Jill xx

Try checking a little on the specific neighborhood you’d live in, there are differences. Also, as a pretty general rule, maybe try to go there for a short visit yourself to get a feeling of the place.

But if you’re just concerned it may be terrible and make you regret going, I think you have nothing to be worried about, as long as you don’t need to have a very large and active/crowded city around you.

In this specific case, well, I did like Bloemfontein, and the people I did meet there, very much. Originally I planned to cover some of the places I’ve been to, and the things I saw, more deeply in future posts. I just haven’t counted on my laziness, which caused me to only have this single post that was supposed to be a sort of an introduction-overview.
Which sort of explains why it does seem to have less good parts than others, because I plan on covering the good parts again later in more details, and not the other parts.

Still, given that it’s not overall a bad piece even as-is, I don’t intend to edit it. Especially considering that the only acceptable editing will be to expand on the good parts, and if I do that, I might as well do it in future posts as intended.

Jenny, thank you for your comments and the information.

As I wrote, the opinions about the hospital, and the coloured townships, came from several of the white people I talked with. I did not visit the hospital, but rather just saw it from the outside. And my pass through/near the squatter camps was in a car, we did not stop to talk to people. The area did look very neglected and run-down, but I had no way to judge for myself the behaviour of the people toward strangers. I do not know whether you received kind treatment because the people there are nice to anyone, or because they are nice to anyone except some of the white people.

No need to get too excited about the hospital, though. I’ve travelled a little myself, and though I usually have little reason to stay in hospitals I can tell you that the quality varies a lot, and all places have both very bad, and very good hospitals. But to be honest, when you don’t say that the hospital is good, but that it’s good "for a government/provincial hospital", well, that does say something about it. There’s a difference between something being absolutely good, and something just being good compared to its class.

BTW, I’m curious, are the two of you together? The two comments came within about 15 minutes of each other, and from the same IP address…

Thanks for your comment, and for the Naval Hill name explanation. Sorry for not being around to respond sooner.

I did enjoy the city of Bloemfontein when I was there. Some parts looked less impressive, like in any city, but many parts were very nice, and so were the people.

Enjoy your home visit.

Although it is true that Mangaung refers to the municipality, (rumour has it that the city name will be changed eventually) I found your comments in general very accurate. And yes, as someone else stated on this blog, Afrikaans is not spoken purely by whites. However the statement does not hold true for Bloemfontein. Fact is: Afrikaans is spoken by the majority of white people living in Bloemfontein, as you have experienced from your travel.

Naval Hill was named after the 2 British Naval fleet canons left behind after the Anglo-Boer war 1899 to 1902. It is the only game reserve in a city centre to be known in South Africa.

There is also Maselspoort Pleasure Resort and State President Swart Park and Kings Park with its more than 4 000 rose bushes, and visiting the Rose Festival in October is well worth your time.

And then there is the “new” Loch Logan, Bloemfontein’s own waterfront. I hear the new development is looking spectacular.