Sally Burdett

RADIO news host Sally Burdett was recently hijacked, but unlike others who use such an event as the reason to pack their bags and move to another country, she says that the hijacking just made her more determined to love Johannesburg.

"When you are confronted by the bad, you are also confronted by the good. My neighbours appeared to help out and this wiped out the negativity," she says.

So what does she love about Jo'burg?

"I love the cosmopolitan lifestyle, there is lots of energy here, people have a passion - Jo'burg exists for its people. Durban also has lots of energy but somehow the humidity gets to people - Jo'burg doesn't have that."

Burdett, who was born in England but has lived in South Africa from the age of three, moved to Jo'burg after completing a drama and journalism degree at Grahamstown and has been here for 13 years. "I figured that if I could make it in Jo'burg I could make it anywhere."

And make it she has. Burdett presents the SABC's One o'clock Live radio news programme every day on SAfm, a one-hour, fast-moving, punchy programme that has local newsmakers hopping.

What does she do to enjoy Jo'burg when not packaging news in her particular style?

"I go to the Emmarentia Rose Garden with friends and enjoy the gardens. Jo'burg has great shops and I enjoy the hustle and bustle of the shopping malls. There are wonderful restaurants and I love the street café culture that has sprung up in Jo'burg over the last five to six years."

Burdett does not waste Johannesburg's evenings either: "I love the beautiful evenings, with the balmy air - delicious," she says.

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