On
border of Northern Cape and Free State, 177km west of Bloemfontein, lies Kimberley, capital of of Northern Cape. When you think of Kimberley and its Diamond fields, it is easy to imagine a wonderland of romance and riches. And yet, reality is that Kimberley and its surrounds are mostly dry and uninspiring; it is unlikely that city will again experience glamour and importance that it had for two decades at end of 19th century. For this reason, many tourist by-pass Kimberley and it was this self-same reason that I decided to purposefully travel to this city. In doing so, I found a well-hidden gem beneath dusty surface of region, simply waiting to be discovered by intrepid traveller!My arrival in Kimberley did not bode well. I arrived later than planned, and found myself bedless-and-breakfastless too. After several calls to hotels that were full, I found a room in a religious establishment of sorts. The greeting at establishment was less than warm, to put it politely, however room was clean and bed comfortable and I was too tired to go elsewhere.
After a refreshing shower, I found myself in better spirits and it was with a spring in my step that I once again located my little run-around and headed into town. It was thus in a chirpy frame of mind that I found, and thoroughly enjoyed, what I believe to be Kimberley’s best kept secret. The Star of West!
Just around corner from Big Hole, Star of West is a pub that draws its clientele from locals. It is Kimberley’s oldest pub and it still serves beer to diamond diggers after diamond markets on Saturdays. As a female, I was a bit concerned as to whether I was welcome when I noticed several worrying, framed newspaper cuttings – all dealing with objection of local drinkers (men) to allowing weaker sex (women) into pub. Fortunately, these do seem to be more of a decorative touch than a not-so-subtle warning, and I felt very welcome in sparsely decorated interior.
The food was possibly best that I had tasted in several weeks. I had eaten several steaks in Johannesburg, many at some of priciest places in city, but not one could compare to steak and salad that I enjoyed in Star of West. And at a quarter of price of my previous steak-encounters – a mere R40/ £4 – my credit card didn’t complain either!
You may think that this is enough for me to rate place so highly, however it was customers that made evening for me. My neighbours at bar comprised a priest and two diamond diggers, and they were some of best live entertainment that I have witnessed in a pub for a long time. I was treated to some beautifully sung Afrikaans songs, a rousing rendition of Shosholoza – on bar, no less! – and I was whirled around “dance floor” (I use term lightly) in a rapid, albeit drunken, two-step.
By time I left to return to my little room, I felt quite at home and it was a heavy heart that I waved goodbye, knowing that I would not sample fare or entertainment of establishment again. (Location: Near big hole, on corner of West and North Circular Roads.)
As sad as I was to leave Star of West day before, I was quite happy to pay my bill and leave my accommodation in morning after night before.
I was looking forward to some seeing some of mining sites, and first on my list was a tour of Bultfontein Diamond mine. At nine o’clock sharp, I presented myself to a cheeky Yorkshire man who had been working in Kimberley for longest time, having fallen into trap of getting married.
After a brief video about diamonds and mining, I donned a very attractive, bright orange jumpsuit, a hard-hat and several heavy boxes attached to my belt which were to power my light. As promised, instead of wandering around a sanitised visitor centre, I found myself travelling 825 meters into depths of earth to depths of mine, where tourists weren’t of much interest to miners.
