Some may consider Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative center, Johannesburg’s step-sibling, but Pretoria has come into its own. The Palace of Justice is where Nelson Mandela was tried and the site of one of his prison cells. See the statue of Mandela in Union Square, a clear sign that Pretoria has come out on the right side of apartheid.
Church Square, the center of the city, with its wide variety of European architecture, is the site of Mandela post-imprisonment inauguration. Just south of the city is the remarkable granite Voortrekker Monument, commemorating the Voortrekkers. This massive granite structure is prominently located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the Voortrekkers (forerunners) who migrated from the east, much like the American settlers did.
The climate turns the city a sumptuous green in the summer, but when the Jacaranda trees come into bloom, all of Pretoria has a beautiful purple haze. Let your Pretorian photographer catch the luxuriant colors that are a part of Pretoria.
