Roxanne Reid
  • Home
  • Book author
    • Travels in the Kalahari >
      • Photo gallery: Travels in the Kalahari
      • Book reviews: Travels in the Kalahari
    • A Walk in the Park >
      • Photo gallery: A Walk in the Park
      • Book reviews: A Walk in the Park
    • The Essential Guide to Self-Editing >
      • Book reviews: Essential Guide to Self-Editing
    • Betrayed
    • Book reviews online
  • Editing & proofreading
  • In the media
    • Travel features
    • Health features
    • Online media
    • Media kit
  • Blog
  • Testimonials
  • Links
  • Contact

Richtersveld beauties

4/7/2010

0 Comments

 
The tiny Richtersveld settlement of Lekkersing opened its arms to us by inviting us to the Fashion and Beauty Pageant at the local primary school. We didn’t expect the entertainment to last for four and a half hours – or to have quite so much fun as we did.
A circle on the floor of the school hall was cordoned off with streamers of crepe paper tied to metal poles, ready for the contestants to strut their stuff. To one side, three plastic chairs were swathed in net tablecloths to act as thrones for the king/queen and princes/princesses. 

The evening started with a prayer during which God seemed to be harangued. Not ‘please will you bless this gathering’ in Lekkersing, but ‘bless it or else’. 

Then the principal, large of girth and of voice, explained how the evening was going to work – that members of the audience would be voting for our favourites in each group. 

Predictably, the juniors were adorable. One little guy got it into his head to kiss his partner and the audience went wild, catcalling, stomping their feet and generally expressing their approval in uninhibited terms. 

Each boy posed for effect, and most of the girls were well aware of how cute they were. Five finalists were chosen and then we voted again before the crowning ceremony. 

So that no one felt left out, there were presents for all participants – packets of sweets and small plastic toys. 

After an interval during which one of the moms brought us ice cream cones, we started with the ‘seniors’, twelve or thirteen years old. Now the difference between boys and girls became marked. 

The boys were all terribly cool, swaggering, striking macho poses, not a smile among them. It was all about attitude, and smiling obviously wasn’t something a cool dude would do. 

The girls were more about charm and flirtatiousness, smiling, looking coquettishly back at us over their shoulders, using their swaying hips to maximum effect. 

Audience participation remained eager and boisterous. Usually in the Big City, reactions of such excitable and noisy hilarity are the province of people who are getting progressively more and more drunk. 

Here, though, the people were just high on Fanta, ice cream and life, not an alcoholic drink in sight in this deeply Christian community. 

Of course, voting had nothing to do with looks or fashion sense. It was all a matter of popularity and how many of a participant’s family members were in the audience. By far the prettiest girl didn’t even make the finals. Nor did the one who got the loudest catcalls from the boys. 

But after a good-natured, rollicking evening, the new queen was at last crowned with a pretty silver tiara. 

The king had to make do with a homemade crown made of cardboard and tinfoil.

You may also enjoy
Where to stay in the Richtersveld
​
Why you have to visit the Richtersveld wilderness

Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Get email links to the latest posts

    Buy my books
    Travels in the Kalahari, amazon.com e-book
    E-book 2012​

    A Walk in the Park, amazon.com e-book
    2nd ed e-book 2015
    The Essential Guide to Self-Editing, amazon.com e-book
    E-book 2017

    About 

    I'm an independent travel writer and book editor with a passion for Africa - anything from African travel, people, safari and wildlife to adventure, heritage, road-tripping and slow travel.
    My travel buddy and husband Keith is the primary photographer for this blog.
    We're happiest in the middle of nowhere, meeting the locals, trying something new, or simply watching the grass grow.
    Use this website to discover new places to go, revisit places you've loved, or take a virtual tour of destinations you only dream about.

    Categories

    All
    Baviaanskloof
    Books
    Botswana
    Camping
    Cape Town
    Chobe
    Conservation
    Drc
    Eastern Cape
    Etosha Namibia
    Food
    Free State
    Garden Route
    Gauteng
    Issues
    Kalahari
    Karoo
    Kenya
    Kruger National Park
    Kwazulu Natal
    Lesotho
    Limpopo
    Linyanti
    Malawi
    Mozambique
    Mpumalanga
    Namaqualand
    Namibia
    Nature Parks
    Northern Cape
    Okavango
    Overberg
    People
    Photography
    Richtersveld
    Tanzania
    West Coast
    Western Cape
    Wild Creatures
    Zambia
    Zimbabwe

    Archives

    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    January 2010
    November 2009


Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without written permission from roxannereid.co.za

Privacy Policy and GDPR compliance
​* We promise that we take data safety seriously and use your private data only to offer a personalised experience
* If you subscribed to our newsletter, you will receive our newsletters. You can always unsubscribe by following the link in email or by emailing us
* If you gave us your name, it will only be used to personalise the newsletters
* We have never sold, we are not selling, and we will not sell any of your personal data provided to us
* The blog uses cookies to track activity. It is anonymous except for telling us your location and what you did on our blog
​
Photo used under Creative Commons from berniedup