History of South Africa—Diamonds and Gold

90. Upload viral videos89. Max out your credit card on Duty Free items from the in-flight catalogue88. Take a Comanaprosil pill (Google this and the 30 Rock reference)87. See who can recite more of the top 100 things to do on a 22 hour flight 86. Make friends, if that doesn’t work, make enemies.

85. Gamble - craps in the isle or Texas Hold Em in First Class?84. Play EMBA Bingo83. Expire flight attendant’s patience82. Completely digest the food you eat on the plane81. Make three batches of beef jerky using a dehydrator

Top 100 things to do on a 22 hour flight—the next 10

January 16, 2010 Issue 3

Single room and guest fees due to VCU

1/15/10

Copies of passport due to Heather

1/29/10

Roommate preference to Heather

1/29/10

Important Dates

Passage to Cape Town

Cape Town Coat of Arms

Publishing

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Many people know that diamonds are a significant part of South Africa’s econ-omy, but gold has played a large part as well. It all began in 1866 when a small boy was playing with a glittering pebble that turned out to be a dia-mond. That would be the be-ginning of an economic revolu-tion that saw the diamond trade replace agriculture as the source of a nation’s economy.

By 1871, capitalists Barney Barnato and Cecil John Rhodes vied for control over the diamond fields. By 1890, Rhodes would take control of the region thanks to an influx of foreign capital and establish the De Beers company. The De Beers Company today is a worldwide diamond retailer as well as mining company with established partnerships with Louis Vuitton for high end fashion and other companies for industrial applications of their gems.

In 1886, while survey-ing for future diamond mines, George Harrison discovered a very wealthy gold-bearing reef on the Witwatersrand in Trans-vaal. This was to be the second rush in South Africa that would establish the city of Jo-hannesburg by the end of the 19th Century. Because the min-ing for gold was far more labo-rious than diamonds, the colo-nial government imposed taxes on rural Africans forcing them to take low paying jobs in the mines in order to meet their tax debt. These indigenous peoples who were forced to work in the mines were strictly controlled, their pay was low, and they were forbidden to unionize or change mines for improved pay or conditions.

The discovery of dia-monds and gold in South Af-rica was both a blessing and a curse. The economy of the region and levels of wealth would never be the same fol-

lowing the discovery. These discoveries however go on to spawn conflict between the South African Republic and the British. The final straw came over control of the re-gion’s railways when Rhodes led a British-backed raid to overthrow the SAR. His effort failed, but was a pre-cursor to the Boer War or Anglo-Boer War in 1899.

Trivia Question -

South Africa is home to the worlds largest land mam-

mal, but do you know what the smallest mammal in

South Africa is?

Here is a hint:

E-mail your answer to

CapeTownOrBust@gmail.com

We are keeping score

Cecil J. Rhodes—founder of De Beers

Passage

to Cape Town

Page 2

Most tourists visit Cape Town dur-ing the long summer from November to February, but local wisdom holds that spring (September and October) and au-tumn (April and May) are the smart times to visit Cape Town. They are usually balmy in-between seasons, with little wind, when na-ture is at its showiest. If you’re into flowers or whale-watching, or seeing the vineyards at their best, these are great seasons to be in the Cape.

During our visit in April, we can expect mild fall like weather with average high temperatures of 21˚C (69˚F) and aver-age lows of 14˚C (57˚F). With just 18mm (less than 2 inches) of precipitation in the month of April, the Western Cape is just entering its rainy season, but has only 6 days during the month with measurable rainfall.

Many locals however warn of an old joke. Cape Town has four seasons -sometimes in the same day. This is espe-cially true if you plan to go hiking or be outdoors. Check the weather forecasts in local papers or on radio.

Tentative Itinerary

April 29, 2010

Depart Richmond 10:00 am

Depart Washington-Dulles Airport 5:40 pm

May 3 Start of

Business Site Visits

Cape Town Weather

South Africa Quick LinksIn the purely on on-line version of the newsletter, here are some interesting links to Cape Town Web-

sites. Join the Facebook Fan Page to get the e-link:

City of Cape Town—Official Web Site

Cape Town Daily Photo—Great photos from the region

Cape Town Travel Blog—Discussions on travel

South Africa Government Online—Official Government Site

Trip Advisor Website—Travel Information Site

Cape Times—Cape Town’s Local Newspaper

Castle of Good Hope Cape Town