow strip of winter-rainfall area along the coast, the Northern Cape is a semi-arid region with little rainfall in summer. The weather conditions are extremely cold and frosty in winter, and extremely high temperatures in summer. Sutherland, in the Hantam Karoo, is one of the coldest towns in southern Africa with an average winter minimum is -6º Celsius.  In winter, snow often blankets its surrounding mountains.

Major attractions in the area:

Richtersveld National Park, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Augrabies Falls National Park

Flowers Everywhere:  During August and September, the area of Namaqualand is transformed into a brilliant carpet of wildflowers.

Rock Art

Diamond Digging Country:  Kimberley boasts an excellent museum called the Kimberley Mine Museum, The Big Hole at Kimberley, Trains, and Trams.

Moffat Mission Station:  Missionaries, Robert Moffat and his wife Mary arrived in the Kuruman area in 1820.

Not too far from Kuruman, lies the Wonderwerk Cave.

The Kalahari Desert

Small-town delights

The Northern Province is littered with small towns that are fast growing in popularity with the arty set. Places such as Nieuwoudtville, Calvinia, Poffadder, and Springbok are definitely worth a

visit, especially for their warm-hearted local hospitality.

Orange River Adventures

Pella Mission is truly in the middle of nowhere. Approximately 150km from Springbok, Pella boasts a striking yellow cathedral that was built by French missionaries in the late 1880’s.

Information courtesy of South African Tourism (www.southafrica.net)

 

Drought in the Northern Cape

Attempts to overcome the effects of drought in the Northern Cape

Can history about local inventions ever be forgotten and lost? In our daily lives where parts of our country are suffering from major droughts, there were already early attempts to overcome the effects of drought in the Northern Cape.

Revd. Peter Wright and his colleague and friend Revd. Isaac Hughes were both practical and enterprising men who had been sent to this country from Lancashire as artisan missionaries in the early 1820’s and had subsequently been ordained.

In the surviving letters and reports of these good men illustrate that in order to teach their people Christianity, they considered that an essential duty was to aid them in the path of civilization by improving living conditions, ensuring so far as was possible that their fields produced good crops and that cattle, sheep, and goats could find good grazing.

Lacking proper tools, equipment, and material, the missionaries undertook an experiment as far back as 1832. When they constructed a pump of 6 inches bore, the barrel cast of lead, and, as they had no boring tools, their pipes were made from logs of wood sawn down the middle, hollowed out and bound together again with iron hoops.  Although not entirely successful as the pipes were not thoroughly watered tight, sufficient water was lifted from the Orange River to irrigate a small area of arable land.

Between 1833 and 1835 Mr. Wright had to travel twice to Cape Town and back, a wagon journey of more than three months each way.  He made purchases of iron pipes, tools, and pumps for transportation by wagon to Griquatown.

Andries Waterboer whose full co-operation the missionaries enjoyed, was keenly interested in a scheme devised by Wright and Hughes.  In February 1836 he and Hughes undertook a survey of the Vaal and Orange rivers in their vicinity to locate a suitable site.

Read’s Drift some 30 miles south of Griquatown on the Orange River was selected and on March 15th work on the project “to lead water out for agricultural purposes” was commenced.  Read’s Drift is across the Orange River on the “Old Mission Road to the North” almost due south of Griquatown.  Named after the Revd. James Read (Snr.) of the London Missionary Society, one of the first missionaries at Kuruman.  Afterward at Kat River.

Mr. Wright transferred himself to Philippolis where his presence was badly needed owing to the inefficiency of the resident missionary, Gottlieb Schreiner. After two years of most admirable work, Revd. Peter Wright died in the 1843 typhus epidemic.

The flourishing town of Douglas has to-day grown up around what was the mission.  Revd. Isaac Hughes, after laboring for 45 years among the Griquas, died in June 1870 and appropriately, lies buried on the farm ‘Backhouse’ at Douglas.

Notes:

The Reverend is an honorific style most often placed before the names of Christian clergy and ministers.

Inch: A unit of linear measure equal to one-twelfth of a foot (2.54 cm). 1 inch = 2,54 cm

A mile is an English unit length of linear measure equal to 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

Is the animal kingdom not incredible? From the most beautiful to the beauty of imperfection, the biggest to the unique smallest.

Sometimes we stand amazed, can the human population not look beyond the smaller picture and look at the greater and unique surroundings. Could it be that the busy and crowded lifestyle of humanity keeps them from listening to the sounds of nature that surrounds them!

The best therapy on earth is sure to get in touch with nature. The odors of fresh veld flowers, soil that becomes wet with the cleanest of waters. Springboks that pronk just to show off a little. The enjoyment that bird life can give while drinking and playing in the hand-dug soil dams. A warm sunny day, the silence of the field where big and small animals search for a little bit of shade to shut an eye for a while.

When the day begins to cool and the shade of the trees starts to turn, it’s then when the animals get a new life and everything just gets even prettier.  All that we as humans can do is to protect and appreciate what is so unique around us.

The animals that run on the plains of Karreekloof with their own personalities are better than the best entertainment in the world.

Protecting ecosystems and nature means protecting animals.

As the saying goes, nature is red in tooth and claw. Existence in the wild is harsh and unforgiving, far removed from human ethical concerns or modern standards of physical comfort. Humankind is just another animal out in the bush – not a very tough one, either!

The message is simple:  Love and conserve our wildlife

 

KAROO CUISINE

Eating and drinking in the Karoo is a culinary experience not to be missed.

The Karoo is a large area with many towns! The region offers a variety of traditional and wholesome Karoo dining experiences to suit all tastes and budgets! From the deliciously diverse flavors of South Africa’s indigenous and multi-cultural rainbow cuisine to culinary specialties from all over the world.

The Karoo is well known for its Lamb.

It is believed that Karoo lamb is tastier and more flavorsome than lamb from other regions, the reason being the different types of shrubbery which the sheep in this region feed on. The fragrant bushes in the Karoo impart an unmistakable ‘herbiness’ to the lamb. Here, the sheep roam freely on farms eating the Karoo vegetation to their heart’s content!

Braaivleis (BBQ): The word braaivleis is Afrikaans for “roasted meat.” The word braai (pronounced “bry”, rhyming with the word “cry”; plural braais) is Afrikaans for “barbecue” or “roast” and is a social custom in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. It originated with the Afrikaner people but has since been adopted by South Africans of many ethnic backgrounds. The word vleis are Afrikaans for “meat”.

Bobotie: Bobotie, a staple of South African cuisine. It is believed to have originated with the Dutch and gets its name from the Indonesian word “Bobotok”. Bobotie has been part of the South African cuisine since about the 27th century. Back then it was made mainly with mutton and pork which were combined. Nowadays it is usually made using either beef or lamb mince. Dried fruits such as raisins and apricots can also be added. Flavored with mild curry, the mince is then topped with a milk and egg mixture and baked in the oven. Usually served with yellow rice with raisins.

http://www.south-africa-info.co.za/country/article/279/karoo-cuisine