Durban - Dumasani Ngema is a colourful tour guide and his job is to tell visitors the vibrant story of one of South Africa's most famous people, King Shaka.
He works for Shakaland based in Eshowe on the north coast and was just one of over a thousand exhibitors at the four-day Tourism Indaba in Durban which ended on Tuesday.
Ngema had been impressed with the number of people he and his team had managed to network with.
"The response has been amazing. There are lots of people who want to know about and experience the Zulu culture and we offer just that," Ngema said.
At Shakaland, one can learn about the history of the Zulu people, how to weave baskets and make Zulu beer.
Ngema finds that years after King Shaka's death, people are still fascinated about his story and as well as his mother and father, Nandi and Senzangakona.
To cater for the potential influx of tourists that will come for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Shakaland will add diski dance lessons to their already interactive programme.
"We normally teach our guests Zulu dancing but in addition to this we will add the diski dance - which I am sure people would love to learn," Ngema said.
While Shakaland will do all they can to showcase KwaZulu-Natal's rich history, the Department of Arts and Culture aims to educate people on local cuisine.
Their mandate to the chefs was to create dishes that reflected the cultures that exist in the province but with a contemporary style.
During the Indaba, the chefs would host cooking demonstrations to teach people how to create African food - something that tourists apparently still struggle to find.
"Where is the African food. Tourists ask this question over and over again. So this year our message was around the need to get our food into hotels, B&Bs and homes so that we can get the respect we deserve," said Mpume Mqwebu of Africa Meets Europe Cuisine.
Mqwebu said it was great that the KZN Arts and Culture Department and Tourism SA decided to sponsor the exhibition which focused on food and wine in KZN.
"One of the creations, was a KZN stack, which included a layer of yams, followed by samp and beans, then butternut and topped with a samoosa. It was delicious! Now where else can you get that?"
She said the interest generated from the exhibition, dubbed the KZN African village was phenomenal.
"The reception we received from both the locals and international guests were amazing," Mqwebu said.
But it was not just a feast of gastronomical delights, there was a musical group on hand that used only indigenous instruments to add to the palatable experience in the village.
With an emerging market in the wellness industry in the country, the South African Spa Association also had a stand at the Indaba.
They were on hand to educate their visitors about the benefits of a spa experience.
And from a business point of view, their team told potential spa owners about the prerequisites of owning such an establishment.
Belonging to the Spa Association have some good benefits which included training facilities, advice of business planning and assistance with customer relations.