South Africa 2011

I’ve been in South Africa for the last week on business. I did have the opportunity yesterday, thanks to a kind co-worker at this office, to explore a bit outside the realm of my hotel and workplace.

It’s been a very good trip. South Africa itself is very much a country of two worlds: the white elites, and the black underclass. The whites drive the cars, have the white collar jobs, afford the luxuries. They go from fortress to fortress, in their own mobile fortress. The blacks are relegated to the spaces in-between: walking the dusty streets or transiting in over-packed unpredictable minibuses, and work to serve the whites.

It’s not that there is discrimination per se. The government has enacted policies to encourage greater diversity in workplaces. I’m guessing that though the segregationist policies of Apartheid ended, the socioeconomic impact of those years have too much momentum to be rid of so easily.

I’ve been having a wonderful time. It’s a beautiful, raw, country.