2-10 thru 2-13

We explored some of the many malls and grocery stores-stocked up on sodas and big jugs of water. The malls and stores were as nice as any back home. We decided to eat everything put before us but not drink any South African water. Went to Jo-burg and saw a wonderful play "Born thru the Nose" at the Market Theatre. The play was a one man show and was about the African culture. We ate dinner at Gramadoelas, a very nice restaurant next door to the theatre. We met the owners and talked with them for a long time. They had been in business for ?30? years. The restaurant had been integrated when that was not common.

Drove into the country on Sunday across beautiful scenery. Big mountains, lush landscapes-looked a lot like Western Australia and Nevada, just outside Las Vegas. Had a lunch buffet at a very nice place called Mount Grace resort near Nageliesburg, about 120 km from where we were staying in Jo-burg. This place was magnificent and also a spa and destination vacation for those who want to be pampered. Had a very nice buffet for $25 each. Drove back to Jo-burg and crashed to catch up on our sleep.

On Monday, drove to Sun City, a casino resort in the middle of nowhere about 160 miles from Jo-burg. Impressive hotels, time shares and golf courses, but the casino was very petite with few gaming tables and minimal slots. Most people who stay here come to swim and golf. Drove through Hardeespoort, a beautiful resort town in the mountains-rich vacation homes and sailing on the lake. Stopped in Pretoria, went to natural history museum, but not very impressive. Walked around downtown-nice bustling, vibrant area. Ate dinner at Brown's, an old established restaurant in Rivonia, a suburb of Jo-burg-excellent food, excellent service. However, we had set out to eat at an Italian restaurant two hours before, but found it closed after we got lost trying to find it. There are so many suburbs in the Jo-burg area and all spread out, it can be difficult to navigate. Many houses on hilltops and in canyons-reminds us of Malibu or the LA area.

We finally found a AA office (like our AAA) to obtain some maps and travel literature, but they had very little material. SA tourism is not very good-minimal brochures, maps, etc. and hard to find what they do have. We finally bought a Lonely Plant travel book for SA, which was very helpful in our travels. The book would have been 30% cheaper in the US. We also bought a restaurant book called EAT OUT. We used it through the whole trip. Ate dinner at Churrasqueira, a wonderful Portuguese restaurant. Had appetizer, two mains, 2 sodas, 2 bottled waters for only $30. We have found the restaurants to be very reasonably priced with excellent meals and service. Our problem is finding the restaurants. The books descriptions are incomplete and the city has several million people. EAT OUT does not divide the big cities by neighborhoods. We have been taking a nap each day to get rested up from the long trip. Guess when you get old, you have to sleep more!