Johannesburg is often affectionately called Jo'burg, Joeys or Jozi. The city was founded in 1886 on one of the richest gold reefs in the world, and started life as a simple wagon camp for early prospectors on the bare, open
highveld. Johannesburg quickly grew into the economic powerhouse of southern Africa and the largest urban space in sub-Saharan Africa.
Despite being a predominantly business destination, Johannesburg has a wealth of urban attractions, such as art galleries, museums, parks and zoos. Gold Reef City (the oldest and last of Johannesburg's gold mines to be shut down) is now a theme park and mine tour, where Johannesburg's legacy of gold mining can be explored. The countryside, too, is easily accessible, where craft markets, country inns, wildlife projects, dams and mountains offer a breath of fresh air.
To the southeast of Johannesburg is famous Soweto (an acronym for South West Township), where black people were restricted to living during apartheid. Soweto holds an important place in the heart of modern South Africa for its activities and rise of peoples' voices that contributed to the demise of apartheid. The vibrant township spawned activists Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu, among many others. Soweto tours are hugely popular with international visitors, and museums such as the Apartheid Museum and Hector Pieterson Museum also tell the story.
Johannesburg is very modern by African standards, but crime is a problem—you'll be reminded over and over that you shouldn't walk downtown after business hours and that you shouldn't carry a purse or wear expensive jewelry. But the authorities are addressing the problem successfully and constructively. Most attractions can be visited safely, and a number of half- and full-day city tours are offered.
Sights—A tour of historical Soweto; a tour of the city center for a bird's-eye view of Johannesburg; the over-the-top but interesting Montecasino.
Museums—The Apartheid Museum to see the dark history of South Africa's segregation laws; the Hector Pieterson Museum to learn about the 1976 Soweto Uprising; Constitutional Hill.
Memorable Meals—Moyo for dishes from across the African continent; Gramadoelas for local South African food; meat and more meat at Carnivore.
Late Night—Blues and rock 'n' roll at the Blues Room; clubbing at Monsoon Lagoon; Bassline for great live jazz.
Walks—Interact with pachiderms at the Elephant Sanctuary at Hartbeespoort Dam; learn about South Africa's different ethnic groups on a tour of Lesedi Cultural Village.
Especially for Kids—See the only two polar bears in Africa at the Johannesburg Zoo; get the chance to pet a cub at Lion Park; watch a gold bar being poured at Gold Reef City.
Johannesburg was founded as a gold-mining city and wasn't built on a river. Mine dumps—piles of yellow sand that were excavated from the mines over the decades (although some of are being cleared away for development)—are Johannesburg's prominent feature. Once a region of bare, grassy plains, trees were planted and streets were laid out to dramatically change the landscape. It is estimated that Johannesburg now has more than 6 million trees, which in turn attract abundant birdlife.
Urban sprawl covers approximately 500 mi/1,300 km and is divided into more than 600 suburbs. These include central downtown to the south; the upmarket suburbs of Sandton, Rosebank, Hyde Park, Rivonia and Fourways to the north; the O.R. Tambo International Airport and large industrial areas to the northeast; and Soweto and its many neighborhoods to the southwest.
The N1 Highway runs past Soweto before heading through the northern suburbs, then on to Pretoria (South Africa's seat of government), 30 mi/50 km to the north. Suburbs and industries line the highway, effectively joining Johannesburg with Pretoria.
From 1835, the Boer inhabitants of the Cape (descendents from the early Dutch settlers of the 1600s) felt increasingly intimidated by the arrival of the British. Many thousands loaded up their ox wagons and either headed east from the Cape over the Drakensberg Mountains or northeast to the relatively untouched Highveld, an empty area of grassy, uncultivated plains. The hardy journey over mountains and across rivers still populated by wild animals became known as the Great Trek, and the Boers became known as Voortrekkers. There they set up simple farms and administered the region as the Transvaal Republic and Orange Free State. In 1886, their rural existence was shattered almost overnight by the discovery of gold, which drew prospectors, investors and fortune hunters from across the globe.
Johannesburg, named after two town planners, each with the name Johannes, grew quickly as the gold poured into the world's stock exchanges and banks. Johannesburg was a formal city by the 1920s. But life between the black mine workers, white mine managers and government officials became increasingly segregated. As early as 1913, legislation was in place prohibiting blacks from buying land in white areas.
After World War II, an economic boom in Johannesburg drew more rural Africans into the city. This fueled an Afrikaner national sentiment, and the National Party came to power in 1948 on a platform of apartheid (which means "being apart" in Afrikaans). Its policy was for a white minority to keep control of the black majority. To do this, blacks were increasingly administered under a different set of laws, and legislation against mixed marriages was passed. Black people were permitted to move freely to their place of work, but were restricted to inferior and separate living areas. If they refused to move, their homes were razed and they were forced to relocate. Every aspect of daily life between blacks and whites became segregated.
By the end of the 1980s, pressure was on for the South African government to reform apartheid policies. F.W. De Klerk became president, unbanned the African National Congress (ANC) and other opposition parties, released political prisoners, including Nelson Mandela and Walter Sisulu, and began to reform legislation. In the early 1990s, De Klerk and Nelson Mandela, newly appointed leader of the ANC, negotiated a peaceful end to apartheid, which won them a joint Nobel Peace Prize. In 1994, South Africa held its first democratic election, and the ANC won by a resounding majority. Mandela became the country’s first black president.
Johannesburg is known as
Egoli in the local language of Sesotho, meaning "place of gold." Johannesburg has produced some 40% of all the world's gold.
Johannesburg has the world's only other Lipizzaner stallions outside the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. The beautiful white horses skip, trot and gallop in time with music.
With its millions of trees, Johannesburg resembles a rain forest on satellite images.
Tsotsi taal is a local slang unique to the townships; tsotsi means "thug," while taal means "language." It's often used in kwaito (South African rap/hip-hop). The gang-themed movie Tsosti, which was filmed in Soweto, won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Movie in 2005.
