(VOVWORLD) -“South Africa is more than just a beautiful country—it’s a feeling. It gets in your blood. Whether it’s the wild landscapes, the warmth of the people, or the depth of culture, it’s something that stays with you long after you leave.” Those were the words of Ilani Ries, a South African teacher who spoke about her homeland with such passion it immediately sparked something in me. That’s why I’m inviting you on a special journey to South Africa on today’s episode of Culture Rendezvous.
Hi, Ilani! Welcome to VOV24/7’s Culture Rendezvous. We're so happy to have you here today. I’m curious—what first brought you from South Africa to Vietnam?
So this will sound very weird, but when I was little, we had a lot in the news about Vietnam, and I was very interested about Vietnam and the war and everything that happened in the country. So from a young age, I thought I would want to come to Vietnam one day. And then many things happened. I moved to many different countries, worked in different countries, and then I decided, okay, this is it. Now, all of these were steps toward Vietnam. And then I came to Vietnam, and yeah, it's been exactly what I wanted.
Let’s talk about South Africa. What special things about your country would you like to share with us?
So I was born in South Africa in the 80s, and then I left South Africa in my 20s, and then I was away from the country for a long time, and I went back and everything. But one thing about South Africa is it's an absolutely beautiful country, and I know people that have been there before agree with me. It's a place that we always say, Africa gets into your blood, it gets in under your skin, and it stays with you forever. It's so diverse, it's so big, you have no idea, especially if you think about it, how big South Africa is, because it's a part of Africa. It's not even the whole of Africa, but even South Africa is massive. To drive from the one side of South Africa to the other side, from one end to the other end, takes 20 hours by car. No stopping. Of course you're going to stop, but if you don't, so it's a massive, massive country.
 Different cultures in South Africa (Photo: Internet) |
What makes South Africa so culturally rich?
We've got so many different cultures in the country, 18 plus different cultures, so many different peoples, cultures, food. It's just such a diverse country. And we've got cities, of course, and then we've got towns and we've got rural areas. And as you walk, move between the cities, between the towns and the rural areas, you have your own type of cultures. All the mountainous areas and the city areas are different. It's a different type of person. It's a different type of culture, a different food, potentially different dialects. So, yeah, it's similar in South Africa, we also have dialect, for example, in Pretoria, where I did most of my school years. That's not where I was born, but most of my school years in Pretoria. If you take our dialect in Pretoria to the dialect in the Cape, it's completely different. So, yes, it's very similar to Vietnam in that sense, but it's a massive country, lots of different people, diverse in food and culture, and it's just such a beautiful place. I actually didn't go back for seven years, and I went back in December, and I just realized, yeah, it can never get out of your system. It's just that type of place.
What are some travel highlights you’d recommend in South Africa?
It depends on what you like, because, luckily for us, in South Africa, we've got different types of places. So for example, we have normal cities. So if you just want to go and look at your normal cities, like the capital cities and see monuments and museums and things, you can go to, like, Cape Town or Pretoria or Johannesburg. But if you want to go and see the beach or the mountains, you can go to Cape Town, the Cape province, the Western Cape especially, is phenomenal. So that's your beach, that's your mountains, that's got the Garden Route with wine too. So all your wine farms are there. So that type of holiday, if you like, a beachy holiday, but also mountains.
 Cape Town, South Africa (Photo: Internet) |
One thing South Africa is really famous for is its safaris, right? So could you tell us more about the safari experience there?
My favorite is safaris, because South Africa is extremely famous, hopefully you all know that, but very famous for safaris, for our wild animals, we have the Kruger National Park, which is a national park with wild animals, and it's probably one of my favorite places in the whole world, and if you can go there, that's my vote for sure. But some people are not, like, into animals, so they can go to the beach. But yes, we've got many, many animals and safaris.
 Eastern Cape Safaries (Photo: Internet) |
How much time would you recommend for someone planning a trip to South Africa?
We've got many safari places, so I would say 10 days. You can do five days. However, bear in mind, South Africa is big, so if you do, you’ll have to fly between the two places. You can't drive because that's two days of driving. But you could potentially do that. But I think you should choose just one if it's 10 days, because you’re going to feel like it wasn't enough time. If you've got 20 days, or three weeks or something like that, I would say split it between the two places.
Thank you so much for taking us on a journey through South Africa, Ilani. Our adventure in this beautiful country will continue in the future—but for now, we’ll just say goodbye.