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Bushmen Experience:
The San people (called ‘Bushmen’ by the
colonizers) of the Kalahari are one of the oldest surviving indigenous
groups on the face of the earth. The lands or ‘veld’ in which these
hunter/gatherers live are desert or semi-desert, arid, often blisteringly
hot by day but capable of reaching temperatures below freezing at night. In
this challenging environment, the San’s understanding of their surroundings,
unparalleled ability to live successfully in harmony with nature, the
balance of their social structure and respect for all forms of life has made
them the masters of survival for 40,000 years. This experience will immerse
you in this world, learning from these masters practical survival skills
such as tracking, gathering and making fire and gaining an understanding of
their society and how it functions. You will be challenged on the most
fundamental assumptions of how people live their lives and adapt to their
environment.
Today, the culture and unique identity of
the San are under threat. There are many cases of the very land on which
they have lived for millennia being taken away from them. Moreover, the
government’s desire to modernize their societies and absorb their cultural
identity into contemporary Botswana society can result in the destruction of
the San’s traditional ways. This has the potential to cause societal
upheaval often accompanied by undesirable effects on the community such as
alcoholism. There are strong parallels with the experience of the American
Indians. While some aspects of this process are inevitable and even
beneficial to the San, uncontrolled enculturation creates a definite erosion
of their individual and special identity. Many San people are now aware of
this process and are committed to the strengthening and preservation of
their cultural heritage. From this desire, an experience has been conceived
allowing interested travelers to immerse themselves in the world of the
Kalahari San - to live authentically with them, to learn their skills and
survival techniques and to understand their society and how it functions.
The experience will happen on a game farm,
Dqae Qare, adjacent to the Kalahari desert in central Botswana. The terrain
is sand with scattered low bushes and occasional trees - beautiful but
stark. A small group of San will be your hosts, guides and trainers for the
duration and your first activity will be to build your own shelter next to
those of the San to join their community and live in the ‘veld’ as they do.
Your days will be filled with practical activities whilst evenings will be
spent around the fire under the huge starry skies, listening to tales of San
life. Snug in your shelter at night, the rustles, calls and other sounds of
the surrounding ‘veld’ will fascinate and entertain you until sleep brings
you to dawn and a new day of challenges.
The San are able to survive on a minimal
amount of water, sometimes going a day or more with none but gaining what
little liquid they need from tubers and other plants. For those of us less
adapted to life in a very arid environment, so little liquid could be
dangerous and therefore water will be provided on request. Similarly, not
every hunt is successful and not every trap catches an animal every time so
it is quite possible that there is nothing for the pot on any particular
day. The San are used to filling up on whatever ‘veld’ foods (plants and
tubers) can be gathered and going to bed hungry. Moreover, some ‘veld’
foods can be described as an acquired taste. Back up food supplies can be
provided if requested.
The game farm, Dqae Qare, is the only farm
to be legally owned by San people in Botswana. The program will be run by
the San (with facilitation but no remuneration from local support groups for
indigenous peoples). Whilst the financial benefits this will bring the San
are obvious, the reciprocal cultural benefits from this program are
important to recognize. At the same time that visitors from the
contemporary world are gaining an understanding of a very different
environment to their own, the San will benefit from the strengthening of
their traditional knowledge and the value placed on this knowledge by the
outside world.
You will live as the San did some 50 years
ago using the natural resources in the surrounding environment and learning
the skills required to be self sufficient. However, the San have long
traded with other groups and tools and other items such as knives, pots and
blankets will be used. Small amounts of the San’s favorite luxuries such as
tobacco, tea and sugar will also be available.
At the end of the experience, you will not
only have learnt a host of ancient practical skills for surviving in what
initially looks to be an inhospitable environment but will also be enriched
by an understanding of a community operating on a different set of values and with a different outlook from your own.
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