Elton Hill, Sandton

Elton Hill is one of those little suburbs in Johannesburg that, because it is so small, is more often than not referred to by the name of a more prominent neighbouring suburb. Even its residents, to avoid confusion, tend to refer to it as Melrose Arch, Bramley or Atholl. It's hidden just behind Wanderers Golf Course, on the other side of the M1 from Bramley, nestled between Corlett Drive and South Avenue.

This part of the north of Johannesburg is particularly green. Whilst the Wanderers Golf Course dominates the area west of the suburb, there is also a green belt that meanders along the length of Lymington Avenue in Winston Ridge all the way along the eastern boundary of Elton Hill parallel to the M1, acting as something of a buffer for the suburb. It's also surrounded by sought after areas of the city such as Melrose, Rosebank, Hyde Park and Sandton.

One of the major reasons for staying here is Elton Hill's access to Sandton and the ease with which one can reach this business district of Johannesburg. But it is also the prettiness of this part of the city that is so attractive. Drive from Elton Hill through Bramley, Oaklands, Norwood, Houghton Estate, Killarney and Park Town (more or less parallel with the M1) and you'll see some of the most demurely affluent neighbourhoods of Johannesburg. The streets are all full of old trees, houses are old, large and lack the ostentation of more recently wealthy suburbs found further north of here.

Weekends can be spent in the malls of Rosebank, Hyde Park, and Sandton. Evenings in the villages of Rosebank, Parktown, Greenside, Melville and Bramley.