Nelson Mandela’s home has now been turned into a boutique hotel

Former South African President Nelson Mandela’s home has now been transformed into a boutique hotel. As per the reports, Mandela lived there for eight long years, before moving to another home around the corner with his third wife Graca Machel. If reports are to go by, he arrived there in 1990, shortly after his release from prison, and promptly started to meet neighbours.

The said building, which is hidden on a quiet street in a wealthy suburb of Johannesburg, had been defaced by squatters. However, after a floor-to-ceiling remodel, sunlight now enters the room and bay windows. And as of now, the white facade is all that remains of the original building.General Manager Dimitri Maritz said that Mandela would go knocking on every door, to introduce himself and invite neighbours for canapes and cocktails. The general manager further stated that once a Chinese man shooed him away, but when he realised that he had shut the door in Mandela's face, it is said that he moved not long after that.
The hotel is now named Sanctuary Mandela, when opened in September for guests seeking to bask in the ex-president's calm and positive energy. The presidential suite once served as the President's bedroom, although the heads of guests do not rest where he did. Once the remodelling has been done, the bathroom now stands where his bed once stood.

If you look at the window frames, it still bears his nickname Madiba, whereas his Robben Island prison number ‘466/64’, has been scratched into the wood by his grandson.