Soweto

The main event for me in going to Johannesburg was to visit Soweto.  At first, I was reluctant to go, since I figured it would be just like Khayaleitsha, but after talking to some locals Soweto seemed like a completely different experience.

Soweto is a township just outside Johannesburg. It's not some exotic African name, but a pseudo acronym for "South West Township".  Soweto is famous for the Soweto riots in 1976, which were the beginning of the end of Apartheid.  The catalyst was that black school kids were forced to abandon English, and learn Afrikaans.  Education is big in Africa, and this decree from the government pushed the black population too far.  Curiously, the uprising was started by the school children - with no adult organizer.  Several kids were shot and killed, and press reports of the uprising triggered riots all over the rest of South Africa.  Slowly, Apartheid was being dismantled after that, and by 1994 the African National Congress was elected into power, and Apartheid was finished.

Soweto has a terrific museum dedicated to the Soweto uprising, with photos, videos, and narratives from the events of 1976.  We also visited Nelson Mandela's house and family restaurant, which reside in Soweto.

On our tour, we also visited some of the various neighborhoods of Soweto.  Unlike Khayaleitsha, there were a wider variety of socioeconomic dwellings, with some areas looking positively suburban.  Our driver pointed out that many of the nicer homes had so razor wire or electric fencing, which contrasted to our B&B in Johannesburg, where every home had high security.

Finally, we were introduced to "fat cakes" - a donut-like snack that is popular in the township.  For about $0.10 each, this semi-sweet, lightly fried bread was enjoyable, and kept up our energy through the five hour tour.