About RodP

Gender:

Male

Currently Lives:

Johannesburg, South Africa

Citizen Of:

United Kingdom

Dual Citizen Of:

South Africa

HR/Relo
Professional:

Provider of Expat-Related Services & Products

Some Forum Posts:

South Africa: Weekends away:

Google the following places: Hermanus (esp. during whale season Aug-Nov) Arniston (ditto) Barrydale Paternoster Greyton Darling De Hoop Montague All have excellent and economical B&Bs and are within a couple of hours of Cape Town

South Africa: Moving to CT:

If you and your husband can continue to work and earn a good living in Cape Town I cannot think of a better place to bring up children. The security question is as ever a matter of taking sensible precautions. I am also sure your parents will get used to it and will enjoy coming over to the Cape during their winter.

South Africa: Need to find furniture:

Which city Leigh?

South Africa: Port Elizabeth Neighborhoods:

Hi David They Port Elizabeth (universally known as PE) the friendly city, so I am sure that you will enjoy your stay there. Are you on assignment with your employer? If so will they be providing you with relocation assistance? I would recommend that you ask them to. Finding suitable secure accommodation can be tricky if you don't know what you are doing. As to cars - they are a little more expensive than in Europe and quite a lot more than The States. As an expatriate, financing the purchase of a car can also be difficult, so you may need to bring in funds for that purpose. There are no restrictions as to how much money you can bring in at the start, and take out at the end of your contract. The selection of cars that are available, both new and used in South Africa is a wide one, although few American models. Large SUVs are expensive. Check out www.carfind.co.za to get some idea of availability and new and used car prices.

South Africa: moving to swaziland:

The number of five-bed houses in Mbabane available for rent could probably be counted on the fingers of one hand. Can only suggest you contact Gwen Hadfield on +268 763 6801 Movers:- contact Elliott International on www.elliott.co.za Schools: Primary, Sifundzane, Usutu Forest.. Secondary Waterford Khumlaba (Google those)

South Africa: Moving to Standton (johnesburg) from India -- Need info:

Hi Mohandalai I would say that R330K per annum is a sort of lower middle management salary in SA corporate environment. Are your employers providing accommodation for you? If not, good accommodation in Sandton itself will cost between R10,000 and R15,000 per month, as it is an upmarket area. Cheaper accommodation is available, but will involve a bit of daily travel to work. Remember also that aside from the new Gautrain, which you may be able to use to commute every day, the public transport in Johannesburg is poor, and you will need a car.

South Africa: AfAm moving to Pretoria?:

Hi ZoMama I am a Joburger myself and don't know Pretoria as well (the name has officially been changed to Tswane - pronounced a little like Swanee River!), but it is a lovely city to live in. The climate is blissful and well suited to outdoor pursuits. Safety is not really any more of an issue than it would be in an American city. Just take sensible precautions and most importantly be aware of your surroundings. I always tell newcomers what a safe place this is - no hurricanes, tornadoes or blizzards. No earthquakes, volcanoes or tsunamis. Most importantly no terrorists or suicide bombers. We only have robbers, and they are not targeting expatriates in particular, just looking for an easy target - you just mustn't be that. As to finances - this is no longer a cheap country to live in. As an American you will find lots of things expensive - cars, fuel, consumer durables, and clothes are all more expensive here. Groceries and fresh food are much the same as The States. Accommodation is what you make of it, but remember to be safe and choose a decent location, and a home with good security. Winter is coming so you will need jerseys, but certainly not parkas!

South Africa: LEPHALALE (ELLIRAS), SOUTH AFRICA:

Hi Billy As a long-time resident of Johannesburg I can tell you that Lephalale (the 'h" is silent) is out in the bush. It's about 250 Kilometers from Joburg - say around 3 hours drive - a little less from Pretoria. It is classic "bushveld" with good wildlife, and some tourist potential. The Botswana border is only half an hour or so away. As a town it is really only there due to the coal mines and power stations in the area. I don't know it well, but it will be quite working class and mainly Afrikaans speaking. As to schools, there are likely to be some English medium primary and high schools, but places at them will be in high demand due to the many contractors on site at Medupi.

South Africa: Holidays in South Africa:

Indeed Haloween is not a siginficant event in South Africa (it really only is in America as far as I know). Our big hollidays are generally the Christian feasts of Christmas and Easter. Also New Year and that period is the time that most South Africans go on vacation. We also have some other historically based holidays, making up around ten public holidays in the year. The day that we use to indulge our national passion for the barbeque or "braai" as it is known locally is Heritage Day on 24th September. It has become known informally as National Braai Day, and is the day for friends and family to get together around the charcoal. If you have some new and interesting ways of working with a barbeque then it may l be welcome - but beware the the guys are generally in charge of the cooking, and they are quite set in their ways!

South Africa: Cost of living + GCSE ALevels:

Cost of living in South Africa is a little higher than UK, especially when it comes to consumer durables, cars etc. The only schools that offer A-levels are private schools. You can expect to pay around ZAR 50,000 per year, for excellent British public school standard establishments (Johannesburg - St. Johns, St Stithians, Roedean, St Andrews). There is also a British International College which I wouldn't recommend.

Date Joined:

12/6/2010

Total Posts:

19

Posts/Day:

0.01