KEY POINTS:
Robbed at gunpoint during a South African holiday, Jill and Brian Clark were left with only the clothes they were wearing and haunting memories of their ordeal.
The Bay of Plenty couple returned home to Omokoroa last week and are speaking out about their nightmare trip as a
warning to others.
It began in July when they travelled through Africa with Mrs Clark's sister and brother-in-law.
All four are seasoned travellers in their 60s.
Days after completing an African safari the four landed in Johannesburg at 7pm on July 27. They were headed to their hotel when the tour van they were in was robbed by three men wearing blue overalls and black beanies.
The driver stopped outside the locked gate of his home office to pick up luggage that the tourists had left while on safari.
As the two couples sat belted into the van, the armed men came out of the darkness, patted down the two men exchanging the bags, took the keys from the van and removed all the luggage - one taking the women's handbags at gunpoint.
"I was trying to push it [her handbag] with my feet. I was crying and screaming," said Mrs Clark. A man who had been waiting for the group to arrive said he had noticed a car following them with its lights off.
Mrs Clark said she had been warned to speak only to people in uniform at Johannesburg Airport and was shocked to see how many men - dressed the same way as the robbers - were loitering in the building.
At the airport the couples were asked how much money they were carrying.
"We, being honest Kiwis, put down exactly what we had," she said. "The police told us that [the robbers would have] sorted us out from the airport."
Five bags were stolen, containing copies of their passports and credit cards.
"No one in this world dreams that they will take the whole lot."
They were left with only the clothes they were wearing, but the tour company loaned them 9000 rand (about $1500) and drove them to the New Zealand Embassy. There they spent five hours filling out forms and securing emergency passports.
"We were lost souls, we had no identity," said Mrs Clark.
After completing the rest of their South Africa trip, including Cape Town, the group had to return to Johannesburg Airport to catch their flight to Perth.
"We had a bit of time to fill in but we didn't leave the airport. We did our check-in and got behind closed doors," she said.
Since arriving back in New Zealand last Sunday the Clarks have been struggling to come to terms with what happened.
"It was terrible but we came out still alive," Mrs Clark said. "Unfortunately I haven't been the same since. I can't sleep very well. He'll [Mr Clark] wake up and see a gun."
She hopes time will help put the horror of that night behind them and said counselling had been suggested.
Mrs Clark hoped sharing the experience might raise awareness of the dangers of travelling in South Africa.
"Nothing gets reported out of there. The police told us there's about 15,000 murders out of Johannesburg and only about one in five get reported," she said.
Despite her ordeal, Mrs Clark said if the opportunity arose she would like to return to South Africa. However, she has concerns for travellers thinking about visiting the city during the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
"They're going to have a field day [the robbers], I don't think people should go."
-Bay of Plenty Times
