From the World Heritage inscription: The Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape demonstrates the rise and fall of the first indigenous kingdom in Southern Africa between 900 and 1,300 AD. The core area covers nearly 30,000 ha and is supported by a suggested buffer zone of around 100,000 ha. Within the collectively known Zhizo sites are the remains …
From the World Heritage inscription: In the 1940s the Twyfelfontein land was granted on licence to a settler. At that time a few Damara people lived close to the spring in 32 huts. The land was transferred to communal use for Damara farmers in 1964 on the recommendation of the Odendaal Commission. But no farmers …
From the World Heritage inscription: The undulating landscape containing the fossil hominid sites of South Africa comprises dolomitic limestone ridges with rocky outcrops and valley grasslands, wooded along watercourses and in areas of natural springs. Most sites are in caves or are associated with rocky outcrops or water sources. The serial listing includes the Fossil …
From the World Heritage inscription: Vredefort Dome, approximately 120 km south-west of Johannesburg, is a representative part of a larger meteorite impact structure (astrobleme). Dating back 2,023 million years, it is the oldest astrobleme found on Earth so far. With a radius of 190 km, it is also the largest and the most deeply eroded. …
From the World Heritage inscription: The iSimangaliso Wetland Park is one of the outstanding natural wetland and coastal sites of Africa. Covering an area of 239,566 ha, it includes a wide range of pristine marine, coastal, wetland, estuarine, and terrestrial environments which are scenically beautiful and basically unmodified by people. These include coral reefs, long …
From the Cape Floral Region Protected Areas World Heritage inscription: A serial site – in Cape Province, South Africa – made up of eight protected areas, covering 553,000 ha, the Cape Floral Region is one of the richest areas for plants in the world. It represents less than 0.5% of the area of Africa but …
Egypt had long been a place I was eager to visit, it was high on my travel bucket list during my previous two years of traveling the world. The Pyramids of Giza and the other Egyptian ruins are some of the most ancient remnants of human civilization. Visiting Egypt didn’t disappoint. Despite a rather negative …
More than 12 million tourists visited Morocco in 2018, and their numbers are certain to increase in 2019. And why not? This North African kingdom calls up to most foreigners an image of medieval mosques, archaic bazaars filled with handmade crafts, and medinas—those labyrinths of narrow alleys behind ancient walls. In Morocco, historic monuments seem …
I spent most of today walking the streets of Alexandria. There is no better way to get to know a city than to walk around for a day and get lost in the process. In some ways, I find Alexandria really depressing. This is a city where almost every building is 100 years old and …