22 Hours in Jo'burg

Today was my first day of work, and it was awesome. I think the obsessively detailed jetlag prevention strategy I was given worked, even if I didn't quite do it right--I was amazingly wide awake today.

I'll start from the beginning, though. I boarded my flight to Jo'burg Saturday afternoon. Aside from the general unpleasantness of any 17 hour flight, and the group of large game hunters surrounding me who spoke loudly about their guns and things they had shot and things they wanted to shoot, the flight was minimally painful.

I arrived in Jo'burg around 5pm Sunday evening. The flight was early, so I had plenty of time to hang out at the airport, pick up a SIM card and stamps, check my large suitcase, etc. Annelene, the friends she was staying with, Ben and Mo, and Ben's little sister Robbynne picked me up at the airport and we went out for a traditional Easter dinner of lo mein and sushi. We then headed to Ben and Mo's apartment in downtown Jo'burg. 

I was amazed at how much Jo'burg changed since my visit in 2009. The neighborhood surrounding the apartment was one in which I got lost and pulled into a garage to ask for directions (/cry/convince myself I would be mugged and carjacked) the last time I was in the city. I was slightly nervous about being there after what I had heard when I was in the city before, but Ben actually stopped at red lights and seemed comfortable being there after dark.

Their apartment was on the 16th--and top--floor of a building undergoing renovations. It was clearly a very nice building at one time, but was outdated and somewhat run-down. I expect that, in a pattern similar to many cities, the building was originally occupied by wealthy whites while blacks and other minorities were confined to townships outside the city. Post-Apartheid, the inner city became almost exclusively black and low-income, and once-luxurious buildings grew progressively more run down. Annelene explained that some areas of downtown were in early stages of gentrification as artsy yuppies, like Ben and Mo--a young, black/coloured, artsy, intellectual married couple--moved in. Renovations are occurring in many of the buildings. Furthermore, the neighborhood seemed safer and more accessible since the Gautrain opened in preparation for the World Cup shortly after I was last there.
 
Luckily, the elevators were working when we got there so we didn't have to climb 16 flights of stairs. The view from the apartment was spectacular. It was a gorgeous apartment with high ceilings and 3 walls of windows. However, it was also the first time I have been in an apartment without a shower. The only way to bathe was actually to take a bath, and you actually had to fill the tub since the hot and cold taps were separate and the temperatures were virtually unbearable on their own. Still after the long flight and sleeping in my clothes, a bath was perfect. We all went to sleep early.

View from 16th floor at night

Sitting room, with view

View in daylight

Balcony with kitchen windows and garden

The next morning, Annelene and I took the train to Rosebank for a lovely brunch outside in the beautiful fall weather. The food was incredible, and the company was better. It was surprising both how many aspects of each others' lives we didn't know about, as well as how comfortable we felt after 4 years of infrequent Skype or Gchat talks. We did not have nearly enough time together, but it was wonderful to see her. I hope to get to see her again while I am in southern Africa.

She accompanied me on the train toward the airport and got off to meet former coworkers for lunch. I continued to the airport for my flight to Gaborone.

With Annelene at Tashas in Rosebank. Note the hanging books as decoration inside. Note also our matching piña coladas (of course!)