Arriving in South Africa via Singapore was definitely the easiest entry into a new country that we have ever had in all our travels. It was like Johannesburg were waiting for us and wanted us to get through easily without fuss. We were zonked from almost 24 hrs of travel door to door but on the other hand we were excited for this new adventure.
We started our usual game of “Name a person from this new country we’re in” and surprisingly, Charlize Theron headed our lists. Then came Christian Barnard (hearts), Sid James, (carry on),Glynis Johns (Mary Poppins fame), Ernie Els and Gary Player. And then we stopped. Feel free to play along at home and add any others in the comments below!
Over their time in the city Mr and Ms X visited:
Constitution Hill which holds the century old infamous prison where the divide between the whites, coloured, Indians and blacks was strikingly evident. The museum and its remains tell the story of South Africa’s journey to democracy. Both Mandela and Ghandi were interned there. The precinct also has at its centre the present day High Court of Johannesburg established after the freedom of all South Africans was won.
Sandton is a financial, commercial and residential hub in Jberg. After 1994, many of the businesses and residents moved to this newly established, pristine, highly expensive mecca which has been built around Mandela Square. To outsiders such as these travellers, it lacks soul, however to Jbergers it represents inclusiveness (a place that may filter only by $$$$, not by colour.)
The centre of the city, the Downton area, was established as part of the gold rush that occurred in the 1880s. It is a shame to see the abandoned high-rise buildings and delapidated streets that unfortunately provide a haven for criminal activities. The Ghandi Square remains as does Main Street, which proudly displays its formative gold era.
An area near the downtown area, on the other side of the Nelson Mandela Bridge is the Mabenong Precinct. It showed how areas can change and develop through community involvement.
Soweto was a place of contrast for these travellers. Pockets of well established dwellings sat opposite tin roofed shanties. The government has been trying to reduce these by providing two-bedroom two-storey apartment blocks. Progress is slow, so there remains many, many Soweto residents who still live in tin sheds that have no running water or electricity.
Vilakazi Street in Orlando West in Soweto once housed TWO Nobel Peace Prize winners, Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela. Mr and Ms X visited Nelson’s home on Freedom Day, the national public holiday. It was here that Winnie and the children remained whilst he was in prison for 27 years.
The Soweto football derby was held on the Freedom Day holiday, and we witnessed the excitement both in Soweto and downtown Jberg as we drove through the party areas. It was a draw and they all partied like they all had won.
Our retirees spent 2 hours at the Apartheid Museum and they both confirmed that they hadn’t seen everything. It was informative, unusually designed and provided the details of South Africa’s past that the rest of the world just stood by and watched.
If you see these two around, ask them about Nelson Mandela. They once thought they knew what he had done for his country, however they knew very little in reality.
WHAT A UNIQUE, BRAVE LEADER HE WAS.
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