© Author(s) 2014. CC Attribution 3.0 License

immigrants from African countries choose Johannesburg as a migration destination. They all perceive it to be location with many opportunities that would enable them to make a fresh start to a life outside their home country, and Zimbabweans are no exception. In South Africa, Johannesburg has a large percentage of foreigners at any given time, hence its inner city was chosen as a suitable location to investigate the extent and manner in which the experiences of migrant Zimbabwean teachers matched their expectations. Working in Zimbabwe was no longer sustainable for them. Most of them were married and had families whom they needed to support financially. After being in South Africa for a period ranging from under one year to over five years, many had achieved some form of economic improvement, having movable and immovable assets, and saving money. However, the same migrant teachers felt unsafe and unwanted in South Africa because of crime, discrimination, hostility and xenophobia. The results revealed a paradox of economic satisfaction accompanied by fear and social unhappiness in the lives of these Zimbabwean teachers in South Africa. The Zimbabwean migrant teachers have two juxta-positioned problematic situations: wanting the money, their initial reason fo