I was attracted to Johannesburg by the many successful opportunities available in the city. This is the main reason I came to the city from northern KwaZulu-Natal, to succeed in my life through the world-class education I would get at Wits University, one of the best universities in the country. From an early age I perceived Johannesburg as the city of wealth and where dreams come true. In the short story Welcome To Our Hillbrow, the main character Refentse arrived in Johannesburg soon after matriculating to further his studies at Wits University. “When you left Tiragalong High School for the University of the Witwatersrand, at the dawn of 1991” (Phaswane Mpe, [42]) Refentse came from rural Tiragalong with the hope of an opportunity for a better future. The act of the main character of the story fully supports my thesis when I relate Johannesburg to opportunities for success and high-level education. To be successful you need to set goals and work hard to achieve them. Johannesburg made me understand the importance of setting goals and working hard to achieve them. What I've noticed, though, is that people in this city are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed. As many people flock to the city with the goal of making money, when things don't go as planned they become involved in crime and corruption. Crime and corruption have been presented as opportunities to make easy money and I believe this is the main reason why people flock to the city. These illegal ways of making money (such as prostitution, drug dealing and robberies) have posed a threat to many people's lives. The crime in the city pushed me to take better care of myself. I don't feel like a... middle of paper... ace where people take advantage of every single opportunity available to succeed, at someone else's expense. This rule seen as a great opportunity for others is also a great danger for others, so much so that in Johannesburg it is not possible to put all your trust in someone. The reason is that we all came to Johannesburg with one mission, to succeed whatever it takes. I therefore believe that there is very little chance that real relationships can be established in the city of gold. In the poem City Johannesburg, the poet perfectly personified the lifeless city by using the words “iron breath you inhale” (Wally Serote: 21). In this verse the poet implied that the city is cold and compared it and its people to a cold iron that has no feelings. In line 21 the poet fully supported my thesis that the city is a brutal place where no one can ever be trusted