Bob and I lingered over breakfast at Lesedi Cultural Village on our last morning in South Africa. Being the only two guests that had stayed the night, we engaged one of the young Zulu women in a lengthy conversation that shed a lot of light on the social and economic status of the indigenous people. It was an emotional departure after having connected with the young lady on an emotional level. Our next to last stop in South Africa would be Maropeng, the Visitor Centre for the Cradle of Humankind.
Maropeng is a short distance down the road from Lesedi, and to get there, we had the pleasure of driving through bucolic countryside that provided the opportunity for much reflection.
Along the way, Bob and I were delighted to observe a family with their recent catches strung on a metal gate to dry. This was another learning experience. In South Africa, it is customary to hang whole salted fish to dry in the sun and wind as a method of preserving it.
Referred to as bokkums, the preserved fish is considered a delicacy and is eaten after peeling away the skin.
Bokkums or bokkems are also referred to as harders in the Western Cape region of South Africa.
A little further on, Bob pulled off the road so we could snap a few photos after spotting massive blossoms populating a Common Protea tree.
Common Protea is native to South Africa and occurs as a small tree or shrub. They are also called sugarbushes because they produce large volumes of sticky nectar.
These were the freshest of any Protea blooms we had come across so far on our trip. It was interesting to see the flowers in different stages. This one is only partially open.
The leathery hairless leaves support individual flowers and sometimes even groups of up to 4 flowers. That would be a hefty weight for the stem to support.
Protea flowers have large heads made of small florets packed on a woody receptacle. They can be up to 7 centimetres in diameter. This blossom is more advanced.
On our way again, Bob and I were relaxed and enjoying the rural scenery.
When Maropeng came into view on the horizon, it looked very much like a large burial mound or tumulus. The striking building blended artfully with the surrounding grassland setting.
The name Maropeng means “returning to the place of origin” in Setswana, one of South Africa’s eleven official languages. The Centre lies on the boundary of a 47,000-hectare area referred to as the Cradle of Humankind, which was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.
It seemed appropriate, having spent the past month in South Africa, to visit the Cradle of Humankind. It would sum up and explain all the deep feelings conjured in us as we explored this amazing land.
It is a universally accepted fact that the Continent of Africa is the birthplace of our human species. This is the place where our collective umbilical cord lies buried, in the soil of this great continent. Our tour began with a boat ride meant to transport you back through time.
This is a representation of a hominid, fondly referred to as Harry, that greeted us at the outset of the exhibits. Hominids are a family that includes humans and their direct ancestors, and the Cradle of Humankind is the richest treasure trove of early hominid fossils on Earth. Maropeng holds global significance because it contains a superbly preserved record of the various stages in the evolution of humankind over 3.5 million years.
Nowhere else on Earth does there exist such definitive and conclusive proof of our common origin as a species. There are more than a dozen major fossil sites in the Cradle of Humankind.
Since only some of these sites are open to the public, the Maropeng Centre was built to provide visitors with an overview of the significance of the areas as well as the story of human development.
The boat ride and the exhibits transported us back through time taking us through the ice age and showing us the progression of the human race from its humble beginnings to present day.
Stone tools that are up to one million years old were on display, and it was interesting to learn that more than 1,000 hominid fossils and several different hominid species spanning a period of around 3 million years have been found in a network of limestone caves.
Bob and I didn’t bother with all of the interactive exhibits instead deciding to head to nearby Sterkfontein Caves, the site of many of the most significant fossil finds in the world. As we travelled the short distance, the hilly countryside was suggestive of the incredible cave systems in the area of the Cradle of Humankind. We were eager to see this companion site to complete our dual interactive experience.
Frame To Frame – Bob and Jean