Lists of lessons learned and pictures

Because I know the past blog posts have been long and some of you may not have read very much of them, this one will be shorter and hopefully, more entertaining!

Links to photo albums: http://american.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2089906&l=0546d&id=7407223 (pictures of Table Mountain, my res, the township etc)

http://american.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2091219&l=498ac&id=7407223 (more from the Township, res, and pictures of friends and parties)

This week was the first week of classes. After an unnecessarily stressful day trying to drop a class, I have finalized my schedule. I am enrolled in 3 classes, but because some are upper division classes, they add up to 14 AU credits. Sweet! I am taking Media in S.Africa, African Traditional Religion, and Understanding Gender. I like all my professors, and I know people in all of my classes. Also, I don’t have class on Fridays, which is an incredible bonus.

I am also going to be volunteering 4 hours a week. I will be working with 2 different organizations. On Fridays I will be volunteering with an organization that my program, CIEE, has a partnership with, in downtown Cape Town that helps refugees who come to South Africa. Because South Africa is the most prosperous and successful African country, many refugees from throughout the continent come here to try to make a new life for themselves. However many don’t speak English or have skills to survive in an urban environment. I will be working with the refugees either teaching English or working on job-interviewing skills. The other organization I will work with is called SHAWCO. It’s the largest organization in the southern hemisphere and is entirely student run. SHAWCO takes UCT students into various townships and tutors children and adults in various subjects and also teaches them about life skills and HIV/AIDS prevention. I don’t know much about the program as I was only recently accepted and have not had training yet, but I will be working in a community that is English, Afrikaans, and Xhosa (a click language) speaking, so hopefully I will learn a little more Afrikaans than “how are you?” and improve my clicks (I’ve been practicing and I’m not too bad at it, although I only have one down, and Xhosa has 7 different kinds of clicks.)

Daily occurrences at UCT that would not happen at AU:

-Pigeons fly into the student unions where students eat. And walk around. And are not shooed outside.

-Not all computer labs have printers, and when they do, the printers can take 30 minutes or more to turn on, if they are even working that day.

-The professor wears traditional African garb

-There is a lunch period that is the same for everyone where no one has class. It’s called meridian period, and it’s from 1-2pm (13-14h) everyday

-students walk around barefoot

Highlights of my adventures:

-Attending a concert at a park, Kirstenbosch, with new South African friends. One of the friends’ uncles is in the band. My friends and I who went were treated like true family: my friend’s grandma made us cupcakes, chicken, and fish cakes, and mom and dad were excited that their son had new American friends, although slightly concerned as last semester one of his friends failed a class from going out too much with their previous semester abroad American friends.

-Wandering the city alone, not getting lost, and being treated like I know what I’m doing by a mini-bus taxi driver.

-Discovering a delicious Mexican food restaurant within walking distance of my res! Next goal: sushi.

-Cooking (with no microwave) most of my meals in my cute little kitchen (lots of salad, which might not really be considered cooking, but also salmon, veggie burgers and potatoes, to name a few)

-Seeing a homeless man with an AU t-shirt

-A pot luck Shabbat dinner at one of the CIEE houses. About 20 people were there, most not Jewish, so everything Jewish was explained before we ate…the candles, wine etc. There was no challah available so the hosts used 2 loaves of regular bread and 2 loaves of cheese bread. After explaining the symbolism of the challah, we said the blessing, and broke open the cheese bread only to find large chunks of pork sausage inside. Needless to say, those loaves of bread were not used, but it was one of the funnier moments of the last few weeks.

-Going on my first weekend trip. We went to Stellenbosch, which is the South African equivalent of Napa Valley. Our program took us there but we opted to stay the night on our own instead of coming back to Cape Town. Our program treated us to lunch and wine tasting at a South African vineyard (Spires. Google it. It’s beautiful. It’s where I’m getting married, along with every other female on my program. Don’t worry photos coming soon.) We stayed in a hostel for the night and explored the cute town. It’s a white Afrikaans community, which meant absolutely no black people which was the weirdest thing ever. Although we could walk around at night and not have to take a cab, it was uncomfortable being in places with only white people, knowing that there was a reason for that scenario instead of just an odd coincidence.

South African lingo learned and other observations:

-Instead of saying “you’re welcome,” one says, “pleasure.”

-Instead of saying “Really?!” one says, “is it?” (ex: Boy 1: “These girls are American!” Boy 2: “Is it?”)

-When one says “what’s up?” to a South African, they look up. The correct term is “Howzit?”

-A text message is always a SMS. SMS’ are not just used among friends, but also used to call a cab or arrange a professional meeting.

-Techno music is called House music.

-Although Dave Matthews is South African, he is not popular here at all. Too bad.

-There is a large Muslim population here. Many restaurants have Halaal signs, and many of the mini-bus taxi drivers are Arab. Their busses have funny bumper stickers in them such as “If you’re late, I’m early.” (Quite representative of “African time” which makes “Jewish time” look prompt).

More to come soon….please keep me updated on your lives. I’ve been here almost a month, spent an absurd amount of money, met incredible people of all backgrounds and nationalities whose names I either can never pronounce correctly or remember because there are just too many of them, but I am having the time of my life. This is officially the coolest thing I have ever done, I still have not heard from many of you about your lives this past month or so, and I would love to! If you have skype you can call my cell phone or talk to me when I’m there, otherwise email or snail mail would be awesome. Can’t wait to hear from you all!

Exploring Cape Town...and internet in my room!

The last week has been filled with explorations and many adventures because of the break between orientation and classes.

Orientation ended on Friday the 8^th with course registration, and afterwards, many people in our group left Cape Town to go on the Garden Route, a popular tourist route in South Africa with hostels and small towns along the way. They had many fun experiences including bungee jumping off of the highest jump in the world, and seeing monkeys and elephants on reserves. However, I decided to stay in Cape Town and get to know where I’ll be living for the next few months. As much as I want to see the Garden Route and other places in South Africa, last Friday I still felt so lost in this city, and could not even find where I am living on a map. I knew that I would have a great time traveling, but that I would feel just as overwhelmed and lost when I came back. It’s important to me to feel like I live in this city, and one thing I learned from moving to D.C., that in order to feel like I live somewhere and to know the city, I must play tourist first.

So I spent the last few days mostly with my friends Jess (from WashU) and Alison (from Harvard), along with other kids from our program who stayed back as well as our friend from Uganda, Moses, and a lot of his friends who are from all over the continent. My and Jess’ explorations made me feel like I have a much better grasp on Cape Town, especially in the areas near our res. I know that there is still TONS more to see and many more streets that I need to learn, but now I feel more confident in exploring them.

Our adventures began on Saturday in the township (see the previous entry) and gave us a personal taste of the South Africa that over half of the country lives and knows. However, after being both emotionally and physically exhausted from the township, we treated ourselves to a day at the mall on Sunday and to an American movie, 27 Dresses. But even though our activities were very “American” on Sunday, there were still differences that made us realize that we “weren’t in Kansas anymore.” For example, in Cape Town, the movie theaters have assigned seats, like at a play, and the food court vendors serve you. The fast food at the food court isn’t very fast, but it is much healthier than any American food court. Also, on Sundays, everything closes in the mall at 5, and no store in the city will sell alcohol (although I’ve heard they do if it’s at a smaller venue and they’re bribed).

Monday Jess and I explored an area of the city called Company’s Gardens which is similar to Washington D.C.’s national mall, as it is a large space of the city near parliament with many museums; however, Company’s Gardens puts the mall to shame. As obvious from the name, Company’s Gardens is a massive garden with beautiful trees and flowers and a lot of lush green plants. There are many paths that one can walk through and when we were there it had just rained, so the smell was very rich. We saw St. George’s Cathedral where Archbishop Desmond Tutu preached for many years and where an AIDS quilt now hangs. After being in this city for only two weeks, I am already getting accustomed to seeing condom dispensers everywhere I go, although I was a little surprised to see them in the church. The church had a sign that said “AIDS FRIENDLY CHURCH” which made me wonder if other churches are anti-AIDS patients? Something I will have to research…

The downtown of Cape Town looks like any other American or European city. There are busy streets, street vendors, large sky scrapers, and busses that clatter through the streets. While exploring the city Jess and I couldn’t help but talk about those Americans who imagine Africa to be a desert or for me to be in the bush. If they had been dropped from the sky into downtown Cape Town, they would not have guessed they were in Africa. Thanks to the American and world media for portraying the African continent as a wasteland and giant safari, we have been brainwashed and remain ignorant to one of the world’s greatest cities.

We also went to the Jewish museum at Company’s Gardens that was opened by Nelson Mandela in 1998. Mandela was a big fan of the Jews, as many of his lawyers throughout his many trials were Jewish. The museum explained that many of the anti-apartheid activists were Jewish, due to their common understanding of what oppression means. Even in the S.African parliament, the only anti-apartheid voice for many years was a Jewish woman. The history of Jews in S.Africa is similar to that of the Jews in America, especially the American west. Jewish immigrants to South Africa profited off of the country’s diamond rush, much like Levi Strauss and his counterparts in the American Gold Rush. However, the Jews in SA were often faced with racist sentiments (although this was pre-apartheid), as the European minority government feared their inability to assimilate and often restricted their rights and freedoms, although not nearly to the same extent as the black’s restrictions. The museum also has a holocaust museum on its premise. I found this interesting as they often compared Hitler’s actions to the apartheid government’s actions. There was also a moving video of survivors who moved to South Africa after the war. Today, much of the South African Jewish community has left the country; however, this country provided these survivors with a fresh and successful new life after the Holocaust.

Tuesday Jess and I visited Robben Island which is an island off the coast of Cape Town that held many political prisoners during apartheid, including Nelson Mandela for 18 of his 27 year sentence. The island reminded me of Alcatraz (maybe just because it’s a former prison turned museum on an island?) but it’s a lot farther from the coast and a lot bigger. I felt that the tour was very touristy and that I would have appreciated it more if I had known more about Mandela’s time there. The tour was focused mostly on Mandela’s experience, although our tour guide, Sparks, had been a prisoner there for 7 years. He said that many of the former prisoners and warders now work there together and are friends, which I found difficult to believe. He spoke of the segregation that happened even within the prison. for example, the coloureds and Asians were allowed to wear long pants in the winter but the blacks had to wear shorts and t-shirts all year long.

The tour to Robben Island departs from the V&A Waterfront, a touristy mall and harbor area with classy stores and many restaurants. In order to get there one has to take a minibus taxi to “town” (aka downtown, or the train station) and then get on another minibus to the waterfront. However between my res and town and town and the waterfront are some sketchy and poor areas, so the waterfront was a big shock. It’s the Cape Town that most of the tourists probably see, and then believe Cape Town to be like. Everyone was white, and the stores were incredibly expensive and ritzy. It reminded me that just because apartheid is over, an unspoken type of apartheid still exists in this country: very few black South Africans could afford to ever shop or eat at the Waterfront. Even so, I thought it was incredibly beautiful and my friends and I want to get dressed up and go back there for dinner one night to treat ourselves. I think it is important to see and appreciate all parts of the city, but understand that we’re fortunate to be able to experience them.

Wednesday was spent signing up for clubs and figuring out where classes are on campus. It’s funny feeling like a freshman again….not knowing where anything is and having to go to your classes before classes begin to make sure you know where the class is. I also signed up for some societies (what we call clubs) at the fair on campus. My program pays for 3 societies and then we have to pay for the rest ourselves. I signed up for the Wine Tasting Society, a group that seems to be mostly Americans, that will have wine tasting once a week. It will be a good way to learn South African wine! I also signed up for the South African Union for Jewish Students. Lastly, my friend Moses from Uganda encouraged me and Jess to join the East African Society. I was a little hesitant, for the obvious reason being that I am far from East African; however, Moses is a popular guy on campus and knows many Americans and promised us that we wouldn’t be the only Americans in the society. Jess and I have also already become friends with many of Moses’ friends in the society, so it shouldn’t be too weird. I am excited for the events to start.

I am also beginning to line up volunteer options, which I will talk about later depending on if I get them or not. It’s funny…I planned on coming here and relaxing, but I have already committed myself to many friends and societies and a demanding schedule. Apparently I don’t know how to not be busy!

Friday night UCT hosted an event called the Big Bash at an amusement park outside of Cape Town. It is the largest party in the southern hemisphere. The party was unreal, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. One of the world’s top 4 DJs was there, popular South African bands performing live, and tons of people. The university provided transportation and it was nice to be somewhere and not have to worry too much about how we would get around or watching our belongings as vigilantly as we might otherwise, as everyone there was a UCT student.

On a final and positive note, I have been consistently surprised and flattered by the kindness of people in this city. I have received no harsh feelings for being American, for being white, (which is heavily in the minority here, especially in the residence), or for being Jewish. I am always on guard on the streets and in the mini-busses, but people have been so welcoming and kind that it is making me, for better or for worse, more trusting of those around me (but not too trusting, as I know crime here is still very rampant). For example, on the first minibus Jess and I took to town we stopped at the train station, which is the last stop in that direction. We didn’t know where the street was, and we asked the driver. A man in the front of the bus said “I’m going there, follow me.” Jess and I were a little hesitant, but there were many people around so we decided it was safe. A man sitting next to me in the bus said “follow him. But be careful.” So Jess and I followed this man through the crowded train station and onto the equally busy city streets. We remained a few steps behind him, and him not questioning our decision to do so made us feel more comfortable. When we got to an intersection where we were to go in one direction, he wished us a good day, we thanked him, and he walked down his own way. Although this may seem so petty, it was a huge shock and nice feeling to experience when we’ve been consistently warned about our safety. I do not feel that we made a bad decision by following this man because we knew generally where we were and the station and streets were very crowded, but his generosity and non-sketchiness were a nice relief from the tension we both still feel on our own in this city.

A few lessons learned from the last week in Cape Town:

1. All-you-can-eat sushi really means 3 different kinds of rolls and a lot of greasy Chinese food.

2. The first day of classes is when only international students and first year students attend. Sometimes even the professors skip.

3. Americans say “shut up!” when they don’t believe something. South Africans say “you serious?” (Accent included)

4. Paying for internet by bandwidth means no facebook stalking, as apparently pictures use up a lot of your internet time.

5. Sleeping in is not a part of South African culture, as evident by all of our roommate’s morning routines beginning around or before 7am. Daily.

Township and Week 2...I'm all caught up on blogging now!

February 9, 2008

Today, I saw a South Africa that most Americans who visit will never see.

To Americans, the South African townships are known for the poverty and for Amy Biehl, the notorious American activist and her untimely death. “Township” is basically a kind word for a slum or a ghetto. During apartheid, the South African government removed blacks and coloureds from Cape Town (and other cities) and placed them in townships outside of the city lines. Like everything left over from the apartheid years, the townships were designated by race, so the blacks did not live with the coloureds.

One of my flat mates, Lendy, is from Ravenmead, a coloured township just 20 minutes outside of Cape Town. Today she invited Jess, myself, and Monique, one of her friends from Jo-burg, to go home for the afternoon with her. The adventure began on the train, where two women, one who was blind, and the other was severely burned, walked through the car singing hallelujah, begging for change. When we reached their stop, the blind woman’s cell phone rang, and she pulled out an incredibly nice phone. It was much nicer than the phones any of the Americans here are renting, and, needless to say, everyone on the train shared a look of “what the hell?!” It was quite a comedic experience that we joked about for the rest of the afternoon.

On the train and when we reached Ravenmead, Jess and I were the only white people. I was very self-conscious of my whiteness, as I know not many Americans enter the townships. When we reached Lendy’s neighborhood, poverty hit us in the face. The small, government built houses were concrete and multi-colored. Just a few rooms each, entire generations live in the homes together, or on multiple small homes on a single plot. Because of the intense heat of the day, everyone sat outside. Lendy joked that Saturdays are for getting drunk, but I quickly realized that she wasn’t really joking. Because of the intense heat and stuffiness of the homes, everyone was outside and everyone in the street was either drunk or holding a bottle.

First we went to Lendy’s friend Stacey’s house. Stacey is Lendy’s age (about 23) and lives with her mom and her younger twin 4^th grade sisters. Stacey’s family gave us a lot of soda and snacks (including ketchup chips! Shout out to my Canadians and Canadian wanna-bees! I was so excited.) and we sat outside and discussed American and South African politics. They asked us questions about Hillary, Obama, and Bush, and told us about the antics of the new president (he is Zulu, has many wives, and Monique things that he has HIV). While we were sitting outside a group of teenage boys from the township gathered at Stacey’s gate to marvel at the white girls sitting on Stacey’s lawn. Later, we met Lendy’s entire family, and went to her other friend’s house to sit outside, eat more food and drink more soda, and to play with the children. I even was able to meet Lendy’s mom, a thin and small woman with a huge heart who was excited to meet one of Lendy’s flatmates.

The children were gorgeous and hilarious, and although they only spoke Afrikaans (interesting note: it seems that Afrikaans is often coloureds’ first language; however, the blacks call it the “apartheid language.”) Jess and I were able to laugh a lot with them. It made me really sad though to see the moms all getting incredibly drunk with their children sitting right next to them. It bothered me that the children had bruises on their faces that one doesn’t get from falling. I wanted to knock all of the bottles out of their hands when Lendy introduced us to an adorable 4-month baby girl, and it was obvious her mother had been too selfish to give up beer during her pregnancy.

The township shocked me at how similar it was to poor communities I had visited in Nicaragua. I realized though that certain aspects of poverty culture are universal. Like the aspect of community where children go from house to house but every house is home. Friends pass around babies, not even caring when Jess and I walked down the street to the store for more Fanta Orange, each carrying someone else’s child. I found in Ravenmead, like the rural communities in Nicaragua that the people wanted to be my friend, they wanted to make sure I was safe and comfortable and fed. Even the little markets were similar: small convenience store shops in or near someone’s home where the items are behind a counter that is barred off from the consumer, and through a hole, the customer asks for the items he wants. The food was similar too, and made me sad that in Africa, junk food is the food of choice (or necessity) for the poor, just like communities I’ve been to in the US and Latin America. All day long I was fed chips, soda, and popsicles.

We sang karaoke to Celine Dion, laughed with Lendy’s friends, and chased the children around town. We sat in front of people’s homes, in absolute silence, watching children and drunks pass in the streets. it was one of the first times that I’ve been in silence like that where it was 100% socially acceptable. The men catcalled, calling us “whiteys,” and were fascinated by my green eyes, asking for pictures and staring when they got close. We were lucky to have Lendy with us, as she was able to tell us all of the social rules like when and who to hug, how to say thank you, where to sit or stand. The people in the township automatically assumed we were white Afrikaners, a group of people they obviously hold a lot of resentment towards. When we told them we were from the US they were excited, asked about Texas, and were generally more accepting than had we been white South Africans. I was proud of me and Jess, as we were able to relate to a certain extent to all the people in the town, despite the language and cultural barriers. When it was time to leave, we ended up having to stay as some of the women in the town got together and prepared a feast in my and Jess’ honor. This gesture was significant, as white people are generally not welcome in the townships, and one man who I was talking to told me that Cape Town was dangerous, but he emphasized that we were safe in Ravenmead. Although this statement may seem silly, I felt that this was a gesture of enormous kindness. Despite my white skin, despite my American accent and pitch of voice, they simply viewed me as a friend, as a fellow human being.

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Other highlights from the last few days:

During our long break between orientation sessions I went to lunch with my friend Jess and then we went to the supermarket, Checkers. While we were shopping there was a power outage and we were in the back of the store where there are no windows. We put our stuff down on a random shelf and walked out. Most of Main Rd. was blacked out. It was really funny and Jess and I handled it like true pros.

Later, we had a drum café for all of the international students where a few Rasta guys came and taught 500 of us how to drum. We each had our own drum and by the end of the session were all able to drum a few songs. The sound was so powerful and I thought I was pretty good at it. At one point I just stopped drumming to listen. I could feel the sound in my chest and I loved the power that 500 synchronized talking drums exuded.

Our program went to a play called Mirror Mirror. The play is a metaphor for South Africa’s apartheid history and then about how little has changed in South Africa in the last 14 years due to AIDS. It took place during feudal times with people overthrowing the queen, the power being given to the people, but then the people abused the power and the country got “the plague.” The government then said that they didn’t want to do anything about “the plague” because it meant that there would be fewer peasants. The symbolism was clear and powerful. Afterwards the playwright spoke to our program. He is a white and Afrikaans, and it was interesting to hear his perspective on the arts and activism. Although his play has won many awards in Europe and South Africa, he believes that art cannot make a true difference in social movements, as it usually only preaches to the choir.

February 6, 2008

Today was my one week mark in South Africa. It’s weird, I feel like I’ve been here for a long time, but I’m still not totally sure if I believe that I’m living here for a long time either.

Today was one of the first days where I was frustrated with being here. Generally, this frustration was caused by a lack of computers.

I had to begin to get ready for course registration and I had to get some classes approved for that I didn’t get approved for in August when I applied to the university. I had to run around the GIANT campus getting signatures. I only needed two signatures, but they took so long to get, because I kept being sent from one part of campus to the other. This wouldn’t have been as time-consuming at AU, but here the walks were about 20 minutes each, up and down giant flights of stairs. I didn’t even end up getting the last signature because by the time I found the building the professor was gone. On Friday, I will go back to campus to register for classes which should bring long lines and probably more running around. (Note: Registration was a success! I registered for: Traditional African Religion, Understanding Gender, Media in S.Africa, and Labour and Industrialisation in S.Africa.)

I’ve begun to realize how much more one can accomplish in a day because of the internet. Here, hours are spent doing a task that takes five minutes or less due to the web. The internet is also probably part of the reason that our society is so stressed out. Americans have so much to accomplish in one day because more tasks are realistically possible based on our society’s emphasis on the internet. Cape Town is so relaxed—people just take things as they come.

**Thanks for those who have been calling and keeping in touch. I'd love to hear from you, so shoot me an email and tell me about your lives!***

Hello from Mother City, Motherland

**Note…this entry is REALLY long because I’ve just been adding to it as the days go on (It only covers the first 5-ish days). But I promise it is interesting! I’ll bold the parts that are the most interesting so if you don’t want to read it all you can easily skim. They’ll get shorter as time goes on!

I knew something was different when I pulled up the blind next to my window seat. The map showed us flying over the Atlantic Ocean, on the South Western African coast. It was 5am, and the sun was rising over the water. By 6am as our plane touched the South African soil, the sun was fully up. Table Mountain was in the distance, and after over 24 hours of travel, I stepped onto the tarmac, onto Cape Town.

The drive to the airport was short, but we saw so much of South Africa in the thirty minute drive. The first community after the airport is a township, a community with tin and cardboard houses and dirt roads. Once the township was over, a wealthy suburban community was just across the fence. The communities are literally a contrast of black and white. It was like two worlds facing each other in the mirror. Essentially, this is the epitome of South Africa.

A first-world country with serious third-world problems, South Africa is a country in transition. Cape Town is a lot like many European cities regarding its infrastructure and downtown, but “Africa” peeks in at every corner. The city’s architecture reminds me of so many places I’ve been, like Carmel or Sausalito and New Orleans, but it also is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. There are 11 official languages and listening to people click when they speak is crazy. I still don’t believe that I live here now. It is too surreal, too beautiful. I wonder if people get used to the fact that they live here. I can’t imagine getting accustomed to seeing this view. The city is in a bowl, surrounded by mountains, including the famous Table Mountain.

Our first day we went to the top of the mountain by a cable car, which is like a giant gondola whose floor moves in a circle, so you can see the entire view. When you get to the top of the mountain, the view is breathless. Any words I can use, any photos that you see, will not do it justice. As the clouds rolled in, the mountain was covered in its tablecloth and a rainbow appeared in the clouds. The ocean is clear, and in the middle you can see the island where Nelson Mandela was held prisoner for 27 years. the mountains here show every rock, every layer. Like the rest of South Africa they stand entirely exposed, but shockingly gorgeous.

Funnily enough, my first dinner in Africa was Thai food. I am pretty much obsessed with this city.

Day 2 brought orientation and a lot of safety talks. It is intimidating how cautious I have to be, especially because in D.C. I am so independent. However, in retrospect, I am beginning to understand how true this is. Today (day 4 at the time of writing this), a girl got a necklace ripped right off her neck on the street, and I know of a few people who have gotten pick-pocketed in a bar on Long Street, the safest street for bars and clubs in Cape Town. That being said, you shouldn’t freak out for my safety. I feel safe here, and it is all about taking precautions. Small theft may happen, but I feel confident larger crimes will not happen to me if I take the precautions advised to me during orientation.

I have become good friends with a large group of girls from WashU, and on our second day, one of our SOLMates (Student Orientation Leader Mates) drove some of us to a beach. I was quite proud of us that we made it to a beach on our second day here. It was so beautiful. (I am sure reading my writing of “so beautiful” over and over again is getting repetitive, but I don’t know another way to describe this city except for incredibly beautiful!!!) The water was crystal-clear blue and the sky was cloudless. The color of the water made it seem like it would be warm, but it was absolutely freezing. Cape Town is on the Atlantic Coast, but hopefully soon I will travel to the Eastern Cape which is on the Indian Ocean Coast, which is supposedly a lot warmer. The beach was very windy, and the sand slaps across your whole body as the wind raises it off the beach. At times it was quite painful, but it was just really nice to be next to the ocean at the end of January!

That night we went to Long Street, a street full of pubs and restaurants. South Africa played Senegal in the Africa Cup and the pubs were full of people watching the game. Later that night we went to a bar called Jo-burg, which is apparently a very popular place to go, as it was very small and very crowded (possibly because so many people from our program were there). Some of us left the crowded scene for a bit and went to a hookah bar, which had a booth raised off the ground next to the window, where we curled up in a bed of giant cushions.

Going out on Long Street sort of reminded me a little bit of Adams Morgan in DC just because of the fact that the entire street is basically designed for a night life, but it is definitely an entire new world. The men on the street cat-call you with every step you take. They click and whistle and hoot and wave their hands around like you’re some spirit they’ve been waiting for their entire life. Instead of pizza on the streets, they have German hot dogs.

Speaking of which, I’m sure you are all wondering about the food. So far the food has been very “American.” If you remember from your history lessons, South Africa was settled by many Europeans, especially the Dutch and British. Therefore the food is very western European influenced, and the white people have a very dutch look. Friday night our program had dinner at a restaurant called Marco’s African Place, where the food was more traditionally southern African. They brought out giant dishes of everything on the menu (about 6 or 7 dishes) to our table where we shared with everyone. The style reminded me of Moroccon restaurants, but the food was totally different. It included a lot of lamb, chicken, and rice. There was also really good bread which tasted like corn bread but was a lot sweeter. The most unique things were oxtail (actually quite good) and an African beer that is served in a giant wooden bowl that you must hold with two hands to your face because it is so big. But the beer was absolutely disgusting…it tasted like bad yogurt.

During that dinner the electricity in Cape Town went out. The city has been experiencing many power outages lately due to a higher demand for electicity than availability. This is causing fears for the upcoming World Cup to be held in S.Africa. I don’t know what would have happened in the US if this had happened, but the waiters treated it like nothing was wrong. Candles were brought out, and when we needed to know which dish was which dish, we had a friend hold up a candle to our plate. The bathrooms were candlelit as well, and when I went up to the second story of the restaurant to look outside, the city was totally black, but the sky was completely lit with stars. It was the most stars I’ve ever seen in a city.

So far our day to day activities have been orientation. Classes don’t start until February 15^th. We have heard about how to register for classes (not online, but the “old school” way, with many lines, aka ques, and paperwork), safety, tours of the campus, and about potential volunteer activities. The campus of University of Cape Town is huge and incredibly gorgeous, as it is snuggled between the mountains. There are steps leading up to the campus’ main building, and it is said that that is where people find their soul-mates; however, it is also supposedly very self-segregated, as black, white, and colored (I haven’t turned racist, it’s a term used here to describe non-white but non-black people) students choose different sections of the steps to sit.

Day 4 brought an intensive day of moving in to our new homes. I am living in the res, called Liesbeek Gardens. There are only 40 americans in the building, all through my program, as there is a shortage of housing for UCT. The res is actually off campus, but a Jammie (campus shuttle) stops in front of our building and drives us to campus. I am not sure how far we are from campus yet, but I know that hypothetically, walking to campus during the day is possible, but a Jammie is absolutely necessary at night. The res is a brick building with blue balconies. It is square, with all of the flats looking out into a courtyard. The hallways for each flat are outside (sort of reminded me of some of the UC Davis dorms I visited) but are covered incase of rain. Each dorm room is a flat that consists of 4 singles, a kitchen, and 2 bathrooms. In the rooms with Americans, there are 2 American students and 2 African students. My American flatmate is named Kate and is from WashU. I am really lucky because she and I have been hanging out all week, so I’m lucky to have a random assignment that will be successful. Both of the African flatmates have already arrived which is unusual as classes don’t begin for some time. One’s name is Ati and is from the Eastern Cape. She is a 4^th year, which is like grad school here. I haven’t really talked much to her yet, she mostly keeps to herself. The other one is a 3^rd year named Lendy, who is hilarious and very friendly. Her boyfriend is here a lot, which is nice to have a guy around who can reach our lightbulbs that needed changing (which still don’t work) and it just makes the apartment feel a bit safer. Some flats are co-ed but ours randomly is all girls. I think it would have been fun to have guy flatmates but at the same time, I wonder what African men’s perception of a woman’s role in the house is, and I would not have wanted to be stuck doing all of the cleaning.

Each bedroom is numbered with a letter. Rooms A and D are incredibly humongous (probably 2-3 times the size of my bedroom at home…absolutely absurd for university housing!) and have balcony access, Room B is a bit smaller than A and D and can see the balcony through his/her giant windows, but does not have access, and room C is typically the smallest room. UCT gave most of the american students rooms B and C, because we are only here for a semester. I have room C, which is supposedly the most unfortunate assignment, but I could not be happier. First of all, it is pretty large for a single room, and secondly, I have the best view of the entire world. Looking out my window, I have a full on view of the mountain. I cannot believe, and I hope I never get over the fact, that everyday while I’m here, I get to wake up and see something so incredibly beautiful. I also have a view of giant palm trees, and trees that look like they busted out of the Lion King (tall trunks and flat tops of green leaves) as well as some nice buildings. It is all pretty unreal.

Moving in was a bit stressful as their systems and times are not as structured as americans’. (To Be cultures…) fortunately Kate and I got to the front of the que, and then we went shopping to get stuff for our apartment such as toilet paper, shampoo, a hamper, and towels. UCT gave us a box full of kitchen supplies and bedding, which was really helpful, although the bedding is pretty heinous looking. Buying tons of new things for our apartment cost Kate and me each about 580 rand, which is about $80US. Pretty sweet! The dollar goes far here (tonight going to 2 bars, an internet café, dinner, and 2 cab rides cost me about $16US) which is really convenient.

A fun S.African story is about the minibus taxis. How it works is there are these white vans that drive around the city. You can stand on any corner and wave one down. Then someone, who always seems to be black, sticks his hand out the window to say how many seats are left in the van. Then you climb in, and everyone seems to know where the mini-busses stop and you estimate how much you think it should cost. So we all climbed in holding massive laundry baskets filled with our new stuff. It was really crowded so some of the other passengers had to hold our stuff. It was a pretty fun experience. We are advised to ride these busses, but only during the day, only with at least one other person, and only if there are other people in the van (it is dangerous to get in just if it is you, your friend, and the driver), and for women, it is recommended to get in only if there are other women in the van as well. This can be frustrating as I am extremely independent in the San Francisco Bay and D.C and can ride the metro alone at night (at least in NW), but I understand that this is a different environment, and do not feel the need to disregard our program’s suggestions. At night, we have certain numbers of specific drivers we can call, or there are a few certain types of taxis we are allowed to take. It is frustrating how everything seems to change with the setting of the sun as we are allowed to walk around alone during the day and must travel in large groups at night, but hopefully someday South Africa won’t be like this. The country has come a long way in the last 14 years, but things like being insanely catcalled in the streets and having to know your taxi cab’s driver’s name and personal cell phone number is frustrating. These guidelines are not just for women either, although they are much more important for us females.

After shopping, CIEE held a braai (BBQ) for us at the res’ pool. It was really fun. There was a lot of good food (including lamb on a spit) and drinks and it was nice just to relax in the sun after a hard day of shopping and shlepping everything back! South Africans love to dance, and this was very apparent at the braai. The minute the music turned on many of the Africans left the pool deck to go crowd around the speaker. They are all such good dancers, it is insane. Some of them were teaching some of my friends and I some of the moves, but I feel so self-conscious around them! I like dancing, but they just have so much rhythm and so many moves. One of the CIEE employees’ daughter, who cannot be any older than 5, seriously had more rhythm than anyone I have seen in a US club. She was adorable.

All of the people here are incredibly beautiful and could all be models. I feel so awkward-looking around all of them because every one of all races makes everyone in the US and Europe seem so ugly. Their beauty is incredibly natural. I have never seen more beautiful men or women, black and white, anywhere else in the world. I have seen very few unattractive people, and they all were probably Americans or another type of tourist. At the beach we saw a model being photographed, but looking around, I realized that almost anyone there could be photographed for a magazine.

There are so many little things that are different, that I find so fascinating. Like packaging, instead of massive plastic, it is cardboard and saran-wrap type material keeping the item in its place. Or how everything seems so old, like I’ve gone back in time to pre-internet lifestyles of school preparations and dorm life (there was something missing from our room, and instead of filling out my complaint online there was a massive ledger I had to write in). Everything here is about race, my references about white and black in this blog are just falling into how everything is done. Nobody is simply his name, but is always described as white, black, and coloured.

Day 5 brought a tour of the Western Cape with all of the other international students who will be studying at UCT this semester. There are about 500 of us. We visited a community called Ocean View, where blacks were moved to when they were removed from their homes during apartheid. It is quite far from the city, and it is sad to see how poor the conditions are. They provided us lunch and performed. The children were amazing dancers. We also went to the Cape of Good Hope, which is the south western most point in Africa. It was incredibly breathtaking. We also saw penguins! They are really smelly but adorable.

At night I went to a bar with a lot of other kids from our program to watch the Super Bowl. There were many South Africans there too, and I tried to talk to some of them. I had an interesting conversation where one guy told me that if he went home to tell his grandmother that he had been talking to a white american girl, she would have told him not to come home again, that he had turned white. But things among the young people have changed, he says. I think that this is a sign of apartheid’s lasting effects, and how, like any social movement, it will take generations to be fixed, but how the mentality of the young people is quickly changing.

I could write for days but I don’t want all of you to unsubscribe to my blog. You are absolutely incredible if you reached this point! I still don't have wireless in my room but hopefully I will begin to have more regular access so I won't need to post days worth of experiences into one post, and soon, everything will become less over-stimulating!

Love from the cape!

I'm here!

Hello everyone!

I am currently in an internet cafe in Cape Town. Today I moved into my apartment and it is really nice. Pictures and a longer post will come, but I just wanted to write and say that I am safe and happy and having a great time. There will probably be wireless in my room in the next few days, and I will upload everything I've written about Cape Town then. I brought a USB to the internet cafe to upload it now, but it didn't work. So some highlights so far: beach, table mountain (including a full frontal view of it from MY NEW BEDROOM) beautiful weather, great people, good food, a huge power outage, and A LOT of dancing!

But for now, just wanted to say hi and to let you know that this is the most beautiful city EVER, and you all should come visit. My room is big and the university gives us mattresses for visitors. SO COME! Talk to you soon! Also, I have a cell number now so if you're interested in it send me an email. I don't want to post it on blogger, but I am currently reachable again!!

Can't wait to tell you everything soon!
Love Laiah