Pretoria
I'm typing from an internet cafe in a mall in Pretoria, a city just North of Johannesburg.
South Africa gets top marks for hospitality. Walking into arrivals I was quickly approached by various people offering various things (at 4 times the price), and a mother waiting for her son who was on the same plane saw that I didn't have someone meeting me and offered me a ride into Pretoria. I drove with her son and daughter to a hostel there but it was full, so I'm staying the night at their house. The son is a bass player in a band and we're going to go check out the live music scene tonight.
Globalization can make some aspects of travel disappointing. This internet cafe is right next to a Guess outlet. A shopping mall is the same no matter where it is.
But there are things here that are strikingly different. The house where I'm staying is more like a villa. It has one floor but it's very large, 5 bathrooms, and it is surrounded with high walls and barbed wire. On the front gate there is a security notice with "Armed Response" in big bold letters. There is a black servant who is taking care of me while I stay here.
I specify that she's black obviously because of South Africa's history with apartheid. The family I'm staying with switch constantly in and out of English and Afrikaans, but black people here associate Afrikaans with apartheid and therefore only speak English. There are areas of the city where it's important I don't stray into, particularly at night, and as such Marinda is giving me rides everywhere I need to go.
In other news, I got an email from the charity in Uganda and they asked me if I'd be willing to be the volunteer co-ordinator for them while I'm there. Apparently there's been some cultural clashes between Westerners and the locals and for some reason they think I'll be a good go-between. I'm looking forward to it!
Now I'm off to buy toothpaste and to try and rent a car. I'm expecting to be in Mozambique for a day now too, as apparently that's where the best scuba diving is in the area. Hopefully I'll be able to drive out in the morning. Travel is hard without a car because it's not safe to walk around here, or even wait for a bus depending on the area. It's great staying with locals who know the area.
I'll post again soon!
South Africa gets top marks for hospitality. Walking into arrivals I was quickly approached by various people offering various things (at 4 times the price), and a mother waiting for her son who was on the same plane saw that I didn't have someone meeting me and offered me a ride into Pretoria. I drove with her son and daughter to a hostel there but it was full, so I'm staying the night at their house. The son is a bass player in a band and we're going to go check out the live music scene tonight.
Globalization can make some aspects of travel disappointing. This internet cafe is right next to a Guess outlet. A shopping mall is the same no matter where it is.
But there are things here that are strikingly different. The house where I'm staying is more like a villa. It has one floor but it's very large, 5 bathrooms, and it is surrounded with high walls and barbed wire. On the front gate there is a security notice with "Armed Response" in big bold letters. There is a black servant who is taking care of me while I stay here.
I specify that she's black obviously because of South Africa's history with apartheid. The family I'm staying with switch constantly in and out of English and Afrikaans, but black people here associate Afrikaans with apartheid and therefore only speak English. There are areas of the city where it's important I don't stray into, particularly at night, and as such Marinda is giving me rides everywhere I need to go.
In other news, I got an email from the charity in Uganda and they asked me if I'd be willing to be the volunteer co-ordinator for them while I'm there. Apparently there's been some cultural clashes between Westerners and the locals and for some reason they think I'll be a good go-between. I'm looking forward to it!
Now I'm off to buy toothpaste and to try and rent a car. I'm expecting to be in Mozambique for a day now too, as apparently that's where the best scuba diving is in the area. Hopefully I'll be able to drive out in the morning. Travel is hard without a car because it's not safe to walk around here, or even wait for a bus depending on the area. It's great staying with locals who know the area.
I'll post again soon!
4 Comments:
At 1:12 AM, Tom Ashford said…
Hi Rich! Good to hear you made it through Johannesburg. It was great to see back in the UK, I'll hope to catch up again when you return in the Summer, you might even get a return trip to 'Flares'!. I hope all goes well for the next few months. Take care. PS I'm going to hold you to the offer for my visit next summer!
At 6:46 PM, Miss Emma-Lee said…
Rich you jack ass!
I've been checking your richlowenberg.blogspot thing which hasn't updated for some reasn, I didn't know you had another directory in your website. If you read my e-mails you'll notice I was a bit worried seeing as how on my end I hadn't heard from you since you arrived in Africa. Well at least I know you're ok. Call me before you go to Uganda!!
At 5:33 PM, Arthur Loewenberger said…
You will make a perfect go-between. Percussion will be the link.
At 7:22 PM, Llevar said…
Hopefully Rich won't be the one being percussed upon.
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