Andrew Timberlake's Blog

Java 4-ever: Seen via @armanddp

How Great is SA!

We have our 4th Dimension Toastmasters Induction Dinner tonight. I am MC’ing the evening and thought it an appropriate time to discuss the positives of our country - South Africa.

The FIFA World Cup soccer tournament has been going extremely well and has us all thinking more positively about our country.

I looked up some facts which I’ll be sharing throughout the evening. Here they are to inspire you as well.

The national flag with the most colors is South Africa’s, with 6. (Not including flags with a coat of arms)
South Africa is the only (one of 6) floral kingdoms which is wholy contained within a single country. The Cape Floral Kingdom has 9,600 plant species, 70% of which are not found anywhere else in the world.
Table Mountain alone has over 1,500 species of plants, more than the entire United Kingdom.
South Africa has the longest wine route in the world, the R62 wine route.
South Africa is the world’s largest producer of macadamia nuts.
Kruger National Park supports the greatest variety of wildlife species on the African continent.
South Africa has the cheapest electricity in the world.
The deepest mine is a gold mine in South Africa. in 1977 the Western Deep Levels Mine reached a depth of 11,749 feet. Most mines descend to about 3,300 feet.
South Africa is home to both the world’s smallest succulent plants (less than 10mm) as well as the largest (the baobab tree).
Kimberley may have the biggest man-made hole in the world, but did you know that the southern Free State town of Jagersfontein has the deepest vertical man-made hole?
The only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace prizewinners is in Soweto. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu both have houses on Vilakazi Street in Soweto.
South Africa is the world’s leader in mining and minerals. It has nearly 90% of the platinum metals on earth, 80% of the manganese, 73% of the chrome, 45% of the vanadium and 41% of the gold.
South Africa is the first country in Africa to host the prestigious FIFA World Cup
In the post-1990 period South Africa is the only country to host a rugby, cricket and soccer world cup.
South African grasslands have approximately 30 species per square kilometer, greater than the biodiversity of rainforests.
South Africa has deserts, mountains, escarpments, plateaus, grasslands, bush, wetlands and subtropical forests.
Dr. Christiaan Barnard, at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, performed the first human heart transplant in the world in 1967. He was also the first to do a “piggyback” transplant in 1971, and he was the first to do a heart-lung transplant.
The world’s largest diamond was the Cullinan Diamond, found in South Africa in 1905. It weighed 3,106.75 carats uncut. It was cut into the Great Star of Africa, weighing 530.2 carats, the Lesser Star of Africa, which weighs 317.40 carats, and 104 other diamonds of nearly flawless color and clarity. They now form part of the British crown jewels.
South Africa has the most luxurious train in the world, The Rovos Rail.
South Africa has the highest commercial bungi jump in the world (710 feet).
There are only 12 countries in the world that supply tap water that is fit to drink, and South Africa is one of them. Our tap water quality is third best overall in the world.
South Africa is the only country in the world where you can order something called monkey gland steak at a restaurant without the risk of a real internal organ being placed before you. It was invented many decades ago by overseas chefs as a pointed insult, aimed at the brash inhabitants of Johannesburg who poured Worcestershire and tomato sauce over everything.
South Africa came up with the first, largest and most viable oil-from-coal refinery (which supplies 40% of our petrol).
The highest quality cars in Europe are made in South Africa
29 South African beaches were awarded Blue Flags, an international indicator of high environmental standards for recreational beaches in 2009. We where also the first country outside of Europe to be awarded this status.
“South Africa is probably the leading economy in the world.” (CNBC Europe)
In 2009, the Springboks become the first international team to be World Champions in both 15-a-side and Sevens rugby.
The first MBA programme outside of the United States was started by the University of Pretoria in 1949.
South Africa is home to the world’s largest individually timed cycle race (the Cape Argus Cycle Race), the world’s largest open water swim (the Midmar Mile) and the world’s largest ultra-marathon (the Comrades Marathon).
Pretoria has the second largest number of embassies in the world after Washington, D.C.
The University of South Africa UNISA is a pioneer of tertiary distance education and is the largest correspondence university in the world with 250,000 students
Afrikaans is the youngest official language in the world
Stellenbosch University was the first university in the world to design and launch a microsatellite
South Africa is the first, and to date only, country to build nuclear weapons and then voluntarily dismantle its entire nuclear weapons programme.
Almost a quarter of South Africa’s non-interest budget is spent on education.
South Africa scored highly in the areas of cost-of-living index (1st place) (the World Competitiveness Yearbook, published by the Swiss-based Institute of Management Development (IMD))

References:

There’s no pleasing everyone and if you try what you get it not pleasing to anyone.