KwaZulu-Natal Tours With Ron Gold

"Ron Gold was born in the hilltop town of Eshowe in the heartland of old Zululand. Growing up in rural KwaZulu-Natal enabled him to become a fluent isiZulu speaker, and throughout his career he has travelled extensively in South Africa and as far afield as Mozambique, Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.

During his travels he has acquired an intimate knowledge of the customs, history and tradition of the indigenous people, especially so of the "people of heaven" who live in the Kingdom of the Zulu.

An accredited culture guide with KwaZulu-Natal Tourism, during the past decade Ron has concentrated on expanding his knowledge and life long interest in military history into a passion which he is now passing on to both foreign and South African visitors.

Ron has developed a series of specialised tours, which cover three main interest areas. Firstly, the Battlefield Route that includes the well-known Anglo Boer war battlefields of Spionkop, Colenso, Ladysmith, Transvaal war of Independence and also sites from the Voortrekker period and Anglo Zulu war sites of Isandlwana and Rorke’s drift.

Tours to the spectacular San paintings in the heart of the mountainous Ukhahlamba-Drakensberg World Heritage Site are also very popular as are his tour series dedicated to the customs and history of the Zulu people.

Home for Ron and Sandie Gold is their traditional thatched imuzi on the Winterhoek farm that merges with the rough sandstone and acacia thorn trees that dominate the rugged valley bushveld of the aptly named Hidden Valley (www.hidden-valley.co.za) in the Mooi River district of the Kwazulu-Natal midlands.

Ron is a leading light in the Midlands Meander Association, which has developed into the premier tourism route organisation in the country, offering visitors a multitude of destination opportunities, ranging from bed and breakfast accommodation, to craft centres and restaurants straddling the main route between Durban and Johannesburg."

Ron was recently awarded the prestigious International Guild of Battlefields Guild “Badge”. One of only 3 South Africans to earn this coveted award, he joins the ranks of only 48 other battlefield guides, worldwide, entitled to wear the badge.

The UK based International Guild of Battlefields Guides strives to analyse, develop and raise the understanding and practice of battlefield guiding throughout the world. [To find out more about the Guild, go to: www.gbg-international.com].

Ron met the exacting standards of the Guild’s Guide Validation Program, which involved the undertaking of nine written and oral assignments. This culminated in his being awarded his Guild Badge which certifies to his knowledge, customer care and presentation skills at an international level of competence.

The Mercury - January 19, 2011