South Africa to market the 'Big Seven'

South Africa is well known among tourists in search of the "Big Five" wild animals: the buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion and rhino. Two more could soon be added to the marketers' "Big" list, however – and you won't find them on land.

Briefing journalists in Cape Town ahead of her budget vote speech in Parliament last week, Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Buyelwa Sonjica said that South Africa offered tourists some of the best whale watching in the world, as well as shark cage diving in places like Gansbaai in the Western Cape.

Sonjica said South Africa's waters were populated with significant numbers of marine mammals, including whales, as well large ocean predators such as the shark.

"We will be marketing these animals – sharks and whales – to the whole world," she said. "We will add these two species to the Big Five and have a resultant Big Seven."

Though she did not specify which shark and whale species, Sonjica was presumably referring to the famous great white shark and the southern right whale, plentiful off South Africa's coastline and smaller only than the blue whale.

Sonjica said this year had been declared the Year of the Shark, and October would be declared Marine Month to focus on the significance of the country's sea and marine life.

Marine conservation

Sonjica pointed out that declining fish stocks was a global phenomenon, with approximately 25% of the world's marine fish stocks being considered over-exploited.

"This requires innovative management strategies if we want to ensure sustainability of our marine living resources," she said. "A government-wide intervention is required in the coastal communities to address coastal poverty and alternative livelihood opportunities in light of declining fish stocks."

She added that it was important for the government to pursue its programmes of protecting the country's marine life, given that there was already a decline of the stocks of some of the species, including the shark.

Environmental courts

Sonjica said many environmental crimes were committed by organised crime syndicates, and warned that the government would not take a soft stance on perpetrators.

As the justice department could not adequately deal with environmental crime, environmental courts would be set up to see that criminals were not only caught but also prosecuted.

She added that partnerships with security institutions such as South African Police Service, the National Prosecuting Authority, the Asset Forfeiture Unit and the Department of Defence were crucial to deal effectively with environmental crimes.

Zambian airline takes to SA skies

Zambezi Airlines has taken to the local skies, promising travellers value for money on flights between Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport and Lusaka, Ndola, Kitwe and Livingstone in Zambia.

Attending launch of the airline's new routes in Johannesburg earlier this month, Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele the new flights would open doors to increased tourism and business between countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

"This development has come to fruition on the connection between Zambia and South Africa and the SADC region as a whole," Ndebele said. "Its operation is going to increase people-to-people, business-to-business and government-to-government relations."

World-class operation

Zambezi Airlines chairman Morris Jangulo said the airline's vision was to operate a world-class operation safely, reliably and efficiently, and maximise business opportunities between the two countries and the rest of the SADC region.

Jangulo cautioned, however, that apart from the global economic recession being experienced by most countries, the airline will not be immune to challenges of fluctuating oil prices and airports infrastructure challenges, adding that the 2010 Fifa World Cup was a litmus test for the aviation industry in Africa and the whole world.

Airlift strategy

According to a statement by the Department of Transport, the South African government approved its Airlift Strategy in July 2006, with the aim of liberalising local skies. Since then, there has been a 40% increase in air traffic frequencies being granted within the various bilateral air services agreements that South Africa has with other countries.

"Such an increase in air traffic frequency capacity is only viable when operators show confidence in the market and continue to operate flights to entry points," Ndebele said. "In this regard, I must applaud the new entrant to our country, Zambezi Airlines."

Free skies

Ndebele said that sought-after Zambian destinations such as Lusaka, Ndola, Livingstone and Mfuwe had opened up over recent years, with South African carriers currently operating 58 flights to these destinations each week.

"The introduction of a Zambian designated airline into Johannesburg clearly demonstrates that there remains a continuing demand in air travel between South Africa and Zambia," he said. "South Africa is as much your home as it is ours."

Ndebele said it was necessary to encourage the further liberalisation of the skies, as this would lead to the introduction of more flights between countries.

At the same time, he said, "we must ensure that the safety and security integrity of the industry is maintained, and continues to meet the requirements for the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation."

The Ride to Rhodes experience

On Saturday, 20 June 2009, the town of Rhodes, located in the southern Drakensberg in South Africa's Eastern Cape province, welcomed a group of tired but exhilarated Freedom Challenge cyclists after a 500-kilometre ride that started in Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal a week before.

The Ride to Rhodes is an annual six-day race that takes adrenalin-seekers on a rugged but awesomely beautiful mountain biking trail from Pietermaritzburg to Rhodes.

The day the cyclists arrived in Rhodes was wintry, with snow on the mountain; the local pub's roaring fire was a happy welcome to the battered and bruised but happy group of men and women. All dressed in their bright red Freedom Challenge jerseys, they laughed together as they shared stories of their recent adventure.

Experience of a lifetime

Two of the older adventurers, Gavin Greig and Rodney Milford, had an experience of a lifetime.

At one point, on the ride from Centocow to Ntsikeni Nature Reserve, they fell far behind and by midnight, after 19 hours of cycling, with the temperature having dropped to minus-three, they just couldn't go on.

A tiny mud hut presented itself, and they knocked on the door. It was opened warily by a nervous lady, but when she saw their plight she welcomed them into her tiny home.

Two children were sleeping in the kitchen and she in her bedroom. She immediately made them tea and went to sleep with her children in the kitchen, giving up her bed for the tired and weary men. They were overcome by her generosity, and collapsed into bed and slept until morning.

They woke to the smell of mealiepap (maize porridge) that she had made for their breakfast. It was an act of incredible kindness, and one has to wonder how many would, without question, allow two complete strangers into their home at midnight and give up their bed for them!

Chatting in the pub after finishing the ride, Milford said: "The fast pace of today's city life means we don't take enough time to be truly human. That old woman's act of kindness really affected me, because I know how rarely such generosity occurs in our 'normal' lives."

Stunning scenery

The Freedom Challenge trail takes the cyclists off-road through some of the most stunning scenery one can see anywhere, never mind in South Africa. The route includes a quick stop at the Centocow Mission Station.

Founded in 1892 by the Trappist monk Abbot Francis Pfanner, Centocow treated the famed watercolour artist Gerard Bhengu for tuberculosis when he was a young boy. Dr Max Kohler, who practiced at Centocow from 1925 to 1935, was responsible for discovering Bhengu and encouraging him to paint.

While the Ride to Rhodes route is 500 kilometres in distance, it is a particularly testing 500 kilometres, with many tortuous climbs that seem never-ending, winding up and up on slippery tracks and stony dirt roads. However, the fantastic views at the top of each mountain are more than reward for the huge effort and determination needed to ascend each challenging peak.

The highest pass in South Africa

Naude's Nek, the final climb before Rhodes, is without doubt the ultimate mountain climb for cyclists. As the highest pass in South Africa, the ride up is precarious, as is speeding down the dirt road on the other side that winds its way into Rhodes.

The vast views are indescribably beautiful, but the riders must keep their eyes on the trail or face potentially disastrous consequences.

The challenge is, at times, enough to make cause many a gut check, but afterwards those who have conquered it speak about the "soul" of the ride. It's more than just a race – it's a journey into South Africa, its far-flung places and people, as well a unique personal challenge.

Carine Reyneke, a business analyst and first-time rider in the Ride to Rhodes, commented afterwards: "It's the people, the craziness of us all, and coming together for a short period of time to experience something few cyclists ever have the opportunity to share. I will definitely be back again."

Knysna Oyster Festival warms up winter

The Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival, a celebration of sport and the good life, has established itself as one of the most popular annual events in the Western Cape. It is into its 26th year and was officially opened on Wednesday evening by the Executive Mayor of Knysna, Eleanore Bouw-Spies.

The festival activities kick into action on Thursday evening with the holding of Miss Pearl Pageant. It runs until 12 July.

According to the organisers, the number of oysters consumed during the festival will number an astonishing 200 000. There will be more than 100 events taking place and an attendance of about 65 000 is expected.

Sporting drawcards

The festival's two main sporting events, the Pick n Pay Cape Times Knysna Forest Marathon and the Pick 'n Pay Weekend Argus Rotary Knysna Cycle Tour, will give participants the unique opportunity to run and cycle through the ancient indigenous forests that have made Knysna famous.

The first Oyster Festival took place in 1983 and was the brainchild of the late Dick Ginsberg, a local businessman. He and Rose Smith, from the then Knysna Publicity Office, organised the Knysna Winter Festival, which featured a marathon, rugby, golf, squash, and bowls.

The purpose of the festival was to attract people to Knysna during the quiet winter period.

The South African Navy

The Navy was involved almost from the start and in 1984 the Chief of the Navy, Vice Admiral A P Putter visited Knysna, together with a navy minesweeper and a number of crew. In 1988, the Freedom of Entry into the municipality of Knysna was conferred on the Navy.

In 2008, the 25th anniversary of the festival included a visit by the Navy, headed by the Chief Director of Maritime Strategy Rear Admiral B Teuteberg and two minesweepers.

The minesweepers will again enter through the famous Knysna Heads in 2009 to honour a long-standing tradition of participation in the Oyster Festival. In addition, the Navy's internationally acclaimed 40-odd-piece band will entertain festival-goers during the street parade and live concert at the Waterfront.

Cycling

In 1985, cycling races were added to the festival's programme. Since that time they have grown into the Pick 'n Pay Weekend Argus Rotary Cycle Tour, featuring a two-day programme of mountain and road bike events - the biggest of its kind in South Africa.

On Friday, 3 July, thousands of cyclists will pour into Knysna to register for the Cycle Tour's full weekend of events.

The next weekend, Saturday, 11 July, the Pick 'n Pay Cape Times Forest Marathon or Half Marathon take place. They are both popular drawcards for runners from all over South Africa.

The Due South Xterra, a duathlon format run-bike-run event, with the start and finish at the spectacular Field of Dreams at the Pezula Private Estates, happens on Thursday, 9 July.

There will be a full or lite version of both events. The full version will comprise a three-kilometre trail run, followed by 25 kilometres by mountain bike, and another three-kilometre run. The breakdown of the lite version will be 3-12-3.

For those inclined towards less strenuous sports than marathon events, there's a full programme of adventure and soft sports for the whole family to participate in, including paddling, golf, bowls, soccer, night biking and angling.

Oysters

Oysters are, of course, a huge component of the festival and the Knysna Oyster Company, which opened in Knysna in 1949, has been involved in the festival for many years as a major participant and sponsor.

Oysters will be available at excellent prices throughout the festival, served hot or cold, garnished or naked, at 30 different Tabasco Oyster Hot Spots in Knysna.

Other traditional favourites of the festival include the Oyster Mardi Gras (previously the Oyster Cooking Competition), the Oyster Eating Competition, the Waitron Race and the Bowls Tournament.

Opening

Wednesday evening's well-attended function in the Heineken Pavilion at Loerie Park brought together sponsors, municipal officials, Knysna Tourism board members, media and events managers to celebrate the start of one of South Africa's most popular and enduring festivals, which has been called "the Best 10 Days of your Winter".

Welcoming the guests, Knysna Tourism CEO Shaun van Eck said that he was thankful to the naming sponsors, Pick 'n Pay, for renewing their sponsorship agreement with the festival and to all the other sponsors who had come on board to make the event a success.

"The town is extremely grateful for the continued support of Pick 'n Pay in these difficult economic times. Generally, in a recession festivals and major sporting events suffer because sponsorships are withdrawn, so we are delighted that Pick 'n Pay has been unfailing in its support for the Oyster Festival."

Mayor Bouw-Spies said: "The growth of the festival over the last 26 years has been extraordinary and on behalf of Knysna I want to convey my thanks to all the people who have been involved in making it happen. You will be part of Knysna's history."

A wide variety of events

Among the many events on offer are the very popular oyster-eating competition and the Pick 'n Pay Oyster & Wine Mardi Gras – a fabulous evening of oysters and wine tasting.

Wine and whisky form a big part of the celebrations and both will flow at the Wade Bales Wine Festival and the Knysna Whisky and Jazz Festival.

Children are also well catered for. The Pick n Pay Young Oyster Festival children’s programme includes youth theatre, puppet shows, creative art workshops and a children's cooking course, while the Knysna Sports Fair will give kids the opportunity to try their hand at a variety of sports, free of charge.

About Knysna

Knysna is one of the Garden Route's best known travel destinations and offers wonderful natural beauty, including beaches, lakes, and forests.

It received international recognition in 2008 when it was named as one of the Top 100 Destinations in the World and one of the Top 25 in Africa by the Trip Advisor, 2008 Travellers' Choice Destinations Awards.

Brazil, football the winners in Africa

If the quality of the football that has been on display in South Africa over the past two weeks is anything to go by, the world is in for an absolute feast when the World Cup arrives in Africa for the first time in 2010.

The 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup has seen goals galore, upsets aplenty, and some stunning reversals – and the final day did not disappoint, producing 10 goals and two comebacks, as Brazil and Spain turned the tables on the USA and South Africa respectively.

An action-packed tournament got the final it deserved at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday, as Brazil and the USA served up a five-goal thriller that ended in the South Americans' favour, courtesy of captain Lucio's 84th-minute header.

When the final whistle blew, Brazil had won the tournament for the third time since its inception in 1992, becoming the first team to defend the title – they won it in Germany in 2005 – while Dunga had become the first person to win the tournament as both player and coach.

Yet it was the North American underdogs who had looked the most likely to take the honours at half-time, having raced into a two-goal lead thanks to Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan.

However, the five-time World Cup winners grabbed a vital lifeline just moments into the second period through Luis Fabiano, who subsequently took his tally to five goals in five games with the 74th-minute equaliser that set up his skipper's grandstand finish.

In the play-off for third place, any fans who left Rustenburg's Royal Bafokeng Stadium early would have kicked themselves after a match which failed to ignite until South Africa stung Spain into action through Katlego Mphela's 73rd-minute opener.

With Bafana Bafana all but ready to occupy the final place on the podium, two goals in a minute from Spain's Daniel Guiza spun the scoreline on its head. First, the Fenerbahce forward levelled the score at 1-1 with a crisp right-footed finish.

Then, moments later, Guiza collected the ball just inside the box in the right-hand channel before sending a inch-perfect lob spinning high beyond the reach of the Bafana Bafana keeper Itumeleng Khune and in off the inside of the far post.

Though tempted to give full credit to the former Mallorca poacher for an opportunistic strike, could Guiza's pinpoint chip really have been a mis-hit cross?

Bafana, and Mphela, weren't finished, however. Handed a lifeline deep into injury time after a foul by Liverpool winger Albert Riera, Mphela stepped up to fire home a guided-missile of a free-kick from fully 35 yards which even a keeper of the calibre of Real Madrid's Iker Casillas could do nothing about.

Clear chances came and went for South Africa in the first period of extra time before Xabi Alonso's 107th-minute free kick eluded everybody to find the back of the net and clinch third spot for Spain at South Africa 2009.

South Africa's Cup flows over

The 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup drew to a close at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday night in a ceremony filled with music, colour, light and dance. But the passion reflected in the photos of fans, beamed onto a giant sphere floating above the pitch, was not staged.

The photographs, of the fans that filled South Africa's four host stadiums during Fifa's "Festival of Continental Champions", reflected a nation that came together in a tournament that has given the country many reasons to smile.

As Nelson Mandela watched his great-granddaughter Zenani bringing the Fifa Confederations Cup trophy out onto the pitch following a thrilling final between Brazil and the USA, no doubt he was smiling too.

For over the past two weeks South Africa has shown the world, once again, what it is capable of.

It has also shown that the opportunity South Africa has been given to host the 2010 Fifa World Cup is about more than stadiums, pitches, roads and airports.

It's about people, and working together for a common goal. It is about reasons to smile and cry and make some very loud noise. It is about the joy that comes from being part of 14 days of thrilling football.

"I have loved this tournament," said 12-year-old Zenani, granddaughter of Nelson Mandela's youngest daughter, Zindzi. "It has been so much fun – and Bafana Bafana have been playing, like, wow!"

As the stadium went dark on Sunday night, and the vuvuzelas went quiet, the melodic sounds of Africa filled the air. The voices of 150 choir members and the beats of 150 drummers bid the fans and the watching world goodbye.

But for the country, and the continent, this was just the beginning. In less than a year's time, South Africa and Africa will welcome 32 teams, hundreds of thousands of fans and millions of television viewers back for the big one, the 2010 Fifa World Cup – and the drama, and the celebrations, will begin in earnest!

Fifa gives Zuma his ref's certificate

In the unlikely event of an injury to a referee during the 2010 Fifa World Cup, South Africa has a ready replacement – in President Jacob Zuma, who's just been given a special award by Fifa for refereeing on Robben Island during his years as a political prisoner.

Zuma refereed for the Makana Football Association, which ran a soccer league for political prisoners on Robben Island, between 1965 and 1973.

Fifa president Sepp Blatter conferred the special award on Zuma on Sunday, the final day of the 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup.

"It is a historical moment for Fifa to have a former referee of Robben Island in Mr Jacob Zuma," Blatter said. "As such, we have decided that you are an International Referee, and that is why we have prepared a special certificate for you."

"Thank you so much, I appreciate it," Zuma replied. "This brings back memories of my young days, when I could still play and referee!"

For years on Robben Island, political prisoners had to fight for the right to play football, with men secretly playing the game in their cells with balls made of pieces of paper, cardboard and rags tied together with string.

The island's authorities finally gave in, granting inmates the right to play football in 1965. The prisoners then built their own goals, and would swap their drab prison garb to play in the colours of their teams on Saturdays.

The Makana FA was formed in 1966. It was a football association which adhered strictly to Fifa's statutes and laws of the game. On 18 July 2007, Makana FA became the first Fifa honorary member association.

Among the best players on the island were the likes of Kgalema Motlanthe, currently Deputy President of South Africa. Dikgang Moseneke, now a Constitutional Court judge, was on Makana FA's disciplinary committee.