South Africa-Meri nazar se.......

IT has not only opened new job avenues, but has also offered people a chance to travel to different countries- offshore is the coined term in the IT terminology. Thanks to one such offer, we landed in Johannesburg, South Africa. Lesser known,lesser traveled part of this world- was my misgiving till I arrived here and found complexes full of Indians- people of Company transfers,business visas and of course the SA Indians-Indians,whose ancestors came decades back,mostly from Gujrat and made this country their homeland. People,who look like us, but are Africans in most respects. The term African for me always meant "Blacks". But now I am wiser- Africans can be "Blacks", "Whites", "Colored" and "Asians". This categorization appears on all official forms- be it an admission form of a school or the form for any visa.

The languages spoken here are Zulu, Afrikaans and English. I would specially like to mention that Afrikaans is quiet similar to German or perhaps Dutch, as South Africa was ruled by them for several years. But knowing German, I find a lot of common words. My complex for e.g. is called Waldorf- which means "Jungle Village"; the departmental stores Spar-meaning "Save"; "Straat- street and so on.

When I came here,I was freaked by the football mania- wherever you go, huge footballs have been set up- on the ground,in the air,as advertisements, for entertainment, around buildings...everywhere. But as I read about the SA history and the apartheid regime, the formidable prison of Robben Island and how football gave the country and its people a sense of being, I understood what being a host to FIFA 2010 means to them and the euphoria around it.

AS I talk of the people, the black SA is a hardworking lot. Poverty,unemployment and crime are rampant. Crime stories are abundant. Complexes are manned and electrically fenced. Walking on roads is rare. Stopping at a Robo (Signal) with your car windows down is calling for trouble. Showing off your trendy mobiles,laptops,ornaments is a big NO-NO.Certain predominantly black localities must be avoided completely. These few rules would be very handy in SA and would save you a lot of trouble.

Driving around SA at times other than the peak hours can be a treat. Two rules observed here are worth mentioning. If a Robo is not working at a cross, it is an unwritten rule that one car each side will pass at a time. And trust me the traffic moves swiftly. Secondly,if you allow a car to overtake you, the driver will thank you by switching on his emergency lights. Believe me,it feels great.

Being a tropical country, South Africa has lot of greenery and is a natural habitat to lot of animals and birds.But at a glance,I would describe African as "BROWN" and not "GREEN". Why??? The reason still eludes me. Till I find a suitable reason,you have a good time reading my attempt at briefly describing my present home away from home.