SA Rocks

The 2009 edition of John Platter Wine Guide has been released and more importantly, the 5 star wines have been announced!

To see the list of winners click here

A record 33 wines were chosen for the highest accolade – an indication that the quality of South African is improving in leaps and bounds.

There are some usual suspects on the list but some notable newcomers in vilafonte, Eagles Nest and Sterhuis.

I am particularly excited at vilafonte’s inclusion in the 5 star lineup as it represents a successful partnership between South African winegrowers and American winemakers – global partnership at it’s best.

Get your hands on one of the winners as soon as you can because soon they will be sold out – if not already!

Cru Master

Popularity: 8% [?]

Thanks to the Homecomingrevolution blog I found a great little community initiative started over at Ning. It’s called Fans of South Africa and does exactly what it says. It brings fans of South Africa together. The community is relatively small right now but I am hoping to help it grow.

So if you are interested in supporting SA and joining a community head over to Ning and join up or go straight to Fans of South Africa and sign up there. If you are already a Ning user then you have no excuse, simply pop over and join the chatter.

For now, here’s something that I found in the community:

Why do I love South Africa?

by Arnd Herrmann

I love her for the perfection of her days
The crisp Karoo morning
The Joburg winter noon
The late summer Cape Town sunset
The star-filled Free State night

I love her for her people
For our warm smiles
For our resilience
For our I-am-because-we-are

I love her because she delights my senses
Highveld thunderbolts
Jacarandas in bloom
Sunday braais
African sun
Icy sea

I love her raw power, her intensity, her strength

I love her because of how she makes me feel
Sometimes angry, sometimes joyous
Sometimes fearful, sometimes love-filled
Sometimes frustrated, sometimes hopeful
Always alive

I love her because she intrigues me
And challenges me
The Chinese have a curse: “May you live in interesting times”
I see it as a blessing

I love her because she helps me keep things in perspective
By reminding me how privileged I am
Every day

I love her for being a microcosm of the world
A world in one country
For what we can teach the world
About compromise
And sharing
And forgiveness
And tolerance
And hope

I love her because she’s imperfect
And full of opportunity
And potential unfulfilled

I love her because she has come so far
And has so much further to go
And whether we ever get there
Will all depend on us

I love her because she’s been so good to me
And she inspires me to return the favour

I love her because she’s my country
No matter what
I love her because she’s my home
And where my soul is at rest

Popularity: 6% [?]

Twitter is a magical tool as I found out this weekend. I was talking about something or another and then another random point came up and then BAM! Marcel had created an SA Rocks Widget. It’s that easy.

He claims it only took him 5 minutes using a webtool called WidgetBox. I’m not so sure but either way it has been done.

You can now place an SA Rocks widget in your blog.

Simply visit the SA Rocks Widget link at WidgetBox, get the code, put it in your blog somewhere and help spread the good news.

The widget is also available for other services like Facebook, blogger, Typepad and MySpace so choose your preference and pop in the code.

Here’s what it looks like:

Marcel graciously offered to create the widget and is also in the process of working on a Facebook Application for SA Rocks. I am very grateful and once again astounded by the online community.

Thanks Marcel!

Popularity: 6% [?]

A Proudly South African Meme, inspired by EXMI and tracked by Spacebook:

I thought that it was a great idea for SA Rocks to contribute to the meme that is apparently flying around. I strongly suggest you take part in this simply as an experiment.

Here are reasons that I have written before on SA Rocks about why I love being South African and love my country:

1. Ubuntu – not the operating system, the concept. The tie that binds us all whether you know it yet or not.
2. Johannesburg late afternoon thunder storms.
3. Power Cuts that unify the nation – because we all know we can be unified when there is a common cause.
4. Hindsight – is a wonderful tool that South Africans are mindful of.
5. Our groundbreaking Constitution.
6. Our Wildlife.
7. Our coastline.
8. Braai’s.

I am not going to tag anyone but suggest that everyone who reads this writes down their reasons. You can publish them if you have a twitter, blog, tumblr or any other platform. But my main thought here is just do it, even if it’s on a piece of paper remind yourself why you love this country.

Popularity: 5% [?]

This is a guest post from expensivemistakescheapthrills.

After the misery of lurking on that seriously negative site yesterday (Za Sucks – I refuse to link to them any more than I already have) I decided that it’s time for a bit of positivity.

Let’s look at what we have to be grateful for in this country – (I had to limit it to 10 – there are SO many!)

1. South African paralympic team won 24 medals in Beijing. Out of those 27 medals, 17 were gold. Natalie Du Toit won 5 gold medals alone, from the five events she competed in.

2. Our national symbols are cool and they really stand for something -

- national flag: The national flag  was embraced on Freedom Day on the 27 April 1994, and first flown 10 May 1994, the day Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as president – the day we celebrate as the Birth of Democracy in our country.

The central design of the flag, beginning at the flag-pole in a V form and flowing into a single horizontal band to the outer edge of the flag, is to be interpreted as the convergence of completely unique and diverse elements within our society, taking the road ahead in unity. From exclusivity, to inclusivity. Beautiful, isn’t it? Much better than this old one, which just screams division and separateness.

- The National Coat of Arms: The focal image is a secretary bird with uplifted wings, a sun rising above it. Below the bird is the protea, an indigenous South African flower, representing the gratifying harmony of all cultures and the country flowering as a nation.

The ears of wheat are symbolise the fertility of the land – the ability to feed a nation, and grow a nation, while the tusks of the African elephant symbolise wisdom, steadfastness and strength.It also symbolises remembrance. While an elephant never forgets, so too must we never forget our past and must carry the memory into the future.

At the centre stands a shield emphasizing the protection of South Africans, above which are a spear and knobkierie. These assert the defence of peace rather than a posture of war.

Within the shield are representations of the Khoisan people, the first inhabitants of the land. The figures are derived from images on the Linton Stone, a world-famous example of South African rock art. The motto of the coat of arms – !ke e:/xarra//ke – is in the Khoisan language of the /Xam people, and means “diverse people unite“, or “people who are different joining together“. (isn’t that just awesome?)

- Our national animal – the Springbok - the country’s national animal  gives its name to the South African rugby team – fondly (and sometimes not so fondly) known as the Boks. The springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) gets its name from its characteristic jumping display – pronk in Afrikaans. The animal stands 75cm high and weigh about 40kg.

-National flower – The giant or king protea (Protea cynaroides) is flourishes in the south-western and southern areas of the Western Cape, from the Cedarberg up to just east of Grahamstown. South Africa’s national flower is the largest of the proteas, which make up an important part of the Cape Floral Region, a major global biodiversity hotspot and a Unesco World Heritage site. The proteas also give their name to South Africa’s national cricket team.

3. South Africa is the cradle of humankind. On this soil is where we first stood on two feet, experimented with the uses of opposable thumbs, first used fire, and developed a primitive language consisting of grunts. How far we have come since then.

Even today, people come from all over the world to visit one of their early ancestors, Mrs Ples.

4. We are the host of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Yes, I believe this event WILL help South Africa shine. Stop with the negativity already, and let us just work on this one. There are some awesome things lined up for 2010, one of the most beautiful is this stadium planned for my home town Durban.

Benefits of hosting the 2010 World Cup?

It has been estimated that this World Cup will create  around 129 000 jobs, add about R21-billion to South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) and generate another R7.2-billion in government taxes, with around 350 000 soccer-mad-visitors expected to spend some R9.8-billion in the country during the tournament. Wow, that’s a big wad of cash, if you ask me.

But most important of all are the indirect spin-offs from improved perceptions abroad which can only have an even greater, longer-lasting impact, not only on South Africa and its development but on the continent as an entirety. A successful World Cup can help change perceptions of Africa, and attract a number of vital foreign investors.

5. Our country is beautiful, and we are so lucky to have it all. We have sandy, sunny beaches. Sub-tropical forests, mountains, deserts and wide rivers, wet lands, highveld, waterfalls, gorgeous wildlife, and wonderful and weird plant life.

6. We have eleven official languages. Count ‘em. That’s a whole lot of communication going on. And I plan for my son to learn as much of it as he can. No other country in the world can boast so many official languages. Isn’t it amazing?

7. We have awesome people proud to be South Africans. Nelson Mandela, and Charlize Theron. We have Tanya van Graan Ryk Neethling and Chris Barnard. We boast the world’s first heart transplant, and we have Miriam Makeba and Olive Schreiner. We have some of the finest. Dont let Jacob Zuma fool you into thinking that all South Africans are the devil incarnate.

8. We have the most progressive Constitution in the world. Nowhere else in the world are socio-economic rights entrenched in a Bill of Rights, which makes them enforceable against government. We have (despite recent controversy) freedom of speech, freedom of the media, and as Carte Blanche always says – ‘we have the right to see it all’. We have equal voting rights – men and women of all colours and creeds. And people died to give us all that opportunity to mark our ‘X’ and raise our voices.

9. We have biltong and boerewors, pap and vleis, curry and rice and samoosas and rotis and chakalaka. Melktert and koeksusters. Our food tastes are diverse, our available options are numerous. And the result is just delicious. And most important of all – we have the almighty braai. We have Black Label (despite the Laugh it Off laugh-riot about that) and Castle and Klippies and Cola. We have Richelieu and Johnny Walker, and we love them all at a braai, watching the rugby.

10. We have the right to complain. Ours is a participatory democracy, where things like petitions and public participation are vital in governmental decision-making. We have the right to demonstrate, march and toyi toyi. Where else in the world is this right protected by the Constitution?

But most important of all is that we are ALL South African. We all live here, love here, work here and die here. Despite the mass exodus, those of us who remain (for the large part) adore our country. We groan through the hard times, we bitch when our national team loses a game, but we pick ourselves up and try again.

That’s what I love about our country, and our people. We have patience, and determination. And one day, one day soon, all our hopes and dreams will be realised.

If we just work together.

Got three minutes to spare? Here’s why South Africa’s going to surprise you!

Popularity: 8% [?]

Zoopy have played out of their boots to (very efficiently) record and upload the video of my TV debut this morning at 6:57am (they were ten minutes late tsk tsk!).

Thanks to all my family, friends and online buddies for the kind wishes and warm words. Now listen, change and let the positive action start with you!

Mark had a great point and I can’t believe I overlooked it!! Here is the link to the site for the entire project, It Starts With You!!!

Popularity: 4% [?]

The comment below was posted on blog post on SA Rocks by Akona Ndungane. It really made my day:

Hi

I stumbled on this blog only a few hours ago and I am filled with tears
I am part of a group travelling the globe for a year for an alcohol brand, fun and exciting yes, but here’s the part that kills me.

We are all from different, me being the only South African, I meet so many people everyday, I used to love telling them I am from South Africa.
Now I have to brace myself for either being told how beautiful and dangerous it is, or that they know someone who used to live in SA and left because things are so bad, or that they heard white people aren’t safe. Or meeting South Africans that have left and have nothing good to say. I have never in my 23 years been exposed to people without pride in SA. My heart breaks into a million pieces as my bubble is burst almost everyday.

I had never left my country before, sad as that may sound, and I’m experiencing something amazing, but I don’t have the strength anymore, to argue with ignorant people, who probably get their info from people born from this brilliant country but have no gratitude or praise for it. I almost don’t think there is a need to leave, the world is great, but SA has everything I need and love

Thank you for this blog
This is what will keep me going for the next six months until I get home
Thank you

This is why I started blogging and more specifically why I started SA Rocks. Thank you Akona!

Popularity: 5% [?]

I have done my level best to keep you, the SA Rocks audience happy. You asked me to find more information about the Million Man March and I have tried my best to do that.

Below it seems as though the date of the march hadn’t been released yet. However if you visit the website, you’ll see in the header that the march is scheduled for the 10th of June 2008

Desmond Dube has been kind enough to take the time to answer some questions for SA Rocks! Him and his team have also been kind enough to honour me and SA Rocks with a feature on the Million Man March website under the “Why March” section of the site. Go and have a look, while you are there, sign up under the “count me in” section and show your support. Enough from me, let’s hear what Desmond had to say:

Hi Desmond,

First off, just want to thank you for letting me interview you, I promise I’ll be asking you some different questions! Secondly thank you so much for placing my post on your site. You can’t understand how important and gratifying it is to be apart of this project!

So let’s get in to the questions!

Firstly let me say thank you for initiating the Million Man March. I am 100% behind the project and support the entire thing. I am going to ask you some questions that my readers have been asking me.

1. Do you have an exact date set out for the March and is that date going to be over a weekend?

Yes! we do have a confirmed date the march thank heavens, unfortunately the committte thinks it would be more effective to have the march mid week to make a statement. The aim is to raise the public profile of crime and we might make lots of excuses if it’s a weekend. Crime affects us all and business South Africa will be making a statement of their own if they don’t employees off on this day.

2. What about police endorsement? Is there going to be some sort of police presence?

There will be 1000% police presence. The good policemen of our country are affected just as anybody else, and they want what’s best for this country. So, there will be more than a presence.

3. Where exactly are we marching to and from?

The very best logistic people are working on a suitable gathering point with the metro police of Pretoria or Tshwane. More details about the march will be released later and put on our website: www.millionmanmarch.co.za

4. What sort of response in terms of actual people committing to march have you had so far?

I think we have passed the 500 thousand mark i am not too sure, check the count on the website. The post letters are probably in the region of 10 to 15 thousand, they have filled three big dirty bins. A clear sign that people have had enough.

5. Do you believe that you can reach the target of 1 million people?

Our fear is that we might go waaaayyy over a million at this point and our media have not done it’s roll out yet.

6. Have you heard from the likes of the safety and security minister or the police commissioner regarding the march?

NO! Not yet!

7. What sort of high profile people have shown their support for the march? Can you give my readers some names?

The list is broad, from top sportsmen to the religious elders, i would refrain from naming celebrities because we have stressed that this march is for the Citizens it doesn’t matter who they are and where they come from. A big part of this march is to Unite us, so we would be sending the wrong message if we single out the high profile people.

8. I am imagining a demographically representative and diverse march, am I right in this assumption? Or is it going to be a bunch of privileged people complaining about the country?

I guess i answered this one. The media campaign covers everyone and their living standard measure.
As i said we are all affected by crime.

9. How can we be sure that the march will remain a peaceful and valuable one?

We are throwing 90% of our attention ,resources and messaging on PEACE.
God is in the front line of this march man!, that’s how you can be sure.

We’re almost done, now lets get down to the nitty gritty stuff!

10. Where is your favourite place to visit in SA?

That is an unfair question man! but if i had to choose, i would say God’s Window in Mpumalanga, when God comes back that’s where we are going to meet him.

11. Can you tell me about the most interesting person you’ve met in your profession?

A boy (6)who had never been to school but could read from Alexander, He freak me out.

12. What is your favourite local food?

I am a darkie bro, anything that goes with CHICKEN.

13. Can you tell me, in a few sentences, why you love this country?

I have travelled the world over and i still think it’s the most BEAUTIFUL country i have ever seen. The most dynamic people, The forgiving nation and you got to love the music here.

Desmond, thank you so much for giving me the chance to talk with you. You are doing SA a great service at an integral time in our history and I am proud to say that I will be placing my feet where my mouth often is and taking some positive action!

Popularity: 6% [?]

I thought I’d post my own thoughts today for Product Week.

I want to quickly talk about the ways in which brands are moving forward with the times and making their products more accessible to people as trends and technologies progress.

The example that brought about this post was Standard Banks movement in to social media and sponsorship (yes to movements all in one, impressive).

They are and have been for a while, the sponsors of cricket in a big way. This is a great move and many brands have done similar things such as Vodacom with their longterm sponsorship of rugby in general and the Super 14 tournament specifically.

Basically Standard Bank have taken their product – Banking – to a social level. They have Jonty Rhodes blogging – celebrity association, tick – at the side of the field at matches. They have comments which allow people to get involved – customer involvement, tick – in the conversation and the product which gives them immediate association to the brand. And they now have the very first social media press release – moving with the times, tick.

This is what the press release about the press release had to say:

The link below will direct you to this new generation press release designed to make information accessibility and retrieval smarter and easier. Links to visual material, multimedia content, brand specific social media sites and other relevant industry news sources are intended to streamline your research and story creation. The SMPR is set to change the way that brands and journalists exchange information.

Basically the point I am trying to make is that products can never remain stagnant and I think that Standard Bank have done a great job to move along with the times and catch a new market for themselves. Hell, case in point is this blog post, they have a blogger on a positively South African site referring to their brand. Fantastic PR.

I am always so incredibly surprised by the creativity of South African adverts, advertisers and marketers. We have an incredibly versatile and demanding market to cater for and many agencies go the extra mile and compete in their creativity on an international level.

Popularity: 3% [?]

And basically I am asking all SA Rocks readers to vote.

All you need to do is head on over to the SA Blog Awards website and choose who you think should win (that’s where you pick SA Rocks!)!

We’ve been nominated in two categories:

South African Weblog of the Year

Best Group Blog

So find those categories and click on SA Rocks. For good measure I think you should basically vote in every category for the blogs you think should win an award. There are some interesting blogs and categories to peruse. So take your time, look around and pick your winners!

Oh, and on a side note, another blog of mine (with Justin and Gregor) was also nominated, Nudjit.com. So head over to the Best SA Blog about Technology / Computers / Web Development category and pick a winner there too!

Popularity: 3% [?]