South Africa

A country of incredible diversity and contrasts: first-world mega-cities ... humble tribal villages. Snow-capped mountains ... sweltering deserts.  A treasure-trove of breathtaking scenery, fascinating cultures and majestic wildlife on the southern-most tip of Africa ...

Iconic Table Mountain with it's "table cloth" - the first sight that the

ancient explorers would have seen on entering Table Bay.

Photo: Mary Alexander - MediaClubSouthAfrica.com

 

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South Africa is a place that's easy to visit ...  And hard to leave. 

Why do we love South Africa so?  Here are 10 top reasons just to start with:

• * Cape Town is one of those gob-smackingly beautiful cities - and should be tops on anyone's 'bucket list'
• * Kruger Park, national and private reserves give you a face-to-face encounter with the awesomeness of Mother Nature
• * It is a photographer's dream: enormous variety of landscapes, vegetation, ecosystems, backdrops, lighting and scenery - not to mention the unique wildlife and amazingly diverse people and cultures.
• * It has an ancient timelessness, patience and wisdom.
• * It is an adrenalin junkie's paradise - the world's highest bungee jump (216m), abseiling, paragliding, kloofing, kite-surfing, zip-lining, canopy tours, rapp jumping ...
• * The bush has its own particular aura, sounds and scents that you'll never forget
• * It has the lion's share of enduring, admirable, likeable, friendly, gentle, humbling and humble people
• * It has a superb climate - perfect for enjoying the great outdoors and big, blue skies
• * It's major centres have world-class facilities: accommodation, hospitals, IT, banks, airports, roads
• * There are hidden, rural, unspoilt communities and places where you can escape to reconnect with your soul

Left: Historical Groot Constantia is one of the Cape's oldest wine farms. 
Photo: Mary Alexander MediaClubSouthAfrica.com

Yes, it has its frustrations (unemployment, housing, education)... its challenges (crime, corruption) ... and its sorrows (poverty, HIV/AIDS). 

But it's a young democracy in an age-old land, playing 'catch up'. 

And it has an earthiness, a realness and a heart-stopping beauty in its lands, its peoples, its wildlife and its cultures. 

A beauty that once tasted, will have you returning for more.

Welcome.  And enjoy!!!

Top 10 Attractions (difficult to limit!!):

• Kruger National Park, Mpumalanga
• Cape Winelands, Western Cape                          
  
• The Garden Route, South/Western Cape                                                                                  
  
• Namaqualand Wild Flower Spectacle, Northern Cape
• Table Mountain & Cable Way, Cape Town
• Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town 
• Sun City Resort & Casino, North West
• uKhahlamba Drakensberg World Heritage Site, KwaZulu-Natal
• Soweto (South Western Townships), Johannesburg
• Robben Island, Table Bay, off Cape Town
• Incredible beaches (coastal areas)
• Fascinating cultural villages (countrywide)
  
• The majestic Drakensberg Mountains.
  
• Photo: Mary Alexander, MediaClubSouthAfrica.com
  

Quick Facts:

Size & setting:
South Africa is roughtly as large as Columbia with a landmass of around 1,230 000 km² and a coastline of almost 2 800 kilometres, washed by the cool Atlantic Ocean to the west and the warm Indian Ocean to the east.

Neighbours:
To the north: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe
To the east: Mozambique
Virtually within SA's borders: Lesotho & Swaziland

Cradle of Humankind
South Africa has some of the oldest archaeological sites in the world with fossils from Sterkfontein, Kromdraai and Makapansgat caves indicating that australopithecines lived here some 3 000 000 years ago.


Original inhabitants (recent times)
The Khoikhoi and San peoples (creators of enduring rock art) were gradually conquered by dominant indigenous tribes from the north, the two major groups being the Xhosa and Zulu peoples,

Early Europeans
1487 - Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Diaz was the first to European to land in South Africa. 
1652 - Jan van Riebeeck starts refreshment station for Dutch East India Company at the Cape
1806 - Cape Town declared a British Colony
1820 - British Settlers arrive

Climate
Generally temperate but with a huge variety - from the scorching, semi-arid Karoo plains to the lush, tropical east coast, the towering Drakensberg to the low-lying, afro-montane forests of the southern Cape. In Cape Town, the average temperatures are 8 - 28 °C and the average rainfall is 625 mm (winter rainfall area).  Johannesburg (summer rainfall) has an average of 760 mm, and is in the centre of the Highveld at an altitude of 1,740 metres.  Summers are hot and winters cold but snow is rare - winter days vary from 8 - 24 °C but nights can go below zero °C.

Capitals:
Cape Town - legislative
Pretoria - administrative
Bloemfontein - judicial

Camps Bay Beach, Cape Town - great spot for sundowners at one of the trendy sidewalk restaurants.
Photo: Jeffrey Barbee, MediaClubSouthAfrica.com

Ruling party:
African National Congress (ANC)
Official opposition - Democratic Alliance (DA)

President: Jacob Zuma
Deputy President: Kgalema Motlanthe

Languages:
11 official: English, Afrikaans, Xhosa, Zulu, Northern Sotho, Southern Sotho, Swazi, Tswana, Tsonga, Venda and Ndebele.

Read more under Travel Guide


Useful sources for more info:

Wikipedia - South Africa

Lonely Planet - South Africa

South African Tourism

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