Cape Town 6-6-86 To Cape Town

By Bob Van Leer
(Cape Town, South Africa, June 6, 1986) - Today was a day of relative rest after the tight scheduling of yesterday; not a single speaker, compared to the five of yesterday. In the morning we toured Johannesburg and shopped for African curios downtown. Then we returned to our hotel, the Sandton Sun, for lunch and to pack for the flight to Cape Town.

We left the hotel with some regret. Betty and I have stayed in a lot of hotels in a lot of cities, but the Sandton Sun is the finest we have ever stayed in. The service on all levels was unbelievable: touches as the cream for the tea or coffee, which is heated so it won't cool the beverage. We went by bus to Jan Smuts Airport for a two-hour flight to Cape Town. From the airport we were bused to the Cape Sun Hotel which is under the same ownership as the Sandton Sun, but the service, so far, is not quite as good. It's easy to get spoiled.
  We spent a quiet evening in the hotel room: time for a little rest and reflection. Two topics dominate the news, the possibility of increased sanctions against South Africa by the U. S. and June l6. The date of June 16 is important as it is the tenth anniversary of bloody riots in Soweto, a black companion city to Johannesburg with a population of 1.25 million.
  Observances of the day and a one-day work stoppage are scheduled throughout South Africa by the blacks. The South African government has banned any meetings in observance of the date, thereby setting the stage for what may become a disaster.
  Betty and I are due to fly from Johannesburg to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe in June 15 and so will be out of South Africa on the 16th, which may not be a bad idea. However, we are scheduled to return to Johannesburg on June 17 for our return to the U. S.