Left Colesberg at 9:30 and headed for Joburg along the N1 once again. The driving went very well, the first portion quite fast with me at the tail end of a 4 vehicle caravan. For about 45 km before Bloemfontein, I was back on the construction area, but without anyone working, it went very well. These guys know how to time the number of vehicles they let pass and how long it will take them to reach the other end. Hardly any waiting at all. From Bloemfontein on, there seemed to be a police officer at every overpass with their radar guns. They don’t bother to race after the vehicles, they take pictures, and you get your speeding ticket in the mail. If I got nabbed along the way, I’ll find out when I return the car in Joburg.
Driving: (1) Did I tell you that on the National Highways (N1, N2, N3, etc) there are very wide paved shoulders, almost wide enough for a small car lane. Vans or slow going vehicles will usually pull over to the left (remember, I’m driving on the wrong side of the road in South Africa) and let faster vehicles pass them safely without having to go into the on-coming traffic lane. Of course, like everywhere else, there are some drivers who aren’t so courteous and will not pull aside. If someone pulls aside and lets you pass, you flash your lights twice to say “thank you very much”. (2) I’ve had to come up with a trick to remind me each time I have to make a left or right hand turn, so that I stay on the wrong side of the road. Left turn: left, short word, short turning radius from the far left lane to the far left lane. Right turn: R I I I G H T, longer word, longer turning radius all the way over to the other side of the road in the far right lane. (3) Although there are wide shoulders on some roads, you CANNOT stop on them to take pictures. I did that only once and horns were blaring ! On most other roads, there simply is no place to stop to take pictures, so it’s been a “drive-by photo op” with not so perfect results.I stopped for petrol and lunch at Ventersberg and was able to plan out my route so that I would end up north west of Johannesburg and avoid city traffic. I haven’t visited the “Cradle of Humankind” yet and that is where it is located, just outside Krugersdorp. Before arriving to Soweto, I had to turn off on highway #28. Thankfully I had started watching for the exits while I was still out in the countryside, because Highway 28 arrived much earlier than I thought, and it looked like a country road, not a highway. And it did not say it led to Krugersdorp ! Thankfully there was room off the ramp to pull aside, and I was the only car on the exit ramp. Pulled out the map, and sure enough, there was Randfontein, just before Krugersdorp. So I kept going. After about 10 km the road widened into 3 lanes (middle one passing lane) and still further, it became a boulevard, even though we were still in the countryside. I made it to Krugersdorp, but never saw the turn off for route 563. I had driven on in the direction I thought was the correct one, but after going down one huge hill and up the other side, I saw a sign indicating the mileage to Pretoria, so I figured I’d gone too far and turned around driving back into town. I saw an older couple walking with a baby stroller and stopped to ask them directions. Turns out my instincts had been good. If I had just gone over that last hill and down the other side, I would have seen a sign for “Cradle of Humankind”. Oh well, better safe than sorry. I was hoping to find a hotel in that area, since the brochure indicated that there was accommodation available in the area, but after driving around for over an hour unsuccessfully, I decided to head back into town and find a hotel there (well I did find one Lodge at the end of a dirt road, but it was 32,000 Rand per night = about $400 ! ). Back in Krugersdorp, I saw one hotel called Majestic, but it did not wear its name very well so I drove on and stopped at a gas station to ask the locals. The two guys at the desk were really funny and argued back and forth in their native language before finally agreeing and giving me directions to “La Java Guest Lodge”. What a find ! It is in a turn of the century hotel and the rooms are just beautiful, and it’s only about $50 per night. Secure parking on the grounds included. But again, no Internet connection.
Staying here for 2 nights, thank you very much, so that I can visit the Cradle of Humanity and Sterkfontein Caves at my leisure tomorrow. My reservations at the RADISSON in Sandton are for the nights of the 3rd to the 5th.
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