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Archive for July, 2009

The History Behind South Africa

Tuesday, July 7th, 2009

The discovery of fossil evidences brings scholars to agree that the earliest people came from the lands of Africa. Such evidences and information about South Africa included the skull of Taung Child, and the hominid fossils found in the Sterkfontein Cave. The first known packs of people are the San and Khoekhoe peoples. Both groups mutual freedom in the southern tip of the continent. A hundred thousand time before that, current soul beings have already found their place in the same continent. The Khoekhoe, due to diseases such as smallpox, exterminations, and for some other reasons, have disappeared.

According to information about South Africa, the landing of Jan van Riebeeck and his colleagues at the foot of the Table Mountain marks the first European settlement. This historical information about South Africa marks the beginning of the rich history of the region. They are instructed to create a firm base that will supply allied ships with fresh groceries such as meat and vegetables to power them up for a long trip from Europe to Asia. With this, they set up their own vegetable garden for their supplies. The settlement steadily grew. More sailors stocked milk and meat on these harbors. The construction of a bay to shelter ships was followed by workshops to repair ships and a hospital. This began a dramatic increase in the need of labor. With this, they began to import politically banned people from Indonesia. Later on, immigrants from all over Europe also arrived. Because of the dramatic growth in population, the settlers began to expand to the north then north east.

Rainbow cuisine defines South African food. It is a diverse blend of many cultures because of its history. It showcases a mixture of Asian, African, and European cultures fused into a single plate. It is a combination of English, French, Dutch, Greek, and Portuguese food traditions accompanied by the fruity sweet and sweet-sour taste of the Malay, spicy curries of China, and the special treats of its local tribes. It also highlights a wide variety of cooking styles and a exceptional way of presenting dishes, giving it a unique aura’again all owing to the rich history and amazing information about South Africa.

The country is blessed with productive lands that provide plentiful harvests that provide them with their extraordinary food. The Western Cape produces a good reap of grapes, grains, and fruits while the eastern part sustains the need for tea and other fruits like papaya, mangoes, and bananas while Natal provides the avocado and sugarcane. Karoo supplies the country’s lamb, impala, ostrich, and venison. The geographic location provides South Africa with fresh and bountiful seafood such as prawns, oysters, tuna, mussels, mackerel, and crayfish as well as rock lobsters.

Much of the district restaurant present French dishes ready with home ingredients. European tradition has also influenced their cooking styles while borrowing spices and flavor from exterior the country. It also houses vineyards responsible for some of the best wine products distributed world wide not to mention its local wine production. All of the historical sites and wonderful food must be enough reason to push you to travel South Africa and its scenic places.

The Best Attractions In South Africa

Tuesday, July 7th, 2009

South Africa is a wonderful country with breathtakingly beautiful scenery, amazing wild life and a community of various ethnic groups living together. The people of South Africa share a rich culture and take great pains in passing it to the next generations. South Africa attractions are just as diverse, too, providing the setting for an interesting and unforgettable trip.

One of the must-see South Africa attractions is the Kruger National Park, a world-class safari destination which is popular not only in the country but all over the world. Here, tourists can get the chance to observe various wild animals in their natural habitat, including ostriches, hyenas and the Big Five – buffalo, elephants, leopards, lions and rhinoceros, which pose the greatest danger to hunters. At night, safari members can relax in a variety of lodges, ranging from simple tents to luxurious cottages.

The Addo Elephant National Park is another excellent park to visit during holidays in South Africa, particularly since it is one of the best places in Africa to get close to elephants. Aside from elephants, the park is also home to the rest of the Big Five, or even the Big Seven if you include the southern right whale and the great white shark in its marine section, as well as jackals, kudu and spotted hyenas. Tourists will be happy to know the park is malaria-free, as well.

Nature lovers are also bound to enjoy a trip to the Elephant Coast in KwaZulu Natal, especially between the months of November and March when sea turtles, particularly the leatherback and loggerhead turtles, come ashore to lay eggs which hatch several weeks after. The coast also offers opportunities for whale watching and elephant sightings, as well as scuba diving in coral reefs, learning Zulu culture and relaxing in wellness centres. It is also possible to drive along the coastline and enjoy breathtaking views of coastal forests and mountains.

Speaking of breathtaking, some of the best South Africa attractions are scenic waterfalls which can be found in Mpumalanga, which literally means the ‘place of the rising sun’. Most of these falls have been tagged as national monuments, such as Lone Creek Falls, Mac Mac Falls and the unusual-looking Horseshoe Falls. The highest waterfall in the area is the 92-metre high Lisbon Falls, although the Berlin Falls is considered the most spectacular.

Aside from natural World Heritage Sites, there are also cultural wonders in South Africa to visit during your holidays in South Africa, such as the Cradle of Humankind, one of the most remarkable fossil sites in the world. This site consists of many limestone caves which have yielded prehistoric fossils of plants, animals and hominids in the past decades. In fact, the only complete Australopithecus skeleton in the world, Little Foot, was unearthed here. The caves also have impressive stalactite, stalagmite and other crystal formations.

Sun City resort is just as impressive, especially for tourists looking forward to luxurious holidays in South Africa. This internationally-renowned resort is home to many grand hotels, including the Palace of the Lost City, one of the most extravagant hotels in the world. It also offers two world-class courses for golf enthusiasts, wellness centres, swimming pools and a waterpark with an artificial beach where kids and adults alike can have fun the entire day.