Johannesburg

 After two nights in the lovely Victoria Falls hotel we check out and fly to Johannesburg via British Air.  It is sad to see Dorothy and John head home to miss the next two parts of our tour.

We check into Fairlawns Hotel in Johannesburg.  We are told it was the private cottage of the Oppenheimer family who obtained their wealth from the gold and diamonds in Johannesburg.  It was purchased several years ago and turned into this Boutique hotel and spa.  The wife was an interior decorator and very interested in antiques and art.  The hotel has fabulous grounds and gardens and each room has beautiful antique furniture.

I

Our one day here is a drive through the city with some history, culture and background of apartheid and the protests that created changes.  We also had a speaker, Thulani come in from one of the informal settlements, Kiptown who is working to give the youth here a chance for more education and advantages to improve their lives.  Kiptown Youth Project provides school uniforms, homework assistance and two meals a day.  They also help the youth with a trade or higher education and interview for employment.  The unemployment rate is 75-80% for these youth with no running water, electricity or schools in their settlement.  They look for public or private schools that are 25-30 minute walk away.  COVID has separated the haves from the have nots even more than ever before.  There is a huge disparity in the neighborhoods we drive through.

Our evening talk is about the role of gold and diamonds in settling of South Africa.  Frequent names I recognize are DeBoers, Cecil John Rhodes and Oppenheimer.