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Squid Inc
Feb 12, 2011
Hey everyone!

So I'm an Australian that's going to be swapping the vast flat landscapes of Perth, Australia for the vast bumpy landscapes of Cape Town, South Africa.

The good news is I have a heap of family over on that side who are happy to break me of my optimistic small-town habit of not locking my doors at night and leaving my car-keys in the ignition. The okay news is I've got a bit of money in the moving fund, a possible job lined up, and my partner is over there so he's happy to do the legwork as far as apartment viewing etc. are concerned.

The bad news is other then a few tourist experiences, I have very little idea of what areas would be good to live in, what the work culture is like, and just the nitty gritty of moving to a new city in another country. I'd like to stay in an area easily accessible to the city center since that's more then likely where I'll be working. I would have posted this in the moving megathread, but I noticed most of it seemed to be advice specific to North America.

So Cape Town goons, any advice for a new arrival? Any Australians here who've moved to what is arguably one of the most beautiful cities I've ever been to? I've always had a good time whenever I've visited, everyone seems super friendly, the beach and night life are fantastic, and there's all these wonderful little towns to drive out to when we've had a spare weekend.

I must mention that compared to Perth though, rents are dirt cheap. A swimmingpool, outdoor area and undercover parking in a new apartment complex that costs the same as a dingy one-bedroom here? Yes please!

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Crazy C
Dec 3, 2010
STOP LEECHING IMAGES, DICKFACE
Staying near the CBD can be a crapshoot. One suburb can have good and bad parts right next to each other, for example upper vs lower Woodstock is separated by a main road and are miles apart in terms of quality of living.

What kind of living budget are you looking at?

CBD, in terms of safety and theft, is worse than most areas so locking everything up is essential, even when you are at home at night, although this is kind of a rule of thumb for anywhere in South Africa.

If you have the :bux: then you should look at areas like Camps Bay, Sea Point/Green Point or De Waterkant (pretty much in the CBD). If you don't mind the commute there are surrounding suburbs that are more affordable but a completely different vibe to CBD. Anything West of Rondebosch is a no go zone (Athlone, Ottery, Elsies River etc).

Squid Inc
Feb 12, 2011
Thanks for the reply!

Yeah I noticed that about Woodstock. I found some suspiciously lovely apartments for a bargain price, and was unsure how nice the area was.

I'm looking at about 5-6,000 rand per month on preferably an apartment. I'd prefer a 2-bedroom if I could find it, so I can set up my studio and have a bit of extra space.

And yeah, I'm well aware of the dangers of living in South Africa. Other then telling you how wonderful the country is (it really is) there's nothing a South African loves doing more then telling you about all the HORRIBLE CRIMES that have occurred to one or more of their relatives recently. I spend most conversations like that looking like this: :stare:

I'll be relying on my partner for transport for the first few months, so I was wondering if Public Transport is a viable option if he's not available. Obviously if its late at night, I'd be better off catching a taxi or something, but during the daylight hours?

Crazy C
Dec 3, 2010
STOP LEECHING IMAGES, DICKFACE
Not sure if you have already been looking but look around on gumtree.co.za for places.

In terms of public transport we have trains that go to most suburbs and a decent bus system that runs on it's own road which is decent because traffic here is quite bad. Our "taxis" should be taken at your own risk and normal taxis as you understand them are extortionate.

Our Taxi and esteemed Taxi drivers.

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Squid Inc posted:


And yeah, I'm well aware of the dangers of living in South Africa. Other then telling you how wonderful the country is (it really is) there's nothing a South African loves doing more then telling you about all the HORRIBLE CRIMES that have occurred to one or more of their relatives recently. I spend most conversations like that looking like this: :stare:


You missed the other thread a couple months ago -- a couple South Africans were posting about their security setups (one is I think north of Joburg?) that had like automated turrets, guard dogs, laser defense grids, a single entry bridge rigged with explosives, and a 24 hour a day Predator drone for the neighborhood. My memory may be slightly exaggerating what was actually posted.

Edit: This is the thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643 archive access not required.

Edit: drat, my memory was not particularly an exaggeration. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643#post433831252

Saladman fucked around with this message at 11:21 on Oct 28, 2014

Crazy C
Dec 3, 2010
STOP LEECHING IMAGES, DICKFACE

Saladman posted:

You missed the other thread a couple months ago -- a couple South Africans were posting about their security setups (one is I think north of Joburg?) that had like automated turrets, guard dogs, laser defense grids, a single entry bridge rigged with explosives, and a 24 hour a day Predator drone for the neighborhood. My memory may be slightly exaggerating what was actually posted.

Edit: This is the thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643 archive access not required.

Edit: drat, my memory was not particularly an exaggeration. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643#post433831252

I'm 26 and I have lived in pretty decent suburbs all my life and we have been burgled twice and my car has been broken into once :(
Oh, and there was that time where the neighbors were being burgled and they decided to use our wall as their escape route. They didn't appreciate the fact that my dad was waiting for them with a loaded 357.

Squid Inc
Feb 12, 2011

Crazy C posted:

Not sure if you have already been looking but look around on gumtree.co.za for places.

In terms of public transport we have trains that go to most suburbs and a decent bus system that runs on it's own road which is decent because traffic here is quite bad. Our "taxis" should be taken at your own risk and normal taxis as you understand them are extortionate.

Our Taxi and esteemed Taxi drivers.



Yep, definitely been checking Gumtree. Although it seems most places on there only advertise a month or two in advance. So I'll have to hold tight for a little while at least.

Haha, oh man, those drat taxis. My grandma is old, angry and full of Afrikaans, and didn't give a poo poo about what my uncle had to say about a sixty year old woman catching one of those things to go shopping in Durban. She took me along once and it was exhilarating how few fucks the driver seemed to give.

Saladman posted:

You missed the other thread a couple months ago -- a couple South Africans were posting about their security setups (one is I think north of Joburg?) that had like automated turrets, guard dogs, laser defense grids, a single entry bridge rigged with explosives, and a 24 hour a day Predator drone for the neighborhood. My memory may be slightly exaggerating what was actually posted.

Edit: This is the thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643 archive access not required.

Edit: drat, my memory was not particularly an exaggeration. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643#post433831252

My uncle had something like that set up at his complex. It was like trying to enter the DMZ what with a guard every few metres in his own little box. Didn't stop them getting robbed twice though :(


Crazy C posted:

I'm 26 and I have lived in pretty decent suburbs all my life and we have been burgled twice and my car has been broken into once :(
Oh, and there was that time where the neighbors were being burgled and they decided to use our wall as their escape route. They didn't appreciate the fact that my dad was waiting for them with a loaded 357.

It's weird how I've grown up in the city here in Aus and have had almost no contact with guns at all. Visiting the same uncle I remember how spooked I got when he walked in, calmly dropped his massive shotgun(?) on the dinner table and just started eating supper like it was no big thang.

My sister grew up in South Africa and had her car stolen at gunpoint. She bought this tiny gun that holsters around her ankle. Still freaks me out.

Fake edit: oh great, I've begun to tell stories of all my relatives getting recently robbed. Truly, I have begun to assimilate already.

Crazy C
Dec 3, 2010
STOP LEECHING IMAGES, DICKFACE
A mate just got screwed renting a new place from a private ad on gumtree. Handed in all the normal requested docs and paid 2 months + rent. Arrives at the house to collect keys and sees a "Sold" sign in front and now can't contact the dude.

Maybe keep to rental agencies.

BlueBull
Jan 21, 2007

Saladman posted:

You missed the other thread a couple months ago -- a couple South Africans were posting about their security setups (one is I think north of Joburg?) that had like automated turrets, guard dogs, laser defense grids, a single entry bridge rigged with explosives, and a 24 hour a day Predator drone for the neighborhood. My memory may be slightly exaggerating what was actually posted.

Edit: This is the thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643 archive access not required.

Edit: drat, my memory was not particularly an exaggeration. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3654643#post433831252

Honestly, if ADT was to offer full 24H Drone Surveillance in my area, I would be signed up in an instant. Anyhow, Squid is moving to Cape Town, which is a lot safer than JNB generally, so he'll be allright

Squid Inc
Feb 12, 2011

Crazy C posted:

A mate just got screwed renting a new place from a private ad on gumtree. Handed in all the normal requested docs and paid 2 months + rent. Arrives at the house to collect keys and sees a "Sold" sign in front and now can't contact the dude.

Maybe keep to rental agencies.

Thanks for the heads up! When I was moving to Canada for school for a year I replied to a few of the obvious scam ones for the hell of it. The responses were always hilarious.

I've got more of an advantage in that my partner is there to look at places for me. In fact they're checking a place out for me this weekend in Observatory! Can anyone comment on the area?

davey4283
Aug 14, 2006
Fallen Rib
I met a guy from cape town in the bar once. He said there are 3 types of people in cape town. Blacks, whites, and mixed (capetonians).

Whites are on top, Capetonians are second and blacks are on the bottom.

Also, he said dont go to the ghettos. Thats all I know.

Crazy C
Dec 3, 2010
STOP LEECHING IMAGES, DICKFACE

davey4283 posted:

I met a guy from cape town in the bar once. He said there are 3 types of people in cape town. Blacks, whites, and mixed (capetonians).

Whites are on top, Capetonians are second and blacks are on the bottom.

Also, he said dont go to the ghettos. Thats all I know.

Lol everyone from Cape Town is considered Capetonian, the "mixed" you are referring to are called "coloureds"

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Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

I just noticed your user handle. Every piece of software I've ever registered with an "Organization" location has been registered under your user name.

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