South Africa & Great Zimbabwe

Continuing our exploration of the Cradle of Humankind, we start today with the Sterkfontein Caves. Finds here included the 2.1-million-year-old Australopithecus skull, and “Little Foot”, an almost complete skeleton more than 3-million years old. In the afternoon we visit nearby Swartkrans, rich in archaeological material and a prominent fossil site. There is evidence which suggests that more than one species of hominin lived in the region at the same time.

We visit two important museums today. First, the Origins Centre in Braamfontein. The Centre displays an extensive collection of rock art from the Rock Art Research Institute at Wits University and follows the path of hominin innovation that began over 2 million years ago. Offering a stark contrast to the morning, we visit the Apartheid Museum in the afternoon, a superb example of design, space and landscape offering the international community a unique South African experience. The exhibits have been assembled and organised by a multi-disciplinary team of curators, filmmakers, historians and designers. The Apartheid Museum is critical to our understanding of this beautiful and troubled country.

This morning we journey north to Polokwane in Limpopo stopping en route at Arend Dieperink Museum to set the scene for tomorrow’s explorations. The Museum charts the history of the town and its surroundings from the discoveries at Makapan’s Cave right through to the Anglo-Boer War. Here we will take a step back in time to look at the cultural heritage of the Afrikaans people, particularly in what is now Limpopo province, but was once Transvaal, one of the three Boer Republics.

Transferring to 4x4s, we travel to Makapansgat, an important Paleolithic site that is littered with caves. At Makapansgat we will gain insight into one of the most famous hominin sites in the world – the Limeworks Cave, the oldest cave within the complex. Searches here revealed remains of about 40 individuals of Australopithecus africanus a species of hominin dating from 2.5 to 3 million years ago or more. Moving on in time we will also visit the Cave of Hearths which will show us something of how hand axe makers lived half a million years ago and the importance of their surrounding landscape to their survival.

We make our way to Mapungubwe National Park, an expansive savannah landscape which was once a large kingdom before its abandonment in the 14^th century. Situated in the far north of South Africa, where the Limpopo and Shashe rivers meet, it is geologically rich, scenically beautiful and has an impressive biodiversity. We explore the bush land and climb up to the site’s lost city on the Mapungubwe Hill. Mapungubwe is one of the glories of South African archaeology. A little earlier than its more famous neighbour, Great Zimbabwe, it marks the rise of complex societies and rough its trading links was connected in an Indian Ocean sized trading web to India and the great imperial court of far-off China. This magical place is a must see.

Today we drive to Koaxa’s Shelter in our search for rock art. The paintings depicted here will take your breath away and open up the hidden world of the ancient San people. You can almost hear them conversing in their klick language as they painted their experiences and beliefs. These 200 images of fine detail, depicting at least 16 animal species including lion, hyena, mongoose and locusts are almost as bright and moving as the day they were painted.

We continue south to Kruger National Park today, one of the prime game-watching destinations in the world. This area has an incredibly diverse ecosystem and home to an impressive array of wildlife:  lions, cheetah, rhinos and buffalo wander a 20,000km square expanse of park land. We arrive in time for lunch and a late afternoon game drive.

An adventure today at Berg en Dal where we walk through the bush on the hunt for rock art scattered on boulders across the landscape. The sites here bring us face to face with the modern difficulties of preservation. The beauty and fragility of the rock art scattered amongst the bush will stay with you. We have some free time today to relax and rest before our return to Johannesburg.

After an optional early morning game drive, we make the journey back to Johannesburg where will stay before our onward travel to Zimbabwe tomorrow.

We take a flight from Johannesburg to Bulawayo this morning arriving in time for lunch. In the afternoon we journey to Great Zimbabwe, known locally as “Dzimba Dzamabwe” meaning the house of stone or stone buildings. We will overnight nearby ready for our site visit tomorrow.

We dedicate most of our day to the extensive site of the Great Zimbabwe, the largest and most important capital of the vast Shona Kingdom which at its peak controlled 100,000 km² between the Zambesi and Limpopo rivers. We will examine its extraordinary stonework and the fascinating architecture of its Great Enclosure as well as the finds from the site displayed at its museum. There will be some free time in the afternoon to spend relaxing or taking an optional game drive in the Lake Mutirikwi Recreational Park

We make our way back to Bulawayo stopping en route at the Madzimbabwe of Nalatale, in the remote Somabula Flats in central Zimbabwe. Nalatale was once the capital of the Butua Kingdom which rose to prominence following the decline of Great Zimbabwe. The ruins are unique for their intricate herringbone, chevron and chequer-patterned stone walls.

We make our last site visit this morning and take a short trip to Khami on the outskirts of Bulawayo. Continuously inhabited for 40,000 years, Khami was the court of the Rozvi’s Mombo dynasty and later an important spiritual shrine of the Ndebele. This afternoon we transfer to Johannesburg airport for our independent onward journeys.