Has anyone on the boards here been to or live in South Africa? I have the opportunity to visit in April of next year and had some questions about the place.

Chris

 

I haven't but have friends who have. Also, I have someone from Pretoria coming to visit in a little over a week. What sort of questions do you have?

 

I have had the pleasure and privilege of traveling to S Africa. :smile: :smile: :smile:

It was great how everyone seems to get along so well after decades of Apartheid. I did not witness any racial incidents, even minor ones. You do see the shanty towns everywhere though and unemployment is high which is kind of sad :smile: It is definitely one of my favorite flags in the world and very colorful. I am by no means an expert, but I will gladly try to answer any questions you may have about my experience in S Africa. INIOWAY's friend is the better person to ask for info though. Have a fun and safe trip :smile: :smile: :smile:

 

Oh BTW, Charlize Theron from the Italian Job is from South Africa

 

Letsmotor,
thanks alot. I really apprecaite the posts. Actuallly you have kinda covered most of my questions. The big question I had was how are white americans treated/received? I have know about the physical beauty for quite a while as well as the wildlife, but I have heard lots about the crime rate and was concerned. My main reasons for going are exactly what you mentioned; The physical beauty of the place, the natural resources (i'm a jeweler, this is where most diamonds come from). the natural resources (women!) and the wine (the best I've ever had, this includes french). But I have had reservations.

inioway,
If you could ask your friends about these issues I would appreicate it.
Thanks again guys,
Chris

 

Will do, Chris. What's been said is consistent with what I've been told. One friend was there during Apartheid and again after. He said during Apartheid he, even as a white foreigner, felt watched all the time by police. He had a party one night that Blacks attended and he got into trouble. Going back later it seemed more comfortable. He was in Cape Town and it may be the J-berg is a different story.

The visitor about to come is a Black man who directs an Institute to provide supports to teachers and families in poor (Black) areas. He should have an interesting perspective.

Whatever, it sounds like you are going to have a great time in Cape Town!!!

 

Good afternoon,

I just got back from 2 weeks in S.A., I was in Johannesburg for 1 night, and
Port Elizabeth for 2 weeks. Very friendly people, I quite enjoyed it!

One thing I did notice, however, was the great disparity between affluent people and
poor people. In all my travels within Europe and the U.S., I've never seen poverty as bad as this. With the exception of part's of Mexico. Certainly have and have not's.

That being said, people were very friendly. I met many good friends there, hopefully I can go back (doesn't help I fell in love with a girl while I was there!) soon. If you want to drop me a private note, I can give you more info. As an American, I was treated very well, (white). People of color might find differently, tho I could be mistaken. Although their was one topic some people seemed to be fired up about anti-Bush. So if you support him, might be best to keep it on the DL...

People speak English there very well, or Afrikans (I understand a bit of dutch, it's similiar). I found driving to be ok, as I have driven on the right side of the car before. Couldn't rent a mini, tho, bollocks. Did see a Cooper S at the hotel, tho :smile: Made my day!

Stuff was fairly cheap there, $1 = about 7.25Rand. My meals in P.E. we 100-120 rand tops. Johannesburg was more, but not much higher than 150 Rand for a good meal. I was fine with the food & water, no problems.
Oh, gas stations are CASH ONLY in many places, but most have an ATM. Also like the 50's, they clean the window, check the oil, fill the washer fluid and check the tires. Quite nice, in fact! Oh yeah, traffic light = robot. No idea why.

Safety can be a concern, I hear Cape Town isn't too bad, P.E. is pretty safe. Johannesburg has a rash of car-jackings (er hijackings as they call them), be careful.

If you have any more questions, drop me a note.

-Matt

 

Oh, sorry one more neat souvenir...

Windhoek beer (From Namibia) is great...
Also, the Eastern Cape (EC) lisc.plates are really cool
looking. Have a protea plant on then and an Elephant.

When I get my Mini, it will go on the front :smile:
Tho the mounts are slightly smaller than a Euro-Plate
(about ~20% narrower)

 

>>Has anyone on the boards here been to or live in South Africa? I have the opportunity to visit in April of next year and had some questions about the place.
>>
>>Chris

Go to MINI2.com. There are there a few posters that currently live in South Africa and also happen to be MINI owners.

 

i used to live there when i was like 5. my parents lived there for years and years and years and years. since they were both kids so that was aphartied and all. i dont remember much of it, but i did go back there in about 1998. we lived near jo'burg and it is apparently really dangerous now, but so are so many other places too that are not so great anymore. just dont go to places u dont think u should not be. like streets late at night or driving in the middle of nowhere alone.

 

>>>>Has anyone on the boards here been to or live in South Africa? I have the opportunity to visit in April of next year and had some questions about the place.
>>>>
>>>>

i have actually been to madagascar and zambia, and it was quite an adventurous trip. what kind of questions did you have?

 

If you go to South Africa you are in for a tremendous treat. Cape Town has the feel of San Francisco. It is quite civilized and very affordable. You will gravitate to the waterfront where you'll find beautiful hotels, shops and restaurants. The city is no more dangerous than any large US city. (When I was visiting, there was a car bombing, but no one was hurt.)
My advice is to save as much money as you can before you go, because you do not want to miss the chance to go out into the bush and look a lion straight in the eye, with nothing between you but your fear. One of the best areas for game-viewing is the Okavanga Delta in Botswana, in my opinion. It's not cheap but it is worth selling everything you own to have this experience. There is a small tented camp, called Little Mombo. Maximum occupancy is 6 guests. You have thousands of acres of land to yourselves. It has the greatest concentration of game in southern Africa: lions, leopards, cheetahs, elephants, zebras, giraffes, etc. An expert guide will drive you through the bush, tracking these animals in an opened aired jeep. When you locate the animals, which is easy as they are so abundant, they are not spooked at all. They just sit and stare back at you. Some are curious - a cheetah come right up to the jeep to get a sniff of us. I thought she was going to jump in my lap.
I can't wait to go back!
P.S. A little tip: you cannot outrun an elephant. A fellow guest in a camp we stayed at learned this the hard way.