Roxanne Reid - Africa Addict
  • 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
  • Blog
  • Testimonials
  • Links
  • Contact

Take a township tour in Swellendam

23/7/2014

4 Comments

 
Township tour in Swellendam
By Roxanne Reid
At first glance the town of Swellendam in the Western Cape is an elegant blend of museums, restaurants, boutiques, galleries and places to stay. Yet just over the railway line in the satellite township of Railton, things are very different. If you don’t take a township tour in Swellendam, you’re not seeing the full picture or all its colours.

The lady to help you do that is Meisie Bokwana of Ubuhle Besintu. She was born in Swellendam of a Xhosa father and Pondo mother from the Eastern Cape. Now 60, she’s been teaching local children in Railton about Xhosa culture for ten years. The bonus – and Meisie’s secret weapon – is that she’s helping to keep the kids off the streets and away from gangs and drugs.

When we joined her for a township tour we got to meet some of her 7-13 year-olds when they performed in her tiny garden. A carpet-covered concrete slab was their stage. A bench under some shade was the auditorium. The dancers and singers wore some items of traditional attire, like beads and headgear. Two little girls in striped pink jerseys weren’t really part of the show. They were Meisie’s great-granddaughters, but they didn’t want to be left out of the fun. The three-year-old was already showing an aptitude for stealing the show with her bright eyes and winning grin.
Swellendam township tour
Meisie Bokwana sings along with her protogees
I couldn’t understand the words of some of the songs but the message of one sung in Afrikaans was clear, ‘No! If I say don’t touch me I mean don’t touch.’ So some valuable life lessons are being taught here too.

After the animated welcome, we walked with Meisie to the shebeen at the end of her street. If it had been the weekend, we could have tasted traditional Xhosa beer made from maize and malt. But it was midweek and mid-afternoon, and the place was deserted. A pool table hid under some dusty black plastic and a juke box slouched in a corner near the bar. Around the hard dust floor, scuffed benches leaned crookedly against the walls. Like most of the houses on that side of the street, the walls were a makeshift mix of corrugate iron and wood.
Swellendam township tour
A square of carpet and some animal skins keep the dancers' feet (mostly) off the cold concrete 'stage'
The sangoma lived in the next road, which bordered the open veld. Meisie has big plans for that piece of land. She’s spoken to the mayor about allowing them to build some traditional huts and use it as somewhere to sell beadwork and other handicrafts. She nodded her head a few times to emphasise her point. ‘I don’t want to take this dream to my grave,’ she said.

We ducked through a broken iron gate to visit sangoma Fezeka Jaxa. A quietly spoken woman, she allowed us into her spic-and-span RDP house to see the room where she consults with clients. Herbs and remedies in packets and buckets and jars were neatly piled in one corner next to a grass mat. Against the opposite wall, two plastic chairs for her clients. She might do a consultation if you ask, but we didn’t have time and the kids were waiting for us at Meisie’s, eager to perform another three songs to the beat of the drum.
You need to book ahead by phoning Meisie on 084-7751269. The tour takes about two and a half hours, and you can arrange to sample some traditional Xhosa cooking such as Inyama yenkomo or umngqusho too.

You might also like:
20 things to do in Swellendam in the Overberg  
Where to stay in Swellendam  

Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
4 Comments
Africa Inside link
24/7/2014 02:29:06 pm

Loved this!. Too bad you did not have time to consult with the sangoma. I have had the pleasure of doing so in the past and found it wonderfully enlightening and so exotic for me as an American. Lori from AfricaInside.org

Reply
Roxanne link
25/7/2014 03:14:26 am

Glad you enjoyed it, Lori. Luckily, we've consulted a sangoma before and it was certainly an interesting experience.

Reply
Vanessa link
25/7/2014 08:35:03 am

A great article Roxanne. Too few articles show the "full colours" of destinations. Thanks for showcasing the Overberg - and Meisie of course!

Reply
Roxanne link
25/7/2014 10:52:11 am

Thanks for your comment, Vanessa. I love it when we can get past the obvious attractions of a destination to find some of the smaller gems.

Reply

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
    Madagascar
    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 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    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
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 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, GDPR and POPIA 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
​
Photos from berniedup, Lucy_Hill