South Africa Sun 15 Nov '09

South Africa Sun 15 Nov '09
This morning we follow the Garden Route through Mossel to the farming region of Swellendam, a lovely old town full of Cape Dutch buildings. The crops have been cut in the fields, there are buzzards sitting on fence posts. Very relaxing. So relaxing, I fall asleep in the bus. Again.
We hike a trail in the nearby Marloth Nature Reserve. More beautiful woodland.
After checking into our Guest House, we're off to visit a nearby township. Townships in South Africa are where poor black and coloured people live. We have passed other townships on our travels, some of them huge, covering hundreds of acres. They are mostly tightly knit shacks, separated only by dirt roads. On the bright side, there is street lighting and running water available from a standpipe. Also, Nelson Mandela's government started a low cost home building programme that has improved conditions for a growing proportion of these people.
We are met by Meisie, a member of the Xhosa tribe and an elected representative of this particular township. Meisie is a great grandmother in her early 50s, and has two of her grandsons living with her. Meisie speaks good english and has organised a welcoming dance by a dozen or so children. She tells us about the different sections of the township and their names. The section Meisie lives in is all shacks, and she takes us on a tour. She tells us that if someone makes the mistake of breaking the law, they are fined 200 rand. If they make the mistake again, they are fined 500 rand. If they make the mistake a third time, they are locked up because it is no longer a mistake.
We see few adults, many are working in the towns, but a steadily increasing number od children join our group. They love to pose for photos and see themselves on the screen. I take many photos! The children are excited and exhuberant but impecably behaved. Meisie is in charge.
Meisie shows us their beer making process, very basic in cans, but I taste the result and it's not too bad.
Then to Meisies house, which is clean and smart and looks very comfortable. It is a shack but she has obviously been able to collect some nice things over the years.
By now there must be 100 or more children tagging along. Us tourists are instructed by Meisie to sit on chairs positioned around the edge of her garden (hers was the only garden I saw!). The children sit on the grass, tightly packed together. There are some boards laid in the middle of the garden. Then we were treated to a series of dance performances, to a beating drum, by groups of girls then boys, all dressed in simple costumes that had been specially made. Entrancing. I get some brilliant video on the camera. Then, all too soon (although it is getting a bit cold for all of us), the bus comes to collect us. This is one of the occasions that will stick in my memory long after this tour.
All the Best,
John