Happy Saint Patrick’s Day to all! 

This morning has been so rad.  A girl that is in Haley’s small group picked us up and took us to the Hout Bay Market.  I have developed a new love for markets since I’ve been here.  They are the perfect place to get GREAT food, unique shopping and they offer a great atmosphere.  Last Saturday we went to Old Biscuit Mill and my mind was blown.  I was so overwhelmed, but enjoyed it so much! There, I had a loaded baked potato which was fabulous.  The Biscuit Mill is huge in comparison to the Harbor Market, but is only in it’s prime Saturday mornings.  The Bay Harbor is opened all weekend and has live music.  This morning I had nachos for breakfast, because you have to take full advantage of any chance to get Mexican food here!  The main purchase of the day was a pair of beaded sandals. Also, you know it is a great day when the song “Year 3,000” by the Jonas Brothers comes on while sitting at Coco Wah Wah. HA ONLY IN AFRICA. 

The past two weeks have been very “normal”.  The week is very low key and I do a lot of school work/catching up in the evenings and then play on the weekends.  Last week, Wednesday, I had to the chance to visit Richard and his new wife, Avril.  Richard was our driver/tour guide when I went on the mission trip to Namibia.  It was great to see him and catch up.  He lives in Constantia which is oldest wine country in Cape Town.  It is a very beautiful, green place.  I took a friend with me and before we ate dinner we went on a walk through the Green Belt and he gave us some history of the area.  It was  crazy that we were so close to the hustle and bustle of the city, yet sooo far away.  It was a great escape and we had the best meal ever, complete with milk tart (buttermilk pie)!!! He told us stories and showed us videos of his son kayaking down rapids, it got me so fired up to be adventurous! 

Last Friday we hosted a braai at the Alma house.  It was such a cool time.  The party was called “around the world” because there were people from all over.  Ha but mostly America, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.  It was fun to meet everyone and several of them expressed their thoughts on Americans.  Thankfully, we didn’t live up to their tainted TV view of all US people.  

Saturday was chill.  We did the Biscuit Mill in the morning then I spent the afternoon at the Claremont Mall by myself.  That evening we went to a rugby game in Newlands to watch the Stormers play.  We had no idea what was going on in the game, so we just kind of guessed/made up our own rules.  We made friends with the season ticket holders sitting by us and they recommended we go to “Forries” after.  We took their suggestion and found a little hidden gem. 

Sunday,  I went on the adventure of a life time.  We set out to hike Devil’s Peak at 5 a.m. and we returned home at Noon.  It was a long, invigorating hike.  The view was definitely worth it and I can now say I’ve climbed all three “musts”: Table Mountain, Lion’s Head and Devil’s Peak.  

Like I said, this past week has been pretty monotonous. Mondays I have class until 5 pm. Tuesday’s I volunteer with SHAWCO until 5 p.m. and Wednesdays I go to small group.  Small group is always so refreshing and a great get away from real life.  

While running on the Liesbeek river trail this week, I spotted a restaurant named “The Toad and Josephine” and we tested it out Thursday evening. I had great hopes for it as it offered, a “Woodshed” vibe, but in my opinion it was only average. womp, womp. 

Friday, was yet another adventurous afternoon.  I have a test on Monday and needed to study but wanted to “get away” to do it.  A friend and I went to the city and found “The Book Lounge.” It was a lekker book store with a sitting area in the basement that we veged out at while enjoying coffee and tea.  That evening we went to Haley’s basketball game! WOOHOO she won! Then we went to “Cameroonian food” with our RA, Roland.  The food was quite different and it was definitely a cultural experience.  

Last night, we went to the Cape Town Carnival.  It was comparable to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, only at night, minus the big balloons.  There were crazy cool floats and tons of dancers.  We enjoyed gelato and good company.  Yesterday morning however, we did something drastically different. We all took part in the University of Western Cape’s IES group’s clean up day of an informal settlement named Egoli.  It was quite an interesting experience.  Egoli is made up of around 2,500 squatters that live on Egoli, an informal settlement where 2,500 squatters live on privately owned land. As you can imagine since it is not their own property the desire to take care of the land and keep it clean is no one’s main priority.  The IES health class has installed 4 new water taps within the settlement because the whole community was previously living on only five taps.  No homes have running water or electricity and it is by far the most impoverished area I’ve ever seen.  From the first day we went there I was just sick at my stomach.  The smell, the living conditions and the lack of hope were all just heart breaking.  That was a main reason I chose to do my research project in Maitland Garden Village, a community of about the same size that is made up of the working class who are hungry for education and attention.  Egoli was just far to out of my comfort zone and a lot of other people, such as the health class, were already going to be volunteering there.  

I hadn’t been back to Egoli since the first time we went as a whole group.  Our eco justice field trip was canceled for today and we were encouraged to go out to Egoli and participate in the massive clean up they were going to have.  Feeling kind of guilt tripped into this plan, I put my name on the list.  Thankfully, it rained most of the night so the dust was all settled and it was a nice, cool, overcast morning.  When we arrived we were immediately greeted by flies, mangy dogs, and barefoot children with runny noses.  A short while after we were handed rubber gloves, trash bags, and surgical masks to start our clean up project.  I had convinced myself it was going to be a great day and I was going to do this with a smile on my face, after all, it was just picking up trash, right?  

The area was so polluted it was hard to even know where to begin.  A couple of friends and I started bagging the rubbish that was already in a heaping pile next to the dumpster.  This was all fine and well until I started noticing the amount of condom wrappers, old lighters, cigaret cartons, and broken bottles I was picking up.  This quickly turned my happy go lucky mood into disgust.  When you stood up and surveyed exactly what was going on, you found the women, the children and us doing all the labor and the men still intoxicated from last night propped up against the houses just watching.  My blood started to boil.  I quickly reminded myself though to have a servants heart and to put a smile back on my face.  As we got deeper into the damp pile of garbage we started to find lots of old dirty diapers.  My breaking point was when I pulled out a piece plastic and uncovered a diaper full of maggots. After that I decided it was best for my attitude and piece of mind to relocate to the garden where there was plenty of fresh air and candy wrappers that needed to be picked up! 

While we were working away in the wide open, these two kids showed up out of no where with rakes.  They started chopping at the weeds and suddenly we had turned it into a grand ole’ time.  One of the boys had a phone with music and he started playing some tunes.  The fun beat and energy from all the kids helping weed then escalated into a dance party.  We formed a circle and the kids were extremely eager to show off their talent. Looking like an idiot, I was also cutting loose and getting my groove on.  The kids all spoke Afrikaans and English which was fun, because I was able to practice the little Afrikaans I have retained with them.  They were amazed that I could count to twenty and we started playing clap/slap games with rhymes and numbers.  Soon, we had run out of all the trash bags and were able to go actually play soccer and other fun games.  

It was by far the most eye opening, gut wrenching, challenging/stretching task I’ve done since I’ve been here, but I am so thankful to have been a part. My perspective of Egoli was definitely changed and even though it is quite a lot to comprehend and take in, I certainly wish to go back to volunteer soon.  

Thoughts/Reflections

I AM SO EXCITED/READY FOR SPRING BREAK!!!!! We have only been here 2 months and in school for one, but I feel like being here it helps to constantly be busy.  Sure, it’s nice to relax and I’ve done that quite a bit this week but I can not wait for a change of scenery and more exciting adventures.  

Cheers!

Go Stormers 

VIP in the Kiddie Zone

Starting the great hike at Rhodes Memorial - 5 a.m.

Our 2 hour trek to the back of the mountain

Roco (leading) is a South African who is going to study abroad in the states next semester 

COMPLETE 

A top view of my little world here

Everyone getting ready for business 

Welcome to Egoli 

Note all the women and children in the back with trash bags

Hanging with my new friends

Carnival

One of the many outrageous floats 

The Crew 

Hout Bay Harbor Market 

Jessie, Haley and Me

Thank you Amy for taking us!!! 

 Inside the market

Thursday was not too much of a thrill.  We nailed down our IES research projects and I will be working in “Maitland” Garden Village doing water audits and helping educate and empower individuals to think in a more globalized mindset.  

Friday was a great way to start the weekend. I needed a little time to myself so, I headed down town to the “Design Indaba” which is basically a trade show, (comparable to Christmas Magic/Christmas in Cowtown) but it was by far the nicest one I’ve ever been too. It featured only South African designers and definitely catered to a more upscale clientele. (I was the only American, walking around with trendy SA supermodel types) I met some really cool people and enjoyed listening to their stories. The best find of the day was a bakery that is out of Observatory, which is only 2 suburbs down.  They have chocolate tarts, which is code for a personal sized chocolate chess pie.  WOOHOO with that and a glass of fresh lemonade, I was in heaven!!! From there, I went to the mini bus station which is always an adventure.  There, I was yet again the only American and the only white person! Using public transportation at 5 p.m. made me realize how many people are actually in this city.  Everyone was trying to get home and  the queue for the train was wayyyy long, and when I got to the mini bus station and it was even LONGER! I met some really nice ladies who rode home with me and I learned all about the ins and outs of being a driver on the route from Wynberg to Cape Town.  The night ended gloriously as a group of us feasted on sushi. ...Good friends, good times...

Saturday morning a friend and I sat out in search of the Rondebosch Organic Farmer’s Market.  To our surprise what we thought was going to be a huge market full of options, was actually a little row of goods all from a lady named “Dee.”  It was good to scope it out and get a feel for what she had. We will definitely have to go back again and stock up.  Our IES Eco Justice class left for field trip number 3 at 9 a.m.  Our day was focused on “change.” We traveled 1 1/2 hours up the east coast to a town named Langebaan. It was a small community on the edge of a lagoon.  There were a couple of golf courses and a plethora of nice holiday homes.  The atmosphere was very similar to the Cliffs at PK.  After we did some reading on the beach with our teachers, Liz and Lynette, we drove a couple Ks up the road to a fossil park.  The park is an old phosphate mining site, where fossils of short neck, long horned giraffes have been found, as well as african bears.  It was cool to hear the history behind the land and their plans for the future.  The last stop of the day was by far my favorite.  We went to a home of a local fisherman.  There were 4 men and a woman who gave us their side of the story from a “colored/black” perspective.  Crazy enough, these men grew up by the sea and fishing has always been their way of life.  During the Apartheid times though, they were forced to move further inland and their rights to the sea and where they could fish were taken away.  Even though Apartheid ended in ’94, they are still struggling to gain back their rights and way of life. Hearing their personal stories and seeing the passion, frustration, and longing for help really made my blood boil.  They are honest, hard working men who have been stripped of their livelihood and source of food/income because of the color of their skin and the size of their boat (money).  It was very eye opening to the real underlying issues that this country is facing.  

When we got home that afternoon we made a quick change and headed down to the Grand Parade for the Holi One Concert/Festival.  It was an outdoor electronic concert where people released a different color in the air every hour.  (basically, a color run without the running aspect!) Or, if you were like us, just threw it on each other for fun! A good time was had by all and we were all quite exhausted at the end of the day! 

Sunday Funday was celebrated at the beach.  Haley and I had lunch at Knead before we went to nap in the sun.  When we came home everyone pitched in and we had a community wide breakfast for dinner extravaganza.  Our contribution was eggs and the boys whipped up homemade blueberry pancakes!!! Church tonight was great.  On the walk over the sun was setting between Table Mountain and Devil’s Peak.  ... beautiful... It is been a week full of God’s abounding love and mercy.  Even in the tough, sucky, unwanted situations, He is on His throne.  

Thoughts/Reflections

Since I’m semi out of the tourist phase and have become pretty much local, it has been shocking to observe the role that race plays in everyday life.  It is insane to me that I went to the Indaba and everyone was white, and I go only a couple streets over and was the only light skinned person any where around.  Apartheid ended almost ten years ago, but the hold it still has over this country is beyond me.  Yes, in the states there is a poverty gap, but here it’s more like a poverty gorge. IES really has done a fabulous job of immersing us into the culture and exposing us to things we would never get the chance to experience.  I live right outside the Rosebank train station, which seems like it would be very practical way to explain to other people how to find my flat.  BUT IT’S NOT! White people here, that have grown up in Cape Town their entire life have no idea what I’m talking about for the most part when I give those directions.  I’ve lived here a month and can tell you every train station within 5 miles both ways.  It was also just so eye opening to see the influence if race in Langebaan.  The locals have no voice and it is quite sad.  That is/has/will be their home for generations and generations but they do not have the “power/money” for their opinion to be heard/considered.  I look forward to getting to talk to more locals, both white and colored and hearing their side of the story. 

Cheers! 

Sushi Sushi Sushi 

Langebaan

Fossil Park

Cow Bone Vs Fossil

Catch of the day!

Out Cold. 

The Grand Parade 

Pretty as a post card 

Holi One

Walking Rainbows