Bloemfontein

Bloemfontein is the capital of the Freestate province. It is often called judicial capital of South Africa, even though South Africa's highest court is located in Johannesburg and Bloemfontein only houses the Supreme Court of Appeal.

Bloemfontein is laid out in a straightforward grid and it is easy to get around in. There are several interesting sites in Bloemfontein.

The city is home to numerous museums. National Museum is on the corner of Charles and Aliwal Streets in the center of town. Across the street from the museum is an area of several blocks of impressive historic buildings.

The Anglo-Boer War Museum was formerly known asthe Military Museum of the Boer Republics. It has exhibitions in the Anglo-Boer Wars and it is several kilometers south of town on Church Street. The nearby National Women's Monument was erected to commemorate the 26,000 Afrikaner women and children who died in British camps during the Anglo-Boer Wars. Another interesting museum is the Oliewenhuis Art Museum.

The Old Presidency is also worth a visit. It is on President Brand Street. There is a zoo in Kings Park, west of the city center.

Signal Hill, just north of the center, offers excellent views over Bloemfontein, but from Naval Hill further north the views are even better. Naval Hill has a large white horse laid out on its side that used to be a landmark for British horsemen coming from the north.

Naval Hill Planetarium can also be found in Bloemfontein. Boyden Observatory is an astronomical research observatory.

Antelope, ostrich and giraffe can be seen in the nearby Franklin Game Reserve. Other places of interest include the Maselspoort Resort and the Sand du Plessis Theatre.

Bloemfontein means 'fountain of flowers' in Afrikaans. It got its name from the abundance of roses in the area and it is often called the 'city of roses'. Each years a rose festival is held there.

There are many hotels and restaurants in the central Area of Bloemfontein. Transportation around the city is by bus and there are road and rail connections with most other cities in South Africa. The railway station is on the eastern side of the city center.

Bloemfontein is 420 km southwest of Pretoria, in the center of the country. Its Sesotho name is Mangaung, which means 'place of cheetahs'.