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Nicole's
Travelogues and Budget Travel Tips..
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SOWETO (CONT.), SOUTH AFRICA
Then we went to the small house on the corner of Vilakazi Street and Ngakane Street in Orlando West. Mandela's first house (at 8115 Ngakane Street) - he moved there with his first wife Evelyn Ntoko Mase in 1946.
Next, we headed to the Hector Pieterson Museum in Orlando West, Soweto. The picture above was taken seconds after Hector Pieterson was shot. He was picked up by Mbuyisa Makhubu, who, together with Hector's sister, Antoinette, ran towards a journalist's car, where he was bundled in, taken to a nearby clinic, and pronounced dead. The museum had different mediums - photos, video clips, voice recordings, collages. There was one room devoted entirely to June 16th with chilling quotes and video clips of the police justifying murdering the children. It was a very goodand informative museum - even if you didn't know much about Apartheid and the Soweto uprisings beforehand. They have a small giftshop and there are street vendors all over outside - mainly selling African curios. We wished we had more time to spend there!
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Mandela House Museum (8115 Ngakane Street) is open every day from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm.
The student uprising that began in Soweto in June 1976 was a defining moment in South African history. The revolt was sparked off by a government ruling that Afrikaans should be used on an equal basis with English in black secondary schools. Whilst this was feasible in some rural areas, it was quite impossible in the townships, where neither pupils nor teachers knew the language. On June 16, student delegates from every Soweto school launched their long-planned mass protest march through the township and a rally at the Orlando football stadium. Soon after the march started, however, the police attacked, throwing tear gas and then firing. The crowd panicked, and demonstrators started throwing stones at the police. The police fired again. In the days following June 16, all Soweto schools were closed indefinitely, thousands of police were stationed throughout the township, and police brutality continued unabated.In Soweto, schools did not reopen until 1978, by which time many students had abandoned any hope of formal education.
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"Wonderboy, is this still Soweto?" After the squatter camp, we drove through the working class 'matchbox house' area and the middle class area of Soweto. We then went by the Regina Mundi Catholic Church - Soweto's largest Catholic Church. Regina Mundi was central to the liberation struggle by being a refuge of peace for the people of Soweto - particularly throughout the harshest years of repression from 1976 to 1990. 
After their divorce in 1957, she moved out. When Mandela married Winnie Madikizela in 1958, she joined him at the Soweto home. Winnie continued to live in the tiny house with her two daughters, Zeni and Zinzi, while Mandela was in jail. The house was 'petrol bombed' and set on fire several times during this time. Once release, Nelson insisted on returning to his old home, but its smallness and lack of security proved too much of a strain, and he moved out of Soweto. 
The Mandela House Museum had an interesting and random mix of Mandela and Winnie memorabilia. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and I could listen to his stories all day. After the 4-room tour (living room, dining room, kitchen, and bedroom) you can go to the tiny giftshop and stock up on Mandela trinkets. Yep it was cheesy but I bought stuff anyway! I got a couple Mandela keyrings, a Mandela bandana, a Mandela wall print, a Mandela Museum tshirt, a couple of postcards, and a Soweto baseball cap. They also have street vendors on the street that have a mix of Mandela and ANC stuff and African curios. 
That moment was preserved in Nzima's legendary photograph. "I saw a child fall down. Under a shower of bullets I rushed forward and went for the picture. It had been a peaceful march, the children were told to disperse, they started singing Nkosi Sikelele. The police were ordered to shoot." These are the words of Sam Nzima, recalling the events of June 16, 1976 in Soweto. 
Visiting the Hector Pieterson Museum concluded our Soweto tour and we headed out of Soweto. On our way, there were police cars & trucks (like photo to left) on almost every block. Wonderboy said that you can't find a cop in the central business district - where there is more crime - but you can always find cops in Soweto. Then he noticed that there were actually more cops than usual and he said that 'someone important' must be visiting Soweto again. Then he kept looking and said, "Not just someone important. Wonderboy thinks that it must be an important American visiting. When your President Clinton visited, there were police EVERYWHERE!" Yes there must be an American visiting."
