The Water Nymphs

A long time ago, way back in the early 1800s, Tswana tribes discovered a hot mineral spring flowing in the middle of a marsh area, they called it Bela Bela, after the bubbling sound of the boiling water. Later on in 1837, the Voortrekkers arrived in the area and named it Het Bad, but the name never stuck, as it was changed to Hartingsburg, and again to Warm Baths, then to Warmbad and finally back to Bela Bela 2 hundred years later.

There is a spa and a holiday resort now at the mineral spring which flows to the surface at about 22,000 litres per hour at 52°C. This bronze sculpture, The Water Nymphs, was made by sculptor Tienie Pritchard in 1981 and symbolises the healing power of the hot mineral water found here.

And Lynda and I could not resist taking a plunge into this warm healing elixir.