Standing outside Divine Bakery examining the design of the building we sense that there’s something a little out of the ordinary with the store, but can’t quite put our finger on it. Inside, the little hints dotted around the bakery fall into place and we soon make the revelation that this now Muslim owned store is what used to be an N.G Kerk. The kitchen stands where the altar once was and the high ceilings can only be those of an old Christian church building. You can’t help but smile, not only because Divine Bakery is such an apt and inspired choice of name, but because of what the repurposed building suggests about the community. This is a neighborhood loaded with beautiful paradoxes inherited from its history and a community writing and shaping a new history through the imaginative agency of its residents. These rich contradictions lie beneath the surface of the area and at each turn Bongani, our tour guide, helps uncover the wealth of history and culture that often goes undetected.

We meet Bongani at the market on Mint Street and from here the group zigzags through the stalls, stopping now and then to try out some of the food on offer to shoppers. There are flavours for all tastes and dishes from various corners of Pakistan, India and southern African countries like Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Zambia. Our walk through the market is a deliberate route that leads us to the lavatory on the corner of Mint Street and Albertina Sisulu Road - an odd stop by all accounts, but a significant stop where different chapters in the area’s history intersect. The public lavatory is an official heritage site commemorating a bloody labour dispute between the government and striking white miners on 14 March 1922 in The Battle of Fordsburg Square. Later on 6 April 1952, exactly three hundred years after van Riebeeck landed at the Cape, a mass protest meeting organized by the ANC and the South African Indian Congress, took place in what was then Red Square in Fordsburg.

At Shalimar Delights, a street down on Central Road, the mood is sweetened again with confectionary delights and sweetmeats before we visit Swadeshi, a one stop Hindu prayer store stocking everything from incense, statuettes of various Hindu deities, religious music and a wide range of other worship items. But we’re not here to satisfy an outsider’s curiosity; instead our visit is intended to open up a conversation about the religious and diverse racial makeup of Fordsburg. The population is a constellation of emigrant communities from various African and Arabic countries, some as far-off as Turkey and Syria.

We cross Dolly Rathebe Road, en route to the Majestic movie theatre, a sweet coincidence that doesn’t go unnoticed. A romantic aura endures around the Majestic and occasional movie screenings organised by Maboneng’s Bioscope indie cinema breathe new life into the crown jewel of Johannesburg’s cinema venues. We end the day off with a visit to the Avalon Theatre, another cultural landmark just a stone throw away from the Majestic, before we conclude our tour at Solly’s Corner Fish and Chips, where one imagines a night at the movies would’ve ended.

As we head back to the market, it becomes evident that as thoroughly researched and enjoyable as the tour is, the only way to fully appreciate the intricacies and beauty of Fordsburg is to become a seasoned visitor. Each trip unlocks more of the community has to offer, something Bongani continues to learn on each tour.