Welp, its official! The blisters are back folks. I have debated back and forth about joining the rowing team here in South Africa and finally I broke down and decided that not only did I miss rowing terribly, but I wanted to experience what South African rowing was like. So, this morning, the Vice Captain of the team picked me up at Annie's Cove and it was about an 25 minute drive out to the river and boathouse. The team has a pretty decent boathouse, with about 15-20 boats, but no dock, so we had to wade into the water up to our thighs and then climb into the boat two at a time. At first, we took out an eight, with a few novice members in the boat as well, so things were a bit rocky but it was nice just to back in a boat, rowing!
Most things were the same, but I did notice a few big differences in the way they talk about rowing. For example, to refer to the different sides of the boat, we say "Starboard" and "Port" to refer to the left and right side of the boat, where as they say "Bow side" and "Stroke side." Different than what I'm used to. They also call their personal best, in like a 2k or 5k a "trial."
Overall, I enjoyed myself, and I think I will defiantly enjoy rowing here in S. Africa. They entire team was very welcoming and open to answering questions and making me feel at home. There is a regatta coming up in two weeks that they were really hoping I would attend, but I have already planned to go to Cape Town since it is on a long weekend break from school. Instead, I will go with them to a regatta in April in Johannesburg, which I think will be really fun!
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Friday, March 1, 2013
KFC, McDonalds & Vanilla Ice Cream!
I know you are probably disturbed by the title of this post haha as am I, but honestly, its much different than what we are used to in the United States. KFC here is theeeee most popular food chain. They are EVERYWHERE! More popular than McDonalds in the United States. Whats great as well, as KFC is actually really good here! Their chicken tastes real, they have delicious fries, and they deliver! (I am currently eating KFC as I write haha!) McDonalds is popular here, but not much as KFC. They also deliver, which is fantastic, and their food is WAY better than in the United States, mostly because the meat they use is real, and not nearly as processed as in the U.S. They dont have as many options as MacDons back home, but they still have the typical stuff. I know what your thinking, I must be eating this stuff all the time! Not the case, haha! I have only had McDonalds and KFC one time each here, just to try it, and it is nice that both deliver.
Also, vanilla ice cream here is TO DIE FOR. It is unlike any vanilla ice cream you will ever find in the United States. Its not custard, its not like the typical Dairy Queen soft serve, its not like kemps, and the greatest thing, is that it actually tastes like homemade, real vanilla ice cream! On average, vanilla ice cream cones here are 2-4 rand, so less than 50 cents U.S dollars. Its a wonderful thing!
Also, vanilla ice cream here is TO DIE FOR. It is unlike any vanilla ice cream you will ever find in the United States. Its not custard, its not like the typical Dairy Queen soft serve, its not like kemps, and the greatest thing, is that it actually tastes like homemade, real vanilla ice cream! On average, vanilla ice cream cones here are 2-4 rand, so less than 50 cents U.S dollars. Its a wonderful thing!
Second Week of Volunteering in Walmer Township
This week, once again, I returned to Walmer Township to volunteer for a few hours at Sinethemba Children's Home, at the after school homework club. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera this time again, but if any of you are curious to see what Walmer Township looks like, or what Sinethemba looks like you can google map it, turn on "walking" mode, and you can literally walk the streets there.
I feel like this week there was a lot of progress made as far as relationships with the kids go. They recognized us, and were much more talkative. None of them seemed to have homework this week for some strange reason, so we spent most the time reading books, coloring and doing art projects. I helped one little boy read five books in a row. He just kept finding book after book that he wanted to read, and he seemed pretty advanced at reading for his age. At one point, he was reading a book about seasons, and I had to do a lot of explaining about what the different seasons meant, since they dont really have the same seasons in South Africa. Next, I sat next to a girl who was 11 and loved art. She literally colored the entire two and a half hours we were there. I showed her how to do different shading things with her crayons, and she showed me how to "color really dark with pink so it looks red" haha. She asked me a bunch of questions and we kind of got to know each other, it was nice! She asked me where I was from and when I told her, she wasnt sure where Minnesota was, so I got a globe and showed her. She was shocked to see how far away and how far north Minnesota was. It was very interesting to see the look on her face when I told her I spent 27 hours on a plane to get to Port Elizabeth. She then asked me about the weather, the seasons, and other things about where I was from. She was shocked to know about the snow, because she said she had never seen it before. I told her about ice fishing and snowmobiling (that one was hard to explain!), she got a good laugh about those and was slightly alarmed about the idea of ice fishing. It was also interesting when she asked me why it didnt snow in South Africa..it was hard to explain at first because the reasoning behind that was always just so second nature to me. I explained about the equator, and elevation and I hope that for the most part it made sense. I also asked her questions, like what they do here for Christmas, Easter and New Years. I was very careful not to ask about presents at Christmas, or Santa Clause, because I got the idea from her explanations that the kids didnt have either. She told me that on Christmas, they go to church, eat a nice lunch, clean and then pray. I asked her if they had Christmas trees, or anything that they decorated with and she said no to Christmas trees, but that they make decorations to hang up for the house and school room. When she asked me about my Christmas, I found myself leaving a lot of things out. I guess mostly out of guilt and not wanting to sound rude, like I had so much and she had so little, so I kept presents out of the picture.
Overall, being in Walmer Township and volunteering at the homework club, has given me a different perspective on life. How much I take for granted, how much I really do have and just how lucky I am, but it also makes me realize just how messed up Westernized society's values are. I have never been big on presents at Christmas, just because I think its pointless and not the real reason for the season, but being in Walmer, at this homework club, where the kids never have a Christmas with presents just makes it all the more obvious to me just how obsessed and backward people are about material things. When I sit down and think about it, I begin to realize how actually insane people get at Christmas time with gifts. Our Thanksgiving and the day after is basically a national shopping day for Christ sake, where instead of spending time with our families, we go out and spend money we dont have. On Christmas, kids rate the success of their Christmas Day with how many presents they got, how big they were and how much they think all of it cost. I love the United States, but I am ashamed to say I come from a culture so obsessed with money and things.
I feel like this week there was a lot of progress made as far as relationships with the kids go. They recognized us, and were much more talkative. None of them seemed to have homework this week for some strange reason, so we spent most the time reading books, coloring and doing art projects. I helped one little boy read five books in a row. He just kept finding book after book that he wanted to read, and he seemed pretty advanced at reading for his age. At one point, he was reading a book about seasons, and I had to do a lot of explaining about what the different seasons meant, since they dont really have the same seasons in South Africa. Next, I sat next to a girl who was 11 and loved art. She literally colored the entire two and a half hours we were there. I showed her how to do different shading things with her crayons, and she showed me how to "color really dark with pink so it looks red" haha. She asked me a bunch of questions and we kind of got to know each other, it was nice! She asked me where I was from and when I told her, she wasnt sure where Minnesota was, so I got a globe and showed her. She was shocked to see how far away and how far north Minnesota was. It was very interesting to see the look on her face when I told her I spent 27 hours on a plane to get to Port Elizabeth. She then asked me about the weather, the seasons, and other things about where I was from. She was shocked to know about the snow, because she said she had never seen it before. I told her about ice fishing and snowmobiling (that one was hard to explain!), she got a good laugh about those and was slightly alarmed about the idea of ice fishing. It was also interesting when she asked me why it didnt snow in South Africa..it was hard to explain at first because the reasoning behind that was always just so second nature to me. I explained about the equator, and elevation and I hope that for the most part it made sense. I also asked her questions, like what they do here for Christmas, Easter and New Years. I was very careful not to ask about presents at Christmas, or Santa Clause, because I got the idea from her explanations that the kids didnt have either. She told me that on Christmas, they go to church, eat a nice lunch, clean and then pray. I asked her if they had Christmas trees, or anything that they decorated with and she said no to Christmas trees, but that they make decorations to hang up for the house and school room. When she asked me about my Christmas, I found myself leaving a lot of things out. I guess mostly out of guilt and not wanting to sound rude, like I had so much and she had so little, so I kept presents out of the picture.
Overall, being in Walmer Township and volunteering at the homework club, has given me a different perspective on life. How much I take for granted, how much I really do have and just how lucky I am, but it also makes me realize just how messed up Westernized society's values are. I have never been big on presents at Christmas, just because I think its pointless and not the real reason for the season, but being in Walmer, at this homework club, where the kids never have a Christmas with presents just makes it all the more obvious to me just how obsessed and backward people are about material things. When I sit down and think about it, I begin to realize how actually insane people get at Christmas time with gifts. Our Thanksgiving and the day after is basically a national shopping day for Christ sake, where instead of spending time with our families, we go out and spend money we dont have. On Christmas, kids rate the success of their Christmas Day with how many presents they got, how big they were and how much they think all of it cost. I love the United States, but I am ashamed to say I come from a culture so obsessed with money and things.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Monkeys and now Snakes??
Well, as if I thought monkeys trying to steal my breakfast wasn't weird and scary enough, today while I was sitting in the education building mooching off the internet before class, all of a sudden, people were yelling and running and looking seriously concerned about something down the hall. Sure enough, it was a two foot long snake, that I heard through all the chaos, was poisonous! I was about ten feet down the hallway from it, so I was a safe distance away, but it was still different and slightly alarming! I asked one of the people next to me in the hallway if this happens a lot here at NMMU, and she laughed and said yes, almost daily. Great. Snakes in my classroom! Eventually, two guys were brave enough to wrestle the snake into a to-go box and take it to the animal control office on campus. Three things alarm me about this situation: 1) There are snakes INSIDE the buildings 2) They are poisonous 3) there is an animal control office ON CAMPUS. Like I said, every day here is a new adventure!
Sardina Bay
On Sunday, some friends and I took a short little 20 kilometer trip to Sardina Bay, which we had all heard was extremely beautiful, and one of the nicest beaches around, so we decided to check it out! When you first arrive, it just looks like a bunch of really tall sand dunes, but once you walk up and over the first, really tall, really tiring dune, you can see just an amazing view of the beach and the surrounding area! Defiantly the most beautiful beach I have ever been to!
South Africa, now Law School????!!!
For the past few days I havent been on the internet, and so I havent checked facebook, email, or anything, BUT today I got the best surprise I could ask for! I have officially been accepted to William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul! As if life right now weren't already crazy and interesting enough with each day in Africa being a new adventure, now I have this as well! I cant even explain my feelings once I found out I was accepted! I have waited so long, and worked SO hard for that acceptance letter, that I cant actually believe it happened! I think back to all the horrible, stressful, overwhelming days where I thought I couldn't handle it anymore and now, finally, I feel like it was all worth it! Its such a strange, crazy feeling!
At this point, I have two options, 1) Go right to law school when I get home from South Africa, which would mean graduating from SCSU in June when I get home, working for a month and a half, and then leaving for law school, OR 2) Deferring for a year to whatever school I decide, working, and taking an internship in Haiti with a Non-Profit. Decisions, decisions! I am very, very torn, because both options have good and bad points, but overall I'm beyond thrilled to finally be accepted somewhere!
At this point, I have two options, 1) Go right to law school when I get home from South Africa, which would mean graduating from SCSU in June when I get home, working for a month and a half, and then leaving for law school, OR 2) Deferring for a year to whatever school I decide, working, and taking an internship in Haiti with a Non-Profit. Decisions, decisions! I am very, very torn, because both options have good and bad points, but overall I'm beyond thrilled to finally be accepted somewhere!
Friday, February 22, 2013
Volunteering in Walmer Township
Once again, yesterday, I returned to one of the townships here in P.E, this time to begin my volunteer work for my Service Learning class. As I mentioned in previous posts, I will be volunteering in Walmer for two hours every week at an after school homework club, where kids from grades 6-10 come after school for help on their homework. One thing I found out yesterday that was really awful to learn, was that this homework club isn't just an after school place, where the kids go for a few hours and then go to their individual homes elsewhere in the township. They have no other home. Next to the little house we do homework in, there is another house, where the kids stay, full time. When I asked one of the mamas, who started the homework club why this was their home, instead of with their parents, she explained to me that some of them were beat, neglected, or their parents were dead.
I first helped a girl from the 5th grade with her time homework, then another boy from the 5th grade on the same assignment. Neither seemed to understand the instructions, or what they should be doing in the assignment. When I asked them what their teacher told them to do, it proved just how broken some of the education systems are here. The kids told me their teacher had no explained, only handed them the assignment and moved on to the next topic. Thankfully, I was wearing my watch, so it was much easier to explain to them how to take time, and how to count, for example, how many minutes are in an hour. I wish my watch had been slightly less flashy though, because all of the sparkly "diamond" looking things in it were distracting to the kids, and I felt bad having something so flashy, when they didn't even have shoes.
When we were done with homework, we played games for a little while, and then some of the kids showed me some of their dance moves outside, until it was time to go. Helping these kids is something I dont think I will ever forget. Despite the situation they come from, most of them seem very intent on their education especially the older ones. It is still hard to wrap my mind around all of these kids, where they come from, and the situation they are in. I have to give them so much credit because despite it all, they still keep going and they are some of the happiest kids I've ever met.
I first helped a girl from the 5th grade with her time homework, then another boy from the 5th grade on the same assignment. Neither seemed to understand the instructions, or what they should be doing in the assignment. When I asked them what their teacher told them to do, it proved just how broken some of the education systems are here. The kids told me their teacher had no explained, only handed them the assignment and moved on to the next topic. Thankfully, I was wearing my watch, so it was much easier to explain to them how to take time, and how to count, for example, how many minutes are in an hour. I wish my watch had been slightly less flashy though, because all of the sparkly "diamond" looking things in it were distracting to the kids, and I felt bad having something so flashy, when they didn't even have shoes.
When we were done with homework, we played games for a little while, and then some of the kids showed me some of their dance moves outside, until it was time to go. Helping these kids is something I dont think I will ever forget. Despite the situation they come from, most of them seem very intent on their education especially the older ones. It is still hard to wrap my mind around all of these kids, where they come from, and the situation they are in. I have to give them so much credit because despite it all, they still keep going and they are some of the happiest kids I've ever met.
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