After a few years of `drought’ the sardines have returned to the South Coast in all their glory. The KwaZulu-Natal coastline in South Africa has always been home to one of the world’s greatest natural marine phenomena – the Sardine Run – which is also referred to as the Greatest Shoal on Earth. Every winter, between the […]

For South Africans abroad who have been curious to see the controversial new movie, Treurgrond, starring the equally controversial South African entertainer Steve Hofmeyr, it is available to watch wherever you are in the world. (Watch video below.) Scatzy.com, a provider of South African content worldwide, has once again provided South Africans abroad with a locally-made movie at […]

South African athlete Bianca Buitendag surfed her way into second place at the Fiji Women’s Pro yesterday. She and Australia’s Sally Fitzgibbons battled it out for top prize in heavy conditions on the final day. Ultimately it was Fitzgibbons who triumphed, showing sheer determination to win the event (for the second year in a row) by overcoming a […]

Freshlyground’s new music video showcases a kaleidoscope of South African faces and scenes (yes, there’s a braai) that will have you feeling emotional without quite knowing why. As images are flashed on screen, they tug at the heartstrings with faces that show the struggle, the pain, the pride, the play, the passion, the love…the people. […]

Professional kitesurfer Nick Jacobsen made an amazing jump off the top of Richard Branson’s Necker Island on Sunday. The subsequent video includes cool footage as the Danish kitesurfer launches himself from 131 feet above sea level. (Watch above.) Nick became widely known as a daredevil in kitesurfing circles after he jumped off a crane in South Africa […]

It’s a kind of crazy question…with a kind of brilliant answer. How to help solve a trio of problems – child road deaths, fatal fire accidents at home and pollution – in one simple step? The answer: a school bag made out of recycled plastic that has a solar light on it.  As Rethaka – the […]

Congratulations to Cape Town’s The Test Kitchen which is the only restaurant in South Africa to be included in the World’s Top 50 Restaurants list, announced yesterday in London. The South African restaurant was also named the Best Restaurant in Africa. In fact it is the only restaurant on the continent to make it into the Top 50. […]

Well over 300 years ago, a slave ship on its way from Mozambique to Brazil crashed on to reefs in stormy seas off of Cape Town. Half of the 400 or more slaves were lost. The ship was the Sao José Paquete Africa. In Cape Town tomorrow (Tuesday 2 June 2015), the Smithsonian’s National Museum of […]

If South African President Jacob Zuma thought that the Police Minister’s Report last week would put an end to demands for him to ‘Pay Back the Money’, he couldn’t have been more mistaken. An avalanche of jokes have hit the print and social media; the Democratic Alliance has vowed to pursue the issue, the Public Protector […]

It’s official. The rest of the world has finally woken up to what Durbanites knew all along – Durban is cool. Earlier this year the New York Times featured Durban as 7th on its 52 places to go in 2015 list. A little bit Rio, a little bit Miami, eThekwini in South Africa is in a class of […]

With misspelt signs like “smak yor lips on our tchips”and “soek nee mier, kry jou vetkook heer”, you know you’re in South Africa! And who else would use the term “Use your loaf…get your bread here”? The spelling may be wrong, but the messages are clear! The signs were captured by photographer Anton Kieck in his home […]

It has been reported in South Africa today that Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter has apparently resigned from the Club. Neither Baxter nor Kaizer Chiefs (KC) have confirmed the reports as yet. Official confirmation is expected at a press conference on Tuesday 2 June 2015. Twitter is abuzz with the rumours, with Baxter’s name trending in […]

South Africans are celebrating today as both the male and female winners of the legendary Comrades Marathon are South African. This is the first time since 1992! Gift Kelehe, younger brother of previous winner Andrew Kelehe (who won in 2001), and Caroline Wostman – who won the Two Oceans earlier this year – brought it home for […]

It’s South Africa where humour is how we cope with stressful or frustrating situations, so of course the jokes have been flooding in since it was announced yesterday by the Police Minister that South African President Jacob Zuma will not need to pay back the money for the Nkandla upgrades. Some Jokes being shared about the […]

If you’re from the Western Cape and have never ventured to KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), this video may change your mind. And if you’re from the KZN North Coast and now live inland or overseas…this footage – including the old Salties rock pool, cycling through sugarcane fields and running with a dog along the beach – will draw you home…at least in your […]

Local Fish Hoek photographer Robyn Gwilt spotted more than just her new favourite whale yesterday evening when she popped down to the beach to photograph it. She also noticed two men hanging on to an overturned Hobie Cat way out at sea. She immediately tweeted NSRI (National Sea Rescue Institute), and then left them to perform their […]

Comedy Central has announced the debut date for South African comedian Trevor Noah to take over The Daily Show in the USA. The 31-year-old will debut as host of the Emmy® and Peabody® Award-winning show on 28 September. Its current popular host, Jon Stewart, will have his final broadcast on 6 August. The two men collaborated on a brilliant, and short, […]

Cape Town was treated to an awesome sky of clouds yesterday, as seen here from Milnerton in the Western Cape, South Africa. “Clouds wherever you looked yesterday afternoon in Cape Town,” said Helena Sousa, who took the photos on this page. “What a cloud extravaganza it was!” View more of Helena’s photos on Facebook.

German racing driver Nico Rosberg may have been the surprise winner in today’s Monaco Grand Prix, but all eyes were also on the Principality’s Princess Charlene who looked racy, fabulous and totally stylish throughout the weekend’s events. Rosberg’s Mercedes team-mate, British racer Lewis Hamilton, was devastated when a decision (which he has confirmed both he and Mercedes made) […]

A pilot in South Africa managed to execute a textbook emergency landing on Thursday at Lanseria International Airport. And it was all caught on film by aviation photographer Adrian Munro. When the nose wheel of the Partenavia AP68TP ZS-OYN failed to release, the pilot performed a near-perfect landing, balancing the plane on only two wheels for a short […]

‘Joburg Expat’ Eva Melusine Thieme, author of this article, grew up in Germany and has lived in Singapore, the United States and Africa. Four continents and counting. As frustrating as it can be to move households across continents or to navigate the incomprehensible currents of the Department of Home Affairs to obtain your visa, or to find […]

I didn’t want to write this blog. Because it seems like whenever South Africans get into the discussion of whether to stay or whether to go it only creates armies on two sides. The “leavers” and the “stayers” – both defensive, both trying to justify their case. And that is not my intention at all. There […]

So there are LOTS of wonderful South Africans who do some pretty awesome things, many of which go unnoticed or which we have no time to thank the person for at the time. Like when a Gauteng doctor takes the time to explain  – with a rare and kind compassion – that your husband may never wake […]

South African expat, Major General Bernadus Groenewald, is making headlines in Fiji, Australia and New Zealand with his bravery. Groenewald, who happens to be the Commissioner of Police in Fiji, confronted five thugs at a Suva restaurant, armed only with a chair! In a story headlined “Heroes of the Night”, the Fiji Times said the […]

The Springboks have officially launched their Rugby World Cup Campaign with a launch video and a new website. The message for the campaign is clear: Give the Springboks #HomeGroundAdvantage …anywhere in the world. The video includes some classic lines that are sure to give fans goosebumps. Sentences like “2015 is our year. We are the ones we’ve […]