City Tour

Check out some pics from today:

City Art

The Bus

Clotheslines!

Normal homes in the townships.  Townships are areas in which people were relocated during the Apartheid solely based on the color of their skin.  There were separate areas for black, coloured (mulatto), Chinese, and Indian.

There are lots of strays, and especially a lot of cute stray puppies.

Yes, sadly fast food has inundated the townships, too.  The tour guide told us that a few years ago there were no McDonalds, and then three went up in the matter of a few months.

There are tons of shops and even some homes made out of these shipping containers.  There is a hair dresser about every block whose shop is run out of these.  There are also Spaza shops where someone can make quite a living selling alcohol to pensioners, who are some of the only people in the townships who have a reliable income.

Just like in poorer areas in the States, many still have satellite dishes.  I saw one house with four of them.

I LOVE this pot.  There is a mask with a similar color scheme, and I plan to go back and buy something from this woman.  It is better to buy from Aya (that is her name) than the people who sell on the boardwalk, because she will earn a fair wage for her work, while the others who sell put in long days and get a pittance from their bosses.  So, buying from them is supporting a kind of slavery.

This is the entrance to Aya's shop.

Check out the hen-and-chicks that are growing in the rocks on her head.  this piece is damaged, but there were plenty more like it inside.

This little boy was giving us pretty eyes from the bus.  He is eating a yogurt with his fingers and tongue.

Talk about a cutie!

This is the post that helped him to climb onto the brick wall.

These are the findings from an ingquiry about a massacre that happened in Port Elizabeth during the Apartheid regime.  Many atrocities went unchecked, and those people still walk free.  The tour guide said he even knows some of the policemen who killed and beat people he knew.  How do you have closure when you see the men who barbecued your four children and sent the pictures to you walking free?

A typical sight in the townships.

There is a horseback riding trail and hiking trails close by, and we plan to visit again as a group to enjoy the more undeveloped coastline.

This morning we all piled into a double-decker bus for a city tour.  Unlike a regular tour, our guide Bradley took us on a historical cultural tour of the city and townships to give us insight into the identity of the people of Port Elizabeth.  We saw city art, a statue memorial for war horses, housing development areas, a pottery studio in a township, a museum about the Apartheid called the Red Museum, and a beautiful part of the coastline that we hadn’t seen with campgrounds and hiking trails.  The nature of the tour was cool, because Bradley pointed out important people’s homes, but they did not look like you would think.   The head director of the World Cup lived in a home that was not even as nice as the homes I have lived in growing up.  His name was the most-often mentioned name in the press of ANYONE in the world last year, yet he lives in a house that, albeit has running water and sewage, but sits on a riverbed overgrown with alien plant species in which the grounds outside are covered in trash.  If one wants to have a nice home she/he must ascertain the proper permits to build in certain areas and be able to afford a brick or stone wall with barbed wire on top and a security system.  At some of the historical monuments we went to the people did not even know the value of the sites, and the brass identification plates were stolen because the people could sell the brass for cash.

Some of the more striking things I learned today were that when ordering squid in South Africa I should indicate that I want South African squid, because most of the squid in the restaurants is from Norway because it is more lucrative to export the South African squid.  Along the same lines, I had an apple from Washington today with the sticker to prove it.  Apples aren’t in season, so they are imported from the next best place J 

When we returned from the tour, I cashed out for about an hour before a meeting to decide which service sites we will serve at.  Service starts Monday morning, and we will hear this weekend which site we will get.  We each listed our top two choices and the reasons why we chose them, so whichever site I’m at, I will be happy.  After the meeting Taylor and I took our daily run, and the wind was fierce today, but it was nice and cool. 

This evening we went to a club called Beliza.  It was ladies night, so we did not pay the cover charge to get into the dance area of the club.  We saw some South African friends that we met a few other nights and some of the international students that we met at Bush Camp.  One guy’s shirt was vomited on, and he didn’t even notice until a bartender told him.  The poor guy tried to clean it in the bathroom, but that is not a smell easily eradicated.  I came home in the first set of taxis because the bar/club scene isn’t my most comfortable, and I wanted to blog and read a bit before bed.  We have no obligations until Monday, so I am excited to read a bit, beach a bit, and just relax until then.

Peace and love. 

Our first full day

This morning we toured Missionvale Township which is comprised of about 120 000 people with 60% HIV infection rate and 80% unemployment rate.  The service site located there is a community center with at least nine departments some of which include sewing, carpentry (for coffins), nutrition (similar to a food shelf), Father Christmas (gifts are donated and wrapped for a yearly Christmas celebration for THOUSANDS of children at the community center), and a school.  The Queen of England and Mother Theresa have visited the remarkable nun, Sister Ethel, at Missionvale.  She has received a whole wall of plaques for the last twenty-three years of work.  Her only condition on being sent to Africa only a month after she returned home to Ireland from another mission was that she be able to work with the poor.  Since then she has worked with the people of Missionvale to create a place that they can call their own, and it is very full of hope which one may not expect in a place so rife with poverty, sexual crimes, HIV/AIDS, unemployment and the like.  One of the ways that people contribute is that they must bring in recycling in order to get the components of a meal.  Missionvale never gives cooked meals, because they want the mother to still act as a provider so she can bring the flour, sugar, beans and whatever else is in the bag home and cook a meal.  There is also a lot of little, plastic bags, and trash all over the roads and hillsides, so picking up recycling allows the people to take care of their surroundings while earning something to bring in for their food.  There are NO handouts at Missionvale because the people have dignity, and they don’t need hand-outs, they just need access to resources.

Next, we visited House of Resurrection AIDS Haven.  This is a much smaller site dedicated to caring for orphans from AIDS causes.  There are thirty-nine children of which twenty-two are infected.  Because they have no parents or grandparents to care for them, House has six “house mothers” that foster these children as their own.  They live in the main building or cottages that surround the main building and receive government funding for fostering and for ARV treatment which costs $150 a month per child.  We stopped in the pre-school at House, and there were sixteen young children that we were able to play with.  Many of them don’t speak English, but they are so lovable, and that is what they need most.  Inside House we were able to see five-month-old twins who are the newest members of the community.  

We won’t choose what site we would like to serve at until tomorrow afternoon, but it would be great at either of these places.   At Missionvale we would have the chance to work in each department at an expertly-run facility.  We would even get to go with nurses into the townships to visit patients.  At House we would work with the children in pre-school, playing with them and working on development, especially English.  We could also do maintenance on the grounds and help with tasks in the main building as needed.  Tomorrow we will visit Pendla Primary School which is the third service option.

After the tours we got our student cards, toured the sports facility and asked about joining teams, and had a workshop on volunteering.  I had no idea what we were in for, but I learned so much this afternoon.  South Africa makes up 0.7% of the world’s population yet contains 28% of the people with dual TB and HIV infections.  Sub-saharan Africa holds 22.5 million of the world’s 33.3 million people with HIV/AIDS according to UNAIDS 2009 information.  There are still high rates of newly diagnosed people each year in South Africa and 5.6 million of South Africa’s 40 million residents live with HIV.  There are also 1.9 million orphans due to AIDS.  I know these are just numbers, but try to imagine the impact of those statistics.  The AIDS problem is HUGE here.  Just one million is big.  If it was your full time job to count to one million and each number took one second, it would take you 35 8-hour days to get there.  That is five weeks at a full-time job.  That is BIG!

Learning a bit about AIDS in SA helped to put the poverty and unemployment into perspective.  AIDS is taking out the most productive people in society, leaving children and the elderly to contribute to society.  So, we are here for four months, working only a few hours two days a week.  What can we do to make any kind of impact?  Natalie, our service mentor for the semester, brought us through some community development theory that can help us have the greatest impact at our sites and to give us some tools to problem-solve on site.  She told us that true perspective sees what people don’t have but also recognizes what they do.  And, the South African people are innovative and resilient shown by the informal work such as growing their own fruits and vegetables to sell (which they can do with plots in the garden at Missionvale) or any other way to make money.  The reason that this situation is not hopeless despite the poor conditions in the townships is that the people are motivated and talented and when encouraged and have self-confidence, they can break the cycle of poverty.

After a long day physically and emotionally, Taylor and I took a refreshing run along the boardwalk and came home to relax the rest of the evening.  I am getting somewhere on my lit project that I present on the first day, but the internet has become an essential resource due to the proximity of my last literature lesson (it was a LONG time ago… at least four years).  So, I am searching on the difference between literary analysis and literary interpretation and deciphering what the South African prof really wants not having met her before.  It will all be okay.  Buttttt, I am up a bit than I planned because of my loyal dedication to my blog and followers.  Love you all and pray that I make the decision that fits best for my service site.

Peace and bu-lessings!

A relaxing day :)

Today we walked to campus for a tour and pre-registration.  Then the flat-mates (five of us) walked to the complex with the grocery store, Pick n’ Pay.  I am really enjoying all of the fresh fruits and vegetables and I even bought some ground ostrich to try as burgers or pasta sauce.  Taylor got some brussel sprouts too, which is great since my favorite magazine Eating Well  featured them in one of the fall editions.  

After Pick n’ Pay, Taylor and I found a great family-owned store (something like Divine Creations…?) with quiches, frozen 2-serving spinach and feta lasagna, bobotie (traditional South African dish with meat and raisins), pumpkin fritters, egg bakes, meat pies with chicken, venison (which is kudu antelope), and steak, sandwiches, and plenty of other delicious fresh and frozen delicious-looking foods.  I also bought some ginger beer that tastes similar to ginger ale, but it is gingerier than and not as sweet as ginger ale.

We took a kombi home from the grocery because we are awfully tired from our adventures outside yesterday, and we cleaned the flat for a few hours and just relaxed.  I made a great meal which I photographed  (I will post pictures when this internet voucher runs out, because I bought 1GB which is based on information and pictures take a lot of information to upload, so I will post them when I buy a timed voucher) :D'

Now, we are making some cookies for the Steve, the owner of Langerry Flats.  He helped my flat-mates get some money back from a bank where they exchanged and were ripped off.  He drove them down there with his huge body and truck, gave the bank teller the business in Afrikaans, and the ladies were redeemed their $120 (about R 84).  Yay Steve!  The staff here is extremely friendly and helpful. 

Today, I also surfed GumTree, an internet site like EBay for South Africa, looking for bicycles.  I found a few promising ads.  I hope I can just sell the bike again when we leave, but I’m not sure if I’ll end up getting one, it just depends on what we can find.  I enjoyed some yoga on the balcony tonight and for now, my goal is to get some homework done and rest for a full day of tours tomorrow.  (For all of those curious about “studying abroad,” I assure you that I am taking seventeen credits, and classes start next Monday ;) )

Love and hugs

A little too much fun in the sun

Last night I wasn’t able to go to the Superbowl due to some miscommunications and safety precautions for travelling at night.  So, I got a pretty good night of sleep and got up early to bring dirty clothes to the Laundrette.  The nice women weigh the clothing and 5kg is a load.  Then, they give you a ticket and a time to return to get the folded laundry.  It costs R39.50 per load, equivalent to about $5. 

We caught a bus to school for our first time on NMMU campus for an orientation bit.  We listened to information from 9-12 and then had yellow rice and curry for lunch, compliments of the university.  After lunch we headed down the boardwalk towards Langerry.  What we thought was a 30 minute walk was actually an hour.  But, there is a cool breeze, which is obvious enough for the 2^nd Windiest City in the World ;) haha.  It definitely cools things down though. 

After we got back to Langerry, the beautiful beach was too hard to ignore any longer, so we headed down to read Poli Sci and lay out.  We talked to our lifeguard friends for an hour and they made terrible fun of us because we asked if there were coupons in the newspaper for the grocery.  At about 3pm, we ran down the boardwalk to the store and figured the phones out to some extent.  Then we ran back and got ready quickly for the rugby match at NMMU from which we just returned.

We grabbed a kombi to the match and it was fabulous!  There is one guy to yell on the streets and get people to ride, gather their destination, and get their money, another controlling the BLASTING music, and the driver is “in the zone.”  We piled about 20 people, maybe more, into the kombi and just jammed on the way to school.  It was amazing that they just kept pulling over and fitting more people in the vehicle.  Then one of the guys came out with us and showed us where the stadium is. 

It was a packed and hoppin’ joint.  There was a huge group of people taking up about half of the grandstands singing African songs, popular American music blared the whole time with an Emcee rousing the crowd not just during breaks, but the whole time, and we sat in the beer garden which any student can of course enjoy.  Although I didn’t understand the game, it was fun to be at such a lively event.

Despite liberally applying sun screen, I resemble Mom’s favorite childhood “pretend-this-is-communion candy,” the Pinkie.  I haven’t decided if I am joining the CSB/SJU group and other international students to the after-party of the rugby match at a bar down the way.

Love from the Beach Bum

Remember when being told what to do wasn't fun anymore?

Bush Camp, ahhhh what do I say?  As I sit in my Langerry Flat listening to a vibrant choir process with percussion in around the roads in the near vicinity, I am in a much calmer mood to describe the trip into the Bush than when we arrived back home this morning.  Friday, our group piled into three kombis with other international students from NMMU for a trip into the Bush as part of orientation.  It was a challenge to engage some of the students, because it was such a big group of Americans that it was hard to relate to others in a personal way apart from the huge group I was obviously a part of.

On the way to the camp, we stopped at a reptile and bird refuge where we learned the truth about South African snakes.  The owner was so good with the animals, teaching us that snakes rely only on instinct, so if one knows their programmed reactions, one can deal with snakes well.  He told us the dangers of eradicating whole species because of the unwarranted fears of snakes.  He handled South Africa’s two most venomous (not poisonous, because venom acts on blood, and poison is absorbed through the digestive tract) at the same time.  He had an Egyptian Cobra’s head in his mouth, let us hold a Burmese python, mole snake, blue tongued skink (from Australia), and pet a crocodile.  It was a good “Emergency 101” course and a great informational session on a part of wildlife that is misunderstood and feared.

While driving to Bush Camp, I felt for the first time that I was really in Africa.  We saw wildebeest, cows, and goats roaming the grasslands on either side of the narrow and curvy road.  The kombi drivers drove faster than I do when I’m late for a meeting, and they had full vans.  Thankfully, I was by a window, so I could see the townships we were passing, and I got some wind in my face as not to get carsick.  Some of the township homes had solar panels, which some hypothesized were part of the facelift the country received for the world cup.  People walked on either side of the highway in long pants and long shirts.  Some were looking for rides and others were selling some goods.  When we stopped at a fuel station, a boy came up to the vans and pointed to his mouth and stomach, but none of us had food to give.  As we were leaving the station, a man rode up in a wheelchair with a one arm and one leg and yelled something about the police.  It was a stark contrast to the road trips that I’m used to.

When we arrived at camp later in the day, it was way past our normal lunch time and everybody was hungry.  Taylor, my roommate, and I were at the end of the line, and the camp ran out of food.  They just looked at us and said, “Sorry,” and walked away.  It was a response unlike any that I would have expected in the US.  But, I realized that food in excess is not a normalcy, and it is a reality that some go without here.  The staff showed some shame, but nothing more could be done.  They made much bigger batches of food the rest of the weekend, so no more people went hungry.  Nonetheless it was an eye-opening experience.

Then the fun began!!!  It rained 85mm in two hours!  For those of you not accustomed to metric, 85mm is about 3.3’’ of rain in an area that averages only about 10’’ per year.  The staff was scurrying around digging trenches to divert water from the dirt-floor buildings.  Thank God for tent stakes or our tent would be floating down the river.  When we came back to check on the tent, our flip-flops and sun screen were floating on the tarp in front of the tent under the canopy.  We were able to get our things out and into the dining area onto an unused table.  But, later in the day, as the rain continued, even that tin-roofed, dirt floored building began to fill with water.  A plank in the wall was removed and water was able to drain back out and downhill, but it remained quite muddy for the rest of the day.  That night a group of us whose tents were flooded slept in the dining area on all of the tables pushed together.

During the day while it poured, we were outside playing, rather, being forced to play admittedly childish team-building activities.  When the staff was done, we stayed outside to practice some yoga, and we eventually continued onto a much more exciting obstacle course and mud pit game.  One staff member said, “Americans do things that South Africans would never do,” referencing the yoga in the rain.  He stressed that rain is inclement weather, especially in the volume that it poured down yesterday, so everything shuts down in the rain.  The rain soaked up into the ground surprisingly fast, but it makes sense considering the drought that the region is experiencing.  Since we were outside in the rain most of the day, I was in my swimsuit, but when the chill was too much I found some dry clothes and enjoyed a traditional tribal dinner, complete with lack of utensils.  We had kudu (antelope) sausage that was very smoky and flavorful, coleslaw that is much different than in the US with its lime and mystery-vinegar flavor, and mealy-pot which resembles mashed potatoes topped with baked beans.  It was a delicious meal.  There were plenty of other group activities throughout the day that I would rather not mention due to the residual tension from my frank dislike of group activities.  In all, I met a few friends including some other Americans, Irishmen, Ger(wo)mans, and a delightful Finnish girl who lives close and who I hope to spend much more time with.  And, I am thrilled to be back at Langerry.  Oh… and there were little gray monkeys that had to be chased out of some people’s tents, haha.  They were cute but I never got a picture.

Around midday, we arrived back home and ate a DELICIOUS lunch at a beachside restaurant called Cubańa.  I had a smoked salmon wrap with a delicious Greek salad and water (which costs dearly considering the drought that the country is in) for about $10.  It was a great deal, beautiful view, and relaxing time.  Then we took a quick walk through the Sunday market that is on the boardwalk across the street on our way to the beach.  Next, we took a grocery run which was a great time because it is summer and there are so many great fruits and veggies in season.  Now I am going to nap so I can go to the casino to watch the Superbowl tonight.  It will air at 2:30 tomorrow morning, and then we are going to take our clothing to the launderette at 7:30am and grab a kombi to school at 8:15 for orientation with the friends from this weekend and more.  I will be exhausted, but we have a free afternoon in which I can rest up on the beach.  

I’ll report back soon.
Lots of love to all of you back home!
 

This is how they do electricity in the Bush.  There were wires hanging all around and even lights in our tents.  Idk how they did it?!   There was only one generator on the whole grounds to light everything.  There was no hot water even in the kitchen.  I thought this was a sweet shot of a light between the dining hall and the tents to help us find our way after dark,

The view from our terrace of the Indian Ocean

My flatmates (from the left: Katie, Heather, Laura, and Taylor)

Bush Camp before the rain

The dining hall with a gorgeous, huge tree.  This is where we ended up sleeping on tables pushed together when the tent area was flooded.

The river at Bush Camp

A cool bug!

I'm "happy!"  I'm in a swimsuit and T-shirt right before heading to the mud pit.

Taylor and me soaking wet.

This is the apron of our tent where these things were floating.

A view from inside the tent to see how flooded it was outside.

The First Days in PE

Hello Friends!

I arrived in Port Elizabeth last night, and we went out right away.  We went to DnE nightclub and it was very similar to San Diego.  It was an open air bar with a pool table, pool, dance floor, beautiful starry sky overhead, and hippy-ish, tanned, surfer-y South Africans.  The owner was a Scot who came to PE in 1994 “for a bit” and has stayed sixteen years.  He was jamming some pretty sweet beats, however it will take me some time to get into the SA dancing style.  We had trustworthy taxi drivers that showed us safe parts of town and where all of the alleged drug dealers live.  So, we know the safety tips of the concerned taxi drivers of PE.  At the end of the night, some of the group wanted to grab a McChicken sandwich, so the taxi driver took us through the drive through.  It is utterly bizarre that the driver is on the opposite side of the car, driving on the opposite side of the road, and even the drivethrough went the opposite way around the McDonalds than the ones in the US.  It will take me a while to observe before I am comfortable driving our group on road trips.  It will be an adventure that’s for sure.

Today, we took a group trip to the grocery, went to the beach, made an apartment dinner with all of the roommates, and now we’re planning to go to karaoke night at a bar in walking distance.  Today was a great day.  We shook off a bit of the jet-lag.  Taylor, my roommate found a very cool grasshopper on the beach that is well-preserved (a.k.a. crunchy).  It is yellow and black striped with vibrant orange, red and yellow wings, with the exceedingly cool orange and black striped antennae.  He is a quasi-monument in the apartment.  I also had time to do some yoga today which was very refreshing.  I am ready to go out now, and we are waiting for the rest of the group.  The best part of the day was probably playing in the waves with a new, fun swimsuit and realizing that it was February!  What a great realization for a Wisconsin/Minnesotan who wore spandex and wool socks the last three days.

The gist is: I am safe, travel was not very fun, but I’m here now, and I am ready to have a great time.  We leave at 9:45 tomorrow morning for Bush Camp on the interior of the country.  It will be much hotter than PE since the ocean breeze will be lacking.  But, we will have the opportunity to meet other international students who are studying at NMMU this semester.  The packing list asks us to bring clothes that we don’t mind getting dirty… and previous students on the trip advised us to bring clothes that we don’t care about.  They implied that they were never able to get them clean again.

Talk to you after Bush Camp!

Lots of Love to all of my “Followers” out there (see link on the right). xo