Born a Crime Final Group Project

   Create tour guide to modern day Soweto 

• LoCrate Market is a popular place to buy and sell authentic handmade goods

• The Ubuntu Kraal Brewery is well known as the best place in Soweto to get crafted beer. 

•  Braaied meat, also known as shisa nyama , is extremely popular in Soweto and consists of barbecued or grilled meat that is cooked over an open fire. This traditional style of cooking is a South African staple that dates back hundreds of years.  Braai shops can be found in townships all across the country.

Culture and History of Soweto - This video talks about the Culture and History of Soweto, South Africa. It gives a little bit of information about the townships and population, and shows the community that they have. You get a little taste of the important historic places, and they mention how visiting allows you to live in their community, hear the languages they speak, and taste the food they make. It really shows that Soweto is a place that is welcoming to the tourists because they want to teach people about their culture.

Soweto, a township located in South Africa near Johannesburg, was originally developed by the government as a place for Black people to live separately from white people. To this, say it is the largest black urban complex in the country (Britannica). Soweto is a town of history and culture, making it a great tourist spot. There are many museums to visit and see key parts of the city’s history. They contain information about Soweto’s role in ending Apartheid. Then, when you’re done learning history for the day, you can get dinner at a local Soweto restaurant. Soweto offers many traditional South African dishes and restaurants (or fast food chains if you'd rather stick to what you know) for all meals of the day. This is a big change from how Soweto was under Apartheid. After fighting the oppressive government, they had to build their city up to be what it is today. Tevor Noah, in his book Born a Crime, describes what it was like during the Apartheid, stating “For the million people who lived in Soweto, there were no stores, no bars, no restaurants. There were no paved roads, minimal electricity, inadequate sewerage” (64). Soweto now has structures of unique and beautiful architecture and is located near Johannesburg, a bustling city filled with towering buildings. There are many tours offered that can help you learn about the culture, history, and accomplishments of Soweto.  

Soweto’s first settlement was established in 1903, formed when black workers arrived to work in the mines surrounding Johannesburg (Britannica Kids). From then and on, Soweto continued to grow and is now the county's largest black urban complex (Britannica). During the time of apartheid “...only black were permitted in Soweto”, but that has now since changed (Noah 68). Trevor Noah and the other million people in Soweto lived through the time of apartheid, along with having “no stores, no bars, no restaurants. There are no paved roads, minimal electricity, inadequate sewerage” (Noah 64.) Opposite of that, in today's age, you may visit museums and memorials such as the Mandela house, hector pieterson museum and memorial, and or take a walk down Vilakazi street home to many restaurants and stores (Trip Advisor). Those who lived in Soweto during times of the democracy, struggled, but once it ended, the people got to “...watch Soweto grow. Soweto has become a proper city unto itself. People went from three-room houses to five-room houses to three-bedroom houses with garages. There was room to grow because the piece of land from the government gave you something to build on” (Noah 290). Their country built itself up from just about nothing, and is now a place you can visit when in Africa.