(Written some weeks ago in Johannesberg).
I sit here in Johannesberg and consider my last two epistles, one from New Zealand and one from Australia. Both fantastically friendly, beautiful countries and with much to be said for holidaying and living there. Now on to South Africa.
What a mixed story. Before we arrived we had received several warnings about what to expect in South Africa. An English couple we met in New Zealand said they couldn't wait to leave SA and felt "uncomfortable" there. A South African we met warned us to "be careful" and "take precautions" about nearly everything. At J'berg Airport leaflets were handed out giving warnings about the general level of violence, muggings and other crime. Our guide book advised that the highlight of our stay in J'Berg would be if we were not mugged. Our hosts advised us that they rarely slept without a gun handy!
Some of the above was a fair reflection of the situation. Some was a trifle paranoic. However if the acid test were "would you like to bring up your family in South Africa", then the answer would be an unqualified No.
Let me say that South Africa has some of the best and most famous tourist attractions and thus should be coining it in from tourism. The game parks are fantastic with wild animals freely on view in their natural habitat. The accommodation (B & B, Chalets, hotels) are superb. Costs are so reasonable. Food and drink are very cheap as is petrol (25 pence a litre). (It seems that here in Europe we are the only mugs who stump up such ridiculous petrol prices!) The current exchange rate of 8 Rand to the £1 (it used to be 1.7 back in the 60s when I was last here) makes us English feel like millionaires on the loose in a land of paupers. It is such a shame that there is this underlying attitude which makes one feel uneasy. Respect to and from all stratas of society has totally broken down and in some areas downright hostility has broken out! In areas like Kwazulunatal where the Zulu homeland is, the atmosphere is considerably more friendly.
There seems to be five different sections of society. Africaaner whites, English descent whites, Blacks (the word is allowed and not considered to be derogatory), coloured (mixed blood) and coloured migrants. The trouble seems to be that each race has a deep seated suspicion and hatred of all the others. Politics plays on these differences and the abolition of apartheid and the take over by the ANC has done little to address these problems. One example is the way races treat one another. Conversation is brusque to the extreme, and very little smiling or humour is involved. The black guy delivering our hire car was surprised that I shook his hand and thanked him!
Racial murders seem to happen daily, and Johannesberg boasts the highest crime rate in the world. Some of the more prosperous Western backed businesses have pulled out of J'Berg leaving parts of the city as a ghetto occupied by squatters and undesireables. Mass black immigration is being encouraged in an effort by the ANC to curry extra votes for next year's general election and the immigrants have been allowed to set up shanty towns wherever, often right next to semi prosperous estates (occupied by both white and black).
The TV news is full of trials and investigations of the previous white apartheid administration, although the transition was supposed to have drawn a line under the past. ANC atrocities are ignored. Despite the change in Government most appointments are racially based. Sport is still racial. Cricket and rugby are predominantly white; most blacks will not learn or play these sports as they believe them to be "white" sports, and their lack of representation is seized upon by some as racial. The apartheid pendulum was pushed so far to the right that in its rapid swing back it has hurled out of control to the left. It will take many years before it centers and the somewhat boorish Africaaners will do all they can to get it out to the right again.
I have left little time or space to recount our adventures. We visited two Zulu battlefields at Isandlwana and Rorkes Drift. (a must for any visitors) and two game parks where we saw rhino, elephants, giraffe, buffalo, hyena, kudu, impala, buck etc, but sadly no lions or hippo). It is best to go to Kruger Game Park for these sightings. We drove down the Eastern seaboard, and along the beautiful garden route, through the bare but fascinating Transkei (we were warned not to but risked it!!) We went to church on Easter Day in the cathedral in the town of George (the nearest we could get to "St Georges"!) and experienced a beautiful service combined with their Flower Festival. We were made most welcome by the Priest, who was a friend of Timothy Bavin when he was Archbishop of J'Berg.
We spent two lovely days in Cape Town, driving down and around the two capes below the city, Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. (Not the most Southern point of the African continent - how irritated those early explorers must have been to round these treacherous capes only to find yet another more Southern cape to navigate ˜ Cape Aghullas). The new cable car to the top of Table Mountain is a fantastic ride. The inside rotates as you go up giving everyone good views all round. (Expensive at 55 Rand £7 but well worth it). The views from the top are stupendous. We took the train back to J'Berg ˜ it took 25 hours, 5 different engines, and just outside we had to stop outside Kimberley while a wheel tapper tapped all our wheels!!! I last saw this in France in the 50s!! The train averaged about 60 kms per hour (40mph!)
Once back in J'Berg we visited the opulent Sun City, a town of gambling and luxury built during the 60's in one of the homelands to avoid the strict rules on gambling during the apartheid years. We had a day at Gold Reef City which is built around an old gold mine which ceased production when the price of gold dropped. A fun park a là Thorpe park has been built around the old mine, with the added attraction of trips down to the working face of the mine; again another must if you are ever in J'Berg.
So our South African itinerary and our world trip is coming to an end. Some of you with experiences in South Africa may disagree with my analysis of the situation here and I would certainly not discourage a visit if you are really keen or have relatives here. However there are many points to bear in mind and Jane or I would be pleased to advise from our experience here.
written by Tony Rice-Oxley
Return to the June 1998 Features page
return to Home page and main index
page last updated 6 JUNE 1998