World Cup soccer matches will be held for a month beginning June 11 in South Africa. Foreign ticket sales, particularly in Europe, have been disappointing, but organizers still expect up to 350,000 people to travel here for the continent's first World Cup. Nine South African cities will host matches starting June 11, and many visitors will want to see local attractions in addition to the games. Here is a glimpse of the cities and some local highlights. Bloemfontein The nearby Soetdoring Nature Reserve is a birders' haven, military buffs will be drawn to Bloemfontein's Anglo-Boer War cemetery, and sports fans can take time out from football to visit this rugby-loving city's Choet Visser Rugby Museum. Bloemfontein is about an hour's drive from Maseru, capital of the landlocked kingdom of Lesotho, with its spectacular, high-altitude vistas and pony treks. Cape Town Known as the Mother City, this cosmopolitan port city grew from a settlement founded by the Dutch East India Company in 1652. Cape Town is famous around the world for its dramatically beautiful setting, beneath Table Mountain and at the confluence of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Nelson Mandela spent most of his 27 years in prison off Cape Town on Robben Island, now a museum accessible by ferry. Cape Town winters can be wet and blustery — the ferry to Robben Island doesn't run when seas are too choppy. When fans aren't at Cape Town's new World Cup stadium, they might want to consider some indoor tourism. If you can't get out on the water, substitute the Two Oceans Aquarium at the V&A Waterfront shopping center. The aquarium offers puppet shows and other activities for children, and is home to some 3,000 animals in exhibits focusing on everything from frogs to sharks. Nearby Pollsmoor Prison, where Mandela was held from 1982-88, welcomes visitors for meals at the Pollsmoor Mess, a full-service restaurant run by prisoners. Durban The main city in KwaZulu-Natal is Africa's busiest port. The area gave South Africa King Shaka, considered the 19th century founder of the Zulu nation, as well as its current president, Jacob Zuma. World Cup visitors will find some of South Africa's best winter weather here, with water temperatures warm enough for swimming in the Indian Ocean. History buffs should visit nearby battlefields where British, Zulu and Afrikaner soldiers clashed in the 19th century. Foodies can taste local Indian cuisine, developed by South Africans descended from indentured workers brought from India in the 19th century to work on KwaZulu-Natal's sugar plantations. Durbanites claim to have invented bunny chow (curry served in a hollowed-out loaf of bread). Johannesburg South Africa's economic hub is home to headquarters of the nation's banks and its mining companies, and to the mansions of its gold and platinum magnates. Johannesburg has two World Cup stadiums, and is within easy driving distance of two other host cities, Pretoria and Rustenburg. Fans should make time for the city's restaurants and contemporary African art galleries, markets for curio lovers, and clubs where you can hear the latest kwaito, sometimes known as South African hip hop. A row of mine dumps separate downtown from Soweto. Once a dormitory community the apartheid government built for blacks, Soweto now is a vibrant urban center that is part of greater Johannesburg. Soweto's Vilakazi Street boasts of having been the address of two Nobel peace laureates — retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Mandela. No. 8115 Vilakazi Street, the humble brick home to which Mandela returned after being freed from 27 years in prison, is a museum. Nelspruit A fruit-farming hub that competes with Durban for balmiest winter weather. Instead of Indian Ocean beaches, Nelspruit has Kruger National Park, South Africa's flagship state park. Kruger accommodations range from luxury lodges with rooms with private plunge pools to sites where you can put up your own tent. Malelane and Numbi gates, southern entrances to Kruger, are less than 60 kilometers from Nelspruit. A slightly longer drive will get you to neighboring Mozambique's seaside capital, Maputo, and Mbabane, capital of Swaziland, Africa's last absolute monarchy. The Crocodile and Nels rivers converge in the Nelspruit's Lowveld National Botanical Garden, where a suspension bridge offers a view of spectacular falls. Polokwane This agricultural, mining and manufacturing center is a major stop on the busy route from Johannesburg to Zimbabwe. Its corner of South Africa is eerily beautiful, with stretches of flat, dry landscape broken by statuesque baobabs and dramatic boulder formations. Attractions in the area include the Modjadji Nature Reserve, a forest of cycads, a protected species native to southern Africa. Port Elizabeth This Indian Ocean port city is known for its beaches, a wealth of examples of Art Nouveau architecture and the elephants of nearby Ado National Park. Pretoria South Africa's executive capital is known as the Jacaranda City. Pretoria won't be in full, purple bloom in June, but its hilltop Union Buildings, seat of the presidency, will be stately as ever. In 1994, Mandela took the presidential oath of office on the steps of the Union Buildings. Pretoria also is home to the mammoth Voortrekker Monument, honoring 19th-century pioneers who battled Zulu warriors to settle South Africa's interior. Rustenburg Rustenburg's World Cup matches are being played in a stadium owned by the Bafokeng-Bakwena, or “People of the Crocodile,” a South African clan proud of its history. Nearby attractions include the Sun City resort, the Pilanesburg National Park and Hartbeespoort Dam.
