Today – Friday, 5 December 2014 – marks a full year since South Africa’s beloved statesman and icon of peace Nelson Mandela passed away. Here are some ways to honour his memory today. 1. Buy a book The Nelson Mandela Foundation has launched a campaign requesting individuals, companies and organisation to buy a book – one […]

Many South Africans, who have become expats themselves, may find the latest survey by banking giant HSBC quite interesting. It turns out that thousands of expats from different nationalities rate South Africa as one of the best countries for children to grow up in! Regina Graeff from ExpatCapeTown.com compiled the following report. With her kind permission we hereby publish […]

In a series of powerful videos, South Africans of all kinds share their experiences of finding out they were HIV-positive, and how being open about their status helped them fight the stigma of the virus and find real support from true friends and family. Cindy Pivacic, 56 Ten years ago, Cindy Pivacic’s partner infected her […]

On yesterday’s World Aids Day 2014, the South African National Aids Council (Sanac) called on all the people of the country to join its campaign for the next 12 months: Zero Stigma, Zero Discrimination.   World Aids Day, commemorated on 1 December every year, gives all communities the opportunity to unite in the fight against HIV, […]

On 5 December South Africa will mark one year since Nelson Mandela passed away in his Houghton home, after many months of ailing health. The world mourned his departure, having lost one of its greatest inspirations. US President Barack Obama said we should “pause and give thanks for the fact that Nelson Mandela lived”. The […]

Cape Town has a new beacon of light, shining brightly into the night…and the future. It’s the new 24-metre high art installation, designed by artist Christopher Swift, that is now providing a physical and figurative glimmer of light on Signal Hill in Cape Town. Powered by solar energy, the light from the eight-pointed star (which […]

Saturday 15 November marked a new beginning for the city of Joburg as one woman bravely began her mission to transform the city that’s been called the unfriendliest in the world, into JOYburg. Sue Jameson, Joy Activist and Laughter Coach, kicked off the first part of her first prize in the Vodacom #Firsts competition with her ‘my #First Laughter Mob’. […]

A kind and unassuming waiter by the name of Vincent has become the most talked about South African employee in the past 24 hours. Yesterday he performed a good deed at the Wimpy branch in Canal Walk, Cape Town…which did not go unnoticed. And today he is being celebrated all over social media for his kind […]

A non-profit organisation that works with teachers in the Western Cape’s poorest areas to improve the quality of teaching and learning in maths and science is getting international recognition. The Western Cape Primary Science Programme (PSP), with over 30-years’ experience in the field, received the Global Best award for science, technology, engineering and maths in […]

Every year thousands of tourists flock to the Arctic to view the psychedelic swirling skies of the aurora borealis, or northern lights. But few know that this beautiful display is actually a geomagnetic solar superstorm in our atmosphere.   This general lack of knowledge of the sun’s effect on our atmosphere is why the South […]

African music, Nelson Mandela once said, is about the aspirations of Africa. “The curious beauty of African music is that it uplifts even as it tells a sad tale. You may be poor, you may have only a ramshackle house, you may have lost your job, but that song gives you hope.” A collection of […]

Peter Tshisevhe is more than just a poor boy from a poor family. He is one of the best mergers and acquisitions lawyers in the world, his success allowing him to inspire and sponsor talented youngsters from his rural home of Tshakhuma. The lesson he teaches the kids he mentors is that they are more […]

South Africa’s top jazz acts, including legendary jazz pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, will be showcasing the country’s cultural zeitgeist at the prestigious annual EFG London Jazz Festival, which kicks off today, 14 November. This year’s top South African acts will be featured as part of the SA Season in the UK, a programme which is designed to […]

Turn up the videos below and watch the Loeriesfontein dancers having a blast at the recent ‘Rieldans’ competition in Clanwilliam in the Western Cape, South Africa. Rieldans is one of South Africa’s oldest dancing styles and can be traced back to the Khoi San of the Cape. It’s danced at a highly energetic pace with […]

A Norwegian group has made a brilliant video spoof, highlighting the fact that stereotypes about Africa harm dignity, and calling on viewers to challenge the perceptions and vote for better fundraising campaigns that don’t perpetuate debilitating myths of Africa. The video opens with a scene from a “reality show” in which volunteers race to throw food at “starving” […]

The much-anticipated trailer for Chappie is finally here! And it looks like South African Canadian writer-director Neill Blomkamp has got his mojo back.  Blomkamp has returned to his much-loved bizarre sci-fi roots that earned his directorial debut District 9 an Oscar nomination. His second film Elysium, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster, was less enthusiastically received. But […]

For the next three months an African country will be run by a white man, the first since Paul Berenger became prime minister of Mauritius in 2003. The death of President Michael Sata in a London hospital on 28 October has elevated his deputy, 70-year-old Dr Guy Scott, to the most powerful office in Zambia. […]

After years of talking about it, months of organising it, and one crazy day of filming it – Durbanite Marc Williams has produced a Zombie short film just in time to get us in the mood for Halloween. The film – which lasts about six minutes – took Marc an entire year of on and off editing…but […]

The 2014 edition of the HSBC Expat Explorer survey spins a really good story for South Africa. Expatriate workers looking for a balance between work and a decent family life rated South Africa the second best destination in the world, after New Zealand. The annual survey measures four categories: earnings, lifestyle, raising children and the […]

Most of us, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal, have complained at some point about the ‘thieving’ monkeys in South Africa who brazenly enter our homes and steal our bananas. But deep down we’re secretly a little fond of them. We admire their agility, apparent humour and ability to outwit us! And we quite enjoy the fact that […]

That South Africa punches well above its weight in the global luxury travel market was again confirmed with the release of this year’s prestigious Condé Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Awards.The country garnered the top spot in the best 100 hotels and resorts, and Cape Town was voted fourth out of the world’s 25 must-see cities. […]

Dr Buyisiwe Sondezi, a student at the University of Johannesburg (UJ), is the first woman in Africa to be awarded a doctoral degree in experimental physics of highly correlated matter. Sondezi graduated as a Doctor of Physics at UJ in September this year. The title of her thesis was “The physical properties of ferromagnetic CeTX […]

A very cool art installation has been erected on the Sea Point Promenade in Cape Town. It’s called Rhinosaur, and when you first see it you won’t know why.  Bev Tromp,  a South African expat who recently holidayed in Cape Town from her new base in the UK, took these photos and said, “At first it looks like a […]

As the developers of the super-cool Maboneng Precinct in Johannesburg, led by Jonathan Liebmann, take hold of Durban and transform the Rivertown district into a similar wonderland of galleries, restaurants and boutiques…it’s worth noting that Durban already has some pretty cool places, with three restaurants having been launched in the last month or so that are sure […]

Fashion designer, pop star, wife of the world’s most famous football player – and now UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador – Victoria Beckham has pledged to help the “wonderful” young women  in Soweto and to raise awareness about the vulnerability of women and girls to HIV. The former Spice Girl was moved to make the announcement during her […]