Tankwa Karoo National Park; one of South Africa's most underrated destinations
The Karoo is as big as Germany and harbors over 100 villages, towns, settlements and a couple of railway sidings. Despite the proliferation of modernity in this area, the human population is still as sparse as it was back in the 1900s, effectively giving the Karoo an enticing rural feel.
Tankwa has gained popularity as the home of Afrikaburn. Find out more about this underrated destination here:
Beaufort West - South Africa Travel Channel 24
The Karoo of South Africa
This video is about the Karoo of South Africa. The Karoo is a vast semi-arid region of central and southern South Africa, roughly twice the size of France. It covers 45% of South Africa itself and was traditionally exploited by low-intensity sheep farming. Today, expansive game reserves are returning some of the land to its pre-European condition and stocking it with indigenous wildlife. The Karoo is a tough landscape with hardy rural communities pitted against the harsh conditions of the near-desert environment. The geology of the Karoo is famous for its expansive, flat-lying outcrops of Permian and Early Triassic sediments. These rocks are host to some of the world's best fossil reptiles representing the early evolution of land animals.
South Africa - Graaff-Reinet - An Old Town
Graaff-Reinet is the fourth-oldest town in South Africa. It is for a large part surrounded by nature park Kamdeboo.
We visited South Africa on our overland trip from the Netherlands to South Africa and South America; see our channel for hundreds of clips.
The used background music is royalty free music: All Fall Down and Serenity by Purple Planet Music (
Tankwa Farm Stall - A country pub in the middle of nowhere
This video covers how to get there as well as an overview of what's on offer at this fun and of the beaten track bush pub.
For full details on this facility, as well as all the passes and poorts of South Africa, including GPS, technical, safety, historical and tourism information, plus a fully interactive, dual view Phoca map showing printable directions from where you are with time and distance pre-calculated, go to MountainPassesSouthAfrica.co.za
Kwaai City - NAMA DANCE A `RIEL' HIT AT THE CAPE TOWN CARNIVAL
For the first time ever, the Riel - age-old dance of the Nama people - took pride-of-place at the Cape Town Carnival. Riel Dancers from Wupperthal, Elizabethfontein, Citrusdal Academy, as far as the Northern Cape, revived the dance to tell modern day stories of their lives. Floris Brand of Bushman's Kloof assembled the troop of eager dancers for the grand occasion - who danced the streets of Cape Town - to the traditional music of maestro, Bertie Zass and his band. And the crowds absolutely loved them!
Born out of traditional Khoi and San ceremonial dances around the fire, it has been practiced by descendants of these indigenous cultures for many years, most of whom were sheep shearers and farm workers across the Cape.
The Riel dance was very popular in the forties, fifties and sixties, but has been sadly neglected in recent decades. Dressed typically in traditional, farm-worker outfits - the women in dresses with aprons and old frontier bonnets, and the men in waistcoats and hats adorned with feathers, finished with the famous, hand-made red veldskoen -- these vibrant dancers were a `Riel' hit.
Popular Riel dances include courtship rituals, and mimicking typical animal antics along with lots of bravado, showmanship and foot stomping. It has only recently been revived through the efforts of writer and storyteller, Elias Nel of the Afrikaanse Taal & Kultuurvereniging (ATKV), who introduced the ATKV Riel dance competition in 2006, to ensure the survival of the dance and introduce the world to this wonderful, foot-stomping, cultural whirlwind.
KWAAI CITY is conceived, directed and produced by an enterprising team of interns on the Film Industry Learner Mentorship or F.I.L.M. programme (filmsa.co.za ; Facebook: Just-call-us-F.I.L.M.), an accredited, not-for-profit skills programme, guaranteeing aspiring, disadvantaged `filmpreneurs' full industry involvement in training and hands-on experiential learning and mentorship, on local and international film, commercial, television, mobile web & internet productions
.KWAAI CITY is a web-based programme featuring `What's Hot' - and by omission - `What's Not' in the Kwaai City of Cape Town, a seriously stylish, cosmopolitan residential and tourist hub at the Southern tip of Africa. Piggy-back on our production value and embed it on your site!
KWAAI CITY celebrates the City of Cape Town -- at 34º south 18º east -- undoubtedly the latitude with attitude. According to the UK's Daily Express, Cape Town -- voted one of the Top 10 Tourist Cities in the world - is `where it is all happening on the African continent.'
A magical setting in the majestic embrace of Table Mountain, offering cutting-edge conveniences, Cape Town is a global magnet of ready-made activity and entertainment -- people meeting, eating and chilling at one of Cape Town's premier entertainment events or venues, uber-trendy eateries, cafes, bistros, rustic restaurants, boutiques on mountains and beaches. Chances are KWAAI CITY is in the area.
KWAAI CITY covers `hip-and-happening' events in and around Cape Town. We also regularly feature much of what makes Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula one of the most desirable residential and tourism destinations in the world.
Gariep River Tunnels Kakamas Northern Cape
Kakamas developed as a town in the late 1800's and during this period of war and world depression the bitterly poor people from the surrounding areas came to the church in Kakamas for help. They were offered the option of trading their labour for food. Canals had already been built in the nearby town of Upington and a similar project was mooted for Kakamas. At a town called Neusberg, about 10km from Kakamas, it was found that the river's course was such that, if a canal were built, the water would flow automatically, doing away with the need for pumps. Work began on the furrows. Men, women and children dug relentlessly using picks, shovels and their hands. It was said that the earth where they worked would turn into mud from their sweat. The people would often work at night to escape the intense heat of the day. Two canals or furrows, called the South and the North Canals, were eventually completed. During construction of the North Canal, however, it became obvious that two tunnels would have to be built to maintain a gradient that facilitated automatic water flow. Japie Lütz, from Upington, did the calculations and laid down the necessary measurements. The two tunnels were eventually completed. Amazingly they were both excavated from either side and met precisely. This impressive feat was achieved without the use of modern instruments. These hand-dug tunnels, one of them 160m long, are still in use and have been declared national monuments.
Hiking the Tankwa Camino
The Tankwa Camino through the Karoo is a modern-day Great Trek not for the faint-hearted. It’s certainly a ‘soul journey’ to remember… countrylife.co.za/leisure/hiking-the-tankwa-camino
The Road to Fraserburg
Life's more interesting roads are the ones that are but feint lines on modern maps. Fraserburg is a small town in the Karoo. I once took the long road back home from Upington to George - and made sure to drive past places that I had never visited. It was just after rare rainfall and the road was soaked. You don't know whether you will reach your destination when you travel like this - but therein lies the adventure.
The journey to Noup - Driving the coastline of the Northern Cape
Episode 30: The Northern Cape has always been one of those places that has held a certain romance for me. I love the idea of a wide open land, wild and largely untouched, the horizon blurred by midday summer heat mirages followed by the extreme of negative temperatures during the winter months.
This is a land you can't ignore. Simply closing the window won't stop the dry heat from pervading your house or the hot strong wind from blowing sand under the door. Anyone who lives in this harsh and beautiful land must surely feel it inside of them?
Visiting the Northern Cape was a definite highlight of our Ultimate South African Road Trip, and a destination we had looked forward to from the beginning. Armed with a rental 4x4 after losing Thomas, we set out north from Doringbaai.
Read more about our adventures in the Northern Cape here:
_________________________________________________________________
Blog:
Instagram:
Twitter:
Facebook: