The green (and purple) city: Johannesburg

I had visited Johannesburg for a month in 2013 and had a nice time there. But this time when I went there again and stayed for a longer period, there was something I found very different in my experience there. And it was so different that I totally fell in love with the city (and the country too!). Maybe it was because it was spring and summer this time, rather than winter. Or maybe I was not as scared as I had been the last time (people need to stop listening and propagating horror stories about SA). Or maybe it was something else, but it felt a lot more welcoming and fun this time around. And I totally enjoyed my stay there.

I spent a total of almost 7 months in 2016 and 2017 in the city, and a few of the weekends too. I got a chance to explore more of the city, see what it had to offer and thankfully did not stay limited to Sandton this time, which I think brought the city more to life for me. I loved my time there and am sharing some of my experiences for anyone else planning to visit Jozi.

Johannesburg or Joburg or Jozi as its called is in the middle of the country in the state of Gauteng. It is a commercial city, now the business hub of the country. In earlier days, it was a mining hub and hence quite densely populated with a huge working class staying there. It is less touristy than a lot of the other cities like Durban and Cape Town, and has limited nature tourism options too. The heart of the city, CBD has now become less posh and the big companies have all shifted towards Sandton. It is known as an unsafe city globally, but its reputation is definity lot worse than it actually is.

The look and feel of Joburg

Overall, the city is very spread out, and so green that its unbelievable. Driving from one place to another, its very easy to forget that you are in the middle of the city. You always feel you are in the wild suburbs, with the green tree covered lanes, small hills covered by trees and houses peeking through them and a lot of empty space everywhere. Its so unlike any other city I have seen and is one of the things I love about it.

Jacarandas in bloom

The colour of the city changes during the year. When I went in October, it was all dry because of winter. Then it turned purple during the spring, and from December to March, it was all lush green as it was summer. The purple colour in spring is due to the jacarandas bloom all around - trees covered with purple coloured flowers which abound in the entire city. It feels like the entire city is rejoicing and celebrating summer 😊.

Driving towards Sandton

And the city is full of small and big hills everywhere. When driving on the highways, you see them all around. In fact, while working in my office, I could see hills outside, with small little houses built on those and surrounded by trees. The view itself was so charming that it made the whole experience of working also so much more pleasant 😉.

Joburg believes in huge houses. There are only a few upcoming apartment buildings in some locations but there are mostly independent huge palatial houses. They all have huge gardens and swimming pools within each of these places. And huge driveways coming in. Its almost like living in a very luxurious world, of course within the safety constraints of the city.

Areas within Joburg

There are many different areas in the city. Sandton is the new and modern city centre. The CBD is the original city centre with high rises which have fallen into disrepair and is not too safe anymore. It still has a lot of museums, theatres and markets from old times which are being renovated and done up now to encourage more visitors.

Zoo Lake next to Joburg zoo

Then there are all the old posh areas of Rosebank, Parktown, Westcliff etc. where all the rich people stay. All of these areas are collectively known as the Parks. There are huge bungalows everywhere and it was my favourite part of town, somewhere I used to love driving around every time. In fact, once I drove around a lake, which came out of the blue as a surprise! Later I realised it was the Zoo lake near the Johannesburg zoo. One day I even went to the lake, it was bright green and lovely during summer with geese walking around and people enjoying a nice day out in the sun - the perfect place for a picnic, and the kind of place which reminded me of UK. The whole area is very green and the roads are all lined with huge shady trees on both sides. Clearly, it was built by the British in the olden days.

And then the areas of Morningside and Illovo are also very popular nowadays which are great places to stay and eat out. Given how huge Johannesburg is, it has many such different places to hangout, each with their own characteristics, making it quite fun to explore. Most of these places are quite new though, so they are full of malls which are the preferable places to hangout.

My route to drive from the hotel to the office used to go through some very beautiful residential areas, with small hills full of houses surrounded by trees everywhere. And I encountered many a scenic views on the way, with dark clouds and the sun playing games a lot of times. It almost made the journey to the office enjoyable and something I used to look forward to everyday. Sometimes while driving, I also crossed many nice areas which I had never seen before, like Bassonia, near Landeria where there were picturesque houses on hills in between vegetation all around. Clearly Joburg is never short of surprises!

There are also two other cities nearby, which are not really part of Joburg but almost run almost continuous to it. One of them is Pretoria, which is the capital of South Africa and about 60 kms from Joburg. Its not really a touristy place and mostly has a lot of government and historical buildings. Though its quite residential too, and a lot of people stay there and commute daily to work in Joburg. And then there is Midrand which is located between Joburg and Pretoria. It is again mostly a residential area, feels almost rural and very far (in spirit) from Joburg. In fact people who stay in Midrand feel that Joburg is the big bad city and never want to go there! Even though they are just 30-40 kms away 😜.

Local markets to visit

Market on Main

There are three local markets which are quite popular with tourists and locals alike. They are the Neighbourgoods market in CBD on Saturdays, Market on the Main in CBD on Sundays and the Fourways market near Montecasino, again on Sundays. I went once to the first two which were good fun. But my favourite was the Fourways market which I loved and visited at least 3-4 times. Though different, all of them are a great way to spend a lively weekend afternoon outside, eating, dancing and enjoying the music in the sun.

Art in Market on Main

Market on Main is a local market that comes up every Sunday in the CBD, where tourists go to enjoy the food, the music and the local art and handicrafts. I must say that driving there was a bit scary. I got off the highway too soon and then drove through the CBD for a couple of kms. It was almost like my heart was stuck in my throat till I made it there. Of course once there, it was a different world all together.

Art at Market on Main

There was a floor full of art shops and new artists selling their paintings. Then there were foods from across the world, people enjoying shopping, sitting outside in the sun eating and drinking, listening to the live music playing and generally enjoying the vibe - it was total relaxed bliss there.

Outside at Market on Main

It felt like a whole different world, with everyone sitting outside and enjoying the weekend, unlike most of Joburg where people prefer to hangout inside. I spent some time there and then walked outside the market towards the local street where you could buy a lot of local African handicrafts. The market runs for a couple of hours in the afternoon but shuts down quite early, around 3-4pm.

Local handicrafts

Neighbourgoods Market

And one of the other weekends, I visited the Neighbourgoods market finally, after having missed it the last time in 2013. This market is held only on Saturdays and is open up to 3pm. It was similar to the Market on Main and had a full floor of local food stalls.

Music on the roof

On top, it had another floor where they were playing live music and people were dancing the whole time. When I went there, it was a sunny day, so a great time to be outside.

Fourways market

My favourite market of course was Fourways, which was near Montecasino, every Sunday from 10-4pm. It is setup in the open in a huge ground and quite spread out. It was such a cool place to spend a weekend - there were a few musicians playing live music and all around were hundreds of stalls selling handicrafts, food and drinks. And everyone was sitting outside, just chilling in the sun for hours. I went there three times and enjoyed every time. Its a definite recommend.

Other things to do

Most of my weekends in Joburg were spent visiting the local the markets as I prefer to be outside as much as possible. But there were a couple of other experiences that I enjoyed, a majority of them indoors though.

Gold Reef city

Montecasino is a nice resort town located near Fourways market. It is like Kingdom of Dreams in Gurgaon and has a nice row of restaurants inside, plus a couple of activities to keep you busy - a garden with exotic plans, a casino and so on. It is quite a grand resort, well constructed and would be fun to explore. I never did that though but heard good things about it. And similar to Montecasino is the Gold Reef City near the Apartheid museum which also seems fun, again a place I didn’t explore.

Restaurant in Rosebank

There are loads of eating places to explore if you are a keen foodie, mostly in Illovo, Morningside, Melrose Arch, the Parks and Sandton. Among these areas, Melrose Arch is a great place to hangout. It is an enclosed residential complex with a few restaurants, piazzas, malls and open areas to walk around - one of the few places in Joburg where you can walk around safely 😊.

Once I also went for a standup comedy show at the Goliath restaurant in Melrose Arch and I realised how much race is a part of the jokes here. No comedy act is over without jokes on race in South Africa, and as politically incorrect it is, it is very tough to keep a straight face through the jokes. Though as expected, the blacks laugh at themselves and can get away with a lot more jokes on race than the whites.

View of Sandton

Within Sandton, malls are quite popular, the biggest of course is the Sandton city mall. There are tons of shops all around for shopping and eating. There is also a popular square there called the Nelson Mandela Square around a a status of the great leader. There are loads of good eating places around here. I used to eat regularly at the Wanthai there as it had very tasty food and a great ambience overlooking the square - a definite recommend.

Then there is a street called Melville near the Parks which is good to visit for a nice meal. It is a nice long street lined with relaxed cafes and restaurants. Somehow it is not that well known, and I discovered it much later. But it seemed like a cool place to hangout and had a very European feel to it.

Graffiti in CBD, around Market on Main

Once I went to the Market theatre in CBD, which is located in a newly developed area called Newtown. It felt little unsafe to drive to CBD at night. But once there, it felt like a lively part of town. There was a nice mall behind and a relaxed cafe inside. The play I saw - the Meeting - was based on a fictional meeting between Martin Luther King and Malcolm X, and quite interesting. The theatre was also a nice one, it felt quite cosy with everyone sitting around the stage. But I felt something very British about the whole setup, very un-African…

I also visited the town of Midrand a couple of times. Once I went to the Sayani race track in Midrand where you can race cars on the race track. It sounds like a fun thing to do, though I did not get a chance to do it that time. I also once went to a country pub in Midrand on a Sunday, a totally off the beaten track for a tourist. It was a nice little place, very rustic and relaxed where the locals come and chill in the evening, and have been doing so for decades. It had a trampoline outside and was so chill, it felt like a very different world altogether. When I was there was when I started feeling almost like a local, no more a tourist in South Africa 😜.

Somewhere in Joburg

I also once went to a hair parlour called Fugo. It had a nice garden outside to sit and wait for your appointment. It felt so luxurious and green - its tough to do things so luxurious in London but was much easier in South Africa. And my favourite spa was the Renaissance in Sandton Mall, again a luxury much more expensive to enjoy in London than in SA. It had a rooftop pool overlooking the city which felt very luxurious.

Local beads jewellery

I also wanted to shop for local African print dresses in Joburg but never got a chance to do it. But if I ever go there again, I know where I need to go - the Rich factory and Maude street. Hopefully I might find something interesting next time for sure…

And lastly, if you have a South African friend, you should get yourself invited to a Braai at home. Its South African for a barbecue and the perfect way to spend nice warm evenings outside, cooking food and gossiping. I visited a friend of mine for Braai and she had a huge house with a huge garden and swimming pool outside next to which she cooked the food. It felt so perfect for a lazy summer afternoon, I kind of understood why Braai’s were so popular in South Africa 😊.

Indian experiences

There is a huge Indian community in South Africa from a long time. Even though they are concentrated in the Durban area, its easy to find Indians and Indian experiences in Joburg, whether it be movies, food or places of worship. There are many theatres in Joburg which play Hindi movies. I saw most of them at the Zone in Rosebank which is a huge mall right in the middle of the city. The theatres were always full and it felt almost like watching the movie in India, with so many South African Indians there. I also found the Rosebank to be a nice open mall and enjoyed spending time there, watching movies, eating out and shopping for African handicrafts.

I also used to listen to a local Indian radio while driving in Joburg which was quite a surprise. However I soon realised that the hindi songs played on the radio were very different than what I am used to. And later I figured out that because of local regulation, it was all locally created South African Indian music. It was very different from the Bollywood music we are used to, almost like a a similar mood being expressed in a different accent 😝.

Gurudwara in Sandton

I also once visited a Gurudwara and a Mandir in Joburg. The Mandir was near Melrose Arch and had a South Indian theme. It was in the middle of a residential area and had a nice garden outside. There were even some exotic birds walking around in the garden, sights so common in South Africa. The Gurudwara was in Sandton, again located in a residential area and had an awesome langar. Apparently, they run the langar everyday for free. And the food I had there was amazing and so tasty, one of the best and simple Indian meals I might have had in the country.

In terms of food, there were many Indian restaurants everywhere but by favourite was Raj - one of the most popular Indian restaurants there. And it had many franchises too, I by myself had been to ones in Sandton Mall, Montecasino, Melrose Arch, Gold Reef City, Sun City and Cape Town. Its an absolute recommend and one of the best Indian food you can have in South Africa.

People

People in Joburg are quite mixed and multi-cultural. You will see whites, blacks, Indians, Europeans and so on everywhere. Though the percentage of whites in the posh areas is definitely higher. And Zulu seems to be the popular language after English and Afrikaans. Also people in Joburg generally wake up too early for my comfort. A lot of Joburg residents actually reach office by 7 am and hence traffic peaks before 830 am! After soon after that, the roads are all empty.

People are quite used to following rules everywhere. They find it difficult to break rules and do something different - you can easily get blank stares when you ask for customisation of food dishes! Also overall, service is generally very slow and inefficient all the time. The intention is all right but the skills, not as much.

Weather

The weather in Joburg is neither too cold nor too hot. Summers are sunny with highs of generally in the mid-twenties and sometimes low thirties. It rains a lot during the Oct-Nov period. Just before that, it was very dry but then when the rains come out, the jacarandas all come out, covering the city in purple. The skies also become quite interesting when the clouds come out. And then winters are not too cold though locals love to complain about it all the time 😁.

Driving

Driving through the inner lanes

There is not much local transport within the city. There are some white taxi vans which take people from one place to another. But otherwise everyone has to have a car to get around. Driving in Joburg is a pleasure even though the locals love to complain about it all the time. There are wide roads everywhere and driving discipline is amazing. The inner roads are all quite wide, lined with green trees everywhere and it feels like you are driving outside the town in the open.

Driving on empty highways

In between the city, there are wide highways to get from one place to another so you can actually enjoy driving while going to work. The highways do get blocked during peak times but they are a pleasure to drive at most of the other times. Also the roads have a lot of English names, like Cotswold road, Oxford Road and so on. South Africa is clearly an ex-British colony given all the road names.

People drive in such a disciplined manner that it feels quite safe all the time. Also, an interesting thing I noticed was that when the red lights were not working (which was quite often), the cars cross in a very disciplined manner, with two cars crossing and then waiting while the others cross and so on. It is a sight I have never witnessed anywhere else. And its definitely not possible in India! I also felt so much safer driving around than I did in India. I had rented a SUV for two months and had loved the driving around the city during this time. There are a lot of poor people though begging at the traffic signals all the time - a sign that the overall luxuriousness of the city is just a facade, not the real thing.

Sunsets in Joburg

There were a few weeks when it was raining a lot and everyone drove much slowly then. Apparently flash floods are very common on the highways during the rains. I was also once caught in a traffic jam and a distance of 30 mins took me more than 2 hours as the traffic was just jam packed the entire time. The entire Sandton area became gridlocked for 3 hours that time! It was one of the toughest drives I would have ever had and I finally had to park my car on the side of the road and walk to the office. Its an experience I would never forget nor want to experience ever again.

Uber has now become quite big in Joburg and is quite a safe way to travel. The driver’s past is checked and only then they can drive an Uber. Also they wear ties and are very friendly with the passengers. They also drive BMWs quite often. Apparently, its quite an honour to drive Uber in Joburg - very different from a lot of other global cities. The drivers also sometimes wait for you to go back and just wait outside your location so that you can book them again. So all in all, very helpful and convenient to get around, I still prefer driving though 😊.

There is a Gautrain network too which is a local metro train linking some main areas like Rosebank, Sandton, Pretoria, airport etc. I used it a couple of times to get to the airport and and its very convenient, if you don’t want to get stuck in traffic. But it is definitely not enough and there is a need for more public transport in the city.

Hotels

View from the View restaurant
Four Seasons

I stayed in a lot of hotels in the city and can easily list out all their pros and cons 😆 - the Radisson and Hilton in Sandton, the African Pride in Melrose Arch and the Four Seasons in Westcliff. My favourite was the Four Seasons and I have to say that it is one of the best hotels I have ever stayed in. It is pure luxury. We shifted there for just a week but then decided to stay there for the rest of our stay 😜.

The Four Seasons at sunset

It is a spread out hotel with cute little buildings going all the way up a cliff. All the rooms are within two-three floors, have a balcony overlooking a panoramic view of the Parks and the hotel rooms are very tastefully and luxuriously done. The hotel also twinkles from afar while driving on the highway, as it is located on a cliff covering its one side. I never was able to photograph it, but you will never miss it if you are driving past it..

You need to walk 10-15 minutes to get up to your rooms, all up the cliff. There is lot of landscaping done within the hotel and they have golf carts to take you to your rooms if you don’t want to walk. Apparently it has 4-5 restaurants, but I barely got a chance to even see them all or go to the Spa for that matter.

Breakfast at Four Seasons

Of the restaurants, the View is an open cafe with a view of the city beyond. And it was this view which made me fall in love with Joburg the first time I think 😄. I had gone there once for lunch and in front of me was a panoramic view of the green and lush city. During spring, it becomes all purple due to the jacarandas. Apparently, they used to serve tea in the afternoon at the Westcliff earlier, just like in the British times, but that doesn't exist anymore. It is a truly luxurious hotel, and I loved the picturesque sunset views from its many balconies and restaurants. The only con of this hotel though is that it does not have any loyalty points which is a big drawback. But still worth a stay...

Sunrise at Radisson

The African Pride in Melrose Arch is a SPG hotel and hence I thought I would try it. It was quite bad and the rooms there were terrible. Of course its location is amazing, within Melrose Arch where all the restaurants are located just outside and the whole area is a great place to walk around. But its definitely not a place I want to stay in and would suggest the same to everyone.

Waking up with the sun

The Radisson in Joburg is a multi floor hotel which has quite average service but I ended up staying there the longest as it was the most convenient in most other aspects. It had a great view overlooking a green city and that is a view I can't ever forget. Also, its a great feeling when you wake up in the morning and the sun hits you in the eyes - its the best way to wake up!

Mushroom Park

There is also a small park called Mushroom Park right in front of Radisson which is very well landscaped and is used by locals for evening walks. There is a also a Hyundai balloon there which apparently can take you for a ride in the city. I didn’t try it yet, but surely on my to-do list for the next time.

Lounge view

The lounge on the 23rd floor is an absolute delight to work in and the 3 floor gym is one of the best in the whole of Africa. And it has an indoor and outdoor pool overlooking the greenery around. So all in all a great hotel except that it does not have any open and green areas within the hotel, you feel constrained within the multi-floor building which I don't enjoy much. Also the food in the hotel is average. But on most counts, it turns out to be a convenient hotel. Lastly, the Hilton is a neighbouring hotel and has a nice garden and pool outside. It is still being renovated, and has old rooms, so wasn't as fun when I stayed there. But that is also a popular choice with a lot of visitors.

Airport

I made so many visits of the airport, I almost know it like I know London Heathrow 😉. There are generally long queues at security and immigration in the airport, so its always better to go there in time. Also, the airport takes sometimes even up to 1.5 hours in security and immigration every time you come in. Though there is a way of getting fastback entry through the immigration lines if you sign up for Bidvest services. I found that quite fishy though but at least there is an option. I found that a bit surprising that SA is so particular about their visas. They take a long time to give visas and give only 3 month ones at a time. Quite painful overall.

Safety

There are lot of views around safety in Joburg which are prevalent outside South Africa, not all correct. People think Joburg is so bad that everyone is mugged there all the time! And that is not the case at all. Its easy to explore and be there, you just need to be careful. You need to lock your car and keep your belongings in the boot. And not go to unknown unsafe places alone at night. Other than that, I never felt unsafe anywhere I drove. But people definitely are careful all the time. Once, my colleague dropped me 100 metres to the Gautrain station from my office! I thought that was the height but being careful never hurt anyone.

Of the people I know, I hadn’t heard of anything major happening to anyone I know except one incident. A colleague of mine did get mugged once when she left 5 mins before me on the same road! But she had kept her purse on the seat of the car. And the mugger took that away. Other than that I once heard about a shooting and car jacking at Grayston which was very near Sandton. So such things do happen, but if you care careful, it should be ok. I also once saw a burning car on the highway. But I don’t think that is linked to safety 😜.

Townships

Townships is a name given to erstwhile areas in South Africa where the blacks used to live. During the Apartheid times, they were not allowed to live anywhere else other than the townships. These still exist today and are quite densely populated. They present a version of South Africa more real, but very different from what I have talked about till now.

There are two major townships in Joburg. One is Soweto which I had visited the last time. And the second is Alexandra which is located right next to Sandton. I didn’t visit either of them this time, though I drove through Alexandra sometimes when driving to the airport. Its while driving through such areas that you realise again that the South Africa and Joburg we all know is superficial and fake! The majority of the country lives and tells a very different story altogether…

I don’t know how much of the article was able to portray the city, but it is truly a very unique city. Developed and underdeveloped. Green and crowded. Fast and slow, a city that never fails to surprise you and offer a lot more than wht you expected. I don’t feel I have still explored it all yet, below is a list of more things things still remaining for me to check out, maybe in the next trip 😜...

Other places to visit

- Walter Sisulu botanical gardens
- Monument Polkruger in pretoria
- Hot Air Balloon in Mushroom park
- Constitution hill
- Ultra music fest
- Danceforumsouthafrica.co.za
- Stanley avenue - Oakland place
- Hartebeespoort dam
- Magaliesburg and Muldersdrift
- Unusual-things-to-do-in-joburg-that-wont-cost-a-fortune
- Lonely planet - Joburg top things to do