Learn five things that will help you make the most out of your travels
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| Eric: Welcome back to AfrikaansPod101.com. This is All About, Lesson 6, Can You Answer These 5 Questions About South Africa? I’m Eric. |
| Pieter: I’m Pieter. |
| Eric: In this lesson, we’ll build your basic knowledge of South Africa by quizzing you on five areas of South African knowledge - geography, pop culture, travel, economics, and myth busting! |
| Pieter: Sounds pretty interesting, right? I thought of these questions all by myself! |
| Eric: By "by yourself," you mean with my help, right? Okay, so, first we’ll test your geography knowledge! As we all know, South Africa is a very large and diverse country divided up into provinces. |
| Pieter: So the first question is, how many provinces does South Africa have? Here are the three options A) 3. B) 9, or C) 96. This one is a warm-up question, so just think logically! |
| Eric: I think the answer is B) 9! |
| Pieter: That’s correct. After South Africa’s first all-inclusive democratic elections in 1994, the existing provinces were re-drawn and renamed to become the 9 different provinces that we have today. Okay, question number two is on pop culture! |
| Eric: Okay, I’m ready. |
| Pieter: Not too many South Africans are internationally famous, but we do have a few icons that you all should know! I'm going to name three people…one is a famous actor, one is a musician, and one is a sports star. Match the name with the profession. |
| Pieter: A) Francois Pienaar B) Charlize Theron C) Anri du Toit |
| Eric: I know this one! |
| Pieter : Okay, Eric, give us the answer! |
| Eric: Well, A) Francois Pienaar was captain of the Springboks, the national rugby team, at the time of South Africa’s famous victory at the World Cup in 1995. Now he works as a commentator and regularly appears on TV. If you’re a rugby fan, then you probably know a lot of South African rugby players, but Pienaar is probably the most famous. |
| Pieter: That's right! |
| Eric: Now the answer to B) Charlize Theron. She’s one of Hollywood’s most famous stars! |
| Pieter: Correct. She’s been in many different films such as The Devil's Advocate, Mighty Joe Young, The Cider House Rules and many more. And most importantly, Charlize is a native Afrikaans speaker! |
| Eric: Yeah, and I heard she’s living over in the States now, but has kept her South African citizenship. Now, the last one is Anri du Toit. |
| Pieter: Yep! That one is a bit of a trick question because most people know her by her stage name Yolandi Visser. Yolandi Visser, from Die Antwoord. |
| Eric: Yeah, Die Antwoord are the most successful band to have ever come from South Africa, and they sing in a mixture of Afrikaans and English, don’t they? |
| Pieter: Indeed they do. Okay, moving on to question number three. It's a travel question! Rank in correct order the most popular travel destinations in South Africa. A) The Kruger National Park. B) The Winelands, and C) Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula |
| Eric: Hmm…tough one! They’re all really popular! Well I would most want to go to the Winelands. South African wine is out of this world! |
| Pieter: Unfortunately, that's the wrong answer! Try again. |
| Eric: Okay, so then it has to be Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula, right? |
| Pieter: Yes! Cape Town is one of the most popular tourist areas. Even though wine is a big pull for people coming to South Africa, tourists mainly want to see the beautiful vistas from Table Mountain and experience the unique energy of the Mother City. |
| Eric: I see… Okay, so the second most visited spot is The Winelands, right? |
| Pieter: It sure is! The Winelands is a stunningly beautiful stretch of the country, taking you through historic towns and winding green valleys. It’s also where you can taste some of the world’s best wines! |
| Eric: Wow! So Kruger is number three then? |
| Pieter: Yes. The Kruger Park is over 2 million hectares large and is home to 16 different ecosystems. It’s just a few hours’ drive east from Johannesburg, and it’s where you can spot the big five, either by doing a safari or a walking tour. |
| Eric: Okay, next question please! I'll get this one right! |
| Pieter: Moving on to economics then! |
| Eric: Really? You know economics isn't my strong suit. |
| Pieter: Well, even you should be able to answer this question! |
| Eric: Hit me! |
| Pieter: South Africa has had lots of different currencies in the past. Which one do we use now? A) Pound. B) Dollar, or C) Rand? |
| Eric: I know this one! It's the Rand. |
| Pieter: Correct! |
| Eric: I love the Rand, I think it’s the most beautiful currency in the world! They have lovely pictures of the big five safari animals and, of course, Nelson Mandela, the father of the modern South African nation. |
| Pieter: So now we come to our last question. It's a question about biodiversity in South Africa. How many different species of birds are there in South Africa? A) 300 B) 600 or C) 900. |
| Eric: Wow. Well, I know South Africa has one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world, so I’m tempted to say C) 900. |
| Pieter: 900 is really a lot. But yeah, you’re correct! South Africa is home to 900 different species of birds, which accounts for just about 10% of the world’s entire bird population. |
| Eric: Do you know if there a reason that South Africa has so much more wildlife than anywhere else in the world? |
| Pieter: No. But you’re right, compared to other countries South Africa is really unique. For example, there are six floral kingdoms in the world, and South Africa has an entire one just to itself! There are 9,600 different plant species in the Cape Floral Kingdom, 70% of which can’t be found anywhere else on the planet. |
| Eric: So South Africa really is a very special place. Are people in other countries not jealous of how beautiful South Africa is? |
| Pieter: Well, maybe they are. But have you heard the old joke about that? |
| Eric: No, I haven’t. |
| Pieter: Well, when God was making the world, he called all of his angels to see his masterpiece- South Africa. He said he would create majestic mountains that would sweep down to pristine clean beaches, giant plains that stretched as far as the eye could see, he would fill the land with gold and cover its terrain with the most diverse animals and flowers on all the Earth. But won’t the other people of the world get jealous, the Archangel asked him? Well, God said, just wait until you see the government I’m going to give them... |
| Eric: (laughs) That’s a great story! Well, that was a nice little quiz. I wonder how our listeners did. |
| Pieter: I'm sure we have many educated listeners who know a thing or two about South African society already, but maybe they learned something. |
| Eric: Let’s hope so! Okay, that’s it for this lesson. |
| Pieter: Thanks for listening! |
| Eric: And we’ll see you next time. |
| Pieter: Totsiens! |
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