That Time I Climbed Ponte

03 April 2019

Let me tell you about that time I ran to the top of Ponte City.

Looking up at Ponte City
Looking up at Ponte City, the tallest residential building in Africa (at least for now).

Every few months Dlala Nje and Microadventure Tours co-host the Ponte Challenge, which invites people to gather at the bottom of Ponte City at a very early hour and run or walk 54 storeys to the top. Last month I finally made the event and I (mostly) ran to the top. It really wasn’t that bad.

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The Best Margherita Pizza in Joburg (or maybe the world)

28 March 2019

UPDATE (May 2019): The Coalition Pineslopes location has closed. You can still eat Coalition’s delicious Margherita pizza at their location on Bolton Road in Rosebank, and they will soon be offering their “Kitchen Table” experience again at a new location in Sandton. Follow them on Facebook for updates.

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15 Quirky Things to Do in Maputo

23 March 2019

I spent six days in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique.

Statue of Samora Machel in Maputo, Mozambique.
Statue of Samora Machel, the first president of independent Mozambique. Erected in 2011, the monument was designed and constructed in North Korea.

Two friends joined me for the last two days but the rest of the time I was alone. Other than booking my flight and accommodation and buying a guide book – the Bradt Travel Guide for Mozambique, which has a short and rather disappointing chapter on Maputo but was helpful nonetheless – I made zero plans before going. Once there, I continued making zero plans and just wandered around looking at things.

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Not Cycling Through Alexandra Township

19 March 2019

I recently found myself not cycling on a cycle ride through Alexandra Township.

It was a hard job riding around Alex in a comfortable car, photographing the cyclists as they toiled in the hot sun. But someone had to do it.

I was supposed to cycle, but there weren’t enough bikes and it was blazing hot and when someone suggested I ride in the Jeep that was escorting the riders and take photos through the open top, I gladly accepted.

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This Is the East: The Windmill of Van Riebeek Avenue

12 March 2019

Fifth in an occasional blog series called This Is the East, featuring hidden spots on Johannesburg’s East Rand.

On a busy stretch of Van Riebeek Avenue in Edenvale, amidst hair braiding salons and car stereo places and dusty old bookshops, is an authentic, nearly full-sized Dutch wooden windmill. Inside the windmill is a Dutch pancake house and below it is the best Dutch bakery in Joburg.

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Afternoon Tea in Bezuidenhout Valley

05 March 2019

Bezuidenhout Valley, aka Bez Valley, feels like a forgotten suburb. Once home to wealthy Johannesburg socialites, the area has declined in recent decades. Many of Bez Valley’s stately old houses have been abandoned or fallen into disrepair.

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