Johannesburg South Africa

A month ago we went to Johannesburg for a Senior Missionary Event. Johannesburg is a 4.5 hour drive from where we live.  We do go there a bit for various meeting etc.  This happened to be a gathering of all the Senior Missionaries.  It was a great little get together. 

I haven't been totally impressed with JoBurg.  It is a huge city, Most Senior Missionaries are within a one or two hours.   There are a few of us in the east toward Swaziland.  For the past two and a half months we have been the only ones here.
There are a number of couples in the North East, and a few South of Johannesburg.  We have felt blessed to be where we are.

I gained some new perspective on JoBurg on this trip.  We took the Red Line Bus tour feeling that would be the best way to see things.  I am including a few pictures and brief comments.

Like many big cities it is full of high rise offices and apartment buildings.  On this trip it look  seemed cleaner, however, the streets are generally pretty littered and dirty.  The Nelson Mandela Bridge is in the middle of the city.  It is large.  
JoBurg was originally flat prairie lands.  Then "Gold" was discovered and people from all over the world migrated to the mines.  We were told that the city sits on thousands of old mine shafts.  If there were some type of upheaval in the earth the whole city would collapse.
The largest man made forest in the world is in JoBurg.  When the area was being settled they started planting many trees.  In many of the nicer areas of the city the streets are lined with beautiful trees and growth.  The townships lie on the outskirts and often do not have many trees.

 
The streets are busy.  There are many outside market places and lots of business going one.  The malls I have been to are modern and nice.  On thing that is frustrating is there are no directories in the mall and It is crazy trying to find a store. The meat trucks are interesting.  There are many little "butcheries" on the streets and the trucks just drive by and deliver a whole beef, lamb, or pig for them to butcher.   In the modern supermarkets it is just like home.  The meat is cut and wrapped.
 
 

The people here tend to be very artistic and the arts are prevalent.   The graffiti is very artistic and well done.  Much of it they leave up because it is well done and usually symbolic.  The carved heads on pedestals  on the left are done by people and they put them up.  We found Cape Town to be much the same, nice art- paintings, ceramics, sculptures, jewellery making.  On the top in the middle is a big converse shoe.  The are mega big here.

The fun part is getting together with the Senior Missionaries.  We have enjoyed getting to know them.  Some of these folks are on their 4th and 5th missions.  Oh My!  A number just sell their home and go from one mission to another.  President and Sister Omer are in the middle picture.  We like them a lot.  They are a neat couple and will be leaving in June, 2014. Good people.  We have met up with the Dummars from Sandy ( Elder Dummar use to be a soccer coach for Adam). I am not in these pictures because I am much too young looking compared to the others.