Mariental, Namibia - The newly appointed Managing Director of Namibia Wildlife Resort (NWR), Zelna Hengari, last week on Friday unveiled the reintroduced tourism landmark Duwisib Castle some 90 kilometres outside Maltahöhe.
"You need to love someone and be loved by somebody when you visit one of Namibia's landmark tourist attractions, the reintroduced Duwisib Castle in the Hardap Region," said Hengari at the ceremony.
The name Duwisib was derived from a Nama word which refers to the many Karakul sheep in the area.
In the beginning of the 1900's farmers on the 55 000-hectare Duwisib farm mostly farmed with Karakul sheep.
Hengari's remarks about love at the castle was in reference to the history and establishment of the Duwisib Castle as it originated from love between two people. German Baron Von Wolf built the castle for his American wife, Jayta Humphreys, to express his love for her.
They met in Germany and he decided to build the castle in the middle of nowhere as a token of his love.
The castle is today a historic site and a national monument, which is a convenient stopover for people travelling from Sesriem and Sossusvlei in southern Namibia.
Apart from being a gift of love Duwisib Castle was a dream turned into a reality for Baron Von Wolf, who planned to breed racing horses in the semi-desert environment.
Unfortunately, his dream could not be realised as he was killed in the First World War in Germany, depriving him of living in the castle with his beloved wife.
His wife decided not to continue living at the castle without him and left most contents in the building and returned to her country. The contents, mostly antique furniture, now form a major part of the articles exhibited at the castle, which also doubles as a museum.
The reintroduced Duwiseb Castle houses five bedrooms and 10 camping sites. There are ample picnic sites, a kiosk, an underground wine bar, a curio shop and a sundowner roof tower.
The castle was re-certificated by the Chief Executive Officer of the Namibian Tourism Board, Digu //Naobeb.
In a speech read on her behalf by her special adviser, Hansina Christiaans, Hardap Regional Governor, Katrina Hanse-Himarwa, welcomed the reintroduction of the castle as one of the popular tourist destinations in the region.
She said the castle is a historical site where visitors can enjoy the history of Namibia and the NWR should be commended for its commitment to developing, modernising and expanding tourism facilities and infrastructure.
"Tourism has been identified by government as one of the national priorities in addressing poverty alleviation and unemployment," she stated.
The relaunched Duwisib Castle is run by a fulltime manager and personnel and is equipped with a kitchen where meals are prepared for tourists and other visitors. It also emerged at the re-launch that the castle will now also cater for weddings, birthday celebrations and parties.
"You need to love someone and be loved by somebody when you visit one of Namibia's landmark tourist attractions, the reintroduced Duwisib Castle in the Hardap Region," said Hengari at the ceremony.
The name Duwisib was derived from a Nama word which refers to the many Karakul sheep in the area.
In the beginning of the 1900's farmers on the 55 000-hectare Duwisib farm mostly farmed with Karakul sheep.
Hengari's remarks about love at the castle was in reference to the history and establishment of the Duwisib Castle as it originated from love between two people. German Baron Von Wolf built the castle for his American wife, Jayta Humphreys, to express his love for her.
They met in Germany and he decided to build the castle in the middle of nowhere as a token of his love.
The castle is today a historic site and a national monument, which is a convenient stopover for people travelling from Sesriem and Sossusvlei in southern Namibia.
Apart from being a gift of love Duwisib Castle was a dream turned into a reality for Baron Von Wolf, who planned to breed racing horses in the semi-desert environment.
Unfortunately, his dream could not be realised as he was killed in the First World War in Germany, depriving him of living in the castle with his beloved wife.
His wife decided not to continue living at the castle without him and left most contents in the building and returned to her country. The contents, mostly antique furniture, now form a major part of the articles exhibited at the castle, which also doubles as a museum.
The reintroduced Duwiseb Castle houses five bedrooms and 10 camping sites. There are ample picnic sites, a kiosk, an underground wine bar, a curio shop and a sundowner roof tower.
The castle was re-certificated by the Chief Executive Officer of the Namibian Tourism Board, Digu //Naobeb.
In a speech read on her behalf by her special adviser, Hansina Christiaans, Hardap Regional Governor, Katrina Hanse-Himarwa, welcomed the reintroduction of the castle as one of the popular tourist destinations in the region.
She said the castle is a historical site where visitors can enjoy the history of Namibia and the NWR should be commended for its commitment to developing, modernising and expanding tourism facilities and infrastructure.
"Tourism has been identified by government as one of the national priorities in addressing poverty alleviation and unemployment," she stated.
The relaunched Duwisib Castle is run by a fulltime manager and personnel and is equipped with a kitchen where meals are prepared for tourists and other visitors. It also emerged at the re-launch that the castle will now also cater for weddings, birthday celebrations and parties.
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