Catching up Part 22

March 2- Saturday Continued

We (Phila, Mat, Buhle) went to the Wonderwerks Cave.  It was pretty cool because they have found it is a place where people lived over an extended time of history, not a place of skeletons.  The cave excavation is very evident and ongoing and the markers made it interesting to imagine the archeologist's work and how they have found things like stone tools and arrows dating back tens and hundreds of thousands of years.  The San (Bushmen) cave painting is very evident right at the entrance to the cave.  Instead of the cave evolving with water receding like the Sterkfontein Caves, they have to excavate the floor because the ceiling is falling in and the stone and dirt of years have built up on top of where people lived.  In addition, a farmer with is 3 girls and 11 sons who lived here built a stone platform over top of the cave floor to minimize the dust while they were building their house.

The entrance to the cave is very large but sheltered by the overhang.

Pillar, Buhle and Mat

How the cave rock formed.

San cave paintings showing animals.

Looking into the cave.- Pillar in hat.

Looking down into an excavation area- look closely and you will see the ropes and tags that delineate each area into a manageable area about 1 foot by 2  feet.

A walkway has been left down the middle with digging on both sides being done about 5 feet below the walkway.

After we left the cave we went to the Eye- the fresh water fountain of the oasis in Kuruman (and why the Moffat Mission was located where it is).  What a beautiful little park area with fish and crabs and water lilies.  It is truly an oasis in the middle of town.  I would never have guessed it was there.

The waterfall in the background comes from the fountain underground.  They do not know the origin of this beautiful oasis.

The water is crystal clear and crabs and fish are protected from fishing.  Rare species live here.

I am learning a lot being here from the place and the students.  Johanna showed me a free downloadable version of the Bible with both English and Afrikaans which will be a wonderful resource.  I am feeling a little disconnected though because though I haven't had a phone, now I do not have access to my email.  At dinner I spoke with Ivan and Nteo and realized that I should bring my pictures of the World Parliament of Religion in Barcelona, Spain, the recent trip to Nicaragua, and my trips to Israel, Palestine and Jordan, and eventually South Africa into the class.  I have them all on my computer and will need to work on organizing them!  They are all different examples of multiple ways to engage in mission.