Johannesburg, South Africa, Days One and Two

This blog post is a quick hello from South Africa. Since this is our last day of internet (we think) before camping and safaris commence for several weeks, I thought we'd put up a few photos from today and yesterday just to show you all what we're up to.

Keep in mind, I'm working on a tiny netbook that totally skews the photos, so all of these are straight out of the camera and I can't really see them so I don't even know if they're in focus. If they're not, I'm sorry.

Yesterday was our first day in Johannesburg. It's a interesting city, so crime ridden that everyone has huge walls and razor wire fences around their houses, office buildings, and even parking lots. No one walks anywhere (if they can afford not to), because the risk of mugging for anyone, especially tourists, is quite high. However, it's also a place with an amazing political history, especially in the last twenty years. Mandela is still on everyone's lips, and rightly so. Considering where the country came from, they've come quite far.

Yesterday we started the day at the Apartheid Museum. One entry, Evan was classified as 'white' and I was 'non-white.' This meant we had to go through a part of the museum separately. It was a strange feeling.

Later we went to Soweto, a township outside of Johannesburg where we could see the houses of Mandela and Desmond Tutu. We also went to the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum, dedicated to a12 year old  boy who was shot by the police in 1976 while students were protesting having to study in Afrikaans.

At the end of the day, we were frankly quite exhausted and we collapsed at a pretty early hour (I blame jet lag).

This morning we switched hotels and came to the Airport Game Lodge, a charming hotel with some animals on the grounds.

Like for example an ostrich. A very curious ostrich.

Then later we ventured out again into the city and went on a small tour. Evan managed to get to the moon!

Our last stop on the tour was Constitution Hill. It used to be a prison, but now it's the seat of the constitutional court. Some of the architecture was quite impressive.

The only photo we have so far of us together. We need to do better!

From inside the Constitutional Court building.

A view of neighboring Hillboro, one of the more dangerous areas of Johannesburg.

More razor wire. It's really everywhere.

This is our hotel room! Pretty nice, isn't it?

And some more of the animals staying here with us.

That's it! We'll have more for you later, but maybe not until we get back home in a month. Until then, cross your fingers that we don't get eaten by lions. :)