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| Tuesday, 29 July 2003 |
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Journey into land of riches by Premasara Epasinghe South Africa is not only a land of riches, but also a world famous tourist destination. Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope, Table Mountain, Robben Island in Cape Town, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for more than two decades, Sun City - 145 kilometres North West of Johannesburg in the black homeland of Boputaswana, Pilanesburg National Park situated in the North Western Province, 50 km North of Rustenburg are some of the breathtaking sights I was fortunate to see on my Tour to South Africa. Firstly, I must thank Kabir Issadeen, former Thomian, who is the Chairman and Managing Director of a leading firm - Eureka in Botswana, in arranging this short tour to visit these tourist centres in South Africa, when cricket was not on. I was covering the South Africa - Sri Lanka cricket tour in 1998. My son Bhagya who accompanied me on this tour was serving as an Accountant in Eureka, Selibipickwe, Botswana at that time. Presently, he is serving as a Financial Controller in Canberra, Australia. Botswana is a rich country famous for diamonds, and elephants and is popularly known as the "Switzerland of South Africa". Bhagya drove me to Johannesburg, a distance of about 900 kilometres from Selibipickwe, Botswana. We witnessed the first ODI between SL and SA at Wanderen Ground. On 16th April, 1998, early morning, we left the residence of my cousin Raja Ranasinghe, at Erasmia, Pretoria, to visit Sun City and Pilenesberg National Park. Dr. Elmo Rodrigopulle, renowned Sports Journalist of Daily News and cheer-leader Nawaragodagedera Lionel joined two of us. They were the guests of my son. Sun City is one of the most popular tourist attractions in South Africa. It borders the Pilenesberg National Park on the South East. It can be considered as a Natures Gift on Earth, a wonderful sight that I have seen. It is an entertainment centre. The founder of the Sun City is a South African business tycoon S. O. L. Kerzer. The beautiful, gigantic hotel named Palace, is in this complex. It is famous for holding Miss World Beauty Contest. Then there is a Golf Course, where million dollar Golf Championships are annually held. Sun City covers a very large area, which is almost the size of Colombo. There are about 4000 employees working in this complex. Most of them are Tswanas Nationals. Sun City was built on the remnants of a Volcano. To the left, there is a panoramic view of a majestic mountain range and down below is an artificial sea, where most of the tourists enjoy sea-bathing. The entire Sun City depicts a carnival atmosphere. To enter the complex you have to pay 100 rands. Out of this sum, 30 rands are refunded to play games such as Casino, Jackpot etc. It was a balmy evening at Sun City. The time was about 6.30 p.m. when the daily earthquake of the Sun City took place. Four of us were near the bridge. The tremor began and the Sun City started to quake slowly for about five minutes. It was a great experience. By 7.00 p.m. the lights were on. When the lights came on, the whole city got transformed into an ethereal scene. There is a theatre in the complex which can accommodate more than 2000. It is known as "Suncity entertainment". There is a variety entertainment titled "Extravaganza" daily. There are two shows per day. It is a show one must not miss. It's marvellous! We spent the night at a chalet at the Pilennesberg National Park adjoining Suncity. On the following morning at 5.45 a.m., we arrived at the main entrance of the PNP. The dawn had just broken imparting a cool touch to the total landscape. The greenery-awakening. The birds started flitting about singing their songs. We brought the tickets, entered the Park. The vehicle was driven by Bhagya. We drove over 200 kilometres inside the Park, and returned to our Chalet at 5.00 p.m. It was a memorable trip, which I will never forget. I will cherish this trip for a lifetime. It was a thrilling discovery of nature as at each and every turn where fresh sights were captured. Pilanesberg National Park is situated in the North Western Province, 50 kilometres North of Rustenberg, in an eroded volcano, more than million years old. It was one of the largest of its kind in the world. PNP is unique because it is the result of one of the biggest ever game translocation since Noah's Arc. Since 1979, over 600 types of animals have been re-located. We were very fortunate to view some of the animals lolling in the splendour and majesty. Entering the jungle, early morning, we first spotted ten Lions playing around off the main road inside the jungle, in a spot called Kukama. We enjoyed the scene at close quarters seated inside the vehicle. Coming into the main road, on a hillock, we saw five leopards. They are majestic. South Africans believe, if anyone sees the "Big Five", lion, leopard, elephant, hippopotamus and wild boar that they are lucky. Having spotted the "Famous Big Five", we felt happy. The other animals we saw at close quarters were rhinos, zebras, buffaloes, cheetahs, bears, gemsboks, kudus, giraffes, springboks, monkeys, antelopes, waterbucks, crocodiles, python etc. Apart from the wild animals there are about 400 types of birds and 70 kinds of reptiles in PNP. The flora is a pleasing sight. Of the most beautiful places on earth, this South African National Park is among the most outstanding. It exhilarates the mind, soothens the soul, making it possible for us to appreciate what true tranquillity is. PNP monuments the affection of the people of South Africa towards their national heritage. The discipline associated with this place, teaches a lesson or two in proper ecological behaviour to the whole world. Even the irresponsible picking of a leaf is considered an offence. This is a sacred lesson for Sri Lankans, who possess tremendous ecological riches should do well to imbibe. |
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