The Three Rondavels. July 1998
The Drakensberg Mountains are actually an escarpment that divides part of eastern South Africa into the High Veld and the Low Veld. Up on the High Veld that holds cities like Johannesburg and Pretoria the climate is temperate and seasonal crops can be grown. The Low Veld is more tropical, still occasionally malarial, and full of great national and private game parks to which tourists flock in order to see Africa's famous fauna. Prior to going to South Africa I had no idea about the Drakensberg Mountains whatsoever. I'm not sure I had ever even heard the name.
We had booked a tour from Jo'burg that took us down through the Drakensberg to a few of the private game parks culminating in Kruger National Park. Our small van tour was just our guide/driver, an Israeli couple (lovely people), Brian, and me. The ride out to the Drakensberg was nothing special - undulating hills of farmland, sparsely populated. It hardly seemed like "Africa" at all. Then we reached the edge of the escarpment - wow! The approach was very similar to driving to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon in the US. There is no hint of it until suddenly there it is! The Drakensberg Mountains presented themselves similarly - astonishing no doubt, especially because we were unaware of these mountains before the visit.
Our driver/guide took us to several locations - the weather was actually clear and crisp. The views were spectacular down into the Low Veld. One high point was the Three Rondavels:
... three round, grass-covered mountain tops with somewhat pointed peaks. They quite closely resemble the traditional round or oval rondavels or African homesteads, which are made with local materials.
...
The names of the peaks commemorate a 19th century chief, Maripi, and three of his wives. The flat-topped peak adjacent to the rondavels is Mapjaneng, "the chief", who is remembered for opposing invading Swazis in a memorable battle. The three rondavels are named for three of his more troublesome wives – Magabolle, Mogoladikwe and Maseroto. Behind the rondavels the distant high plateau of Mariepskop may be visible. Beside the dam, the isolated Thabaneng hill is known as the "sundial" or "mountain with a shadow that moves". It is said that the position of its shadow indicates the time of day. On a clear day the lookout point provides extensive views.
(Wikipedia)
"Totally unexpected" discovery for Brian and me had become increasingly difficult after all our travels, but I can safely say that we were surprised and wowed by the Drakensberg. However, all the beauty of that escarpment was still just the "coming attractions". We were on our way to Kruger National Park to see "Lions and Tigers and Bears...oh my!" (not really, but we were extremely excited to see wildlife). We also had another surprise waiting for us in the hot, almost tropical Low Veld. It was about to snow!
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