South Africa is a country that's blessed with more natural wealth than most others. And man has made the most of its bounty.

Gold! Gold! Gold! The chant rent the air over a hundred years ago as millions of prospectors descended on the high veld at the place that was known as eGoli or 'city of Gold'. The official name of the city that sprung up around the mines in the area is Johannesburg. Today, Jo' burg as it is commonly known, is a bustling city with around 10 million inhabitants. Each one trying to dig up more gold from this city that figuratively speaking has its streets paved with the precious yellow metal. Jo' burg is a classic example of man's naked greed for wealth manifesting itself on the streets, in its cars, buildings, boutiques and townships that have mushroomed in and around the city. So, why would anyone want to go there on a holiday?

Jo' burg is a throbbing, pulsating city, that embodies the changes that are taking place in the new South Africa. Horror stories of the apartheid regime have given way to new multicultural townships here. It's a city where poor black townships coexist with skyscrapers and glitzy arcades. Where the streets are jammed with native Africans and music and culture thrives in the bars and cafés. Most importantly, Jo' burg is the gateway to South Africa - a country that is so diverse in its natural beauty that one would tend to think that it truly is 'a world in one country'.

As in most modern cities, transportation isn't a problem in Jo' burg. Buses and taxies ply throughout the city with a fair amount of regularity, making it easier for the accidental tourist to wander about at leisure. The easiest way to get an idea of the lay of the land in is to take the elevator to the observation deck of the 50 storey Carlton Centre. Office blocks compete with townships for space as commerce and the business of living coexist in the city. Strangely enough, the City Centre gets deserted soon after commercial closing hours and it's the townships and suburbs that spring to life. On the North of the city, white townships throng with palatial bungalows and gleaming European cars, making one forget that you are in Africa.

Jo 'burg's real life is in the township of Soweto. A teeming mini-city with over two million inhabitants. From the outside, Soweto looks more like a concentration camp than a township, but then, as in most cases, appearances are deceptive. Venture in and you'll find that there are economic strata here too. From the well-off residents in their plush bungalows, to residents in low income housing, to squatters… Soweto has them all. The sanitation in many cases leaves a lot to be desired and it isn't safe to venture in there alone, but it's worthwhile taking a tour of Soweto. If only to get a feel of what life in South Africa's largest toewnship is like. Epecially, considering that those living outside Soweto treat it as though it doesn't even exist!

From Soweto to Hillbrow. And from a world of seething undercurrents to one of art, culture and kitsch. Hillbrow, with its high rise apartment complexes and tourist holtels, is one of Jo 'burg's most interesting suburbs. It's a laid-back arty kind of place that invites people to just do their own thing. In fact, this is one of the few places in South Africa where mixed-race don't even rate a raised brow or two. Hillbrow is a bohemian place with its fair share of late night cafes, bars, discos and pubs. The crowd is generally youngish, making it a nice place to just chill out, when the pressures of the city get to be too much.

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