Theme Week South Africa – Ladysmith

20 June 2017 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  7 minutes

Town Hall © Janek Szymanowski/cc-by-sa-3.0

Town Hall © Janek Szymanowski/cc-by-sa-3.0

Ladysmith is a town in the Uthukela District of KwaZulu-Natal. It is 230 kilometres (140 mi) north-west of Durban and 365 kilometres (227 mi) south of Johannesburg. Important industries in the area include food processing, textile and tyre production. Tyres are produced by Sumitomo Rubber South Africa in the nearby town of Steadville. Ladysmith is the seat for both the Alfred Duma Local Municipality and the Uthukela District Municipality. In 1900, the unincorporated town of Oyster Harbour (est. circa 1898) on the east coast of Vancouver Island in Canada was renamed Ladysmith by James Dunsmuir, in honour of the British lifting the siege of Ladysmith in South Africa (28 February 1900) during the Second Boer War. Ladysmith is located on the banks of the Klip River (“stone river”), with the central business district and a large part of the residential areas located within the flood basin of the river. It is on the foothills of the Drakensberg mountains, about 26 km from the Van Reenen pass.   read more…

Durban in South Africa

13 February 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  6 minutes

Durban Waterfront © Simisa/cc-by-sa-3.0

Durban Waterfront © Simisa/cc-by-sa-3.0

Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. It is also the second most important manufacturing hub in South Africa after Johannesburg. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa and Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism because of the city’s warm subtropical climate and extensive beaches. The municipality, which includes neighbouring towns, has a population of almost 3.5 million, making the combined municipality the biggest city on the Indian Ocean coast of the African continent. Durban is the busiest container port in Africa. The Golden Mile, developed as a welcoming tourist destination in the 1970s, as well as Durban at large, provide ample tourist attractions, particularly for people on holiday from Gauteng. The Golden Mile was redeveloped late 2009 in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It was resurfaced and widened between Ushaka Marine World and Moses Mabhida Stadium. Durban’s most popular beaches are also located along the Golden Mile. The city is also a gateway to the national parks and historic sites of Zulu Kingdom and the Drakensberg.   read more…

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