Two months of gallavanting Southern Africa has come down to the final two days. Unfortunately I had only about five days in Botswana because I spent a lot more time than I originally planned in Angola. At the border yesterday I stuck my thumb out, and less than five minutes later I was picked up by a man named Jacques who is the CEO of a mining company. He said "we don't pick people up in South Africa but I could tell you're a tourist." Despite the safety reputation, I would love to do a big hitchhiking journey round South Africa: it will just require me to keep my wits about me better, vetting drivers more, and being extra smart about where I hitchhike from and to. Border posts and service stations are great places to get lifts as there are other people around. When I wanted to get a pie at the servo, Jacques said "let me buy you lunch in Rustenburg," which was about half hour away. He would shout me a huge lunch of lamb chops, chips, and a couple of big glasses of wine. Jacques lives in Pretoria but offered to drive me to Johannesburg, and I immediately took up his offer. When hitchhiking in South Africa, timing is crucial as you don't want to end up in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town, or other big cities in the dark. If you're going to a large city, it's important to ask where they're going within the city and if safety is an issue; there is a risk with getting dropped in a dodgy area with limited public transport.
Bjarne and Heinrich are my CouchSurfing hosts here in "Jo'burg," and they're the first gay couple I've stayed with on my travels. They're both from South Africa but Bjarne is of Norwegian descent and Heinrich is half German. Jo'burg's top attraction is the Apartheid Museum. Soweto is also popular but it's best to go with either a tour or a trustworthy local. Bjarne advised me to take the hop-on, hop-off City Sightseeing bus. Whilst I've always had a disdain for things that are specifically for tourists, sometimes they're necessary. Jo'burg quite frankly isn't a city where you want to end up in some random neighbourhood, even during the day. The City Sightseeing bus drives slowly and has an open air area on top.
We passed Nelson Mandela's home along the way. Bjarne advised me to avoid downtown Jo'burg and his advice is valid as the CBD looks bland and sad.
People walking around are noted by their (almost) complete absence, and you see barely anyone around even selling fruit. It doesn't appear to be a place I'd want to be searching for geocaches.
Before long, the Apartheid Museum beckoned. The experience was moving even before I walked in as I was given a "non-white" ticket meaning I had to enter the museum through the non-white corridor.
Whilst in South Africa I've heard a few people talk about some of the positive things that happened during apartheid but living in a world with signs saying "whites only" is downright cruel.
With 21 different permanent exhibits, the Apartheid Museum could easily be one of the world's premier museums. Segregation began in 1910 but apartheid wasn't formally enacted until 1948. Non-whites weren't allowed to vote or be involved in politics, and mixed-race marriages were outlawed. Apartheid was a time of prosperity for white South Africans yet more than 3.5 million blacks were forcibly moved to the countryside. Their land was often confiscated and sold at very low prices. At least 130 apartheid opponents were executed by hanging, with the nooses being on display here at the museum.
Nelson Mandelda's release marked a key turning point for apartheid but violence escalated, and more people died during the final four years of apartheid than during the first 42 years! When Mandela was elected in 1994, queues to vote were often more than a kilometre long, and apartheid officially ended. Mandela chose to work with his enemy, and then made medical treatment free for every child of any colour. Apartheid may have ended close to 30 years ago but the affects of it are still felt to this day as there is still a massive wealth and crime gap between whites and blacks. I nearly had a tear in my eye as I walked out of the museum, and I needed a light lunch to calm me down.
Snow was recently seen in Jo'burg for the first time in 11 years. Bjarne noted how some European visitors have noted how homes in South Africa are cold in winter but glass isn't double-glazed like it would be in Europe for sub-zero temperatures. Whilst Bjarne and Heinrich would meet a friend for dinner this evening I decided to go out on my final night in Southern Africa.
Two fabulous months in Southern Africa will come to an end at O.R. Tambo International Airport tomorrow, so I'm gonna recap my journey. I started in Cape Town where I dove in head first and had some great local food and wine whilst doing some hiking at Lion's Head and Table Mountain. Unfortunately I badly strained my hip, which caused me to have an extended stay in Cape Town and cancel my walk through Fish River Canyon. The universe would look after me again as I was picked up by Valereis, who would host me at her farm in Jakkalswater and then at her home in Swakopmund. After a short stay in Walvis Bay, the dramatic colours of Sossusvlei beckoned. Perhaps nowhere on Earth have I seen such rich, natural colour. Windhoek was also a pleasant surprise as I stayed in a township with Trifaine and it gave me time to prepare for Angola. Of the four countries I visited on this journey, Angola was the country that impressed me the most. With a turbulent history and no tourism infrastructure but rich culture and bountiful colour, Angola is amazing! I had gorgeous waterfalls, larger-than-life rock formations, beautiful buildings, and lively markets along with a thriving art and music scene practically all to myself. What I planned on 10 or 12 days in Angola turned into 26 days. Out of 72 countries visited, Angola is the most underrated of them all. Upon my return to Namibia, Etosha National Park is where the Africa of my childhood came to be as I saw at least a dozen different types of animals that most people only see in movies or at the zoo. After ogling at the world's largest piece of meteorite I had a few days in Botswana, which is definitely deserving of more time. Next year I'd love to go to go to Okavango Delta. The biggest surprise of the region is the food and wine; gastrophiles and oenophiles would probably agree this is the world's best-kept secret. A couple of days in Jo'burg is a nice final touch another yet another journey that has really touched me.
My next journey to Southern Africa will be next year when I'll return to Cape Town to visit Tristan da Cunha, and I eagerly await my return to this spectacular region.
