Johannesburg was the first stop of our 12-day tour of South Africa. Here are the highlights of our 2-night stay:
Apartheid Museum: This museum chronicles the history of South Africa's racial discrimination. This overview of the country's dark days gave me an appreciation for some of the positive changes we witnessed during our journey. It also helped me understand how some of the depressing scenes we saw came about.
Soweto Tour: Our tour guide has lived in Soweto all his life. He gave us an outstanding tour of this township which included the homes of Nobel Peace Prize winners, Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Quick Tips:
Currency Exchange: If you plan to use the currency exchange windows (Bureau de Change) to change US dollars to South African rands, you must have new US notes (the notes with the big faces) with no blemishes or tears; otherwise, the person at the counter will reject your money. I used my ATM card to get rands and avoided the Bureau de Change.
Luggage porters: The official airport luggage porters wear orange uniforms and badges. If you allow them to help you (they are quite persistent), you must tip them in South African currency. Otherwise, you're breaking the law.
Best Way To Get Around:
Flight: Our flight on South African Airlines from Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. to Johannesburg International Airport was 17 hours. This included a 1-hour stop in Dakar, Senegal for a flight crew change. We were not allowed to get off the plane during that time.
In Johannesburg: Our travel agent arranged our transfers and tours through
Thompsons Africa. Therefore, we did not rent a car, use a taxi, or use public transportation.