Zulu warriors welcoming guests to the cultural center.

Warriors from the Zulu tribe, the largest ethnic group in South Africa, performed their traditional war dance. Others sang and played musical instruments. Members of this proud and ancient tribe, and members of other South African tribes, shared their history and culture with us at Lesedi Cultural Village. 

A hut in the Zulu tribe at the cultural center.

Lesedi is an organization that has re-created several of South Africa’s tribal villages in one area. Visitors are given a tour of each village and told a bit about their culture and history. We saw what their houses looked like, what they commonly ate, and what made one tribe have a different lifestyle from another.

A Zulu warrior.

That evening, after watching lively performances by some of the different tribes, everyone enjoyed a banquet of delicious African foods. We ate barbecued meat, including ostrich (It tasted like tough beef); rice, lentils and beans all mixed together; and several root vegetables (that tasted like potatoes, but were different).

During the performances, a competition was held. The objective was to do a series of high kicks without stopping. If you stopped, or fell over, your turn was over. Several of the dancers entered the competition, and they were very good. (Don’t worry. They were all wearing black shorts under their outfits.) Watch this video of a young boy who decided to give it a go.

I’m standing in front of our Xhosa hut where we would be spending the night.

Everyone was assigned to a different hut for sleeping that night. My husband and I were given a hut in the village of the Xhosa tribe. This is the tribe of Nelson Mandela and Thami Sono’s ancestors. It was built to look like a traditional Xhosa house, but had all the modern conveniences, such as electricity and plumbing, so guests would feel comfortable.

Xhosa village at the cultural center. Notice the roofs made out of straw.

It was an interesting experience and a good way to begin to understand our new country.