Alex Abroad

As promised...

2009-11-02T16:55:00.003-06:00

Things I look forward to when I think about going back...

thunderstorms and lightening
finding a church and getting into the community
texting or talking to someone whenever I feel like it because it's free
getting to drive a car and being able to go anywhere I want to without walking or paying for a taxi
not having to walk home from the grocery store carrying flour, sugar, juice, and all other heavy food items
internet that's not pay-per-megabyte
dogs, and being able to love them and be around them every day
sharing a kitchen with people who do their dishes, or at least having a dishwasher

Things I'm really going to miss...

seeing a mountain every morning
Cape Town's rainbow weather (bright and sunny, then sudden unexpected rain, then a rainbow...)
being a short car or train ride away from the beach
hearing three different beautiful languages spoken every day, often in a 5 minute walk
the bees on the tree outside my window
sleepovers, and living right across the hall from someone who's best friends with God
hearing the train come into the station
Graham and all of the other people who live on the street and in the park outside our house
the crazy headlines posted on the telephone poles (ie: “WASHING MACHINE HORROR” or “SEAL CHOWS KIDS FACE”)
experiencing or seeing or hearing something new every day
5 rand overnight movie rentals
knowing that even though I have a paper to write or a test to study for, it doesn't really matter because tomorrow I'll be done with it and I'll still be in Cape Town
thinking about and recognizing every day how lucky I am to be in this place
not taking any day for granted, and living so in the moment that it's almost inconceivable
church at Hillsong and the community that I've become a part of there
serving at the soup kitchen on Sunday mornings
the South Africans and Norwegians and Germans and Californians that I've become friends with
the smell of Laundry Lady when you walk by
never having to drive a car and being able to walk or take a cheap minibus taxi anywhere important enough to go
flowers everywhere...everywhere...

Food!

2009-10-23T15:35:00.004-05:00

Yes, this blog post has only to do with food. There will be another post coming soon that's less narrow and in the same format. I just wanted to share this first. Mostly because it's easier to think about the food that I'll miss here than to think about all the real things that I'll miss here...

Food (or food-related things) that I'm looking forward to coming back to:

pita chips
stick pretzels
“mixed veggies” on a menu not meaning frozen carrots, peas, corn and green beans (example: “mixed veggies, avo spread, and hummus sandwich”....)
chips and salsa! real tortilla chips and salsa that's more than mashed up tomatoes seem to be very rare here...
more than three carefully placed black olives on a Subway sandwich (amusing story)
“plain” flavored things (crisps, crackers, pretzels - most everything here must have a flavor...)
“plain” flavored things tasting plain instead of actually meaning onion or cheese
tofu (because here it's over 5 dollars a box!)

Food that I'm going to miss:

samoosas (Pick n Pay brand especially!)
Nando's peri peri wedges and delicious veg pitas after church on Sundays
chocolate powder and strawberry soy ice cream at midnight
Budget Rolls on campus for R10
Chai smoothies (actually more like shakes...) from Kauai
Rooibos tea with lemon from Alma Cafe across the railroad tracks
Woolworth's R6 noodles (like Ramen noodles...but vegan...)
original flavor skittles (because here they don't have gelatin in them...)
litchi juice available at a convenience store

"Shhhh"

2009-09-21T13:28:00.005-05:00

I went to Place of Hope today and had an awesome conversation with a five-year-old. I was outside in the playground and she popped her head up from the tall fence and sat down in a tree just behind it, watching everyone play. She had been playing with us earlier but had had to go home. She called me over and started talking so I climbed up on top of the monkey bars across the tall fence from her tree so we could be on the same level. And we talked for 45 minutes. She asked me "how was today" and I said it was good and that I had fun playing with her. I asked how was today for her and she said it was lekker playing. She told me about her school, and her friends at school, and their names, and what she learns, and asked me what I learn at school. We wrote our names to each other in the air with our fingers, and then we went through the numbers, her copying mine when she wasn't sure how to shape it. Then the wind started blowing and she said it was taking away all the things that we wrote. She asked if I was cold and said she was cold, and asked how many jackets I thought she could wear, then counted on her fingers the amount of jackets she thought might be good. She asked me where the wind came from and I said I didn't know. She said it came from the sky and I said that's right and then she changed her mind and said it came from Shaitan! She said the bad strong winds are from Shaitan, who lives down there (pointing down) and we're tramping on Shaitan when we walk. Then she said that the "shhhh" (which I assume to mean good calming winds) are from Allah, and that Allah can see everything but he doesn't have eyes and he doesn't have a face. And that he lives in the sky, he is the sky, and he is everywhere. And that he doesn't have hands and he doesn't have arms like we do, or legs or feet or shoes. And then her cat (she calls him Kitty or Cat and looked at me like I was insane when I asked what his name was...) walked under the tree and she said that she was going to go now. So we said bye and she hopped down to pick up her kitty. It was great. :)

(not much of) Kruger and (mostly) Thoughts

2009-09-16T06:27:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone...

I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get this blog up. I know some of you have been waiting. I'm also sorry that it's not going to be what you were expecting. I've been wanting to write about our spring break trip to Kruger National Park and Soweto, but it was such a long trip and so much happened that I've been kind of putting it off. Also, I knew that I would only talk about the good parts, the parts that I think people want to hear about. And in a way, I don't feel right just doing that because it makes this entire experience seem kind of glorified. And it's really not. It's just me living here. I mean, I'm getting to experience all these things that a lot of people who live here don't even get to experience, which I'm so grateful for. I do realize how blessed I am. But really, the best experiences that I'm getting here and the things that I'm learning the most from aren't about spotting a lion or getting a picture with an elephant. It's just about life. It's about living in a country different from the one that I've grown up in, a country that is so wonderfully different in so many ways. It's about interacting with the people here and learning about the culture and the way that they live everyday. It's about making a cup of coffee for the car-washer who lives on the street outside our house and taking his advice when he says to look at the mountain because it's looking beautiful today. It's about experiencing diversity in all shapes and forms, and it's about observing firsthand a country that has been through so much, so recently, and getting to watch it grow stronger in itself every day. It's learning about people, about perseverance and struggle and hope.

So basically, I can't write about our spring break trip like I had wanted to and like a lot of you were expecting me to. I will say that it had some really low parts and some really high parts, and if you're curious to know specifically about any of it or have any questions, feel free to ask me. I'm happy to talk about it, I just don't think I'm going to post it online. The pictures pretty much document all the good stuff that happened (by the way, if you haven't seen the pictures and want to, let me know and I'll email you the link...) and I don't feel like I could explain everything else in just a blog post, nor do I really want to try. So...again, I'm sorry if this disappoints anyone, but I do hope you understand...these are the experiences that it's about for me.

White consciousness?

2009-08-26T14:06:00.002-05:00

So, (as you know...) this past weekend was our homestays. I ended up having to stay with a different family because the original one had to go to a funeral and couldn't take me. So they put me in a family with another girl in our program. At first I was really disappointed that I'd have to share a family but being with her ended up being one of the best things about the weekend. We actually had kind of a weird experience there though. The two adults in the family weren't very enthusiastic about us being there, and the mom kept leaving us alone with the kids. I guess we were free babysitters, after all! So mostly we just watched TV and American movies or played with the kids, who were awesome. No complaining about the "babysitting". It was a 6 year old girl and a 9 year old boy. The first night that I was there, I gave them the cards that I'd brought from home and they absolutely loved them. And then I did a card trick, which I ended up repeating about 20 times throughout the course of the weekend, and every time they were just as amazed as the first. It is a pretty good trick though. :) So basically, my weekend was spent playing “crazy ate” (like crazy eights but morphed just enough so it barely has anything in common), making forts, and carrying the kids around the house on my shoulders. I did get to know the other girl in my program a lot better though, which was fun because she's not in my house or any of my classes so I don't get to see her that often. On Saturday though, we got to leave the house for a little while because another one of the students' family was having a braai (just a huge barbecue) for lunch. They had so much food, and I think over 50 people were inside the tiny house. I had samp, which is a basic traditional South African food, kind of like corn, but also sort of potato-y and a little bit like rice. But it tastes wonderful. Then I walked to the store with a few of the girls. It was really bizarre being the only white person in site. It might sound weird, and I never thought it would make me feel that way. It was uncomfortable, but it was good because it was so eye-opening. I just felt so conscious of my skin. I feel kind of silly pointing it out. Even right now I'm thinking, "of course you look different, no big deal". But it sure seemed like a big deal. Like I didn't fit in, which I didn't, and like everyone in the store was looking me, which they were. White consciousness I guess? It was strange, but was a good thing. Actually, the kids kept bringing it up too, asking what that blue was on my wrist (vein) and why I had a Pinocchio nose! And the little girl was completely obsessed with my hair. She was almost constantly brushing it or “making a hairstyle,” and I let her help me wash it and then dry it with the hairdryer one night and she was thrilled. So I guess the kids were the best part about our homestay. We were the only family that had kids, except for one other that had two little ones. All of the other students had families who took them around either Langa or the city, and had things planned for them, but I was just really grateful that I wasn't the only student staying with my family! And we gave our numbers to our home-mother, in case she wants to drop the kids by sometime when she's in town. We have hers too, so we're definitely going to call sometime to see them again. So the homestay definitely wasn't what I expected, but all in all, it turned out to be a pretty good experience. :)

Homestays!

2009-08-18T12:30:00.002-05:00

Our homestays are this weekend, which is where we go stay individually with a South African family for two nights. We'll all be staying in Langa with different families, which is the township that we took a tour of. I'm a little bit nervous about it, especially if it ends up being cold and rainy this weekend, but I think it's going to be really amazing. One of the program directors told me that he put me with the woman that asked for a girl. Apparently she said that she wanted a girl, please. And for some reason he thought, Alex! And he assigned me to that family. I'm not sure if there will be kids, which I really wanted initially, but I'm ok either way now. He said that the woman already has things planned for us to do and that she's going to take me around everywhere and show me a lot. So I'm really excited about that and I think it's going to be a great experience. And it will definitely give me something to blog about!

Place of Hope

2009-08-15T09:19:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I went with one of my classmates to visit the place where I'll be volunteering for the semester. It's called the Place of Hope and it's a shelter for mothers and children who are victims of domestic violence. Its mission is to “restore and empower abused women and their children in crisis to be socially responsible and economically self-sufficient” and the center manager is amazing. She wasn't at the shelter when we went to meet her, but some of the people working said that she wouldn't be long, she'd be back soon. We weren't thinking in South African time, so we thought maybe we'd wait 30 minutes at the most. We ended up waiting an hour and a half, but it was worth it. She talked to us a lot about things that we could do to help around the shelter. Since I said I wanted to work with the littler kids, I'm going to be working in the nursery. I'll be getting there in the middle of naptime so for that time she's going to put me in charge of the four- and five-year olds (who she calls the “seniors” of the nursery), which could mean anything from teaching them simple board games, reading and acting out a story, or just kicking around a ball. She stressed that if we see anywhere that we think we could help, or have any creative ideas, just to let her know and she'll pretty much let us do anything fun with the kids. Mostly they just need attention and someone to show that they care about them. Since they're all from homes that were very violent, most of them aren't used to having a lot of positive attention because (this is what the manager pointed out) their moms had to spend a lot of focus and time on trying to protect them and herself, which didn't leave much time to just relax and spend quality time with the kids. And because keeping the kids safe was more of a priority than playing with them, also a lot of the moms don't really know how to or feel comfortable with just playing with their kids. So the manager said that occasionally a mom or two (who isn't working at the time) will come in with the “senior nursery” group and just play with us. That will be really great also because I know I'll get to meet some really interesting people and also be someone that the women can talk to if they want or need that.

And then the rest of the time when all the littler ones are awake, I think I'll be helping out in the nursery. Right now there are two workers taking care of 26 kids ranging in age from a few months to five years. So I know they really need the extra hands. It's not that many kids all the time though because most of the women at the shelter, when they're not working, help out with the nursery kids and will carry around a baby or sit with a group while they play outside. There seems to be a very strong community there, between all the women that stay there and including the staff as well. So hopefully I can become a little part of that community. I know it's going to be a really good experience, and I think it will end up being one of the most memorable things that I'll do here.

Devil's Peak

2009-08-09T09:03:00.008-05:00

Yesterday a group of us climbed part of Devil's peak, which is the mountain that goes right up from the UCT campus. To start, we took a Jammie shuttle to upper campus, then hiked to Rhodes Memorial, and then got on the trail from there. We didn't get to the very top because it started to get too dark, but the views from where we did get were amazing. It was a really tough hike, mostly because it was so steep. There wasn't much winding around the mountain, more like going almost straight up it. We were going for a little over four hours total, and at parts we were literally climbing up rock faces, concentrating only on not looking down at the drop! We were a little worried going up because all of the South Africans were on their way down already and we were the only people actually heading up...they kept telling us that we were too late and that it was going to get dark, but we were just going to go as far as we thought we could with still having enough time to get down. We ended up making it past the dangerous parts as the sun was setting, and only had to walk about 20 minutes in the very dark. When we were getting back to upper campus, which is about a 30 minute walk from our house, it was very dark, and we weren't too excited about walking all the way home. We didn't know the schedule of the Jammie shuttles so didn't think we'd be able to wait for one. But just as we got to the end of the trail we saw one, and we all ran after it, and it actually stopped! I think driver must have sensed our desperation. Either that or he realized we weren't going to stop running until we caught up. :)

A view of some of the city from a little ways up the mountain...

Realizing Royalty in a State of Poor

2009-07-18T04:53:00.005-05:00

On Wednesday we went first went on a bus tour of Cape Town, the city parts of it, with a tour guide. She took us to all the touristy places, like the garden (can't remember exactly what it's called and internet is pay per megabyte so I'll ask someone later) and the waterfront (where there are a bunch of shops and restaraunts that tourists go to, as well as some really nice hotels), and the castle (also don't know officially what to call it...) And then we left that tour and went to eat lunch in a township, where there was live music (marimba and drums). Our guide was a man who grew up in Langa (a township in the Cape Flats of Cape Town, its name means "sun"), which was awesome. The townships are where the black and colored South Africans were forced to move when the white settlers decided that everyone should be separated by race. It's obviously so much more complicated and violent than that, but I don't have enough space here to explain it. But anyway, our tour guide was recognized as the number one poet in South Africa and recited two of the poems that he wrote, which were amazing. That's where the title of this post came from, it was my favorite quote. In the townships, kids are playing all over the street. It's ridiculous what people live in. Sixteen people from three families in a room that's probably 10x7, with three beds, a TV, a refrigerator, a stove, and everything else they own stuffed over or under their beds. The eleven of us barely got in and we were basically on top of each other, that's how much floor space there was. The parents sleep in the three beds, and their kids sleep all together in the big communal room that has a sink and two tables. And off of that communal room there are four or five total rooms, each which has three families just like the one that we saw. And these were some of the nicest living arrangements that we got to see. So many of the people live in shacks – hundreds and hundreds. The government bulldozed a ton of them so that they could build some newer houses, like townhouses where multiple families could live, but there's still a ton of shacks, way more shacks than houses, and no one lives in the houses yet, because they can't decide whether the people whose shacks they bulldozed should live there or the people who've been in Langa for generations and generations. Langa is the oldest township. We also went inside a man's place that does potions and the like, with dead animals and unrecognizable things hanging from the ceiling and placed everywhere. All of the townships are divided by color and separated by train tracks and/or streets, and the people just don't cross, according to our guide. So the colored neighborhoods are on one side and black on the other (colored people are descendants of slaves and European masters). The comparison of the two tours was so interesting...the first one with a white Capetonian showing us the nice parts of the city, conveniently leaving out anything that spoke too negatively of the white settlers, and the second one with a former street kid who was the tour guide with the truth.

Leaving on a jet plane...

2009-07-13T07:26:00.000-05:00

In 5 hours I'll be taking off for South Africa!

Really?

2009-07-11T08:41:00.001-05:00

In 72 hours I'll be somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. This is actually happening. I'm really going to be leaving my friends and family for four months to go live in a different country...