W

For everyone reading my blogs it must, by this time, be blatantly obvious that water plays a huge role in my life. I love having the ocean, rivers and estuaries in my immediate vicinity. I can never get bored with looking at water or swimming and fishing in it. I drink water straight from the tap and without adding flavours. This is, in fact, the only drink for me – I do not drink tea, coffee, sweet drinks or alcoholic beverages, only because nothing else can ever taste as delightful as water or  quench my thirst the way water does. Whether I am at home looking through the window, hanging over my balcony or walking on the beach, my eyes are always on the water all around me.

Today, however, I will not bore you more than I’ve already done with photos and tales of our life in a coastal town. Instead, I want to show and tell you why water is so important to me.

I was born and grew up in the arid region of Little Namaqualand, which forms part of the Northern Cape Province of South Africa, and is situated south of the Orange River – the border between South Africa and Namibia. This dry, hot region is classified as a semi-desert. The average annual rainfall can be as low as 100mm in certain areas and the water tends to be brackish. Growing up, we were taught that water is a precious commodity and we learnt to use it sparingly.

Despite the lack of water, the region has its own charm:

Namaqualand
Namaqualand
Namaqualand – an abandoned truck
Namaqualand flat rocks at Nababeep
Quiver tree forest in Nieuwoudtville
Namaqualand wind erosion

However, we used to call this part of the country “God’s Garden” and the “Grateful Soil” because when- and wherever a few drops of rain fell in winter, natural flowers would sprout with the first arrival of spring.

These photos were taken during a year when rain was not plentiful, but there were still a few flowers to be seen:

Namaqualand
Namaqualand waterfall in Nieuwoudtville
Melkbos in blom
Nababeep wild flowers in spring

In the years when the region has a good winter rainy season, wildflowers spring up across the landscape like multi-coloured carpets and tourists arrive from all over the world to take photographs of this wondrous sight. Follow this link to the photo gallery of the South African National Parks to view their pictures; they will blow you away.

Huge parts of South Africa are currently still in the grip of a severe drought. This is a huge problem in a country where access to running water is not a given in every household. Water points have been set up to provide much-needed drinking water.

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Residents of Nongoma, north-west of Durban, that has been badly affected by the recent drought, prepare to collect water from a free water point sponsored by concerned citizens on November 9, 2015. AFP PHOTO/MUJAHID SAFODIEN / AFP / MUJAHID SAFODIEN

See more at: https://africacheck.org/2016/02/03/frequently-asked-questions-about-south-africas-drought/#sthash.OAtKVR39.dpuf

Dis vir my amper ongelooflik om te sien dat mense in hierdie dag en datum nog hulle drinkwater moet gaan haal by ‘n sentrale punt en dit gebeur nie net in droogtetye nie.

Elke keer wanneer ek ‘n kraan oopdraai om water te tap, onthou ek hoe kosbaar water was in my kinderjare en ek dink daaraan dat daar steeds nie veilige drinkwater beskikbaar het in alle gebiede vir alle inwoners nie. Waterbesparing is ‘n aksie wat in elke huis in Suid-Afrika toegepas moet word, in alle dele van die land, om ons kosbare bronne te berskerm.

Ek skryf hierdie blog terwyl ek hoopvol uitkyk vir reën. Ons het min watertjies gehad die afgelope paar weke en ek hoop dat almal van ons binnekort weer lekker nat gaan wees.