Pomegranates and Turkish Food in Centurion
Centurion, an anonymous no man’s land between Joburg and Pretoria, is home to a magical place called Buyuk Chamlija: a self-described “Socio Eco Techno Village” that grows fat, juicy pomegranates and has a Turkish restaurant shaped like a beehive. I...
Quirky South Africa, Part 1: Padstals of the Platteland
My mom came for a visit and the two of us took a weeklong road trip through the South African platteland (Afrikaans for countryside). We drove from Joburg to Bethulie, Bethulie to the Garden Route, up through the Karoo Desert to Hanover, and then back to Joburg. Tiny...
Veldskoens: Southern Africa’s Favorite Shoes
I can’t remember the exact moment when I became aware of veldskoens, a.k.a. vellies. These leather foot coverings — somewhere between a shoe and a boot — have always been prolific in rural South Africa, lining the shelves of padstals (farm stalls),...
Art in Fordsburg at Lilian Road Studios
I’ve visited Lilian Road Studios, a collection of artists’ studios in a historic, dilapidated building in Fordsburg, many times. Several great Joburg artists have had studios at Lilian Road, including Hannelie Coetzee and Hermann Niebuhr. Now there is a...
Black-Tie, Jozi-Style
I recently joined the Rand Club, which holds a couple of black-tie events each year. When it came time to attend our first fancy function, the Club’s 135th-anniversary gala, Thorsten and I considered his black-tie options. He didn’t own a tux, we...
Heather Mason
I’m an American writer/blogger/photographer living a quirky life in Johannesburg. Follow along as I explore Johannesburg, South Africa, and the rest of the world.
