Wendy Knowler – Columnist & Blogger in Durban
Wendy Knowler is sapeople’s featured blogger from Durban and is a syndicated consumer columnist for Independent Newspapers. Her Consumer Water column is published twice weekly in The Star, Pretoria News, Daily News and Cape Times. She also presents a weekly consumer show on East Coast Radio. 1. Proudest achievement to date? As a B.Comm drop-out, […]
Wendy Knowler is sapeople’s featured blogger from Durban and is a syndicated consumer columnist for Independent Newspapers. Her Consumer Water column is published twice weekly in The Star, Pretoria News, Daily News and Cape Times. She also presents a weekly consumer show on East Coast Radio.
1. Proudest achievement to date?
As a B.Comm drop-out, it was hugely satisfying to win an award for finance journalism a few months ago !
2. So why do you live in Durban?
It’s home; I love that I’m surrounded by family and friends I regard as family, and I love the feeling of total belonging and “connection” that comes from living in the city of one’s birth. I love Durban for what it is, too. Its relaxed, friendly people; its “melting pot” of cultures, its proximity to ‘Berg and bush, its lush vegetation and I love that I can hop into the car and be running on the beach with my dogs 10 minutes later.
3. Best two things about Durban?
The weather and that it’s a true African city.
4. Worst two things about Durban?
Litter and grime. The inhabitants’ general lack of pride in the city…
5. If you could go anywhere in the world tomorrow, where would it be?
I’d like to spend a couple of weeks rediscovering London, where I lived in the mid-90s.
6. Most interesting person you’ve ever met and why?
Richard Branson. I interviewed him in October 1996 on board his inaugural flight from London to Jo’burg, at 5am, sitting in the first class galley. That whole maverick billionaire vibe is intriguing, and he’s disarmingly approachable.
7. Your motto?
To see a wrong and not expose it, is to become a silent partner to its continuance.
8. Please finish…
One day I plan to… disappear for a week on my own to a cottage in a glorious setting, with a pile of novels.
9. When did you last travel overseas and how did it feel to you?
I travelled to Colorado USA last November/December to spend some time with my sister who lives there. It was great to catch up with her and her kids. The general mood there was post-Obama election win euphoria mixed with recession panic. It felt weird to sleep in a house with a front door which didn’t have a key!
10. Please finish:
a) South Africa made me…grow accustomed to living on the edge
b) South Africans are so…unique!
c) I wish South Africans would…get over the past and celebrate what we have overcome and what we can achieve together
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