During a recent trip to South Africa during a tour of the infamous winelands (a popular route dotted with vineyards offering the most amazing wines I have ever come across!) we managed to add in a trip to the Afrikaan Monument and Museum located in Paarl on the Western Cape.
The Beginning...... For those of you who are unsure what Afrikaans is, it is a language which originated from the Dutch which were the first settlers in South Africa and the unique language was evolved from other settlers from Malaya, Indonesia, Madagascar and West Africa, this was because they all had difficulty communicating to each other and so Afrikaans was developed. There was a massive struggle for Afrikaans to be recognised and it wasnt until 1975 when the Afrikaans monument was erected to symbolise the contribution of the language to the world and this is the only monument in the World that is dedicated to a language.
For those of you who haven't seen the monument it does look rather strange but this is due to the specific meanings.
A COLONNADE of three elements to the left or west of the approach symbolizes the languages and cultures of the enlightened West. These structures, begin at a height and diminish in size and then descend in a curve to ascend again into the main upward sweep.
A PODIUM with three semi spheres to the right, or to the eastern side of the approach, represents magical Africa with its languages and cultures, and develops into a lesser curve which joins the main upward movement.
The confluence of these two curves forms a bridge which is the base of the main hyperbola. This, rising up into space, signifies the coming into being and the development of Afrikaans. A language and culture neither western nor African, but Malayan, is represented by a low wall in the middle third of the main steps to add to the general scale.
Together with the main column, placed in the same life-giving pool with bubbling fountain, rises a structure symbolising the Republic: free, yet encompassed by and open to Africa; free in form and reminiscent of the west, whose cultures helped to establish it. It symbolizes two languages and two mutual enriching cultures, yet one nation, facing the future with courage and resolution, deeply conscious of the presence of an Omniscient Being, guiding us to our destiny in the turmoil of their time.
This monument still looks amazing and is an ideal location to get photographs of Paarl.
At the bottom of the monument there is a small gift shop and cafe which sells small articles and information guides on the Afrikaans monument.
If you are planning on a trip to South Africa make sure that you do incorporate this into your itinerary, this is one of the most important monuments in South Africa and has a lot of history which will elp you to understand the history of South Africa
The cost of the viewing was incorporated into our tour so am unable to comment on the cost but it would have been no more than £2.00 the monument was very quiet when we went to visit and is a peaceful place to visit.
One thing I must warn you about is the amount of steps they are not for the faint hearted and would not be suitable for someone in a wheel chair as it is not very accessible.
