Rand Show’s a jol

It’s been a while. But this is the second year that the Rand Show has been back at the Nasrec Expo Centre, and for families, it’s a great day out.

Even if it’s just to get your steps in for the day, because it’s easy to forget how massive the property is.

And the organisers did well to spread it out and fill almost every available space.

Frustratingly, there was not a single ATM at the Rand Show.

Unless they were so well hidden that the staff also had no clue where the banks planted their machines.

This made it impossible to go on a helicopter ride, because Capital Air ran a strictly cash business.

Moral of the story: pack notes. The entry fees are reasonable at R340 for a family of four and R140 bucks each for extra individuals.

Bank on a six-hour minimum Rand Show visit

You get your money’s worth, because it’s not expensive, and a six-to-eight-hour visit is not unusual for timing.

Disappointing was the Mama Magic expo, once the plaza for parents to be, it was somewhat messy, smaller and a strange exhibitor mix.

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Some stands felt as if they were just plonked into the hall because there was nowhere else to put them.

This exhibition needs a lot of work to restore it to the pre-Covid mommy-and-daddy heaven it used to be.

But that’s ok, for now, because on balance, the rest of the show was more or less great, but there was another hall that needs attention by the Rand Show organisers.

Disappointing Shopping Hall

The Shopping Hall didn’t offer much new. It was flea market vibes, and a selfie here wouldn’t make any sense unless you tag the location.

There was nothing new, nothing exciting, and it was a quick flik-flak to get out of there to something a bit more interesting. And there was a lot of that, at least.

The Rand Show kids’ area was an entire hall filled with sandpits, an underwater lighting, sound, and audio visual experience that was a lot of fun, a stage with kiddies’ performances and cool stuff to check out.

Well done on this, and it made for a bucketload of great family pictures and activities.

SANDF’s exhibition the highlight

The biggest highlight of the show is the South African military display.

It always draws a crowd. And the theatre of conflict staged in the arena, a blast of a good time.

There are so many military vehicles around that anyone can be forgiven to wonder whether the sum of the South African National Defence Force’s (SANDF) operational machinery was at the Rand Show.

This year, unlike several shows ago, the aerial display was missing. But that’s probably because our Air Force is mostly grounded.

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Yet, the ground assault displays, and the attack dog tackles thrilled the audience.

It’s loud, it’s got machine guns and troop carriers. It’s fun.

The recce and special forces display, where you are not allowed to take pics, is extremely interesting and the soldiers engaging with the public were exceptionally friendly and knowledgeable.

They enthralled my kids with their big guns, demonstrating exactly how they work, and in another hall, the public got to target practice and check handle the big guns.

Overall, the SANDF’s exhibition was excellent. It made me feel proudly South African.

Fun things do to at Rand Show

The Rand Show is for kids. Through and through.

Because not only are there fun things to do but it exposes them to a whole lot of exhibits and experiences that they would not be, on any other given day.

The Johannesburg Metro Police (JMPD) road safety adventure for kids was fun, too.

Here, the officers were much friendlier than at a road block and took time and interest in kid-visitors.

Well done to JMPD for this great initiative and the fabulous officers in attendance.

There really is a lot to do, and while the rides at the carnival are not cheap, it wont break the bank if you budget carefully.

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The Looping Star, retired now, once used to be a fairground rollercoaster landmark. Its absence, somewhat sad.

The giant Omo jumping castle was a massive hit. It spanned across several hundred square metres, it was free, well supervised, and so much fun for adults and kids.

Probably one of the best commercial exhibits was Sunlight. Yes, the cleaning stuff.

There were a few freebies and excellently informed and helpful promotional staff.

And while the mechanics of their promotion were somewhat convoluted and very last century, the experience was good enough to make me choose the brand over others next time I buy dishwashing liquid and laundry powder.

Coke promo made me yearn for Pepsi

Coca Cola’s Rand Show stand was probably the worst promotion of them all.

Just outside the food hall a stand was staffed by someone who shouldn’t see dealing with people as her calling.

Rude, stand-offish, and overall miserable looking.

The rules of her promotion, so strict that you’d rather go and buy a Pepsi on the way home than rack up her sales performance.

Yet, a few hundred metres up the drag, a Coke Zero stand held the same promo, but there were different rules and smiling and welcoming staff.

That’s probably why the Coke Zero stand was busy and Miss Miserable stood counting the squares on the pavement.

The South African Police Service (Saps) exhibition was decent, but the cops were so busy comparing guns between one another that they didn’t even notice us wanting to ask questions.

The Public Services Hall was interesting, the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) representative adult-splaining intellectual property to my six year old.

There was a shiny municipal bus on display, shiny new emergency equipment and vehicles. And not surprisingly, several unattended stands for the Gauteng provincial government.

Overall, the Rand Easter Show was an enjoyable experience.

It’s obvious that the organisers are trying to breathe new life into the century-plus old event, and they are succeeding. Looking forward to next year’s instalment.

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