#Travel

Last week Thorsten and I spent the night at the African Penthouses – a group of five luxury, rooftop apartments in the center of downtown Joburg.

The African Penthouses are at 87 Commissioner Street, right across from the Rand Club. I know this part of Joburg well and I was already an African Penthouses fangirl before the visit – I’ve been following them on Instagram for years and knew this is the coolest, most photogenic place to stay in Joburg. But I still wasn’t prepared for the real thing. These apartments are so chic and full of character, and the view from our penthouse was mind-boggling. It feels like an African Manhattan.

During my Rosebank jacaranda tour last October, I held a contest: The first participant to spot the lone white jacaranda tree on our route could choose a new place in Joburg for me to visit and blog about.

More than a year ago, I blogged about a yarn shop in Edenvale and planned to start a longer series about knitting in Joburg. Somehow I never got around to expanding that series until now, but I’m glad I procrastinated: My favorite yarn and fabric shop, Arthur Bales, is turning 120 years old in August and it’s having a huge sale for the entire month. So I’ve picked the best time to finally blog about this wonderful store.

Yesterday I visited the Doornfontein Shul – commonly known as the Lions Shul – in downtown Joburg. The shul, built in 1905, is featured in Hidden Johannesburg, which I blogged about recently in my post about the Lemon Squeezer Church. I’m pleased to be one step closer to visiting all the sites in the book (16 down, 12 to go).

A year or so ago, at the height of the covid pandemic, I saw a friend’s Facebook post about a weekend excursion in a houseboat on the Vaal River. She rented the boat from Old Willow No. 7 Houseboat Charters, an hour’s drive from Joburg.

I’ve been visiting the Rand Club, one of Joburg’s most historic buildings, for years.

I’ve blogged about the club before and gone there for various events, which I always enjoy. But I hadn’t considered joining the Rand Club until last month, while I was getting a pedicure.