!Xaus Lodge

!Xaus Lodge is owned by the Khomani San, Bushmen and Mier communities, is the first fully catered luxury lodge located in the Kgalagadi, Kalahari Transfrontier Park. !Xaus Lodge is a 24 bedded thatched luxury lodge that has been crafted to blend into the landscape of this remote wilderness area.

Situated on the red dunes of the Kalahari it overlooks an enormous salt pan from the privacy of the deck of your own chalet, you can observe the animals drinking at the waterhole below. The name of the lodge, !Xaus, meaning heart in the Nama language and phonetically pronounced Kaus, derives from the shape that lies in the pan below the lodge. Of greater significance however is the spirit of reconciliation encapsulated by the name !Xaus. The lodge and its specific location is the positive outcome of a land settlement agreement reached between the South African Government and South African National Parks with the Khomani San and Mier communities to whom the land originally belonged before its incorporation in 1931 into the then Kalahari Gemsbok National Park.

!Xaus Lodge offers visitors an opportunity to experience the scenic unspoiled splendour and the remoteness of the vast and arid Kalahari wilderness; to be drawn into the fascinating rituals, traditions and historical cultures of the Bushmen, the remarkable first people of southern Africa; and at the same time enjoy the comforts of a luxury lodge that captures the essence of the Kalahari. Whilst wildlife, much of which is seen on game drives from the lodge, is plentiful and the black-manned lion is one of its icons, this Transfrontier park is also a bird-life paradise with two-thirds of the raptor species of southern Africa occurring within its boundaries.

But the real heart of !Xaus Lodge lies in its spirit and its people. The experience of an African sunset, the sound of silence as day turns to night and the feeling of being able to touch the stars, provides a feast for the senses and the soul. Guests are invited to accompany the Bushmen, the legendary hunter gatherers, as they track through the desert following the spoor of animals, identifying the plants they can eat or harvest for medicinal purposes and locating their water cache, buried to ensure that they are not overcome by thirst in this harsh environment.

!Xaus Lodge truly is an integral part of an ancient African land which, when seen through the eyes of the Bushmen, is mystical, magical and spiritual. Laurens van der Post Ends.