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Beads galore
A lamp made entirely of beads is just one of the expertly crafted goods being made and sold by street sellers in Soweto. Basetsana and Precious discover what else is being sold.
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Natural beauty
South Africa is renowned for its stunning landscapes. With ochre-coloured deserts and large savannahs, verdant rainforests and wetlands and long stretches of rugged coastline and beaches, visitors are drawn by the country’s natural beauty.
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Map of South Africa
Explore a map of South Africa. Find out more about the most important places in South Africa
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Hi, we’re Basetsana and Precious!
We hope you enjoy your visit. We’ve made some videos of our first ever visit to Johannesburg and listed some interesting facts about South Africa. It’s a brilliant country where there are so many opportunities if you can get a good education.
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Free healthcare for all but…
Basic medical care is free in South Africa, which has a sophisticated public healthcare system in the major towns and cities. However, hospitals in poor areas tend to be overcrowded and medical services remain inferior in these and rural locations.
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Naked on the floor
They’d read about it in schoolbooks: the era when white men used canes to beat black schoolchildren, stripped naked lying on the floor, to discourage them from taking part in the Soweto riots against apartheid. But Basetsana (15) and Precious (14) had never seen film of it before.
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A valuable skill
Mama Rosa makes shoes in one of the communities bordering the SOS Children’s Village. SOS Children paid for training to help Mama Rosa learn the skill.
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Sunny South Africa
Lying halfway between the Equator and the Antarctic, South Africa mostly enjoys a temperate climate. With its warm weather and long hours of sunshine, it’s sometimes referred to as ‘sunny South Africa’.
South Africa has a large agricultural sector with wine being the most profitable.
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Economy has strengthened
After experiencing difficult times during the sanctions and isolation of the apartheid era, South Africa’s economy has strengthened since 1994, posting average annual growth of around 3.5 per cent over the past decade.
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Education marks the divide
South Africa is said to possess both first and third-world societies. The well-educated are able to take advantage of the country’s growing economy. For those with a low level of educational attainment, prospects are bleak.
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Tables turned on journalist
The Sunday Times’ foreign correspondent in South Africa is himself subjected to an interview by our two ‘reporters’, who find out what it’s like to be a journalist. They’re outside Nelson Mandela’s home in Johannesburg at a time when he has just returned from hospital treatment. The world – South Africa in particular – is holding its breath that he will be ok.
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Hero, role model, friend
Beyond all the excitement of the new sights, the new sounds and new experiences that greet two teenagers in Nelson Mandela Square, Johannesburg, the one attraction that magnetises their attention the most is the huge bronze statue of their hero, their role model, their friend.
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Fish, meat and maize
With the warm climate and outdoor lifestyle, it’s no wonder South Africans love braai or barbecue. Along the Western coastal areas, grilled crayfish and snoek (a large oily fish) are popular barbecued food. But even when fish is plentiful, South Africans love their meat and where affordable enjoy lamb, steak, chicken, sosaties (kebabs) and boerewors (sausages).
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Team A and Team B
After a lesson on filming, some of the children at the SOS Children’s Village in South Africa spilt into two groups, and created their very own films.
Team A and team B created films on topics that have affected their lives, in one way or another.
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‘Rainbow Nation’ of diversity
South Africa is often called the ‘Rainbow Nation’, a term which was coined by the former Archbishop, Desmond Tutu, and neatly describes the country’s multicultural diversity.
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A huge divide
The 50.5 million population has an average life expectancy of 53 – but there is a huge divide between the advantaged and disadvantaged.
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Emblem of anti-apartheid
Two teenagers visit a memorial in Soweto where a photograph on display shows a father carrying his dead child, Hector Peterson, in his arms. The picture became an emblem of the anti-apartheid movement: Soweto itself became synonymous with the student uprising that, after much violence, put an end to white minority rule.
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Deserts, rainforests, mountains…
South Africa’s varied geography has diverse habitats, including deserts, savannahs, rainforests, mangroves, wetlands and mountain regions.
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What matters most
What do young men and women living in Johannesburg talk about?
‘Go for what you want and never let anyone stop your dreams.’ That’s the message from two young men reflecting on life in South Africa.
Two boys in their early twenties and two girls, nearly twenty, talk about their lives and what matters most to them.
