Upcoming Festivals in Soweto

South Western Township or Soweto as it is more com­monly known is a melt­ing pot of South African cul­tures as well as a pop­u­lar tour­ist des­tin­a­tion. Orlando West in Soweto is the only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace Prize win­ners, both Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have houses in Vilakazi Street.

The Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto is the biggest hos­pital in the world. And if you are not yet con­vinced you need to pay Soweto a visit let us give you a few more reas­ons as Soweto will be a hub of activ­ity in September and October 2009 ...

The fun kicks off with the Soweto Festival from Thursday 24 to Sunday 27 September, this is help annu­ally on the Heritage Day weekend.

We couldn’t ask for a more mag­ni­fi­cent venue as Walter Sisulu Sqaure in Kliptown – this was where the his­toric sign­ing of the Freedom Charter by anti-apartheid organ­isa­tions took place in 1955 — it is also a national monument.

This fest­ival has a few hun­dred stalls with everything from tour­ism, crafts, fur­niture, health and beauty to prop­erty and hi-tech goods. There will also be day-long enter­tain­ment provided, so be sure you don’t miss out.

Food lov­ers will not be dis­ap­poin­ted as the Soweto Food Festival takes place from 1–4 October 2009 at the Hyundai Stadium in Pimville.

During this time both local and inter­na­tional con­tem­por­ary food will be show­cased. GHear about the latest trends in the food industry straight from the source as you rub shoulders with some of South Africa’s lead­ing “foodies”.

Beer, wine and whis­key tast­ings to com­pli­ment the deli­cious food will also be on offer.

This year marks the fourth annual Soweto Mushroom Festival where all things mush­room will be cel­eb­rated. The fest­ival starts on the last week­end of October (Friday 30 October to Sunday 1 November 2009).

An ini­ti­at­ive from the South African Mushroom Farmers’ Association in con­junc­tion with the Soweto Tourism Association the fest­ival aims to shed light onto the ver­sat­il­ity and fla­vour of mush­rooms. Soweto’s res­taur­ants, pubs and clubs do their share in sup­port­ing this fest­ival by cre­at­ing and serving unique and tasty mush­room dishes on their menus.

Mushroom cook­ing demon­stra­tions, prizes, mush­room tast­ings and plenty of inform­a­tion about fresh cul­tiv­ated mush­rooms will be on offer. If you would like more inform­a­tion about this unique fest­ival you can con­tact Sifiso on +27 (0)11 325‑6006.

And finally don’t for­get about the Nedbank Soweto Marathon which takes place on Sunday 1 November 2009.

It clear to see that Soweto has a lot to offer over the next few months, so be sure you don’t miss any of the action!

Useful Links:
Soweto Attractions
Soweto Accommodation
Things to Do in Soweto