All of a sudden it was pitch dark. What the hell? I was relaxing on the couch, child to bed, husband out of town so I had the whole evening for me, myself and Netflix. Cup of tea and chocolate within reach. How wonderful life can be! The only thing you need is electricity… I’m
It has been three years since we exchanged Rotterdam for Johannesburg, South Africa. I do remember those earlier days really well. So many new impressions, so many new experiences and especially so many things to be amazed by and to marvel at. But I also started to find some things completely normally… So how do
And then the day you feared for weeks arrived… Sunday the 18th of November. Time to do the 94.7. No excuses anymore… The 94.7 is a cycle race organized by the local radio station 94.7 and you guessed it right, it is about 94.7 kilometres going straight through the city of Johannesburg. It’s kinda like
If you like sports, you are in the right country! Gyms in abundance and I kid you not: It also seems like everyone here goes to the gym because every time I do my groceries, I see people walking around in their sportswear. It doesn’t matter if this is early in the morning or late
Sinnah, our nanny, normally goes back home around 3pm. Sometimes, we ask her to stay longer and that’s not a problem, provided that she can return home with a taxibus. The taxibus is THE public transport of South Africa. I do not understand why they call it a taxi because they are actually minivans in
Last month we were on holiday in our own country. From St Lucia, the east coast of South Africa straight up to Ponta do Ouro in Mozambique, then drove to the west to Kruger and via the Panorama Route returned to Johannesburg. A beautiful route where we passed the border two times. I actually forgot
Coming from Holland and used to a 4G network and Wifi spots everywhere it is quite an adjustment to get used to the ‘almost none existing’ infrastructure here in South Africa. Coverage is certainly not 100%. So, often I would go outside, waving my phone in the air, hoping it would pick up a signal.
‘I’m moving this weekend’. I look at Sinnah with astonishment. ‘What a surprise!’ I didn’t know that Sinnah wanted to move. The house she currently lives in is her property so I don’t quite understand this ‘move’. It turns out that she has the opportunity to buy a piece of land where she can build
The District Hillbrow is notorious and infamous, and not just In Johannesburg. Just read any travel guide and it was strongly advised not to walk around as a white person. But what makes Hillbrow so distinct? And what makes the Ponte Tower so special? This cylinder-shaped tower was built in 1975, 173 meters high and
As an expat, you can live your life in a bubble. It’s a peculiar experience. You’re living in another country, but most of your friends are Dutch, your kids are sent to the Dutch school and you can buy your Dutch sprinkles and candy at the Dutch store. The biggest difference with the Netherlands is