title: The Walls of Johannesburg
author: David Hogge
layout: post
permalink: /south-africa/the-walls-of-johannesburg.html
thumbnail: http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1172/1082656126_2d2a5d4891
thumbnail_alt: The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall
geo_latitude:
  - -26.201452
geo_longitude:
  - 28.045488
geo_address:
  - Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
geo_enabled:
  - 1
geo_public:
  - 1
categories:
  - South Africa
tags:
  - Africa
  - Apartheid Museum
  - armed response
  - crime statistics
  - crushed glass
  - electric fencing
  - Gauteng Province
  - hostels
  - johannesburg
  - masonry walls
  - Provinces of South Africa
  - razor wire
  - South Africa
  - Suburbs of Johannesburg
  - taxi service
---
Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don't go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. Every home has a sign advertising the security firm they use and many include an "Armed Response" sign as well.

In a city where it's not safe to go out after dark almost anywhere, and many places where you can't go day or night hostels in Jo'berg take on Orwellian proportions. Their goal is to have everything you need on site so you don't have to leave for any other reason than to go to the museum of the airport. And when you need to go there, they also operate their own in-house taxi service to get you from A to B. The message here is: do not interact with locals.

So why would you go to Johannesburg? Good question, well, it's a huge transportation hub, and home to the busiest airport in Africa. If you come to South Africa, you are almost certainly going to land here, or transfer here – welcome to Johannesburg.

The Malls of Johannesburg  
Here is a near complete list of "Safe" places to go in Jo'berg: The Mall, the other Mall, the Casino, and the Apartheid Museum. In our few days in Jo'Berg we spent a ridiculous amount of time at the Mall. In four days time we probably spent more time in shopping malls than we have in the last four years.

Jo'berg, the home of the happy (and safe) shopper.