Kalahari – Sun, Shrub & Flowers

We do apologise for the delay in starting this leg of our journey, but we first had to finish a few things. As part of his training, we have a young cousin joining us for much of the trip & we have to see that he has everything needed (also to chew on – not our tails!) & understands the rules of polite South African Chow Chow Travel Guides. Then we had to see the pups safely to their new homes – you know, we older chows know whom you can trust & whom not – so it’s best for us to first sniff new people thoroughly & to give our verdict to mom. Mom & grandpa also briefly attended shows.  Grandpa says he has had enough of all the fuss but we think that going for 10years old, he is keeping up so well with us all, that he can do anything!

A youngster at his first shows - "Hey you! Judge! Look at me..."

Breed Shows in Southern Africa

There are some 44 All Breeds and Group Shows in SA where Chow Chows can be exhibited. Currently only 1-4 chows are present at the majority of these. Thus far in 2010, the most chows present at a show was 9, at the Vereeniging & Districts KC Show (Gauteng Province), 20 March 2010. Grandpa attended with mom.  There were 3 youngsters and a 5year old girl at their first shows ever. Most of us attend only 6-10 shows a year.

Our Chow Chow Club held it’s last championship show in 1999, but they have been having fun shows in the years since then. And the best part of these fun shows for us Chow Chows, is the barbecue afterwards. (‘Braai’ is the Afrikaans word for barbecue – this word nationally loved and used – and we are not surprised why….).  Of course, we all get some sausage & if we are very spoilt – some more goodies to eat.  More about our fun show in September!

The largest province in South Africa

We now set out across the Southern African provinces. First up will be the largest of these – the Northern Cape region. It has a population - ±850 000, with a population density of  2 per sq km. The capital city  is Kimberley and languages spoken are Afrikaans, English, Nama, SeTswana and Xhosa.

Google Earth view of the dramatic Richtersveld.

Here is a scant annual rainfall (50-400mm) - unreliable and very much lower than evaporation and, in January, afternoon temperatures are usually between 33-36° Celsius. Though somewhat unusual, summer temperatures do sometimes top the 40° mark. Sutherland, in the Hantam Karoo, is one of the coldest towns in southern Africa. Its average minimum is -6°! In winter, snow often blankets its surrounding mountains.

The incredible Richtersveld mountain desert is a must for anybody who enjoys spectacular scenery mixed with a variety of rare plantlife and the popular 4x4 experience.  There are also the breathtakingly beautiful and flamboyantly explosive displays of wild flowers from late July to November in the Namakwaland region.

The Northern Cape’s weather is typical of desert and semidesert areas. It is a large, dry region of fluctuating temperatures and varying topographies. Few sights are as awesome or a sound as deafening as water thundering down the 56m Augrabies Waterfall when the Orange River is in full flood. The Khoi people called it ‘Aukoerebis’, or place of Great Noise, as this powerful flow of water is unleashed from rocky surroundings characterized by the 18km abyss of the Orange River Gorge.

The unusual Quiver Tree

The world’s largest forests of quiver trees or kokerbome (Aloe dichotoma) are to be found in this province. Owing its name to the San, who used the trunk, branches and its bark to make quivers, the aloe grows to four metres, stores water in its trunk, resists drought and lives for up to 400 years. Often the only trees for miles, their spiky branches are popular nesting places for sociable weavers, builders of the most intricate nesting systems in the world.

Roaring Sands:
The Roaring Sands is probably the most well known feature of the Witsand Nature Reserve, and one of the main attractions visitors hope to experience. In order to emit their characteristic sound, which may vary from a hum to a roar when even mildly displaced, the sand needs to be warm, dry and clean. This effect is the result of the intense friction build-up as the fine, even grains of sand are scoured together expelling the air trapped between them.

As in large parts of this mineral rich country, mining has played, and still plays, a very important role in the development and prosperity of the Namakwa region of the Northern Cape. Copper was discovered in Namakwa back in 1685. The first commercial copper mine (the first commercial mine of any kind in the country) was brought into operation in 1852. Most of the old copper mining operations are to be found around Springbok.
 

Situated in the north-western corner of South Africa's rugged Northern Cape is the stretch of pristine coastline aptly named The Diamond Coast. These shores have remained virtually unknown to the public at large as it is within the restricted and previously forbidden diamond mining areas. The coastline, with its flowing dunes and mysterious shipwrecks, has been opened to the fortunate few who can participate in our organised guided tours.
 

The Big Hole - an exhausted mine in Kimberley.

One of Kimberley’s major attractions, the Big Hole and Kimberley Mine Museum, was once a flat-topped hill and is now an awesome hole - the largest hand-dug excavation in the world - dug by picks, shovels and sheer determination, measuring 215 metres deep with a surface area of some 17 hectares and a perimeter of 1,6 km. The Kimberley Mine site started on or about 16 July 1871 and by 14 August 1914 all mining activities ceased. By that time it had yielded 2 722 kilograms of diamonds extracted from 22,5 million tons of excavated earth.

Watching Stars – in heaven and on earth…

For the next few years, South Africa and its German, Polish, American, New Zealand and United Kingdom partners will build the largest single telescope in the southern hemisphere, with a hexagonal mirror array 11 metres across. Although very similar to the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) in Texas, the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) will have a redesigned optical system using more of the mirror array. SALT will be able to record distant stars, galaxies and quasars a billion times too faint to be seen with the unaided eye - as faint as a candle flame at the distance of the moon. SALT is being built on the South African Astronomical Observatory's site near Sutherland. On this desert hilltop, far from city lights and pollution, SAAO has operated telescopes since the early 1970s.  This is all in heaven….

…. And on earth, we have some rising stars & some shooting stars in our chow chow world – and we include some photos of them for you to enjoy!

Until next time we greet you in in seTswana:

Tsamaya sentle (go well)

And you will return the greeting to us:

Sala sentle (stay well)

Joel & Nurya