Tour Diary: Visit to the Big Hole, the city of diamond mines

Coming to Kimberly, the city of diamond mines, and not visiting the Big Hole is a great miss. Bangladesh team came to Kimberly for only three days for the first ODI, scheduled for Sunday at De Beers Diamond Oval. So the schedule is quite hectic. But still, this correspondent managed time to visit the Big Hole. And it was really, a memorable experience. Following the entrance, there is a huge cutting machine at the edge of the hole as it was used for diamond-cutting in the past. There is a bridge that can take a person relatively closer to the hole. The view of the gigantic hole is stunning. There were strong winds which can even shake a mobile camera while clicking a picture if the person does not hold it strongly. There is an elevator at the corner where spectators can go for a visit to the mines. The journey in the elevator, and its sound are certainly thrilling for the visitors when they realise that they are going down from the surface.

#DidYouKnow: Diamonds were first discovered in 1871 at Colesburg Kopje in what is now Kimberley and the Big Hole excavation began pic.twitter.com/hb3iwjBy4d

— Northern Cape (@NorthernCapeSA) October 9, 2017

After stepping out of the elevator, there is a mining shaft with glistening light. The shaft is decorated with supported timbers. After walking for about 400-500 steps, this journalist entered a huge tunnel where all the souvenirs and the history of the place are preserved. There were some replicas of famous diamonds and rubies which were collected from the site, such as Florentine, Great Mugal, Dresden Green, Star of South Africa, Tifanny and Jubilee, among others. There is a diamond vault where no photographs were allowed. You can see only with the naked eye. There were raw diamonds with various colours and shapes. It was a great experience to see big uncut diamonds in different shapes.

Have you visited The Big Hole in Kimberley?! It's a must do according to #HammanTour ??

Follow @HammanTime's escapades around SA! pic.twitter.com/ywaUGqIHNP— 5FM (@5FM) September 19, 2017

There are some mind-blowing facts about the Big Hole. It is worth mentioning that Mzansi (a colloquial name for South Africa) is the richest in diamonds in the world. The digging, for the extraction of diamond, started in mid-July 1871 and continued till 1914 with the labour force of 50,000 individuals who made use of picks and shovels. The width of the Big Hole is over 450m, while the surface area is about 17 hectares (42 acres). After having dug upto 240m, the hole was then partially filled with debris, thus reducing its depth to about 215m. It is the largest hole excavated by hand. Bangladesh team resided at the four-star hotel named “Protea Hotel by Marriott Kimberley”, located at the edge of the Big Hole. The hotel is almost walking distance from the Big Hole and some Bangladesh players also visited the famous site before going to practice on the eve of their first ODI.

#DidYouKnow The Big Hole #diamond #mine in #Kimberley was recently added to the #SouthAfrica version of Monopoly?https://t.co/nRSwTuN6Uy pic.twitter.com/8n2tUVTW3V

— De Beers Group (@debeersgroup) March 26, 2017

ODI captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza, Shakib al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Rubel Hossain and Taskin Ahmed were seen visiting the Big Hole. Head coach Chandika Hathurusingha and fitness trainer Mario Villavarayan were also seen accompanying the cricketers. So visiting the Big Hole, the abandoned diamond mine is surely a lifetime experience.