SAClips

Preview of Alleifer's blog at TravelPod. Read the full blog here: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/alleifer/5/1217111160/tpod.html This blog preview was made by TravelPod using the TripAdvisor™ TripWow slideshow creator. Entry from: Johannesburg, South Africa Entry Title: "Johannesburg - Race, Religion, Reconciliation" Entry: "South African Airways did OK by us. Even though it was 24 hours door-to-door, adequate leg room, 3 meals (even if they all were kosher chicken meals) and a screen behind every seat made the flight tolerable. We each dealt with the long flight in our own way. I made it through Frommer's and the first half of Nelson Mandela's biography. "A Long Walk to Freedom", Becca slept for most of the 17-hour leg from Washington to Johannesburg, Marcia watched three feature films and Jessica watched 19 episodes of Prison Break. It is winter in Johannesburg, so it was already dark at 5:30 pm when we landed at Oliver Tambo airport and, while not freezing, it was certainly nippy as we waited for our shuttle from the Westcliff to come pick us up. Johannesburg is a city literally built on gold. With 7 million people, it is one of the 2 or 3 biggest cities in Africa, the wealthiest on the continent and it is one of the only major cities in the world not built near a river or ocean port. The city is the most southern and the most elevated major city in the world, with an altitude higher than Denver. Besides the jet lag, the altitude takes some getting used to. We lucked out finding The Westcliff available on hotels.com. We have luxury accommodations, a great location, and a magnificent view of the forested hillsides and the Johannesburg Zoo. Our first morning we set out to explore the context of modern Johannesburg. Our guide Robin Binckes uses personal history, story telling and incredible access to the diversity of Johannesburg to help us understand the New South Africa. Robin is in his sixties descended from and English family that came to this area in the 1820's. Having served in the South African navy and been a supporter of apartheid, Robin has dedicated himself since 1993 to fostering understanding and compassion between the races and to help visitors get a sense of the complexities of the society here. A country of nearly 50 million, South Africa is made up of only 10% whites of European descent, half of whom are native English speakers and half speak Afrikaans. The other 90% are blacks or of mixed race with 9 official languages (mostly Zulu, Xhosa and Sotho) and several more unofficial languages. So far, everyone we have run into speaks English fairly well. Our first day is divided into 4 parts - viewing (and buying) the art and artifacts of the entire African continent, understanding the workings and legacy of apartheid (primarily through the life story of Nelson Mandela), experiencing the contrast of modern day Johannesburg, and interacting with the Jewish community of South Africa. We start with a private tour of Amatuli Fine Art Company, whose owner, Mark Valentine spends 40% of the year collecting thousands of pieces of art and artifacts from all over the continent. Mark is a must stop for the likes of Bill Clinton and Bill Gates and we are privileged to be part of such an august list of visitors. After our coffers are filled with Ostrich eggs, necklaces, earrings, masks, elephant pins and assorted tchochkes, we are off to understand the political history of South Africa. For me, a deeper understanding of the system of apartheid is important because of the current political fad for Israel's opponents to label its actions as apartheid. After 250 years of struggling for freedom and independence, the 5% of South Africans that were known as Boers (generally descendants of Dutch, ..." Read and see more at: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/alleifer/5/1217111160/tpod.html Photos from this trip: 1. "African Masks at Amatuli Fine Art" 2. "Barber Shop in Alexandra" 3. "Bead Work fron Alexandra" 4. "Becca with Studla in Alexandra Hostel" 5. "Dennis Goldberg's Sentence" 6. "Each Chair Has Up to 1.5 million Beads" 7. "Get Your Electricity Here!" 8. "Jess and Ben in Alexandra Township" 9. "Making Moyo Music" 10. "Nelson Mandela in his Lawyer Days" 11. "Nelson Mandela's First House" 12. "Off We Go on our 17 Hour Flight" 13. "Rebecca with AIDS Orphans" 14. "Relaxing at Lillie's Leaf" 15. "Ritual Hand Washing" 16. "Robin Binkes, Guide, and Mark Valentine of Amatuli" 17. "Sesame Street in Sotho Language" 18. "Sunset over Johaanesburg" 19. "The First of Many African Fish We Will See" 20. "The Largest Church in South Africa" 21. "The Leifer Tribe" 22. "The Luxury of The Westcliff Hotel" 23. "The Produce Market in Alexandra Township" 24. "What Should We Eat?" See this TripWow and more at http://tripwow.tripadvisor.com/tripwow/ta-00af-92d8-57b2?ytv4=1