Category: Climate

Winters on the Highveld are cold. Not as cold as our Tennessee winters, to be sure. In fact, most people in other parts of the world would kill for a summer that was like a Joburg winter. Cold nights yes, but lovely dry and sunny days, warm but not hot. The problem, however, are those cold nights. And the fact that no South African house has any central heating.

You know one wonderful quality South Africa has that often gets lost amidst the collective angst about crime?

It is a country almost entirely devoid of natural disasters.

Note that I said “almost,” before you start trembling with indignation about my demeaning your disastrous-ness in any ... 

You guys in Wisconsin, you know those autumn afternoons when the wind is howling outside and you are sitting in your cozy easy chair in shorts, surrounded by a cloud of central heating bliss? Well, here in Joburg, the wind is howling both outside AND inside the house ... 

If you’re holding out for a good winter storm and icy roads here in Johannesburg, you’ll have to wait until summer. Yep, the weather is kind of weird. Although still mostly very beautiful.

This was the scene in our yard last week, the beginning of February:

Looks like any good February day ... 

After berating American energy consumption in one of my recent posts, I have decided to put my money where my mouth is (a little bit). I have taken to hanging the laundry up to dry.

The good news is, hanging up your laundry is allowed here. In fact, most houses already come equipped with a special ... 

In one of my earlier posts I berated collective Joburg for amnesia about the fact that winters here are cold, so that every year you have to deal with a shortage of things to keep you warm. But now I understand why.

About three weeks ago I was still faithfully cranking up the gas heater every morning ... 

This post will be a rather long-winded way to give you yet another expat tip. One thing about living in Johannesburg that I find very curious, if not irritating, is that every winter there is a shortage of just about everything you need to ...