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South Africa 2008
Thompsons Africa's
South African Surprise is a driving tour from Johannesburg to Cape Town
down the Wild Coast and the Garden Coast, with diversions to Kruger National
Park and other interesting sights along the way. This appealed to me
because it offered a nice counterpoint to the
Botswana safari I was starting my tour of
Southern Africa - going from Land
Cruisers bouncing wildly in off-road adventures to an air-conditioned tour bus on paved highways; and from sleeping in
tents at camps without electricity or running water to nice hotels and resorts
with all the amenities. This South African tour was 15 days long, and it
left Johannesburg the day after I returned from Botswana. Traveling for a total of four weeks
(instead of 12 days in Zambia & Botswana) before returning home makes
enduring those long flights worthwhile.
October 26, 2008 - Sunday - Johannesburg
 I am staying at the Protea Waterfront hotel for two nights. The
hotel is adjacent to the Centurian Mall - which is a typical mall with lots of shops.
This evening at 7pm our tour group of 40 people meets downstairs in a meeting
room. Most of the group are British, with some Dutch and other Europeans
mixed in as well. Our tour leader Craig Olivier introduces himself and
gives us an overview of the tour and answers questions. Craig also
discusses the optional excursions that will be available as we travel along the
route. I have pre-booked and prepaid most of these excursions, so I simply
give Craig my coupons and I'm done. My radar normally goes up when tour
companies offer add-ons, but in this case, these excursions offer excellent
value and allow me to complete the South African experience.
I had Ostrich medallions in garlic sauce and a glass of local red wine for dinner in the hotel restaurant. I asked for the Ostrich to be done
medium, but it was rare so I didn't eat all of it. It is very lean red meat, and
tastes similar to beef. The following morning I had the breakfast buffet,
which offered a full European breakfast at reasonable cost. Buffets are
common in South Africa, but they don't use sneeze guards, unlike North American
restaurants. 
Over the next few days, Craig gives us the following tidbits of information
about his country of South Africa:
 | Place names: "berg" means mountains, whereas "burg" mean people's place |
| South Africa is a land of contrasts - poor living beside rich;
industry next to subsistence farming; national parks and preserves next to
development; racial tolerance and intolerance; little-used train tracks next
to big expressways. |
| White farmers are "bringing along" 15,000 black farmers: selling land to them as
their farming skills are developed. This is certainly a better way to integrate
black farmers than the expropriation which neighboring countries used. |
| Education must be paid for directly by parents, so three grades of
education exist: Module A (deluxe), B (moderate), C (bare bones) |
| There are two levels of health care: private hospitals (R1,000/mo/family for
insurance coverage) & government hospitals (1/10
cost, offering basic services) |
| Source of electricity: 3/4 coal fired, 1/4 hydro |
| History: the Dutch farmers settled the inland regions after The Great
Trek; whereas the English settled mainly in the Cape Town area |
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