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World Wear: Beyers Naude

Another shopping mall discovered. Location: on Beyers Naude (just before the highway, travelling towards Northcliff). The ambience: a bit of a Melrose Arch vibe with the cobblestones and streetlamps.  However, World Wear does lack alot of the character of Melrose Arch. There are a mainly clothing shops, a few resteraunts and I am told that there is a Pick and Pay there. I think Cresta shopping mall is a better bet for the area (though it is always super-busy... to the extent that the shelves run dry). If you are in the area, it may be a good idea to check out World Wear to see if they have anything that would be useful for you.

Theatre: Girl in the Yellow Dress

There has been some good theatre of late. Matthew Ribnick is back with "Monkey Nuts" (on now at the Nelson Mandela/Civic theatre) and I was lucky enough to catch "Girl in the Yellow Dress" at the Market Theatre. These are two completely different types of plays.  I have been told that Monkey Nuts is hilarious and brilliantly silly. The one man tour de force that is the Ribnick delivers again. I am unfortunately too busy to see it (and there was a great Groupon on it as well!) but I hope that many do and support the theatre in general!

Girl in a Yellow Dress is a two person show about the tangled relationship between a teacher and her student. It has been billed as a psycho-sexual drama, but there is fantastic social and racial discourse.  The play is heavy to say the least but very well written . I won't give anymore away, check it out for yourself.

http://markettheatre.co.za/shows/watch/girl-in-the-yellow-dress

I am really looking forward to seeing the Phantom of the Opera at the Theatro at Monetcasino. It has started and runs till the end of January 2012. Needless to say, there will be a review :)

Truer words were never spoken III (yes, we've all had moments like this...)

500 Page Views!

Thanks to everyone for reading my blog. It has reached it's 500th viewing today. It makes it all the more fun to write knowing that people are reading it! Thanks to everyone for your support!
Peace out
Nerisee x

Joburg happenings: November

Summer is here and the city is alive! I am chilling in Durban this weekend, but I encourage you all to check out this cool party:

The Electric Circus Street Party is taking place at Carfax in Newtown this weekend! DJ’s Alex Kenji from Italy, Rent Dent and others will be there.  I've never been to this one before, but street parties in general are awesome. I love being outside and the weather so far has been great. I expect top notch music and lighting

Date: 5 November 2011

Time: 8pm until late

Cost: Tickets R120 pre-sold, 150 at the door

http://www.jhblive.com/live/event_view.jsp?event_id=88769

The city centre often has a bad rap for being grungy, dangerous and full of drug peddling foreign gangsters… I am inclined to believe that part of this is at least true. However, there is a huge movement to revive the city with cool little spots that are both safe and stylish.  Here is one such beauty that I have been recommended:

Randlords

Situated in Braamfontein, it looks like a very plush locale with a lovely deck on the rooftop. It is open to the public for special parties or can be hired as a venue.  It seems like a place where the cools kids hang out.  It looks like it has great views of the city. I will try it out and put up pics!

Where: 22^nd Floor South Point Towers

41 De Korte Street

Braamfontein

Subscribe to their newsletter for parties that would interest you: http://www.randlords.co.za/

As mentioned earlier, I am not a drinker but I found this really useful site that has reviews and details of the best bars in Johannesburg. 

Check it out: http://www.worldsbestbars.com/city/johannesburg/

Traffic

I have often read that Johannesburg has some of the worst traffic in the world (only behind Beijing and Mexico City…. And remember that month long traffic jam that Beijing had! Weird when you think that China has a petrol shortage. But I digress).  Joburg is the economic hub of Africa and more people have come to work here than the city was designed for. Apartheid spatial planning had made sure that the black population lived outside the economic centers, which was the city centre at that point.  Many banks and mining houses still have their headquarters in the city; however, Sandton has become the outlying business district and preferred location for many financial houses and other corporate. 

If I were to summarise the city: Sandton is the financial centre and the place where everyone wants to be; the city centre the old power house of trade and industry with a few remaining corporates holding fort; Midrand the upcoming business district due the lower property prices and large tracts of unused land; and the outlying areas containing the industrial centers.  Property prices peak around Sandton and are much lower the further out you go.  It is the masses of the poor who get jobs in Sandton but can’t afford to live nearby that must bear the brunt of incredibly shit traffic. If you are poor and live in Joburg you will spend a large portion of your income commuting. I know a secretary who lives in Lenasia and spends 4 hours a day in traffic commuting to Illovo (2 to work and 2 back home).  Public transport is limited to buses and taxis and these forms of transport still use the roads and do little to alleviate the chaos.  I have been told that the Gautrain has reduced traffic between Joburg, Pretoria and Midrand, which is great. I often use the Gautrain to the airport and it is very clean and efficient. It is not for the poor, though. Tickets are expensive, though said to be much cheaper due to the rising costs of fuel.

To live in Johannesburg, I must advise that you live close to the place where you work or risk getting stuck in a soul sucking black hole of despair that is the Joburg peak traffic. The best paying jobs are usually in Sandton, so people put up with the commuting. Fourways is a new, young and hip area that has grown due to its proximity to Sandton and cheaper property prices. However, William Nicol Drive, which is the main road artery to Fourways, is a black hole of death when it comes to peak hour traffic.  People deal with it to have bigger houses and yards as the property there is quite new and nice.  Midrand is the same deal, with similarly crap trap traffic on the highways. As with Sunnighill, Paulshof, Bryanston, Roodepoort, Alberton, Lenasia, Soweto, and many others.  Loads of people work in Joburg and live in Pretoria and do the 110km return trip every day.  They prefer the Pretoria family vibe, cheaper properties and home Bulls games.   

My priorities are different though. I work long hours and often travel home late at night. The last thing I want to do is spend time driving a long distance in a tired, semi-comatose state. I choose to live as close to work as possible and luckily for me I work in an awesome area. Illovo is a fantastic place to live.  It is close to so many cool hangouts, malls, the highway, parks, Wanderers stadium; yet has a chilled and hip vibe. I spend 10 minutes getting to work in the mornings and less than 5 minutes getting back home in the evenings.  Rent is really harsh, but what I extra I spend on rent I save on petrol (and harm the environment a little bit less). Having that extra time in my day and less stress makes a huge difference in my life. I am grateful to be able to afford living so close to my place of work and that it is so awesome. I hope that others will some day share this experience.