The Battlefields – Zulus; British; Boers
The Battlefields – Zulus; British; Boers The northern section of the province of KwaZulu-Natal is a vast open grassy and rocky landscape that nowadays shows little evidence of the fierce, bloody and historic battles that took place between the Zulus; British and Boers during the 19th century. Without any knowledge of the history the area these sites could easily be overlooked, so it really exciting to take an organised tour with a registered guide to bring out the atmosphere of these battle grounds. The battle route takes you through...
read moreThe Whale Coast of South Africa
The Whale Coast of South Africa This coast is without any doubt one of the best areas in the world for land based whale watching. One is almost guaranteed multiple sightings during the calving and mating months between July and Nov. During this time you can expect to see large numbers of Southern Right whales gathering in the sheltered bays along the coast of Walker Bay. These magnificent mammals can be seen extremely close to shore, all the way from Cape Town and up the Garden Route towards Port Elizabeth – a distance of about 800 km. One...
read moreTsitsikamma National Park
Tsitsikamma National Park The Tsitsikamma National Park is without doubt one of the most popular national parks in the country, second probably only to the Kruger National Park which is obviously not a coastal reserve like Tsitsikamma.The park itself is quite unique as it not only consists of 80km of lush coastal forest but also extends 5km out to sea, which makes it a marine reserve as well. The Tsitsikamma rainforest is well known for its gigantic hardwoods of stinkwood (similar to Ebony) and yellow wood, both of which are used in South...
read moreThe Little Karoo & Oudtshoorn
The Little Karoo & Oudtshoorn The South African Little Karoo was for decades completely impassable due the continuous series of mountains and deep valleys. As more settlers arrived from Europe during the 19th century, they started to build many passes through the Western Cape Mountains and thereby opening up the interior of the country. Here begins the history of the largest town of the Little Karoo – Oudtshoorn.This town was originally set up by British farmers during the middle of the 19th century and later two major fashion booms...
read moreFranschhoek and the French Huguenots
Franschhoek and the French Huguenots On the 31st of December – 1687 a group of French Huguenots set sail from Europe as the first of the large scale emigration to the Cape Colony of the Dutch East India Company that took place between 1688 and 1689.There was a total of approximately 200 French Huguenots from France, and 18 Walloons from the country of Belgium, who eventually settled as farmers at the Cape of Good Hope. An example of this is the emigration of Huguenots from La Motte d’Aigues in Provence, France – after which the...
read moreStellenbosch-Cape Town
Stellenbosch-Cape Town The town of Stellenbosch was founded in 1679 by the Governor in the Cape Colony, Simon van der Stel, and he named the town after himself. Stellenbosch means the forest of van der Stel. The town itself is positioned on the banks of the Eerste River “First River”, named first river as it was the first river he reached and followed when he went on an expedition from Cape Town and inland towards the first major mountain ranges to explore the territory what is now known as Stellenbosch. The town grew incredibly...
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