I found Batman in Lesotho

Wednesday, 27 February 2013

(Recommended song choice for this blog entry: "Everything in It's Right Place" - Radiohead)


Today I travelled to a different country to meet with shepherds, and witnessed the handover of the traditional shepherds' blankets to the shepherds, paid for through Sani Lodge's Shepherds' Fund.

One was dressed in his traditional clothes that resembled something in the nature of Batman. 

Once again, I found myself stimulated by he simplicity of this foreign culture, and how achievable and reachable their simplicity is. 

I had a beer from Lesotho in the highest pub in Africa - 2874 metres high - local is lekker! 

I woke up to a throbbing pain behind my right ear this morning. I am not too sure what it is, but it looks and feels like some form of insect bite. Luckily I have my travel-friendly medical kit on hand. If it gets any worse I will stop by the local pharmacy tomorrow. Before embarking on this trip - I managed to get an emergency anti-biotic prescription, just in case.

I got so sleepy from the altitude change.
Tomorrow I leave the Southern Drakensberg and make my way towards Soweto - my final stop before I depart back to Cape Town. 

ALI'S TIPS OF THE TRIP:

#1) Definitely order yourself a slice Sani Lodge's famous chocolate cake. You only live once, and you wont be disappointed.

#2) Just a small heads up: I suggest you embark on an early start up the Sani Pass if you intend on crossing the Lesotho border as the border closes at 16h00 each day - AND an important point to note is that the Pass is sometimes closed due to harsh weather conditions!

#3) If Sani Pass is on your bucket list, I suggest you get on this bandwagon ASAP, as plans to tar this road are floating around the air. The state of the road is hazardous and faces extreme damage within the next five years due to vicious weather conditions and rough surrounding terrain.

I personally hope that they do not tar this carved road. A serious environmental impact - perhaps a better alternative can be found, what with a dedicated road maintenance team, the environment can be preserved and a few extra sustainable jobs created?

I suppose everything in its right place. 

You can see the state of the Sani Pass road by this picture. There have been many failed attempts of navigating 4x4's up this course due to poor traction surfaces and steep gradients. 

Sani Pass.

The Shepherds' Fund: Sani Lodge helps benefit the Basotho community in terms of payment for the services rendered by the community to Sani Lodge. Sani Lodge recognises the importance of cultural practices, encouraging and supporting them through the adventure activities into Lesotho which they offer their guests. One of the main funds they run is the Shepherds' Fund, whereby each time the lodge takes tourists into Lesotho, they put aside 25 ZAR for the shepherds. Throughout the year the lodge's adventure guides collect the names of the shepherds in the immediate surrounding areas of their tours, and at the end of February each year (such as today), Russell, with the help of his staff, handout blankets which they were able to buy with the money which had been put aside for the Shepherds' Fund.

Originally, Sani Lodge was going to handover the funds to the shepherds directly as they were, but on the shepherds' requests, now have traditional blankets made for them which are then distributed to the names on the Shepherds' Fund's list. These Basotho blankets are made of thick wool, which are used as their traditional attire. These blankets are worn throughout the country as well as throughout the year, providing different services as the seasons change. The blankets keep the rain off of the shepherds in the summer, and the keep the cold at bay in the winter. 

The surreal landscapes which characterise Lesotho. Lesotho is the only country with the highest low point in the world: 1450 metres above sea level. Its highest point is 3482 metres above sea level.

Because of its high altitudes, Sani Lodge remains cool throughout the year. Most of its rainfall is experienced through its summer thunderstorms, despite the lowlands being able to reach a temperature of 30'c.
Winters can be extremely cold, where the lowlands remain around -7'c, and the highlands drop to a staggering -18'c. Snow is common in the highlands during the months of May through to September, but the higher peaks can experience snowfall all year round. 

After crossing the border into Lesotho, Russell, Tsebo and I drove our 4x4 Landrover 10 minutes into the country where a meeting place had been agreed upon with the shepherds. Here we were to hand out the blankets which had been made with the money collected for the Shepherd's fund.

Many shepherd's pitched for the meeting; many whose names were not yet recorded on the list. 

A lifestyle fascinating to the visitors eye: I found Batman. 

woollen blankets,vibrant grass hats and decorated beanies made of cloth dot the fields of Lesotho. It is in Basotho culture to be passive, with a spirit which cannot be tainted. Most of the shepherds which I encountered today were friendly and curious. 

This unique African mountain culture is also a proud culture.
Batman in the centre background.

Geographically, Lesotho is landlocked by South Africa. Inevitably, it finds its economy assimilated with it as well, where it is based on agriculture, livestock, manufacturing and mining. Most shepherd's herd their goats and sheep with the help of ponies and dogs in the summer months, returning to work the mines as migrant workers in the winter.

The Basotho people live in houses constructed from walls of large stone and thatched rooves called mokhoros. 

Had to be done!

A shepherd boy close to the border. 

On our way back down to the South African border: South African immigration based at the foothills of the Pass prohibit vehicles which are deemed unsuitable for the climb up to the Lesotho border. Despite this... the Lesotho agents at the border control generally allow all vehicles types to attempt this precarious descent. As you can see, even the heavy-weight vehicles struggle up this hazardous course. This car in particular (a family of four, with two toddlers!) got stuck and could not continue further up the nasty bends, and had to wait for assistance to get off the mountain.