For digging deeper into social history: Braamfontein

A visit to Constitutional Hill in Braamfontein is a good place to continue brushing up on South Africa’s past, while also grappling with its present and the promise of its future. Here, you can explore the country’s progressive Constitution, lauded by the likes of the late US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The former women’s jail at Constitutional Hill is where political prisoners like Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and Fatima Meer served out their sentences. And the country’s Constitutional Court is in the same complex: an architectural masterpiece that boasts a wonderful art collection curated by former judges, featuring a Henri Matisse painting and a Dumile Feni sculpture.

As a student district, Braamfontein is home to some truly unique and diverse restaurants, such as Artivist which hosts cutting-edge jazz and world music performances in its Untitled Basement. Kitcheners Carvery and Bar is a great bar-slash-nightclub to finish off a day in “Braam” with a few beers and a late-night dance to amapiano music.