I consider myself as a well travelled person, thanks to the nature of my profession. However, there are still quite a number of places that I have yet to visit. Until a week ago, South Africa was one of them. Here are my first impressions.

Pre-conceptions
Safety was my main concern prior to arrival. With news about the high crime rates, I was not about to grab a taxi upon arrival at the airport to take me to the hotel, for fear of being taken to an area where “they cut your liver off and sell it.” Quite frankly, I didn’t want to find out whether the stories were merely urban legends or not.

On a positive note, South Africa meant a chance to see “The Big Five”. I knew I only had a short visit so I was hell bent on seeing at least one so I arranged to see the mighty lions.

Flying “red”
Apart from visiting South Africa for the first time, it was also my maiden flight with Virgin Atlantic. If you have been following this blog, you would have noticed how I feel about Britain’s national carrier. So when told that Virgin flies direct to Johannesburg and offers a better Premium Economy experience than British Airways, I took it. True enough, the seats were wider and had more entertainment selections. As for the food, well… Virgin is no better than BA.

Arrival
I was impressed with the facilities at Tambo International Airport. Not sure whether they were already there prior to the World Cup though.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the driver with my misspelt name as I went through the arrival hall. He led me to the white Toyota sedan and we promptly drove off. My skepticism kicked in so I switched on Google Maps on my Blackberry so I could see whether he was indeed driving me to the hotel – the right hotel. Plus it would also give my exact location to my partner via Latitude.

After about 20 minutes or so – and to my relief, the car pulled into the entrance of the Sunnyside Park Hotel, which, I was told later was where the Dutch football team stayed for the final match in the World Cup.

Sunnyside Park Hotel

The lions
One of my colleagues was still on a project when I arrived in Johannesburg. He kindly agreed to drive me to the Lion Park that was about an hour’s drive.

The entry fee of ZAR 115 (around £10) includes a chance to ‘play’ with lion cubs and to drive your own vehicle through the park where the adult ones roam. The lions were truly a sight to behold. During our time to play with the cubs, we were instructed not to carry them nor pull their tail. It was quite amazing to think that the little ones we were playing with will grow to be these huge and dangerous animals. As cubs, they look like larger-than-normal cats.

Great divide
Inasmuch as apartheid has been abolished, the division between the rich whites and poor blacks. The middle class hasn’t fully emerged yet. On one hand, there’s the posh towns of Sandton while there is the rough areas of Hillbrow.

My colleague also took me Monte Casino, which is a version of Sienna (Italy) in Johannesburg. To be honest, it was quite surreal.

Left with wonderment
Prior to arriving, I had a little to none info so I really didn’t know what to expect. With only less than a week’s stay, I know that I did not experience the real Johannesburg. But then I wonder, do I want to?

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