As a thirty-something white male South African, I am old enough to remember the dark days of Apartheid. I imagine it may have been a little something like the U.S. in the 60's? Not pleasant memories. I had to do my time in the old South African Defence Force as well, when the Propaganda fed to us as naive 18 year old kids was horrendous.

Since our first democratic election in '94, much has changed, and most of it for the good. I guess we deserve the title of "Rainbow Nation"! I love living here and I love the beauty of this place. The cultural diversity I imagine hard to find anywhere else in the world. Although I have lived almost all my live in Johannesburg, I spent 5 years in Kwa Zulu Natal (The Zulu Kingdom), which was an amazing experience. They are a truly amazing people.

I consider myself an African first and foremost, as I was born here, and as yet I have never actually stepped off African soil. Although I speak Afrikaans, it is widely accepted as the 'language of the opressor', so it is dying out, quite frankly.

The problem today I guess is that the problem in this beautiful place is no longer racism, but instead uncontrollable crime, and unchecked corruption. The biggest problem of all is the AIDS pandemic. When you listen to a song like DB's AIDS & Armaggedon, and you lose at least two or three friends, colleagues or acquaintances a month to the disease, it can be a pretty surreal experience.

Probably the greatest ambassador we have ever had, Nelson Mandela, is doing his best to make a change, but he is not getting any younger and he seems to be fighting a losing battle.

Having said all of that, there is still a positive spirit in most people, and I know we will find the solutions..