4 ms·

Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. Both of these cities have loads of expats and intellectually stimulating environments. Big and spacious apartments fo

Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. Both of these cities have loads of expats and intellectually stimulating environments. Big and spacious apartments for $1000/mo or less. Fibre @ 40mbps for $100/mo or thereabouts. A country that has both tropical and Mediterranean climates (think of the fruit and veggies!) with beautiful nature (esp. CT where it's integrated with the city). Eat out every night in style at prices cheaper than a European corner cafe. In my experience EU food is overrated and expensive. Have been to America many years ago an all I can remember is that people and portions are big! Yes, there's crime. Happy to answer any questions.

ronaldl93 8y ago
The northern parts of Durban (Umhlanga / Ballito) is also nice. Good fibre infrastructure, relatively safe. Well developed. Tropical Climate. Very English.
- nsomaru 8y ago
  I'm actually a Durbanite living in Westville but I can't recommend Durban having lived in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Mumbai and Berlin. Spend too much time in Durban and I end up feeling like I'm intellectually frustrated. A lot of it might have to do with my race group and the fact that it is a minority nationally with a high concentration in KZN. You probably know what I'm saying ;) There's implicit racism in Durban which is very difficult to live with if you are not expat or white ("English"). There are very few tech meetups and general opportunity for intellectualism/tech in Durban. Shoutout here to OpenDataDurban and Code4SA! I'd love for you to correct me, though. And if you're in Durban, maybe we can get a coffee? hnusername@gmail.com That being said Durban is really cheap and has the best beaches in the world!
  - mad_tortoise 8y ago
    Get Slack and check out ZA Tech slack: https://zatech.github.io/ https://zatech.github.io/ A really great community, also the look for the #tech-for-good channel which is in conjunction with Codebridge SA is a really great resource.
  - ronaldl93 8y ago
    Yeah for sure... I get exactly what you're saying. I surf so this is the main reason I'm here for now.. I am working remotely though and will be moving back to Asia later this year, before the vaalies pull in. But otherwise, in terms of weather - you can't beat it. And yes... I think this place is kinda giving me "island syndrome"... That's why I need to get out of this place for a bit. haha
  - kenneth 8y ago
    Having lived in Durban my high-school years… I can't recommend it. I hated every second of it. I found the place to be utterly corrupt and demoralizing. It takes a toll on you to have to rely on private drivers and gated communities only to feel remotely safe. It's like living in a prison. Seeing the decline of the country via Jacob Zuma's rise, and the breakdown of infrastructure while I lived there was another level of depressing. The traffic is horrendous too.
    - nsomaru 8y ago
      While I can see where you’re coming from with the other points, private drivers are not really a thing (you do need a car though). Traffic is also basically non existent if you have lived in any other major city in the world. Like 15-30mins max in peak times and the max commute is 15mins anyways to get from most places to anywhere else.
      - kenneth 8y ago
        According to a quick Google Maps check right now, my commute every day to school was ~20min by default, but probably closer to 40min in morning traffic. From the Bluff to Glenwood. Granted private drivers aren't always a thing — but certainly driving from safe place to safe place is — whether it's driving yourself, being driven by family, or by a driver.
        nsomaru 8y ago
        I agree with you and have often noted that it’s like you’re driving from one prison to another. Re: commute time, was more in context of this thread, where one would be more likely to live in {Glenwood, Umhlanga, Westville, Morningside, Etc.}. Durban isn’t the best, but there’s a good early morning beach culture and a cheap standard of living. Owning your own free standing property is relatively cheap by international standards and you can get one in a new secure gated estate on a golf course which you have no reason to ever leave if one of the old English/Dutch mansions doesn’t suit you ;)
        8y ago
whitef0x 8y ago
How bad is the crime? I've talked to a few who've lived there but they always tell me the crime forced them to move out. Do hijackings at robots still happen often?
- nsomaru 8y ago
  The fact that you call a traffic light a "robot" makes me suspect you're a South African or your parents are :) I have never been hijacked, robot or otherwise. The worst that happened to me was getting mugged in a dark alley around 7pm in Cape Town. Rely shouldn't have been walking around that neighbourhood well-dressed. In general I leave my laptop in the trunk and ladies leave their bags there too. The most common form of traffic light theft is "smash and grab" which is entirely mitigated by getting the right kind of windows and not leaving your stuff on the seat/where it's visible. In ZA 80% of the crime is committed against poor people, which really sucks but which realistically means that only 20% of the crime stats actually would apply to the affluent/expats. Ultimately you need to be a little more vigilant and aware, but not much more than you would be in any major city.
  - nevertoolate 8y ago
    Most honest comment. Love how it unfolds.
  - bogomipz 8y ago
    >"The most common form of traffic light theft is "smash and grab" which is entirely mitigated by getting the right kind of windows and not leaving your stuff on the seat/where it's visible." That's quite a statement that the experience of waiting at a stoplight would be improved by investing in special windows for your car. Does this to all of ZA or just Cape Town?
    - nsomaru 8y ago
      Its quite common for almost all new cars to come with driver and main passenger side windows with the “smash and grab” tint. I would recommend this to anyone driving in South Africa. I’ve never been smash and grabbed because I generally pay attention to anyone approaching my car and try to make eye contact. Usually people are zoning out on their phone or whatever and make easy targets.

ronaldl93 8y ago

The northern parts of Durban (Umhlanga / Ballito) is also nice. Good fibre infrastructure, relatively safe. Well developed. Tropical Climate. Very English.

nsomaru 8y ago
I'm actually a Durbanite living in Westville but I can't recommend Durban having lived in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Mumbai and Berlin. Spend too much time in Durban and I end up feeling like I'm intellectually frustrated. A lot of it might have to do with my race group and the fact that it is a minority nationally with a high concentration in KZN. You probably know what I'm saying ;) There's implicit racism in Durban which is very difficult to live with if you are not expat or white ("English"). There are very few tech meetups and general opportunity for intellectualism/tech in Durban. Shoutout here to OpenDataDurban and Code4SA! I'd love for you to correct me, though. And if you're in Durban, maybe we can get a coffee? hnusername@gmail.com That being said Durban is really cheap and has the best beaches in the world!
- mad_tortoise 8y ago
  Get Slack and check out ZA Tech slack: https://zatech.github.io/ https://zatech.github.io/ A really great community, also the look for the #tech-for-good channel which is in conjunction with Codebridge SA is a really great resource.
- ronaldl93 8y ago
  Yeah for sure... I get exactly what you're saying. I surf so this is the main reason I'm here for now.. I am working remotely though and will be moving back to Asia later this year, before the vaalies pull in. But otherwise, in terms of weather - you can't beat it. And yes... I think this place is kinda giving me "island syndrome"... That's why I need to get out of this place for a bit. haha
- kenneth 8y ago
  Having lived in Durban my high-school years… I can't recommend it. I hated every second of it. I found the place to be utterly corrupt and demoralizing. It takes a toll on you to have to rely on private drivers and gated communities only to feel remotely safe. It's like living in a prison. Seeing the decline of the country via Jacob Zuma's rise, and the breakdown of infrastructure while I lived there was another level of depressing. The traffic is horrendous too.
  - nsomaru 8y ago
    While I can see where you’re coming from with the other points, private drivers are not really a thing (you do need a car though). Traffic is also basically non existent if you have lived in any other major city in the world. Like 15-30mins max in peak times and the max commute is 15mins anyways to get from most places to anywhere else.
    - kenneth 8y ago
      According to a quick Google Maps check right now, my commute every day to school was ~20min by default, but probably closer to 40min in morning traffic. From the Bluff to Glenwood. Granted private drivers aren't always a thing — but certainly driving from safe place to safe place is — whether it's driving yourself, being driven by family, or by a driver.
      - nsomaru 8y ago
        I agree with you and have often noted that it’s like you’re driving from one prison to another. Re: commute time, was more in context of this thread, where one would be more likely to live in {Glenwood, Umhlanga, Westville, Morningside, Etc.}. Durban isn’t the best, but there’s a good early morning beach culture and a cheap standard of living. Owning your own free standing property is relatively cheap by international standards and you can get one in a new secure gated estate on a golf course which you have no reason to ever leave if one of the old English/Dutch mansions doesn’t suit you ;)
        8y ago

whitef0x 8y ago

How bad is the crime? I've talked to a few who've lived there but they always tell me the crime forced them to move out. Do hijackings at robots still happen often?

nsomaru 8y ago
The fact that you call a traffic light a "robot" makes me suspect you're a South African or your parents are :) I have never been hijacked, robot or otherwise. The worst that happened to me was getting mugged in a dark alley around 7pm in Cape Town. Rely shouldn't have been walking around that neighbourhood well-dressed. In general I leave my laptop in the trunk and ladies leave their bags there too. The most common form of traffic light theft is "smash and grab" which is entirely mitigated by getting the right kind of windows and not leaving your stuff on the seat/where it's visible. In ZA 80% of the crime is committed against poor people, which really sucks but which realistically means that only 20% of the crime stats actually would apply to the affluent/expats. Ultimately you need to be a little more vigilant and aware, but not much more than you would be in any major city.
- nevertoolate 8y ago
  Most honest comment. Love how it unfolds.
- bogomipz 8y ago
  >"The most common form of traffic light theft is "smash and grab" which is entirely mitigated by getting the right kind of windows and not leaving your stuff on the seat/where it's visible." That's quite a statement that the experience of waiting at a stoplight would be improved by investing in special windows for your car. Does this to all of ZA or just Cape Town?
  - nsomaru 8y ago
    Its quite common for almost all new cars to come with driver and main passenger side windows with the “smash and grab” tint. I would recommend this to anyone driving in South Africa. I’ve never been smash and grabbed because I generally pay attention to anyone approaching my car and try to make eye contact. Usually people are zoning out on their phone or whatever and make easy targets.