We drove our little Fiesta out to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden so we drove around the mountain to the eastern slopes of Table Mountain. It still looks spectacular from the other side. :
We first took a shuttle tour of the gardens so we could see what area in which to spend our time. We couldn't hear a thing the tour guide said because we were in the back of a golf cart, a noisy diesel cart. Oh well.
We then wandered the garden for the next three hours. And, as you can see, I stalked some of the birds! :
Kirstenbosch is acclaimed as one of the great botanic gardens of the world, and it is beautiful. It is the flagship of the South African National Biodiversity Institute, which was established in 1913 to conserve and promote the indigenous flora of southern Africa. The estate covers 528 hectares and includes a cultivated garden and a nature reserve. The developed garden displays collections of southern African plants including many rare and endangered species. We visited several of the themed gardens: the Fynbos Garden, the Fragrance Garden and the Protea gardens.
The garden is home to 7,000 plant species under cultivation (few of which we have ever seen), 450 species of trees, important scientific collections, and world-class cycad collections.
As I mentioned earlier, indigenous people visited the area a long time ago, as Stone Age tools have been found near the spring in the Dell in the heart of the garden. The Khoi made the Cape their home before any explorers arrived, and they probably visited the area in which the garden is situated to gather medicinal plants, food and wood. When explorers did arrive, they encountered large groups of the Khoi who had made the Cape part of their annual migration route. One group was the Goringhaikwa people, who arrived every October in a large group with their flocks and herds. Their campsite was the present-day suburbs of Rondebosch and Claremont, a stone's throw from the garden's location. Access to the garden area became more difficult for the indigenous folks on account of Jan van Riebeeck establishing his estate.
Van Riebeeck, as you recall, was the first commander of the Dutch East Indian Company in the Cape. The first recorded account referring to the area was written by van Riebeeck when he mentioned that he had surveyed the forest in 1652.
The property changed hands several times in the 1800s. It wasn't until the Union of South Africa was established in 1910 that Dr. Henry Pearson, a professor of botany at the South African College, started putting the wheels in motion for the establishment of the botanical garden. In 1913, Sir Lionel Philips put forward a resolution to Parliament that Kirstenbosch should be the home of the National Botanical Garden. Pearson became the first director, J.W. Mathews became the first curator.
The garden currently is in the hands of Philip le Roux who has been curator since 1999. He has surrounded himself with a capable and devoted team of approximately 130 people - horticulturalists, administrators, collectors, grounds people, guides and other specialists. Our time there was well spent, as they have developed a perfectly wonderful place.
We came home and ate something and then we were off to the Institute of Creative Arts Live Art Festival at Hiddingh Campus of the University of Cape Town. It was the first of 16 days of the festival. It is Africa's eminent performance art platform, and features some 40 cutting-edge works. It was not a tourist thing so we got a feel for Cape Town that featured artists, alternative types and students.
I did not take my camera, as I want to honor the artists.
I'll do my best to give you some sort of idea of what we saw.
All the events are free, and there was plenty of free wine of which we partook while waiting for the first performance, which was by Sethembile Msezane. It was titled "Signal Her Return III." Sethembile was born in KwaZulu-Natal and raised in Johannesburg (Joburg), and completed her BAFA and Masters in Fine Art at the University of Cape Town. She describes it as "an installation/prayer commemorating women who have died under undignified circumstances." You can see how the space was designed here: http://www.sethembile-msezane.com/signal-her-return-iii/2018/6/1/signal-her-return-iii-2018-nirox-femicides-domorethanprayer-sethembilemsezane-rememberher-herstory-amen-meditation-1 She moved through the space with a black covering and hat, while a voiceover was reciting a monologue about rape, especially rape of black women by white men, and women who have been murdered. At one point, the voiceover provided names, which we assumed were women who were murdered. The name was repeated twice, then the word "remember," at which point Sethembile would ring a bell. It was an interesting piece.
We adjourned and went to another space, and there were free finger foods and free wine there! The performance was fully booked so we stuck around, hoping to get a seat. I approached the Institute of Creative Arts Director and curator of the festival, Jay Pather, and we visited briefly. We told him about our dilemma so we got seats. Ha!
The performance, by Albert Ibokwe Khoza and Robyn Orlin was titled "And so you see," and it was for African people, as it contained a lot of references and language we did not understand. But we got some of it, I think. Albert was wrapped in sheaths of white cloth when the performance began. After the cloths were removed, you could see his body was wrapped in cellophane. He sat in a large chair facing the back of the stage where there was a videographer so you could see the front of him in the projection. We thought maybe the cellophane represented the suffocation of apartheid. He eventually shed the cellophane and, at one point, selected two white people from the audience to wash him after having eaten oranges (don't know what the oranges represented except maybe bodily pleasures). Anywho, it was quite striking to see two white people bathing him as you would royalty. There was more but it is really difficult to describe so I'll let him do so. You can hear him describe it and other things about himself here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io1hmX9PlaM&list=PLW39SIhEiWw4puHIfYhLgqJKxf6mfe0PR If you're interested, you can get a sense of his work by watching part of his performance at the first festival in 2014 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcS-jrjS8q0
There was no wine when we emerged from the second performance to wait for the final performance of the evening, which was a live music performance by FAKA. Okay, so FAKA is a performance art duo and a cultural movement established by Fela Gucci and Desire Marea. Well, it wasn't our thing - or not this particular performance. We entered into a room that was full of haze (well, it's smoke, actually). They were dressed more like gangsters, wearing full-length black puffy jackets, and all they did was a stylized grunt and groan thing. We didn't stay long. You can see them and read about them here: http://www.siyakaka.com/about-1/ And, actually, this performance on YouTube (they're voguing) would have suited us much better: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHCN8bynfF0
I took numerous photos in the gardens. Hope there's not too many! Enjoy them.
People enjoying the gardens.
This is a pincushion, which is a genus that has 52 species, most of which are found in the Western Cape. They feature stiff, protruding styles of flowers and are an excellent source of nectar for birds.
We think this is Rudbeckia Cappuccino but we're not sure. There was no marker identifying them. We just thought they were beautiful.
This is a nerine sarniensis, also known as a Nerine Lilly. It is part of the amaryllis family, and it's a rare flower.
Your standard Bird of Paradise. LOL.
This is the bloom on the Cape Stock Rose Tree. I couldn't find any more information about it.
This is the Broom Cluster Fig tree's (Ficus sur) fruit, which is supposedly rather tasty if you can find some fruit that hasn't yet been infested with insects; it is eaten fresh or sun-dried. We didn't try any of them. The young leaves are cooked and used as a relish, and the fruit is much loved by birds, bats and monkeys. Apparently, it's a very useful tree besides bearing fruit. The wood from this tree was used for furniture and drums as well as for the brake-blocks in ox wagons. Latex from the tree is used for medicinal and veterinary purposes with the bar being used for traditional medicine. The tree also is a larval food plant for butterflies.
This what is called Camphor Lane. These are Camphor Trees that are native to Eastern Asia, and they are invasive in Kenya and Tanzania. As you can see, it's a large and spreading tree, often growing 15 to 30 meters high. The rough bark is light brown or greyish-brown n color, scaly or issued, and is highly aromatic. They have flowers and fruit but we think it was too early in the spring for them to flower and fruit. It's still "winter" here, technically. The tree is cultivated for camphor, which is used as a culinary spice, a component of incense and as a medicine. Camphor also is an insect repellent and a flea-killing substance. it has been listed in the Global Invasive Species Database as a noxious weed in South Africa.
This is a clivic miniature, some of which has bloomed, some of which hasn't bloomed yet. It is a species of flowering plant in the genus Clivia of the family Amarylidaceae, native, growing in woodland habitats in South Africa as well as in Swaziland. It contains small amounts of licorice, making it poisonous.
This is a Cobra Lily, which is endemic to the Cape Floristic Region, a hot-spot of plant diversity in southwestern South Africa. This yellow cobra lily variety is found at only a few locations,outside the gardens, in the vicinity of the small town of Darling. It is classed as rare on the Red Data List of Southern African Plants.
This is a donkey ear plant, also known as Kalanchoie Gastonia bonnier, that originates from Madagascar. It has leaves resembling the shape of a donkey's ear, as you can see. The plants are succulents, and they produce brightly colored blooms that are known to attract insects and nectar-seeking birds. Again, too early to see it's blossoms.
This is the fire lily clivia miniature. It's also known as the South Africa Lily. It is native to damp woodland habitats in South Africa as well as Swaziland, and are always found under tree cover in evergreen forests.
We don't know anything about this flower.
This is a Golden Vygie, which is a vulnerable plant. It is part of the Lampranthus genus, and it is a perennial succulent indigenous to the Western Cape. It has no medicinal or traditional uses but the most attractive aspect of the plant is its unbelievably bright orange flowers.
This is a Pelargonium, a genus of flowering plants that includes about 200 species of perennials, succulent and shrubs known as geraniums. But geranium is the botanical name of a separate genus of related plants. This species is an evergreen perennial indigenous to temperate and tropical regions of the world, with many species in Southern Africa. They are drought and heat tolerant but can tolerate only minor frosts. it is native to Southern Africa, which contains 90% of the genus with only about 30 species found elsewhere.
This is a Key cycad, a medium to large cycad that is distinguished from other Encephalartos species within its range by its closely crowded and overlapping bluish-green leaflets. Although woody in appearance (see below), like all cycads, the stems are mostly comprised of soft, pithy storage tissue protected by a solid layer of old leaf bases. The cycads are remained relatively unchanged for millions of years. In fact, the cycad portion of the garden featured a variety of different cycads as well as sculptures of dinosaurs because the dinosaurs probably ate cycads.
This a Queen Protea. Protea is a genus of South African flowering plants, sometimes also called sugarbusshes or Fynbos (pronounced fain boos). In local traditions, the Protea flower represents change and hope. The King Proteas is South Africa's national flower. Evidence from pollen fossils suggest the ancestors of the family to which Proteas belong grew in Gondwana 75-80 million years ago. Ninety-two percent of this species occurs only in the Cape Floristic Region.
The red flower is a Rooistompie. The yellow is a pincushion.
This is the bloom at the Waratha Tree, which actually is an Australian-endemic genus. This bright red flower is the New South Wales state emblem.
This is a wild iris.
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This is one of many sculptures found throughout the gardens.
This is brown, seed-eater. Couldn't find him in any identification charts. :)
This is a Cape Robin.
This is a Cape Sugarbird.
This is an Egyptian Goose.
This is another orange-breasted sunbird feeding on a pincushion.
This is a Southern Double-collared Sunbird.
This is a Spotted Eagle Owl that was just sitting perched on a rock as we passed.
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