Stores, Malls or Markets in South Africa

What to buy: It is often difficult for parents and grandparents to find something original to buy for the kids back home - for frequent travellers in particular, YET another cuddly toy or a T shirt will probably fail to elicit an enthusiastic response.

If you are looking for a gift for younger kids (say 7 and below), consider buying one (or more) of the brilliant Beautiful Creatures CDs by Ed Jordan and Alan Glass. They feature animal-themed songs that are tuneful, informative (and scientifically robust - there's even one on the correct use of collective nouns!) with a strong ecological message, and make for very pleasant listening even when you're hearing them for the 400th time! The animals they celebrate are all local, and include some weird and wonderful beasts (for example, buffaloes and bullfrogs) as well as the Usual Suspects - well, you would need to get a bit creative in your subject matter if you were up to a CD called Even More Beautiful Creatures (following on from Beautiful Creatures and More Beautiful Creatures).

Sample titles include Henry the Hungry Hadeda (a local extremely raucous form of ibis), The Last Chameleon and Horace the Hilarious Hyaena.

There are also other titles by the same artists: Beautiful Me (about being a kid, which is also very good, and deals with issues such as temper management) and one on Beautiful Creatures of the Sea (which has never really excited me as much).

After nearly 7 years of being subjected to children's music and feeling like The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round was going to do my head in if I heard it one more time, Beautiful Creatures are definitely my favourite (in fact I have even been known to play The Big Five Jive for my own personal entertainment from time to time!)

What to pay: R80-R120 per CD, depending on the store

This book, according to the back cover is “based on the 10-part documentary television series of the same name. “The South African Story with Archbishop Desmond Tutu” is a travelogue with a difference. Created by veteran journalists Roger Friedman and Benny Gool, and taking in all the country's nine provinces, it is a colourful tapestry which brings together the vibrancy and warmth of the diverse people of South Africa and the spectacular beauty of their land.”

Desmond Tutu is one of South Africa's most famous citizens, a Nobel Prize winner and once neighbour of fellow Nobel Prize laureate, Nelson Mandela, in Vilikazi Street, Soweto. He has lived and worked in South Africa all his life. He is passionately patriotic and he is wonderfully inspirational and entertaining.

Richly illustrated with sumptious photographs the order in which he deals with the provinces, and the sub-title for each of them is:

Western Cape – Cape of Storms
Free State – Riding the Plains
North West – Platinum Province
Mpumalanga – Land of the Rising Sun
Limpopo – Land of Myths and Legends
Gauteng – A Tale of Three Cities
Northern Cape – Diamond Province
Eastern Cape – Liberation Route
KwaZulu-Natal – Kings and Leaders

The religious basis from which the Archbishop comes is stated clearly in the first vignette: “God did something special here! You really can understand how, when He had created everything God said, “Even if I have to say so, this is pretty good work. Looking at the southernmost point of this African continent, I think I've got to do something special here.” This is a place where two oceans meet, and so God put together the mountains and the plants and produced this fantastic gateway in the south.”

Of Nelson Mandela's release he says: “And it was as though our Berlin Wall had fallen”.

The orangy-gold of the Free State, the maize fields, the sunflowers, the setting sun on the sandstone at Golden Gate, King Moshoeshoe (pronounced Moshweshwe), Winnie Mandela's exile to Brandfort where Desmond Tutu visited with the gift of Holy Communion and the gold under the ground are all explored. It is, however, the sub-title “Riding the Plains” that resonates with the stories my father told me of his father, as a fourteen year old boy who fled the English scorched earth policy towards the end of the Second Anglo Boer War and who spent hundreds of hours “Riding the Plains”. A photograph of a statue entitled “Afskeid” (Taking Leave) showing a woman sending a boer (farmer) to war brings sentimental tears to my eyes.

The Cradle of Humankind straddles Gauteng and the North West Province. Here Tutu visits Maropeng, the second largest deposits of platinum in the world, the Bafokeng heritage sites, with their totem, the crocodile, the Palace of the Lost City, Sun City and the Pilansberg Game Reserve in the beautiful Magaliesburg, and nearby Rustenburg.

Mpumalanga is known to the Siswati and Zulu-speaking residents as “land of the rising sun” is known for the beautiful vistas, the Big Five, the Kruger National Park and the home of Gerard Sekoto, one of South Africa's most prominent artists.

The Myths and Legends of the Limpopo include Mapungubwe, the giant baobabs, cycads, marula trees and wood sculptor Jackson Hlungwani. He ends by saying: “Limpopo is a place of dense bush and ancient secrets. It is a place of inspiration and reconciliation, a touchstone of our past and an ode to our resilience and our future.”

The “three cities” Tutu describes as being part of Gauteng, South Africa's smallest province, are Johannesburg, Pretoria and Soweto. Here I disagree with Tutu. Soweto is not a city on its own, but is a bustling part of the City of Gold, a place without which Egoli would be poorer.

From the smallest to the biggest of the provinces, Northern Cape, takes in the Augrabies Falls, the native Khoikhoi, the diamond fields of Kimberley, Barney Barnato, Cecil John Rhodes, Sol Plaatje and the flowers blooming in the desert.

Of the Eastern Cape Tutu describes Qunu, the birthplace of Nelson Mandela, East London where the first hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee under Tutu's chairmanship took place. East London is also the home of the only known dodo egg, and the coelacanth was found here in 1938. Port Elizabeth, Grahamstown and Port St Johns are all discussed.

Archbishop Tutu says: KwaZulu-Natal's story is surely one of the most fascinating to relate, an epic tale of warrior Kings, cultural diversity and breathtaking World Heritage Sites. It is a story told through rock paintings, the rich oral history and the traditions of the great Zulu nation, the arrival of European settlers and sugar plantations and, later, indentured workers from India.” One of South Africa's most famous heroes, Mahatma Gandhi, is associated with KwaZulu-Natal.

This is a charming book and one which both visitors and natives to South Africa's shores can enjoy and appreciate.

Title: The South African Story with Archbishop Desmond Tutu
“Narrator”: Archbishop Desmond Tutu
Authors: Roger Friedman and Benny Gool
Publisher: Penguin
Year: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-14-352814-2
Recommended Selling Price: R240.00

What to buy: The South African Story with Archbishop Desmond Tutu is an interesting travelogue through the eyes of one of South Africa's best known citizens.

What to pay: R240.00 for the book
Unknown for the ten part documentary series

Want to extend your spending money? Well, you'll be delighted to know that visitors can claim back the 14% Value Added Tax (VAT) on purchases exceeding R250 each that they export out of the country! This does not apply to services (such as accommodation and meals), but if you've been a good tourist and donated liberally to our Gross Domestic Product, then this can add up to a sizeable amount. But, as you might expect, it's not quite as easy as that ...

The VAT refund can only be claimed at airports and ports of departure from the country - follow the signs for the VAT Administration Offices. Bear in mind that in order to claim the refund, you will need to present the following documents:
* original tax invoices
* a VAT refund control sheet (pick up one of these from immigration on your way in, where they are on display
* a foreign passport
* the items on which VAT is being reclaimed. This is the real corker, as it means that what you're claiming on needs to be in your hand baggage. If your purchases are too large to be kept as hand luggage, you have the option of presenting the goods and relevant tax invoices at a VAT Refund inspection desk or to a South African Customs official prior to the goods being checked in (which, by now, is probably all getting to be rather too much of a schlep if you're burdened down with all your luggage and in mental departure mode).

Your refund will be made by rand cheque payable anywhere in the world, except South Africa. The cheques may be cashed at the airport banking facility, into a major currency of your choice, but in terms of admin and fees, I would strongly recommend against this option. By far the swifter and simpler option is to have your refund credited to your Visa or Mastercard credit card account

As with all aspects of South African bureaucracy, this is not a speedy process. If this is something that you think is worthwhile doing (and it certainly would be if you've bought items such as jewellery), then allow yourself an extra hour to complete this process.

Sounds complicated? Well, if you were a government, would you make it easy for people to reclaim money from you even if they're entitled to it??? Or am I just cynical???

Shoprite, Checkers, Pick'n'Pay and Woolworths (in order of increasing price) are probably the most widespread supermarket chains

What to buy: I think that one of the most interesting things to do in a new country is to wander round a supermarket (and peer surruptitiously into fellow shoppers' trolleys) to see what the locals eat! It's also a great way to buy cheap and original gifts, especially for the foodies you left behind at home.

So, what do you buy if you're looking to bring home a taste of South Africa? These are some of the things that South African expats hanker after (even if they seldom touched them when they were at home) - just be warned that some of these are acquired tastes!

* biltong, a dried, seasoned uncooked meat much like beef jerky (and, in my unconverted opinion, the texture of boot leather and the taste of spiced, salted cardboard) - which is eaten as a snack. Beware that many countries don't allow importation of meat products
* rooibos ('red bush') tea, a herbal, caffeine-free tea that is ascribed a whole slew of health and medicinal properties and is pleasantly refreshing
* Mrs Balls chutney, a spicy, fruit-based condiment - usually peaches or apricot - eaten with cold meat, cheese (and, by aficionados, with absolutely everything else!)
* peri peri, technically a Mozambiquean hot chilli sauce (also available as a spice) much beloved by Portuguese-speaking emigrees but happily adoped by South Africans - add it to a steak inside a white bread roll to make a prego roll
* South African confectionary ('sweets') reflects the strong British colonial heritage - not quite so sweet as US candy - and brands such as Cadbury are dominant. Tex Bars, Chomp Bars and Chocolate Logs are all uniquely South African, so if you want to ingratiate yourself with kids back home (your own or other's), why not buy a selection?

Bear in mind that certain countries (for example, Australia) have very stringent rules concerning the importation of animal and plant matter, so check in advance what you're allowed to bring back with you to avoid confiscation (and possible prosecution)

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Well, this tip is not so much about book shops as about some of the humour annuals that get put out.

Two delightful books of humour are the "Madam & Eve" series by Stephen Francis and Rico, neither of whom are South African, and the "Zapiro" political cartoons. The new annual are released in October each year. The 2011 Madam & Eve is entitled "The Pothole at the End of the Rainbow" and the Zapiro one is "The Last Sushi". It draws its title from a very, very expensive party Kenny Kunene threw at the end of 2010 at which sushi was eaten of the naked body of a young woman. It created a huge furore.

Both books are published by www.jacana.co.za, famous for "We publish what we like", a play on the words of Steve Biko who wrote "I write what I like".

What to buy: I particularly recommend the Madam & Eve books as they are very accessible.

What to pay: The recommended selling price is R145.00

Thanks to the favourable exchange rate, South Africa is a shopper’s paradise for international visitorsBrooklynmall(Gauteng)

Canalwalk (Cape)

Eastgate Shopping Centre (Gauteng)

Fourways Crossing (Gauteng)

Gateway (Kwazulu-Natal)

Hyde Park Shopping Centre (Gauteng)

Menlyn Park Shopping Mall (Gauteng)

Panorama Flea Market (Gauteng)

Randburg Waterfront (Gauteng)

Sandton City (Gauteng)

Somerset Mall (Cape)

The Mall of Rosebank (Gauteng)

Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (Cape

Pppppplease check my link included for more info.

Very large and modern mall (over 300 shops) where you'll find everything from clothing, books and cosmetics to electronics and home furnishings. There are several places to exchange money, a few restaurants and even a movie theatre. It is like most any major mall in the US with a few minor differences. Unlike most malls in the States (except for those in downtown urban areas) there is a fee for parking. The movie theatre also assigns you a seat when you purchase your ticket.

What to pay: Fairly inexpensive compared to American shops.

I told you earlier not to shop at the V&A Waterfront. That's because you can get lots of reasonably priced souvenirs at Greenmarket Square or the nearby Pan African Market. Not only are the prices cheaper to begin with, but you can also bargain and get that "first customer of the day" discount that seems so popular - no matter what time of day it is.

What to buy: We got some nice artwork, some carvings, but I still rue the day that I passed up the decorative ostrich eggs.

What to pay: As much or as little as you want.