Heritage

September 24th was Heritage Day in South Africa.  September 24 used to be Shaka Day in KwaZulu-Natal (a large province along the Eastern coast of South Africa) in commemoration of King Shaka (an influential Zulu king).  After the end of apartheid it was not initially included in the public holidays bill, but the Inkatha Freedom Party, a political party representing a lot of Zulus, objected to the bill without the Sept 24th holiday.  As a result, a compromise was reached and the holiday was renamed "Heritage Day" and made into a public holiday in 1996.  The holiday is intended to celebrate "the rainbow nation" and all the diverse cultures which are represented in SA.  A nice idea.  Recently many people have started calling it National Braai Day since Braaing (or BBQing as it is called in the US) is certainly a part of the culture here.  Everyone loves to have a Braai.  

What it met for me was that all the government run museums in the city were free for the week!  So I took advantage and decided to explore a few of those which are literally in my front yard.  I went to the South African Museum which reminded me of the National Museum of history in NY (large skeletons of whale, mineral collection, etc.)  I also visited the South African National Gallery which had some interesting art.  And the Castle of Good Hope which is the oldest building in South Africa.  It was built on behalf of the Dutch from 1666 to 1679.   It was complete with torture chambers and a posh palace for the governor which has turned into a museum of artwork and antiques.  Imagining some of the awful things that I am sure went on in the Castle was a sobering experience.

Some photos from the day....