By More Matshediso
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BLOEMFONTEIN – A month long visit to tourist attractions in the Free State has revealed the potential for greater cooperation between government and artists in promoting the sector.
The tour in September during tourism month was in response to MEC Mamiki Qabathe’s challenge to creative artists in the Free State to come up with unique works that could promote the Free State as a tourist destination.
“Our local artists have done their homework and they are already on the move in promoting the Free State province, and they should be motivational enough to those who haven’t started,” Qabathe said.
At the beginning of September the chairperson of Free State Tourism Authority, Mudau Netshivhodza encouraged Free Sate residents to participate in Kasi Tourism and explore the beauty of their own province.
Free State is endowed with natural beauty fauna and flora of aesthetic value as to offer peaceful spiritual rebirth through its wonderful environmental views.
The Thabo Mofutsanyane District was a hive of activity recently with MEC Qabathe hosting a large contingent of guests that included Deputy Minister of Tourism, Thokozile Xasa and artists from all over the Free State to expose them to tourism offerings in the area.
Thabo Mofutsanyane is known as the jewel of tourism in the Free State. The visit included a fly over attraction points such as the wetlands at Memel Seekoei Nature Reserve, a visit to one of the highest lodges in the Drakensburg mountains owned by the Batlokoa Community. The Witsieshoek Hotel presents a spellbinding view of the Sentinel Peak covered with snow where one could be forgiven for thinking that they are in Switzerland.
The lodge accommodates mostly mountain hikers and travellers. The other stopover was at Dinosaur inside the Golden Gate National Park.
A visit to the eastern Free State is never complete without a visit to the Basotho Cultural Village. The place traces the history and life style of the Basotho Nation and how it evolved to a modern day Mosotho. Kasi tourists got in touch with their cultural roots and enjoyed the traditional cuisines and washed them down with freshly brewed African beer.
From Qwa Qwa to the Lionsrock, the Big Cats Sanctuary situated in north east of Bethlehem, which is the only one in Africa is home to lions, cheetahs, tigers, caracals, hyenas, springboks and ostriches collected all over the world where they were rescued from abuse, together with wildebeests, zebras, waterbuck and a range of antelope species for game lovers.
Lionsrock also serves as Guesthouse for those fascinated by the scope of fauna and flora that can be found in the park. At the Lionsrock guests were thrown into frenzy when the contemporary band group Allah Yen belted out what has become the Free State tourism signal ‘’Woza Free State’’.
Free State possesses not only outrageous tourist attractions but it is also full of artistic talent.
“We can host back to back festivals every week in our province with local artists only. Free State province has got enormous talent,” Qabathe said.
The journey continued to through the southern tip of the Free State.
Xhariep was the next stop with a visit to the Boyden Observatory where the group enjoyed watching stars and planets and astronomy lectures about the universe.
The first stop in Xhariep was the Philipolis van der Post Museum then the Philippolis N G Kerk (church) and then the old Philipolis Jail found in the town of Philipolis, where a short history of these three places was recounted.
The interesting story about the church is that the oldest bible in the province is found in this church. The bible was once stolen and returned to the church.
At the Labyrinth, believed to have healing powers that can reduce personal stress levels if you pray before stepping on it visitors can go into meditation.
Along the tour at Gariep, kasi tourists participated in a boat cruise around Gariep dam whilst others took 1 000 steps down to the belly of monstrous Gariep Dam.
The last leg of the month long programme with activities to promote kasi tourism was the official opening of Koppies Dam Nature Reserve.
On Saturday, September 29, Premier Ace Magashule inaugurated 10 new chalets during accompanied by musical performances, drama, poetry
and dances all telling the story of tourism in the Free State. More than 1 000 people from all over the Free State descended on Koppies Dam Nature reserve to bring the curtain down on a very exciting tourism journey that criss-crossed the length and breadth of the province. Qabethe expressed her sincerest gratitude to “all our friends who accepted our invitation to journey with us to ‘Discover the Free State of Mind’ and to make Tourism Month 2012 a memorable one.”
“We believe that all the exciting activities during this month ushered in a whole new travelling and tourism culture in the Free State that calls on all of us to appreciate the scenic beauty, the majestic mountains, the flat lands and the tranquillity of our beautiful province” she added.