Africa!: Joberg

Well....some people couldn't understand why we wanted to go to Joberg...some people said Soweto was off limits and, while we get that, this has got to be very high on our list of 'we are SO glad we did that' ventures. A bit k******ed though. We've been out for ten hours and just got back to our homely Melville guest house. I just need to drive 200km in a motorhome to wind down.

So, what's to say? After a chat with staff at the guest house we understand that 7.30pm is when we should be back safely behind the security doors of our temporary home. Observing our normal inner city no jewellery etc. routine (not really my thing anyway..) and being basically sensible we've felt fine. As has previously been pointed out, no-one would want my watch anyway.

Yesterday we ventured out around the arty Melville area; it's got a great vibe, so we treated ourselves to some well cooked local dishes and a craft beer at a local restaurant from Lonely Planet. Excellent! Still not sure about Ostrich though.

Today we got a taxi to the Hop On-Hop Off bus, sorting the number with the informatively chatty taxi driver in order to SMS him to get us back. SMSing is what they do a lot here. Then we Hopped on and Hopped off. The great thing about this bus is that it only lets you out where it's safe or, if it's best done with a guide, that's what you get. You also get that great commentary while on the bus (and free pink plastic earphones...not my ideal colour choice but hey..)

SO...

We dropped off at Ghandi Square and took in the atmosphere, went up the tallest building in Africa and also spent a long time at the Apartheid museum, which is certainly very moving and currently has a special Nelson Mandella exhibition which I wouldn't have missed for the world. The greatest leader of all time in my book...I spent my professional career stealing his brilliant quotations.

We also took the Soweto tour plus an optional walk, including a visit to Nelson Mandella's house and a look at the plaque identifying Archbishop Desmond Tutu's old place. It's sobering to see memorials in the street to the events occuring as the apartheid conflicts escalated. Also saw the written constitution set out in a circular building - which I should have photographed - but got too involved in discussing some of the issues with the guide. At one restaurant here, a pick up for tour buses, we saw more white faces than the rest of the day. It was interesting to see the new housing developments and high quality community centres. A fascinating and worthwhile visit.

Could do with another day here...although we return briefly next week.

Now we're writing up the day, emailing and getting our minds around the trip to Durban tomorrow....

Ghandi Square