I really appreciate all the advise I've recieved from you Brady. Thank you very much. Regards Patrick

Thanks a lot for your advise Richard. I can use all of the above advise during my discussions. Regards Patrick

Hi, This is my first post, although I have been visiting often and the lounge is definitely my favourite place to visit. I have a bunch of questions that I hope some of you can help answer. My company is in the midst of finalising a project in Johannesburg. Initial period is about 3 months with the possibility that the client might rope us in for other solutions for a period of 1 year. My problem is that, other than the obvious pieces of information I know next to nothing about SA. The websites that I googled tend to not contain the information that I'm looking for or leave me a little confused. I'm planning on moving with my family as I would love for my kids to get to experience a totally different land and customs from those that they are used to but I'm also worried about their schooling and safety. I have a few questions, answers to which would help me in my discussions with the company. 1) The first and foremost question is about crime rates and safety in SA and specifically in Jo'burg. Apart from common sense precautions that would make sense in any country, is it really safe? 2) How affordable is accommodation in Jo'burg? What is the average rental for a two bedroom apartment? Is it cheaper and/or safer to rent an apartment or a house? 3) How is public transport? Is it safe and reliable or are we looking at car rentals? How expensive are car rentals? 4) If we move there for a year I'd like to place my oldest in school there and possibly my second one if he becomes of schooling age while we are there. Would it be better to place them in a local school or an international school? I've found one website which claims fees as ranging between R10000 to R35000. Is this accurate or outdated information? Most websites indicate that the school year starts in June. Is this correct? I'll appreciate any information that I can get on the above.