By Lindsay Louis, 3rd Secretary/Bilateral, South Africa Embassy in The Hague
When the South African Embassy in The Hague announced that it was participating in the 2016th edition of The Hague Embassy Festival on 3 September 2016 in Lange Voorhout, many expatriate South Africans, the diplomatic community and international guests looked forward to an exciting programme that encapsulated the heart and soul of Madiba’s Rainbow Nation.
Madiba’s Rainbow Nation has always been a country of partnership and cooperation between the diverse people that traverse its landscape and therefore the Embassy found it imperative to search for partners in promoting the values of Ubuntu and the generosity of the South African spirit.
South Africa’s participation was thus divided into four categories or activities such as food and lifestyle, arts and craft, performing arts and tourism promotion.
The South African Pavilion which was highly visible received rave reviews from the thousands of expatriate South Africans and international guests who were in attendance to sample an array of culinary and artistic delights reminiscent of the sights, colours, vibrancy and flavours of South Africa, ranging from the traditional and quintessential South African “kuierkos” such as boerewors, biltong, melktert and chakalaka manned by Marnella’s Kuierkos, a South African owned business based in Amsterdam. Suffice to say, all the biltong and boerewors were sold out.
Madri Gerber, a South African celebrity who hosts a Dutch cooking television show who also acts as a South African wine promoter was kept constantly busy as international guests clamored to their “tongues” on award-winning South African wines.
Wine brand names included, Villion Chenin Blanc 2015, Villion Chardonnay 2015, Villion Blanc de l’Antique 2015, Fryer’s Cove Bay to Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2015, Kleinhoekkloof Sauvignon Blanc 2014, D’Aria Blush Rosé 2014, Agaat John David 2012, Dornier Cacao Hill Red 2012 and Saltare Brut Nature. The wines were all sold out two hours before the official closing time of the Festival.
At the Creative Stage, the two South African artistic acts Zwakala and Kirvan Fortuin proved to be extremely popular with seats filled to capacity and hundreds of onlookers. Both acts received rousing applause and were definitely noteworthy if the reaction of the audience was anything to go by.
Zwakala is a South African led Afro- jazz, Mbaqanga and Maskanda band with Durban born, Tibatso Liholoas as lead singer opened South Africa’s artistic performances. The band treated a jam packed audience to a rousing musical performance reminiscent of the South African rhythm and beat, thereby promoting dance styles such as Twalatsa, Pantsula and traditional Zulu dance.
Kirvan, a young South African professional modern contemporary dancer making waves in Europe choreographed a unique love tale dance performance for the Embassy Festival that featured two dancers (Kirvan and Toesi Kobi) with significant difference in dance styles.
Jacqueline Lewis, an expatriate South African and owner of Jacqui Creations and Fred Koorn, owner of Siyabonga who sells South African made craft made by rural Mpumalangan women, told South Africa’s rich cultural heritage through exquisite jewelry , ornaments, clothes and other craft.
Marieke van Willenburg, representative of the Tourism South Africa office in the Netherlands and South African Airways ‘ (SAA) Floris Keuzenkamp did a sterling job at promoting South Africa to the thousands of visitors who paid a visit to the Touism Promotion section of the South African Pavilion.
It is reported that they are following up on several leads, including an upcoming tour of South Africa by Dutch school children who will now fly with South African Airways (SAA). These small but important steps are in line with the Embassy’s objective to increase inbound tourism to South Africa from the Netherlands.
To round the day off, the South African Pavilion hosted an impromptu party with South African music greats like Brenda Fassie, Hugh Masekela and DJ Coffee amongst others dominating the airwaves and attracting multitudes of curious but happy onlookers who participated in the song and dance. The Pavilion was definitely the place to be.
In all, South Africa’s inaugural participation in the fourth edition of The Hague Embassy Festival turned out to be a resounding success with the Embassy still receiving positive feedback.
The Festival was beyond the Embassy’s expectations as the South African Pavilion turned out to be the most frequented and popular country stands of the 60 participating Embassies. South Africa’s Pavilion was also the only one that had dedicated space for the various sub-sections making it easy for visitors to acquaint themselves with the various attributes that define and make South Africa unique.
The Embassy took a conscious decision to partner with local patriotic expatriate South Africans from diverse backgrounds who have frequently shown their support of South Africa and Embassy initiatives and it turned out to be a mutually beneficial relationship. It is also contributed to social cohesion amongst expatriate South Africans in the Netherlands.
The Hague Embassy Festival thus offers a unique opportunity to South African provinces and municipalities, especially those who are in rural areas and often overlooked to promote themselves and attract increased tourism from the Netherlands.
The Embassy is looking forward to the 2017th edition of the festival.
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Photography by the Embassy of the Republic of South Africa in The Hague.
