johannesburg

42 WHAT TO SEE
Little Addis E-4, Jeppe and Troye St, City Centre. Known
informally as ‘Little Addis’ or ‘Little Ethiopia’, this is the city’s
Ethiopian district, a few buildings on Jeppe Street near the
old Joburg Sun Hotel (now boarded up). It houses a dizzying
array of restaurants, coffee houses, clothing and souvenir
shops, barbers, music kiosks and plenty of posters of the
Emperor Hailie Selassie. A fascinating neighbourhood. For
lunch, head to Netsi’s on the top floor of the original Medical
Arts Building, now Haile Selassie Building. For tours of this
area, see Ancient Secrets in Tours.
Joburg Public Library, 1935
Fashion Kapitol F-4, 130 Pritchard St, off Troye St, New
Doornfontein, tel. +27 11 333 7372, www.fashiondistrict.org.za.
Follow the stylish young things to this rejuvenated
city square that is a pan-African fashion and lifestyle
centre. Truly the fashion capital of Africa, Fashion Kapitol is
located on the site of the city’s early garment industry. The 20
or so demarcated city blocks around it house fashion stores,
fabric shops, a college plus loads of small manufacturers. On
Saturdays head to the Fashion Kapitol Market, a platform for
emerging fashion designers and people in the arts. Watch
fashion shows presented by the nearby college, eat at the
Fashion Shack, buy vintage items at Fruitcake Vintage or shop
for authentic wax-print shweshwe fabric at Studio 109, a
superb fabric shop and haberdashery. Joburg Places conducts
excellent tours of the area (see Tours).QOpen 09:00–17:00,
Sat 09:00–14:00, closed Sun. UBK
Johannesburg City Hall D-4, Cnr Rissik St and President
St, City Centre, tel. +27 11 375 5555. Johannesburg
City Hall, built in 1915, is a rare gem of colonial architecture.
Designed in grand Edwardian style, it now is a national monument.
The space in front of City Hall used to be a gathering
place for civil and political protests. Worth a pop-in if you are
in the area. Entrance on President Street.QFree admission.
Johannesburg Public Library C-4, Cnr President and
Paul Sauer Sts, City Centre, tel. +27 11 022 5174.
Located on the edge of Beyers Naudé Square, this stately
building with its marble columns, silver door handles and
Venetian teak floors reopened in 2012 after extensive renovations
(funded by the City of Joburg and Carnegie Corporation
of New York). With architecture in the Italianate style, this is
one of the most prominent structures built in the city in the
1930s. It was also the first South African public library to
admit all races – from 1974. The library has 1.5 million items,
including a vast music collection, with around 700 000 books
and lots of great spaces to explore.QOpen 09:00–17:00, Sat
09:00–13:00. Closed Sun.
Peacemakers Museum, Sandton
Johannesburg In Your Pocket
Collection Koopman
Maboneng G-4, Fox St, Maboneng, City Centre. What
started as the redevelopment of an industrial building on Fox
and Main Streets is today a shiny jewel of inner-city redevelopment.
Maboneng, which means ‘place of light’ in Sotho, is a
hip lifestyle district spanning a number of blocks, all created by
one property development company, which now includes art
galleries; restaurants; boutiques; the Sunday Market on Main;
a cinema, The Bioscope; a backpackers hostel, Curiocity; and
Joburg’s newest museum, the Museum of African Design. This
is definitely the place to play in the city.
Main Street Mining District C-5/D-5, Main St, City
Centre. Main Street is the heart of the City of Gold’s mining
history and a walk along its many pedestrianised blocks
from the Carlton Centre all the way to Chancellor House is
a great way to get a feel for the inner-city’s rich mining past.
Situated all along the street are various relics from the early
gold-rush days such as covered wagons, stamp presses and
headgear from old mineshafts. Towards Chancellor House
you will find the headquarters of many of the world’s biggest
mining companies – the beautiful facade of Anglo American
is a particular highlight. On weekdays Main Street is filled with
office workers using its many street cafés. The area is safe,
clean and pleasant.
Mosque Nizamiye (Nizamiye
Complex) Le Roux
Ave, Midrand, tel. +27 79
029 0488, www.nizamiye.
co.za. The biggest mosque
in the southern hemisphere,
Nizamiye Masjid opened in
2012 and is modelled on a
16th-century Turkish mosque.
With its 21 small domes, marble
columns and rich mosaics, it is
an architectural site to marvel
at. The complex houses a
school, clinic, Turkish supermarket
and an exceptional restaurant, Ottoman Palace.
For a fascinating insight into the history of the mosque and
Ottoman architecture, call to book a tour with Ahmed Koban.
Nan Hua Buddhist Temple 27 Nan Hua St, Bronkhorstspruit,
en.nanhuatemple.org. The magnificent Nan
Hua Temple was donated by Taiwanese Buddhists when
Taiwan had close ties with South Africa and is the largest
Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere. It is located in
Bronkhorstspruit (about 45 minutes’ drive to the north-east
of Joburg). Open for lunch on Sundays from 12:00–13:00.
QOpen 09:00–17:00. Closed Mon.
Nelson Mandela Bridge C-3, Bertha St, Braamfontein.
Completed in 2003, the bridge is the city’s most impressive
new landmark, especially at night when it lights up with the
colours of the rainbow. At 284m long, it is the biggest cablestayed
bridge in southern Africa. The bridge links Braamfontein
to Newtown, and recalls Nelson Mandela bridging the
divides created by apartheid. Drive and don’t walk across it.
johannesburg.inyourpocket.com