South Africa: Part 1

I guess it is finally time to share a few photos from our journey over Thanksgiving. As I said earlier, we were graciously invited to attend the wedding of Grant and Stephanie Jackson in South Africa. It's not every day that you are able to travel across the world with a group of wonderful friends so we took full advantage of it!

We started our tour of South Africa in Johannesburg where we were greeted at the airport by the groom and a groomsman who took us to our hotel in Sandton, the financial hub of Johannesburg.

After we freshened up we were taken to a traditional African restaurant where we enjoyed face painting, wine, and a lot of meat! We ate Kudu, Springbok, and Gemsbock just to name a few.

  

   

 

On day 2 we headed to Soweto (South Western Township) for our tour of this historical black township. This history of Soweto is definitely something to look into as it is the birthplace of the uprising against the Apartheid. Until 1994 the black people in South Africa were force to live in townships and carry identification cards every time they ventured outside. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, both Nobel Peace Prize winners, lived in Soweto and the pride that remains there is unmistakable. Although you will not see a single white resident living among the 1.3 million residents, we were welcomed with open arms. I was amazed at how proud the people are and how eager they are to show you their heritage. We toured the Hector Pieterson Museum, the open-air market, the Kliptown squatter camp, the street where both Mandela and Tutu lived and even got to take a few pictures of Soccer City.

Thanks for the videos Brandon!

For dinner we ate at a quaint restaurant called The Attic in Parkhurst. Tyler ordered Impala and it was the most amazing piece of meat I have ever eaten! After dinner were headed to a pub called The Jolly Roger to watch the rugby match with some locals.

Overall, Johannesburg was a very interesting experience. It is a totally different place than anywhere I have ever been; however, it looks the same as many towns all over the world. The modern history is fascinating and heartbreaking at the same time and cultural divides are something that you can only understand if you experience it first hand.

Next up......safari!!!