The Basotho Cultural Village is a chance to experience a way of life that integrates comfort and practicality with a unique aesthetic!
An educational programme aimed at Cultural Heritage awareness through tracing the footsteps of the first occupants by visiting the Historical sites of Qwa Qwa. This programme is offered only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The duration is 7 hours.
‘Basotho’ is the word in the Sesotho language meaning ‘the Sotho people’ and you can discover authentic Sotho hospitality, aesthetics and tradition at this Free State Cultural Village, set amid the splendour of the Golden Gate Highlands National Park, in Free State Province. The Village offers a unique South African experience in which you can learn about the traditional Sotho arts and crafts and their way of life.
It consists of a Rest Camp that resembles an 18th-Century Sotho Village combined with replica of homesteads dating from the 16th Century to the present day. These showcase good examples of the mural art of the Sotho people, known as 'Litema'. The replica of homesteads do more than document the evolution of Sotho Culture. Visitors are also invited to taste thelocal beer, brewed on site using sorghum. Or you can share local food, enjoy traditional dances, meet village elders and learn how local arts and crafts are produced. Most of the objects produced in the village are for sale, along with items sourced from further afield in the Free State Province. Traditional Sotho Villages abound with crafters who also work from home. They produce pottery, fabrics, beadwork and grass hats, mats and baskets using traditional techniques and Local materials. You can arrange to visit some of these crafters, or simply buy their products at the Basotho Cultural village. "This stimulates the Local economy and aids employment as well as making the Tourism authentic!" Among the items on sale at the village are cushion covers, tablecloths and clothing made from shweshwe textiles by the women of the Ahanang Basotho Project. The Bolata Pottery Project makes and sells traditional pots and dishes from local clay and the Letweneng Grass Project makes grass bags, floor mats and baskets using traditional weaving techniques. Lesedi Arts and Crafts creates and sells beaded cutlery, bags and ties, and the Thaba-Bosiu Project makes the large traditional, storage baskets (called disiu and originally used to store grain), theses are all so used beer strainers in the making of Sorghum Beer. As Bantu-speaking peoples migrated southward across sub-Saharan Africa roughly 4,000 Years ago, they brought sorghum and its brewing traditions with them. Wherever grains were grown, beer was made, meaning sorghum beer has likely existed for over 6,000 years. You will also find iconic the conical Sotho hats, called 'mokorotlo' , which they sell at the Village. These are used to keep the sun at bay as well as for Cultural festivals. Also look out for traditional Sotho blankets. Their designs and colours are significant, and blankets are worn in different ways for different ritual purposes.
"The Basotho Cultural Village will transport you back in time and take you on an incredible journey where a chief offers you mqombothi (sorghum beer), his wives offer you the fruits of their labour, and a traditional healer offers you insight into African spirituality."