A trip to a nearby village between safari trips is not just a time filler during the day and much more than a chance to have a look how the people of the Northwest Province live in places where many of our employees come from. Rather, such a visit can be an opportunity for both sides to have a cultural exchange and to learn from each other. This happened to a group of young travellers from America.
“This specific village excursion was special in many ways”, says Tom-Hendrik Basson, Rhulani's manager, who had prepared the day's program very well in advance and coordinated the various activities well.
The visit took the young group to a public school in Supingstad, which is 17 km away and outside the Madikwe Reserve. Tom says: “The group truly interacted with the children on a very down to earth level and I could see that this meant a lot for the teachers as well as the children. The pride of the children as they sang the South African national anthem for the guests was evident on their faces.
Some of our guests were football fanatics, so a talk started about the different rules of the different cultures. But the whole thing really took off when the first footballs started flying around everywhere and the giddy laughter of pure childish joy that accompanied it.
Tom-Hendrik was visibly touched from what he saw and mentions further highlights of the special day: “It was heartbreaking to see the appreciation from the children for the gifts they received even though it was small, the Snacks which were shared amongst everyone, and at the end, the children chasing after the busses and waving goodbye to the guests as they departed the school and racing off to the gate again to see who could be there again for a final goodbye wave.”
Rhulani Safari Lodge is committed to respecting the way of life of local cultures, supporting each other and living together peacefully, and we want our guests to have the opportunity to be involved as well.
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