Weather/Climate

Many people in the States have suggested that they will trade me weather. I am ready and willing, even happy, to avoid a second winter if at all possible. It is true that South African winter is mild compared to New Jersey, but it’s still cold! Most nights so far have been close to freezing, with a couple of nights getting there. I’ve had ice on my windshield one morning and there’s been frost covering the parking area at church.


The beautiful challenge is the lack of central heating. I appreciate that heating is unnecessary because most days rise to the 60s, but offices take a long time to heat up after long, cold nights! So, I’ll trade your heat and AC for my cold and colder. If I could type with my gloves on they would be worn at the office.

Just before I arrived Jo-burg received a good rain. Since I’ve arrived there has been another good rain, and the general moisture on some mornings has more than usual, demonstrated by the frost and ice mentioned above. It is not unusual for Johannesburg to be completely devoid of rain from May until September. In case you doubt me, know my host maintains a website based on his weekly monitoring of total precipitation fallen. He has studied the trends of annual precipitation figures over the last 100 years, which makes me an expert by association, as long as I am under this roof.

I also did not realize until my arrival that Johannesburg is quite elevated. The estimate in conversation was 6,000 feet. I found it difficult to believe, but low and behold, who am I to doubt someone who lives here? I do indeed feel the Sun as though I were in the mountains, and it is quite dry most days. And there are essentially no major geological activities to speak of: no fault lines, volcanoes, earthquake zones. South Africa seems to be one of the more geologically stable landmasses in the world. It also features the Cradle of Humanity… or Mankind… whichever one is not in Eastern Africa. I hope to visit sometime as they have some of the earliest bipedal fossils around, possibly rivaling Lucy.