Old.. very old.. Trip to Cape Point and Boulder's Beach

Me and Jayden at Cape Point on a rock on the beach.

I have been waiting for Jayden to give me some pictures of this trip for ages. This trip happened so long ago, that I really don’t remember it that well. We went to Cape Point and Boulder’s Beach. First we went to Cape Point; Jayden and I hiked all the way to the lighthouse there, then hiked all the way down to the beach. I had a sinus infection at the time, so it was hard to breath, but I was determined to see and do all that I could while there.

There were many baboons there, and the park rangers had sling shots and had to chase them away. The baboons were crafty too. In the past, they had gotten into the store there. Also, while we were there, one of them got in the car with this man who was on the phone. You couldn’t eat any food outside or anything, otherwise they’d come up and steal it. The waves at the beach were treacherous. One of our drivers told us a story about a guy on a family trip who had recently drowned there. Those were REAL waves. After Cape Point, we went to Boulder’s Beach and ate. After eating, we went to see penguins. Penguins are not as cute in person as they are on television. They stink, and they make an annoying sound. They weren’t really interesting, so I decided to swim instead.

Only a few people decided to swim, which amazed me, because I know more than a few people had their bathing suits on underneath their clothes. Jayden somehow talked me into jumping off this rock into the water. I been telling EVERYONE since I got here "I don't know how to swim. I just know how to stay alive in the water." The water was too cold to just slowly get into, so I had to jump. It was scary. I freaked out. The water was FREEZING. And, the waves were coming in; I wasn't used to waves while swimming. I'm used to swimming in a pool. Then, some sea weed wrapped around my leg. I freaked out! I started pushing Jayden's head under the water because the rock was too slippery to hold on to. I had to hold on to something. Hahaha.. sorry Jayden! I mean, I was really tripping.

This is at Boulder's Beach. Just look at me. I was so scared! That rock was cutting me up too!

I'm glad I did it though, because after that, I got in the water again and became more comfortable with the ocean.

Afterwards, we were supposed to stop at a winery, but I mean, once you've seen one winery, you've seen them all. So, some people decided to go on back home, including me. I also wasn't in the best of moods...

To make it even worse, my stuff was locked up in Maggie's room, who had decided she wanted to go to the winery. So, I had to wait, wet and cold, for her to get back. Then, when she got back, she couldn't find the keys to her room, so I had to wait even longer. It was a complete mess. It was just one of those extreme days that start off promising, but end horribly.

I had fun though, and I learned a lot about other people that day.

Us taking a "jumping on the beach" photo at Cape Point.

Black People

I already ranted about the White people (The Afrikaner) here, but I haven’t really discussed the Black people. Things aren’t all great.

Black students at the university that I meet are very nice to me. They like to talk about Black issues and chill. We just sit around and have a great time. However, I find that Black people who aren’t students ARE RUDE! They are completely rude to me. Anytime I go to like a store and there is a Black person working there, they are usually mean to me in some kind of way. They will not help me. They snap and/or whistle at me if I go the wrong way and/or they want to get my attention. I’m not a DOG! Usually, it’s just the women. Any Black woman knows when another Black woman is getting an attitude with her. It’s like a 6th sense… and I can tell when they are purposely being impolite. Also, if a white person is in the store, they will completely ignore me and help the White person. They stare, and sometimes I feel like they are following me through the store. Not everyone is like this, but more than often they are.

The men are usually trying to get with me. They whistle and make kissing noises. But, it’s the women that kind of hurt my feelings, because as Black women, we share the heaviest load, experiencing racism and sexism (and also classism). I wanted to bridge a gap, and instead, I discovered an even bigger gap.

My friend Brittney said it’s more about classism. When they look at me, they can tell I have money. When they hear me talk and hear that I am from America, they think I am rich. I’m unfamiliar to them. Because I am not poor… and I don’t speak the language, I’m not Black to them. These little girls at Kayamandi were talking about my friend Cassie, who is like darker than I am. The teacher told Cassie that they were trying to figure out whether Cassie was Black or White because she didn’t speak Xhosa. If you or I looked at Cassie, she’s obviously Black, but here being Black is more than just a skin tone.

I guess I can understand why they aren’t nice to me (I am different), but I don’t understand why they have to be rude to me. It just makes me think about us… “African-Americans” … We aren’t African. We aren’t American. Like.. the term “African-American” seems like it was meant to bridge a gap between the two worlds. In a sense.. we are a bridge between Africa and America. The term suggests that we are supposed to be both. But often, I feel like it’s a lonely word. We’re neither completely African nor completely American.

The other day, when I was waiting for my train in Johannesburg (a trip I will talk about in another post) back to Stellenbosch, this drunk, older, African guy gets off of the cheaper train speaking in Xhosa. He says something to this White Afrikaner lady sitting next to me, and she just ignores him. Then, he starts saying something to me as he’s walking away. I didn’t want to be rude, so I simply said, “I’m sorry, I don’t speak Xhosa.” He was like, “You don’t speak Xhosa?!” Then, he started saying more things in Xhosa.. and then told me that I had forgotten my roots.

Now, this could have been a real Sankofa moment. In the past, I probably would have felt he was right. I still think that part of every Black American that comes to Africa, goes to reclaim some part of their identity. But, the truth is, that belittles Africa; Africa hasn’t just been put on pause for hundreds of years. It’s changed. The “authentic” Africa, an Africa untouched by the West like in the movie Roots, doesn’t really exist anymore. Anyone coming here looking for that will be a little disappointed.

And the whole idea of Africa being the roots of Black people in America. This is true, but the institution of slavery was so unique, especially in America. You have many generations of slaves that were forced to forget their customs in efforts to weaken their souls. Also, you just have the process of natural assimilation. I’m not saying that all Black people in America have forgotten their pasts; it’s just that… it’s really hard to remember with so many things working against you. Plus, now coming to South Africa, it seems that people here have forgotten their pasts! Now, if some people in Africa have forgotten their past, how can they expect people abroad to remember?

It’s this idea of roots. It bothers me. Yes, my roots are in Africa… but in America, WE ARE ALL MIXED UP. We got “roots” in Europe, Africa, America (Native American), Asia… Black Americans have all kinds of blood in us. That’s just the truth of the matter. As much as it seems that White people (and Black people) try to only give Black people African ancestry, we have all kinds of ancestry. So… it’s just like… If I were to really sit down and learn the language of all my roots, I’d be learning like 20 different languages. That’s ridiculous.

So, I basically didn’t pay that drunk guy any attention. And, a few other Black people waiting for the train said, “I wish he’d shut-up and go away,” which also reassured me to not take him seriously.

It’s just like… Black people here don’t see me as truly Black, and using their definition, they are right. I am a Black American. My roots are here in Africa and on other continents as well. I’ve lived a different life than most Black people here in South Africa; we share the same burdens that come along with our skin tone, but we’ve experienced them in different environments. Black people in America have taken our African roots, our other roots, and our environment and created a completely different culture. As much as I want to truly connect with the Black people here, that’s just the fact of the matter.

FOOD!

I just wanted to do something that generally spoke about food since my Aunt Robin asked me about it. The food here is just like the food in America, but a little different. Like, the ketchup is a little sweet. It tastes like there are cloves in it or something. I like it, but most of the people from America don’t. I already explained that bacon is ham here. The only cereal they have is corn flakes, frosted flakes, bran flakes, and other stuff I don’t usually eat. I do like the Special K cereal they have here; it has cranberries in it. It’s pretty tasty, but, I SWEAR, the box is half empty. There’s only enough cereal in the box for three little bowls of cereal. It makes me mad. There is also "Jungle Oats." The apple cinnamon flavor tastes just like the apple cinnamon Quaker Oatmeal at home.

Food spoils very quickly here, because it doesn’t have all the preservatives they put in our food in America. You can’t try to come back to something a week later; IT WILL BE SPOILED. I have starting freezing my milk and bread; at first, it seemed like the next day, my bread would taste a little stale. Now, after I use it, I immediately put it back in the freezer. It is a hassle to thaw, but it tastes fresh everyday.

My favorite South African chips (chips are called "air crisps" here) are “Nik Naks,” which are VERY cheap (they are 1Rand for a bag) and taste like crunchy Cheetos. I also like the Sweet Chilli Doritos. Sweet Chilli is as popular as Ranch dressing is in America. (Nope, they don’t have ranch dressing here.) You can get sweet chilli flavored EVERYTHING! Every snack has a “sweet chilli” flavored version, and the shelves of the grocery store are full of different brands of sweet chilli sauce.

There are certain items that seem like you can get them anywhere at any restaurant at any time of the day. Toast is served just about everywhere. Like, I can go anywhere and get some toast and jam. I’m so sick of toast. I don’t think I can even look at a toaster when I get home. You can get an omelet anywhere and at anytime. They are always pretty tasty, but they make you pay for each topping so it gets expensive if you’re like me and want all the vegetables and cheese in it. Some kind of icecream dessert is served at every restaurant. KFC, which has like 1 little cake dessert in America, has like 10 dessert options here. They have this thing called an Avalanche; it is icecream, chocolate syrup, and brownies. It is so good. I’ve only had one, because I don’t want to get addicted to them. You can get a hot chocolate, coffee, or tea at any restaurant at any time of the day. By the way, KFC only has mashed potatoes (which is called mash, and has too much gravy on it) and slaw. They don’t have any other sides. Also, they don’t have biscuits here. They call cookies “biscuits,” but they don’t have real biscuits like we have.) You know how sometimes you go to a restaurant, and their hot chocolate isn’t that good. NOT HERE. Every restaurants’ hot chocolate has been delicious. I also enjoy hot Rooibos tea. They bring the little kettle out right to you. It makes me feel classy.

I know this is stupid and weak of me, but I think that because I am here, once I find something I like, I get addicted to it. Like, I was eating Chocolate Choc Almond ice-cream EVERYDAY for like 3 weeks. The people who worked there automatically knew what I wanted. It was so good though. I stopped going though, because it was breaking my bank account, plus I was a little ashamed that the employees there always knew what I wanted. I also quit going because I found a new addiction.. Fizz Pops. They are suckers that have this little powder in the middle; the fizz is weak compared to the things we have in America (like Pop Rocks.. remember those?!), but the candy is tasty. I don’t even suck the sucker; I basically just bite it and crunch on it. I was going through like 5 Fizz Pops a day. They are cheap, but still, I have never eaten candy like that. I had to stop that. I think when I first got here, I was addicted to Coca Cola; I don’t care what anyone says, I can taste the difference. Their Coke is made with sugar and not corn syrup like America’s Coke. They are also in bottles. They are so delicious. It’s hard not to drink one.

Speaking of drinks, the only restaurant that has a soda fountain is McDonalds. At every other restaurant, if you order a drink, they literally bring the can out to you with a cup of ice. I’m like, “DANG, I COULD HAVE DONE THAT MYSELF!!” hahaha. And also.. THERE ARE NO FREE REFILLS HERE AT ALL! That’s the biggest difference. Once you drink up your drink, unless you want to pay for another one, you are out of luck! In addition, they don’t automatically bring out ice water like they do at some restaurants in America. You have to ask for it every time.

When I eat meat at restaurants, as much as they claim to have “100% Beef,” it’s something a little fake about it. I do NOT like Steers or Wimpy’s (do not eat at Wimpy’s forreal, it’s nasty.), fast food burger joints in South Africa. The meat seems too well grounded up or something and they always put some kind of sauce on it. Fries are called “chips” here and even though there are only a few places that have good chips, the chips that they have are the best. When they’re good, they’re great! When they’re bad, they are REALLY bad.

It’s kind of messed up though, because I can only eat at restaurants. It’s like if someone visited America; if they didn’t have an American to cook them food, they’d think American food was just Burger King, McDonalds, and restaurants like that. That’s what’s happened to me… I don’t have anyone to cook me traditional South African food, so I can only eat at restaurants.

There are a few things I will definitely miss here. Nuttikrust cookies are so delicious. I was addicted to them too at a point in time. They are like a mix between oatmeal cookies and graham crackers. They are delicious. Also, I am going to miss No Name peanut butter. I am THE ONLY PERSON that likes this. I don’t know why I like this off-brand peanut butter; I just do. It’s literally called “NO NAME.” hahaha. I will miss the Fizz Pops, Nik Naks, Sweet Chili Doritos, and Coke. I have fallen in love with grilled cheese sandwiches with a slice of tomato in it. I cannot wait to eat those in the comfort of my home. There are a few restaurants I will miss too. I will miss Java Café, which has delicious White Hot Chocolate and a weird but tasty Bacon, Banana, and Cheese sandwich. I will miss Binnenhof, which has ½-off pancakes (which are more like crapes) on Thursdays. The caramel on the dessert crape tastes like Lucky Charms and has bananas, icecream, and nuts on it. I also like the mushroom, chicken, and cheese crape. I will miss Debonairs Pizza, which has a great cheese pizza with sun dried tomatoes on it. (Cheese pizzas are called “margherita” pizzas in South Africa). I will miss Cubanas with it’s delicious drinks and “FI” chicken wings. I mean, that’s the only word to describe those wings… “FI.”

Hopefully, I will be back someday, and I can eat all of these things again!

Kogel Bay with Sneeko Nico! (October 25th)

My friend Nico (pronounced like nEEko, and we call him “Sneeko Nico” because he has a sneaky walk.. hahaha) invited me to go with him and a few friends to Kogel (Kogel is pronounced like “cool”) Bay for the weekend. Nico is an international student also studying here in Stellenbosch; he is from Germany. I really love him; he is my favorite international student. What I like about Nico is that he goes after any opportunity to learn about issues, especially in America. I’ve learned so much about Germany from him, and I hope that I have taught him things about America. He’s coming to America in January, so hopefully, I’ll get to see him!

Anyway, Nico and I don’t hang out with the same crowd. Most of the people I hang out with here are from America, while most of his friends are from Germany and other European countries. Because of this, I really didn’t plan on going. But, at the last minute, I said “Why not?” I have to seize every moment I can here in Africa. I cannot stick to one group and type of friend. So, I put my bathing suit, pants, and underwear in my purse and headed to the Hillbilly house to meet up with him. When I walked up, I could tell he was surprised that I had actually showed up. Standing with him were a few people I had seen, and talked to sparingly, but people I really didn’t know. I was also the only Black person, and that always makes me a little nervous. But, whatever… I sucked it up and went.

At this point in time, like most points in time, I was COMPLETELY BROKE, and the group was going to the grocery store to get snacks and food for the braii (which is a South African bar-b-q, but they don’t use SAUCE.. they just grill the meat. It’s okay, but I prefer good ol’ American bar-b-q). I didn’t want to have to rely on strangers for food and drink for the entire weekend, so I used my bank card, knowing that the money was probably not there. However, I told my Mama and David and both of them put a little money in my account so I didn’t overdraw. THANKS AGAIN!

After picking up some food, we headed to Kogel Bay. The ride to the beach was like an hour’s drive, but the drive was so scenic, that I really didn’t realize that it was kind of a long trip. The drive was right along the coast, so from the car, we could see the beautiful coastline and the mountains. Luckily, Lisa, who is also from Germany, decided that all the girl’s should ride together, so I got to ride with her and not in Nico’s crappy car. When we got to the location, we had to carry all of our things down this path and over these dangerous rocks to the beach. The beach was just as beautiful as Nico said it was. It was secluded and surrounded by mountains. It was the type of place that made you think, “Wow… What did I do to deserve to see this?”

After arriving, we laid on the beach and let the water rush over our feet a few times. I wasn’t really in the mood to get wet. Plus, the waves were dangerous looking. They were big and many of the experienced surfers on the trip had problems tackling them. Nico and this American guy named John got into an accident; the front of Nico’s board hit John in the face, slitting his eyelid and cutting his nose. There was blood rushing down his face. It was scary. The injury seemed minor though, but just to be safe, they took him to the hospital. I saw him a few days ago, and he looks fine now.

After talking and lounging about, we headed to another section of the beach, which was less windy because it was surrounded by caves. It was really nice. After the sunset, we set-up a fire and starting grilling our meats. Nico and Matthew pulled out their guitars and started singing around the campfire. It was really cool to just chill, sing, and watch the stars come out. There was a lighthouse across the bay too. It was the first time I had ever saw a lighthouse in action. We were around the fire, making s’mores (marshmallow, chocolate, between to tea cookies [they don’t have graham crackers in South Africa!]) and, all of a sudden, people starting screaming and jumping up from their seats. The tide had come in! I told Nico it would, but he wouldn’t listen… (men are ridiculous). The place where we were was surrounded by cliffs and a cave; if we would have stayed any longer, we would have gotten trapped, so we moved our stuff back to the spot where we were earlier, only to find that the tide would probably get us there too. So, we took our sleeping bags and stuff to the top of a hill of sand and fell asleep under the stars. It was a little scary sleeping on a hill; I made a ditch in the sand with my feet at the bottom my sleeping bag so that I wouldn’t slide down the hill in the middle of the night. Sand is not as comfortable to sleep on as I thought it would be either. It’s harder than sleeping on a floor, and I like sleeping on floors! Also, the waves, which had already seemed too treacherous to swim in, were crazy that night. They were crashing so loud that it scared me out of my sleep a few times. But, the weather was perfect, and I went to sleep with sand everywhere and a smile on my face.

In the morning, we ate snacks and most people surfed. I changed into my bathing suit, caught a little sun, and read a book. I don’t like when my skin gets too dark, because I start looking like a guy, so after a while, when I felt my skin toasting, I found some shade to chill in. After a few hours, I heard people gasping. I looked up the cliff, and there was baboon! He had stolen some food from someone and ran back up the cliff! After the sun slowly took away the shade I had found, I decided to go play in the water. The water was cold, but it was still pretty fun. I buried Nico’s foot in sand, then decided it was about time for me to go. Luckily, a group was leaving, so I squeezed in with them. This really sweet Afrikaner girl, who is in one of my classes, drove. We saw a group of baboons when we were waiting by the car; it was funny. It was really funny, because that’s South Africa. Wild animals… (I’ve seen a chameleon just walking across a sidewalk), beaches…. , and mountains! I really love it here.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu (September 26th)

My program got the opportunity to meet Desmond Tutu (click his name if you do not know who he is) the same week we got back from the Garden Route. Although, I was still very exhausted from Spring Break, and not exactly looking forward to getting up before sunrise on a Friday morning, I could not miss the opportunity to meet Desmond Tutu. Desmond Tutu is the first Black Archbishop of the Anglican Church of South Africa and a human rights activist who became famous for his fight against Apartheid. He won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts too. I cannot even describe all the things he has done, and how important he has been to South Africa and the world.

It was a dark, wet morning. It was really storming. I barely got out of bed (I had to get up at 4:00am!), but I did it somehow and headed to the bus. We drove to Capetown to St. George’s Cathedral to attend a Eucharist service with Tutu acting as the priest. Now, I have never attended church services other than Baptist ones, so I was a little nervous. I was not sure if I would be going against any of my own beliefs. But, God is God. There are people who are Baptist that would do me wrong… so, why miss praising God with a man who has risked his life to do God’s work?

I had joked earlier, “Man… for getting up this early, Desmond Tutu better be giving me communion or something!” I was really tired. I would have hated to wake up so early and just see Tutu for five minutes. I was like, “He better shake my hand or something!” Hahaha… Yall know how I am! It was great though.. like… DESMOND TUTU SERIOUSLY GAVE ME COMMUNION! He gave us all communion.

He led us all in prayers and read passages from the Bible. The service was very different from the ones I am used to having at church. I’m used to shouting, singing, clapping, and words seemingly coming from the heart. This service was more scripted. Like, we had to read from this prayer book. Tutu would say his part, and then we would respond. It was a little too mechanical for my taste, but I still felt God’s love. I hate to belittle Tutu, because he’s done so much in his life, but HE’S SO CUTE! He’s really short, old, and hilarious. He was making jokes the entire service. He also gave us all communion. Communion was different than what I’m used to. A lady and a man helped Tutu give out communion. I think he put the wafer in my hand, I put it in my mouth, then stepped to the left to a woman who had a cup of REAL WINE (like.. I got a little tipsy afterwards… you know I’m a light weight.) and I sipped from it. I also had to cross my heart with my hands like the Catholics do. I was a little apprehensive of drinking out of the same cup as strangers, including the ones on my trip (some of them are seriously nasty), but I just thought “God will protect me,” and I drank from the cup anyway.

After the service, we all got a picture with him and a few people sought out their own private pictures and time with Tutu. At the end of the trip, I was so happy that I had gone. When we returned to campus, that racist chick from the “drama” post came up to me and was like, “We need to talk.” I saw it coming from A MILE AWAY.. Literally.. a mile. She was staring at me and my friends the entire service, and she was eyeing me when I got on the bus. I saw her waiting around outside before I got off the bus, and I just knew she was waiting for me. I had expected it. People like her seize opportunities like that; if they’re unhappy, they want you to be too. "Misery loves company" as they say. Anyway, I completely ignored her (and I still am to this day). I was just like, “You should have wanted to talk to me BEFORE you started talking about me to other people. Simple. I don’t care what you said, you shouldn’t have said anything at all.” The sad thing is, I had GREAT day. Like, seriously. It was so cool; I feel like I learned something from Tutu. Like, although you know there is so much wrong and hate going on in the world, you can still laugh and enjoy yourself without feeling guilty at the end of the day about loving your life, yourself, and God. His laughter made me feel so good. Plus, I finally got to go to church. I needed it. But, she was too busy looking at us and probably thinking about how she was going to “confront” me to really take in the experience. And, that is a shame.

Hiking up Table Mountain

I don't know why I always do stupid poses when I hike. But that's a great view from the top of the mountain.

Table Mountain is like the first thing you notice when you visit Capetown. I remember I snuck a peek of it through someone else’s window in my row on the airplane when we first arrived here back in July. From the air, it was easy to tell that it was Table Mountain because it was so flat on top. So, when the opportunity came to hike the famous mountain, I couldn’t say no.

I actually decided to do it at the last minute. Yall know how I am? I got the email, I wanted to do it, but I forgot about it until someone else reminded me about it. By the time I remembered, I didn’t think their would be any spots left. However, my friend Andrea decided not to go and gave me her spot.

It was a windy but sunny day out; the temperature was perfect for hiking. I didn’t want to be late, so I hurried over to the meeting spot, but of course, when I am finally on time, no one else is. So, we waited a good extra 15 minutes for people to arrive. I was a little worried about lunch. I had forgotten about breakfast (a very dumb mistake on my part) and had stolen my flatmate’s peanut butter to make 2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but with all that hiking, I wasn't sure that it would be enough. My friend Cassie and her Asian-Canadian flatmate, ?Mugoobe?, also came to hike up Table Mountain. Cassie forgot to pack her lunch, so I offered one of my pb&js, even though I was already worried about it not being enough for myself.

Anyway, we hopped on the bus and headed to Capetown. There is an airlift that takes people to the top of the mountain. THE LINE FOR THE AIRLIFT WAS SO LONG! There were so many tourists there. The airlift looked scary to me though. You know how I am with heights and machinery (I refuse to ride roller coasters); I’d rather hike up! We were going to hike up Table Mountain via the “Platteklip Gorge” route, which was actually down the road from the lift, so we had a long walk before we even really began hiking up the mountain. The beginning of the hike was BRUTAL. I mean, straight up climbing up over huge step after step after step. This was seriously the worst part of the entire hike. Cassie and I were the first ones to have to take a break, but we weren't the only ones. I was like, “Dang.. I don’t want to be at the end of the line, holding up the group!,” but I had to. It was really hard. We didn’t hold up the group at all either; they just kept on going. It was nice. I got to set my own pace. Casey and I started getting on each others’ nerves [hey, it happens!], so we separated and started really concentrating on making it up the mountain.

That mountain was so intense. It was like being on a “stair master” for 2 or 3 hours straight. I caught up with the group and even passed a few folks though. As we got towards the top, the hike got easier. There were a few friendly people too. One couple was coming down and they were like, “You’re about 10 minutes away.” Once they said that, I practically ran up the rest of that mountain! I was so happy to be done.

At the top.. it is COMPLETELY FLAT! I couldn’t believe it because it was so hard to get up and steep. But the top is completely flat. The mountain is really like a table! And there was a beautiful view of all of Capetown and all of Cape Point (which I’ve been to before, but I’m still waiting on Jayden to give me the pictures before I talk about it.). It was beautiful. The best part was THERE WAS A RESTAURANT AT THE TOP! There was all kinds of food; I had the cheese pizza! I hadn’t brought any money, so instead of me giving Cassie my sandwich, Cassie ended up paying for my food! Funny how that worked out!

After eating and chatting with some African tourists, it was time to head back to the bus. I ran down the mountain by myself. I just hate walking down mountains; it takes too long, and my knees start hurting. Running down is better. Walking down is how you get hurt. When you run down, your feet barely touch a rock for longer than a split second, so you have no chance of spraining your ankle or slipping.

I ran down by myself, and, when I got to the bottom, I felt so accomplished. I felt like I had conquered Capetown!

Men and the Club Scene

I guess I haven’t been fair to the men here in my past posts. The men that are usually disrespectful to me are the poor men and the construction workers. The male students and guys that I meet are actually really conservative acting and nice. I meet many guys at the club we like to go to called Lush! They love us really. We know the club owner Dylan. He always lets us in free, takes our coats and makes sure they are safe, and gives us free drinks. He is really sweet. I think we have a pretty good buzz going there too. We’re the Black American girls that come and dance and get “crunk! “ The guys aren’t touching all over me or being disrespectful. They don’t grind… they usually dance with a girl face to face doing little moves and stuff. They are really nice.
However, there has been a few creepers. There was this one guy who was pretty nice looking or whatever, but he was all in my grill. I HATE BEING SMOTHERED BY ANYONE. Ugh.. it gets on my nerves. He was all over me… rubbing my leg, not in a sexual way either. He was rubbing my leg like we had been dating for years… in a caring, familiar way. It creeped me completely out. I ducked and dodged my way away from him. And, when I was dancing on the speakers (you know I have to be seen!), here he come trying to get a dance. He was like “Come down here and dance with me!” I was like, “Nah.. this my jam!” Hahaha… I played it off real well I suppose. But, he was definitely a creepy one. I saw him looking for me all night.
Then, there was this guy the other day who picked me up and drove me home when I was walking home with groceries. He seemed real nice until we got closer to the dorm. He was trying to get my number and set up a date. I gave him my number, because in South Africa, you can’t give people the wrong number. THEY CALL YOU RIGHT THEN AND THERE AND MAKE SURE YOU GAVE THEM THE RIGHT NUMBER! So, basically.. he’s called my phone at least six times in two days. Ugh…
But like I was saying, most of the guys are really nice and respectful. Here’s the thing about students and wealthier men here. They can D-R-E-S-S dress! They dress a little too good for my tastes. And, they LOVE LOVE LOVE their jeans to be a little tight. Like… the one thing every guy must have is FLARED (yes bell-bottom-ish) LEVI JEANS! Those are the must-haves for any man here. They do look nice though, but it’s not my taste.
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this about the club scene here, but it’s basically unofficially segregated. There are two Colored clubs and the rest are White clubs in Stellenbosch. There are no Black clubs here. Lush is a colored club. All the clubs play hip-hop for about an hour, then switch to something else. The biggest music here in South Africa, and apparently in Europe too, is house music, which basically, to me, sounds like techno music. It sucks! I’m getting used to it though, but I cannot stand listening to songs with absolutely no words. I still have fun when I go out though. I like to go to Cubana’s, this restaurant that has really good food and drinks. It’s like an open space, with music, and a nice lounge feel to it. We go to Cubana’s and eat (and/or drink, which I don’t do anymore) and then head to a club to dance. I really have a good time. I just like to dance and chill. I like to go out on Wednesday nights now. Like, Wednesday night is perfect! Lush is always packed and fun. I get to have my weekends to do other activities and do my homework instead of being too tired. And, we just have fun!

i love kristen kirksey!

I'm nearing in on my last month here in Stellenbosch, South Africa. I love South Africa. It's so beautiful here, and I know that one day, probably soon, I will be back here to vacation, live, learn, and aid the people here.

I am really looking foward to coming home though. Like, I am SO glad that my friend Kristen is studying abroad in the Dominican Republic too, because otherwise, I feel like NO ONE would understand where I was coming from right now. After talking with her, I felt so relieved that she was feeling the same way. I had to talk about it on the blog so that my family and friends can know exactly how I've been feeling. At first I wasn't going to write about it, because I know that people in my program look at my blog too and I didn't want it to be big deal or something. But, whatever. This is for my friends and family; I must be honest.

I MISS MY FAMILY. You guys are crazy, silly, and so supportive. I miss feeling cozy. I miss making fun of my momma with Greg until she makes both of us leave the room. I miss going to my dad's and Tomyra's house watching crazy movies that no one has ever heard of and playing PHASE 10! Thanksgiving will be really special for me this year; I am thankful to have you guys in my life.. although yall are crazy.

Missing my family has come natural. What I didn't expect to be so strong is my longing for my friends. I MISS YALL! Like so much. I cannot believe I am lucky enough to know these people! People here... I don't know how to explain it without it seeming negative. They are like my temporary friends. Like, I don't trust them that much. Not through any particular fault of their own, but I just can't trust people I barely know. And, sometimes I get the feeling that if you weren't there for the conversation, you were the conversation. I found myself talking about people behind their back, and I am just not like that at home. So, I kind of tried to stop doing that. I think I've been doing a pretty good job at it.

I was at first going over my friends' house like everyday. But, after Spring Break.. after doing so much and spending, what was probably, too much time around the same people, I took a good look at myself. I am just not the type of person to be following folks around like that. I am too independent. I'm usually the hermit crab. I first and foremost need my privacy. I don't like the whole world knowing what I am doing. When I would be alone in my room, it would be lonely, because I always had David to light up the room back in Nashville. But, now, all of a sudden in South Africa, I needed to be around people!!??

Uh.. no. That's just not me. So, since then, I haven't been going there as often (not at all really, and I guess I should have transitioned that better because some of the students there are like "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? WHAT'S WRONG?"). I've still been doing many activities, getting out and doing stuff everyday, and having fun with other people. I've met many South African students since then, and I really like it. It's amazing how much they know about America. I like going to my room at night and just chilling. At first, I was like spending the night over there and having to run back to my room and take a shower before class and doing all this stuff.. like ridiculous. Who was that girl?

What it is is when you get here, they stress being social and making friends. So, you get into "make friends immediately" mode. When, in my usual world, I don't care about other people like that! I really don't. I know who I am, and I know how I can be percieved. It's not that you need to tell me what you think about me... NO.. I know what you think. I'm not oblivious to what you think... I just don't care what people think about me. My close friends are the ones that can actually make me upset and hurt me or make me happy and cheer me up.

Like, I care about the friends I've made here. If they needed me I would try my best to be there for them, because I am not heartless or anything. I am Christian, and I try to do my best. I feel like when people have needed me (when they're sick, or drunk, or having troubles), I've been there. But, at the end of the day, I don't expect them to do the same things for me. The only thing I expect from them is to have a good time with me. That's it. We can go out... party... have a good time... hike.. shop... have lunch.... or whatever. But, at the end of the day, I know not to expect them to be a David Law or a Kristen Kirksey. There are a few people that I hope I can keep in contact with; they're cool people, and I learn a lot from them.

I feel SO GOOD since I've realized this stuff. I mean.. I feel like I've gained piece of mind. I don't know what I was thinking about before. I came in thinking we'd be getting matching tattoos and stuff and that I would have some kind of unbreakable bond or something with everyone. I was so naïve. I guess I do sort of share a bond with them; we've expierenced South Africa together. But, I am definitely not getting the tattoo! Hahaha.

Heritage Day - September 24th

September 24 is Heritage Day in South Africa, where people are supposed to remember their heritage. There was no school, because it's a national holiday, so a few friends and I decided to do something fun and cultural.
I looked on the internet and found a lot of ideas on capetownmagazine.com. The plan was to catch the train to Capetown, get a camera for Brittney, go to a photography exhibit at Joao Ferreira Gallery, shop a bit, go see some poetry at the African Center, and then be back on the train to Stellenbosch by 5:30p. WE DID NOT STICK TO THIS PLAN! hahaha.

We went to catch the train, but apparently the train schedule is different on holidays, and it had already left. So, we had to call a cab to take us to Capetown. While we waited, we stayed in Stellenbosch and ate a some KFC. The cab that came to pick us up was a nice, clean van driven by an Afrikaner, young woman. She was really nice, and we really made her laugh with our ridiculous conversations. She took us to the Waterfront Mall, in order for Brittney to buy a camera. For us to go to Capetown and back to Stellenbosch was 480Rand... that's about $70. Split 3-ways, that's not a lot of money, but when you're broke, like I am, it is. The CRAZIEST part is, she told us to wait until she picked us up later to pay her!!! I have never been trusted like that in my life! We could have easily not called her to pick us up, took another way back home, and saved 240Rand. We decided to do the right thing though, since she trusted us so much, and because we are trying to be good!

By the time we found Brittney a new camera (a really nice, hot pink, touch-screen camera), it was around 2 oclock. We didn't have enough time to go to the photography exhibit, because the poetry thing started at three. So, we made our way outside to catch a local cab. Cabs in South Africa are confusing! There are cabs like the ones I am used to seeing, then there are rusty, old vans, and then there are nice vans, and then there are really nice, expensive looking regular cabs. We decided to take an old, rusty van, because it would be cheaper. We got into the van, and we told them where we wanted to go. There were people already on there, so they dropped them off. And, then they proceeded to tell us that if we want to go directly to the poetry thing, we have to pay like 60Rand or something OR we could just pay 1 rand and they could drop us off as close as they were willing to get. We were just like "UM.. NO!" So, we only paid the 1Rand.

Me, Cassie, and Brittney sitting in the back of the taxi.

These fools drove to some business, took a cigarette break, and waited for the women who were getting off work to catch a ride. Meanwhile, we sitting around looking, thinking that were were about to be late for the poetry tour. It was ridiculous. After they had just about filled the van to full capacity, they told us to get out. Cassie and Brittney were put in the front seat, and I had to sit closer to the door so that they could drop us off first. They had packed the van up so much that while Cassie and Brittney got to be cozy with each other, I had to litterally share my seat with one of the guys who drove the van. He kept moving and hitting me with his elbows, because he was trying to collect money from the women behind us. Also, he smelled like cigarettes and pee pee. I felt a little confused and abused. Hahaha.


They took us to Long Street, and we walked the rest of the way to the African Center. We arrived just in time. The event we went to was called the Badilisha African Poetry X-Change. What they did was take us around to different rooms and perform different poetry that related to Heritage Day. It was really cool and so interesting. I am really happy we went. The poets were all different and had interesting things to say.

Winslow performing his poetry.

At first, I was a little niave. Heritage Day sounded like a good idea to me, but then after listening to a few poets, I realized that it's like Black History Month, except they only get ONE DAY to remember their heritage. What are they supposed to be remembering all the other days? Apartheid? Apparently, all the other days of the year, they are being told to forget their past and are being forcecd to fit into Western ideals of beauty, education, religion, etc. That's kind of messed up.

The poetry was really deep, and it was so good. Even when some of the words were in Xhosa or Afrikaans, we could still find meaning in the way they spoke and their actions. There was even a musician at the end who sung a few songs and had us singing along too. Afterwards, we networked. We met some interesting people. One girl was actually from America and working at a school outside of Capetown. It was nice to hear her New York accent. One older woman had a dignified look about her that let me know she was rich. She said she had visited America many times and that her son was about to marry an American girl. We also met Winslow, who invited us along to another poetry session and party at a near-by club. We didn't think we could go, but once the older lady found out that we were from Stellenbosch, she offered us not only her favorite driver's number but also she offered to let us STAY IN HER GUEST HOUSE IF WE GOT STUCK IN CAPETOWN! That's twice, we were trusted by strangers..! crazy.
We decided that we might as well stay in Capetown a little longer and go to the poetry session, called Verses. We called the taxi-girl from earlier, and she agreed to pick us up later.
The only thing that was standing in the way of us and more poetry was OUR CLOTHES! I looked a little too casual to be going to a bar/party, and the other girls wanted to get dolled-up too. So we decided to catch another cab back to the mall and buy outfits for the night. This time, we passed on the raggedy van and got a nicer cab. I tried to keep it cheap. I bought a shirt-dress at Woolworths (it's kind of like Target) and some black tights and black flats from Edgar's (which is like Goodys). I still ended up completely broke by the end of the night.

After changing clothes in the mall bathroom and eating at Subway (We found a Subway! It tasted just like it does at home.), we caught another nice cab to the Zula Bar to expierence Verses. Verses is like an open-mic poetry night; anyone that wants to come up and do some poetry can. Winslow was the host! This poetry was just as good as the poetry at the African Center. Even a few rappers and singers came on stage and performed. They were all so talented. I didn't get any pictures or video, because my camera had died. At the end, there was a live band that performed. The music was really good, but by that time, I was so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open. Every song that they did sounded like "rock-a-bye-baby" in my head. While other people were jamming, I had my head in my lap. I WAS THAT TIRED!!
After the band was done, the party started. They played some pretty good rap music. A lot of it was old, but some of it was new. I danced a little bit, but the party really wasn't "poppin'." I think Cassie and Brittney were tired too. So, we said "Goodbye" to Winslow, called our cab from Stellenbosch, and left Capetown around midnight. We paid her her money (except I didn't have any more cash so Brittney had to spot me.. .I KNOW I STILL OWE YOU THAT MONEY GIRL. I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN!!!! )

Althought we didn't stick to our schedule, I had a great day in Capetown. It was so much fun, and even when it's raining, the city is still beautiful.

Spring Break - The Garden Route

These blog posts are getting all out of order. Hahaha. Sorry. But anyway, this blog posting is all about THE GARDEN ROUTE! We went on this thing called The Garden Route a few weeks ago during Spring Break. Yes, I went on Spring Break in September! The Garden Route is more or less just a tourist attraction plan to get tourists to not just stay in Capetown and Johannesburg, but to explore what else South Africa has to offer. And, South Africa has A LOT to offer!

We did not do the entire Garden Route. The red line represents the part we did do, while the green line represents the part of the Garden Route we did not do.

Garden Route Day 1, Saturday Sept. 6th
We had to leave Stellenbosch early in the morning at 5:30am! It was a pain to get up that early during Spring Break, but I was really excited too. Our first trip was to an Ostrich Farm! Ostriches are SCARY! They are very dumb and vicious, two attributes that do not go well together. They are too dumb to be afraid of humans. They are fast and have sharp claws that can kill you! I was already afraid of themnbecause they are ugly, but after the guide told us all these things about the ostrich, I was even more afraid.
The guide was a bit crazy himself. Some of the things he did, like pinching peoples’ butts to make them think the ostriches did it, seemed a bit inappropriate. I guess it was funny though.
We really got the opportunity to “interact” with the ostriches. Ostrich Kisses -- He made a few people put little food pellets in their mouth and the only tame ostrich they had, named Betsy, would come up and eat it out of their mouths. Ostrich Hugs – He put the food behind a person’s back and the ostrich would go around them and give them a hug. Ostrich Massages – He put the bucket of pellets in your hand next to your chest and ostriches come up behind you, over your shoulders, to eat them. He, also made a male ostrich do a type of mating dance. A few people even got to ride the ostriches! NOT ME though… even though the guide picked on me in particular, because he knew I was afraid, I refused to do anything. In the past, I was freaked out when I just rode a horse. I could not even imagine having a big chicken underneath me. Besides, to get off of those things, you had to fall off! Josiah got hurt pretty badly too. So, I admired the ostriches from afar.

Noel getting an ostrich hug.

After the ostrich farm, we went to the Cango Caves. The Cango Caves are limestone caves. Near the entrance of the caves is where the bushmen, the native people of South Africa, used to live. The caves have a general tour, but I had to go on the more extreme tour. On my tour, we did an extra hour of caving! The deeper you go into the caves, the smaller the passage ways get. So there were moments where I was literally crawling on my stomach between big, long sheets of rock. It was fun!

After caving, we went to a shopping center to eat. I ate at Steers, which is like the #1 South African fast food burger place. They do have 100% beef burgers. They are really big. I think they have good chips (fries) too. The only thing is, they put too much sauce on the burgers. I have to remember to say NO SAUCE next time!
We then drove to the place we would stay for two days, Ingwe! Ingwe had a real camp vibe to it. There were cabins, bunk beds, and community showers. We found a huge spider in our sink, but I didn’t mind because I got to stay in the good cabin with the drivers. We had hot showers and other things, which the other cabins did not have. I shared a bedroom with Maggie Moo, and after a day of so many activities, we fell straight to sleep that night!


Garden Route Day 2, Sunday Sept. 7th
Ingwe provided us with breakfast! All we had was toast, cereal, bacon, and eggs. Now, let me explain something about South African bacon in general. This is very important! The bacon here is just like it was in London, England. BACON IS NOT BACON... it is like ham! And my friends and I just call it “BAM” … it’s not quite bacon.. it’s not quite ham… IT’S “BAM!” Hahaha. The eggs were a little runny, and I like my eggs hard, so I basically just ate toast and cereal. Cereal = plain Corn Flakes. I put a lot of sugar on them though. I ate toast and Corn Flakes every morning the whole trip.
I spent the morning trying to flat iron my hair, but I didn’t have enough time. I didn’t get a chance to flat iron the top so when you look at these pictures and see my hair is messed up, THAT’S WHY! hahaha.
I chose to chill in the town of Plett for the morning, however, because it was a Sunday and NOTHING is ever open on Sunday in South Africa, the town was dead. So, instead, we went to the beach. It was my very first time seeing the Indian Ocean, and yes, it is warmer than the water in the Atlantic Ocean.

We went to another shopping center to eat. I had “Chinese” food. It was okay. The rice was good, but the “sweet and sour” chicken was so nasty. It was spicy! I have never had ?spicy? sweet and sour chicken, and it was ball shaped. However, I went to KFC and bought a brownie sundae called an Avalanche (yes, KFC has sundaes here!). It was so good that I forgot how bad the Chinese was.
After lunch, we headed to Tenikwa! Tenikwa is a Wildlife Awareness Center that takes in injured animals and nurses them back to health in order to release them into the wild. They also offer tours of the indigenous cats of Africa, including cheetahs! We got to go INSIDE the caged habitats with the wild cats, including the cheetahs!

It was absolutely unreal. There were many safety precautions we had to learn. We had to always stand close together in a big group. If a cat approached us, we were supposed to stand still, hold our ground, and let them sniff us; if you run, they’ll know that you are afraid and are more likely to kill you. They really can tell if you’re afraid, so we weren’t supposed to act like we were afraid. I was absolutely afraid of all the cats. Even the baby cheetahs had sharp teeth and claws. It was still very fun though. When will I ever get to do something like that?
After a fun time with the wild cats of Africa, we headed to Monkeyland to spend time with the monkeys of Africa. The cool thing about both Monkeyland and Tenikwa was that they were not like zoos. Not only were we up close and personal with the animals, but the animals weren’t supposed to perform for us or anything. Both places stressed the plight of the animals on display, and how it was important to save their environments. In Monkeyland, there were monkeys climbing around EVERYWHERE… they were all around me. I couldn’t take many pictures or any video because my camera was just about dead at this point, but it was unbelievable. It was feeding time and there were little platforms of fruit sitting out for the monkeys so they were jumping around everywhere! We walked through the forest with monkeys all around us. They were in all the trees and running around on the ground too. We were urged not to have anything loose on us, otherwise a monkey might take it. We were really outnumbered by them!

Lemars eating fruit.

I was so tired by the time we got out of Monkeyland, but the day still wasn’t done! We had a surprise dinner at Enrico’s. Enrico’s is a restaurant right by the beach. We had delicious pizza, and I got some ice-cream (of course!). The best part was that we could see and hear the ocean. After all of this, I was so tired, but we still stayed up late at Ingwe, told jokes, danced, and watched the Dave Chappelle “Rick James” episode.


Garden Route Day 3, Monday Sept. 8th
I had more cereal and toast for breakfast at Ingwe. I had to pack up my things, because this was our last day staying at Ingwe. After breakfast, we headed off to Storms River Adventures to do a Canopy Tour! Now, as friends and family, you all know I am afraid of heights! I was a little nervous about the canopy tour, but it had been something I always wanted to do.

Me, zipping through the trees!

We were extremely high up in the trees! None of the trees were drilled into either; this was another place that stressed the importance of protecting the environment. Not only did Storms River Adventures provide jobs for people in the community, but it protected the forest in the area. None of the trees were drilled into; instead, somehow, they used pressure from ropes to build all the platforms and stuff. I still can’t figure out how they did it! I was really scared the entire time, although I knew I would be fine. I had a great time though! It was so cool to just whiz through the air. You go pretty fast on those ropes too. To slow down, you must use your hand (we had on gloves) and apply pressure to the rope. I always had my hand on that rope! Hahaha. I was always trying to slow down! It was so much fun though. I can’t believe I finally got to do it!
After we were done, we got certificates, ate, and then headed over to meet the rest of our group who had gone bungee jumping. Did I bungee jump? NO..!!! No No No! I didn’t even consider it. I would probably pee and poop on myself. They would have had to push me off! No way. After waiting for them to get done buying souvenirs and stuff, we took a pretty long drive in the rain to Jeffrey’s Bay, where we stayed at Island Vibe!
Island Vibe was my favorite place that we stayed. It was right on the beach and had a friendly staff, restaurant, bar, pool and fool’s ball tables, and a television. I shared a room with Casey, Siobhan, and Jayden in a beach house! We could see the ocean from our room. It was beautiful. The only thing I felt a little uncomfortable about was the bathroom. The bathroom in our room had no door and the shower door was see-through. Where exactly was a decent girl supposed to make #2? That presented a problem. Hahaha. I had to sneak around a find a bathroom to use. Also, we had to put up a towel to cover up the shower door when we took showers. When we arrived, we took a tour, went to the beach and played in the water, and then we had to take quick showers to be ready for dinner.
Dinner was G-R-E-A-T! I think we had all been wanting some Mexican food, and we finally got some! We had a buffet-style burrito table, and we got to make our own burritos. I put chicken, BEANS, SOUR CREAM, lettuce, and just about everything else on my burrito. It was so big, I couldn’t close it. I had to eat it like a taco salad. I felt so fat for eating that whole man-sized burrito. Oh well... it was really good! It is my favorite meal so far in South Africa. Afterwards, we hung out at the bar, socialized, drunk a few drinks, and danced a bit. It was really fun. I went to bed pretty late, and I had to wake up really early the next day to catch a ride into town to go use an ATM.


Garden Route Day 4, Tuesday Sept. 9th
After a breakfast of corn flakes and toast (AGAIN), I decided that instead of catching the van that was going into town, it would be a lot more fun to just walk. So, I walked into town on the beach. I got to the ATM, and realized that I had left my card in the room! So, I caught up with the van and let them drive me back to the room. Then, I walked into town again. Jeffrey’s Bay is a tourist place. All of the stores and stuff seemed to be geared towards tourism. There are a lot of outlet stores, but they mostly only have beach stuff. So, if you aren’t looking to buy a bathing suit, there isn’t really that much to buy. After looking around town a bit, I walked back to Island Vibe and relaxed. I sat in our backyard, watched the ocean, and listened to the music on my I-pod. It was really peaceful.
After an hour or two, it was time to go sand-boarding. So, I hopped on the van, and we went to a place further down the bay. When we arrived, the manager of the place told us to take our shoes off. I couldn’t understand why until we went into a room to talk about safety things. The room was full of sand! It didn’t have a floor. It was just sand. It was funny. After, he collected our money and told us a few safety tips, we picked out boards and headed over to the sand dunes. Sand-boarding is like snowboarding, only on sand. It is really fun! It was one of my favorite parts of the trip.

I was pretty decent at it too, but there were people who were a lot better than I was. I was doing pretty good until I really fell for the first time. I feel face forward…. and rolled a few times too I think. It was scary. Suddenly, I realized “Oh my god… I can hurt myself!” There are no protective pads or anything. So, I got scared for a minute and decided to take it slow. The thing is, there was no way to stop! So, when I thought I was going too fast, there was nothing I could do but fall. I also couldn’t get the hang of steering. It was very difficult but very enjoyable!
After sand-boarding, I had sand in my hair, even though I thought I had covered it up, up my nose, in my ears, and even in my pants’ pockets! I was tired too, so I took a shower and then took a little nap!
I don’t remember how/why I got up, but I did. I got up and put on some nice dinner clothes. Siobhan and Casey came back and Hally Perry and Emily came over to visit. We watched the movie “Donnie Darko” on my computer and just chilled. After a while, it was time for dinner. So, we went up to the dinner area. This time, it was steak and potatoes! It was really delicious! Who doesn’t like a good ol’ steak and some potatoes? After eating we chilled in the bar and danced again. I got to bed a little earlier this night though.


Garden Route Day 5, Wednesday Sept. 10th
We had to get up super early to pack our things and hit the road. We left Island Vibe and made our way to Addo National Park. Addo is a reservation park for the animals in the area, and they allow tours. Their biggest attraction is the elephant. They have become a sanctuary for the elephant population of Africa. We arrived on a sunny but windy day. It was the sunniest weather I had seen, so I decided to wear a little sun dress. BAD CHOICE! I was freezing. We road around in these open, big safari jeeps. The wind just blew right through them. I got so cold, that I forgot how cold I was. I was in a pissy mood too, because people kept talking. Talking scares away the animals, and I didn’t want to risk not seeing an animal because someone couldn’t hold their conversation until the end of the ride.
Nothing could take away from the magnificence that was the elephants though! We had a really good guide, and he knew exactly where the elephants would be on the large reserve. After watching them from afar, we had a herd of them cross the street right in front of us. Then, we passed by some more elephants eating on the road. One was so close to me, I could have reached out and touched her. It was cool. We also so antelope, a tortoise, and warthogs. Apparently there are other animals there too (rhinos and such) , but we didn’t see those.

After about two hours of riding around looking at all the animals, we ate at the Addo restaurant. I got some really good lasagna and drank my favorite drink, Rooibos tea! After this, we hoped on the vans and headed to Knysna. It was a pretty long drive. The place we stayed at in Knysna was called Buffalo Bay. It was poop compared to the other places we had stayed in my opinion. It looked like a crab shack, and it was very cold there. The bathroom had “leavings” in them, and there was a big spider found in there too. I was more than a little upset about it. We were right by the beach, but it still was rundown. Noel and I were without a room! We were told by the managers that the room that we had reluctantly chosen would leak during a storm. And, if there’s one thing I have learned about South Africa, it’s that it often rains! So, we talked to Mike and we got put at a beach house, where a few of the other students were staying. I was more than a little happy. We ate at the crabshack though. There was lamb stew, rice, and salad. The best thing was the bread. They made some homemade, delicious bread. All of us were eating bits of it all night. It was so good. After dinner, there was a surprise! A reggae group came and performed songs for us! It was really cool. The music was really good, and guess who the first person to dance was? I had to. I can’t believe people can actually hear good music and not move to it. So, I got up and started dancing. I made Lacey dance, and Abdul dance too, even though he didn’t want to. But, HE HAS DREADLOCKS… I refused to see a person with dreadlocks not dance to reggae music. Other people started joining us, and we just danced. It was so much fun. For the rest of the night, we danced and chilled out with the reggae group.
After this, a van took some of us to the beach house. IT WAS WAY NICER THAN THAT CRABSHACK! Even though I had to take a cold shower (we didn’t know we had to turn on the water heater), I would choose a cold shower over an entire cold night any day!


Garden Route Day 6, Thursday Sept. 11th
After another cereal and toast breakfast, we had a moment of silence to remember the victims of September 11th, and then we headed to a township in Knysna for a tour of the Rastafarian section of the township called Judah Square. This township is not as “outsider-friendly” as Kayamandi back in Stellenbosch is, so we had to be escorted into the township. Our guide was a soft-spoken Rastafarian guy; he was really cool and nice. He took off his hat and he had ONE DREAD, one fat dreadlock! It was kind of surprising and funny.

He told us all about Rastafarian beliefs and about their particular Rastafarian community. He even took us inside the place where they worship and have meetings (Although, he made all the girls cover up there hair before we could go inside… women must cover their hair in their religion), a school, and in the forest where they also have meetings and stuff. They had recently gotten busted for selling marijuana (Although they had been doing it for years. The bust was random. Smoking weed is basically apart of Rastafarian culture.), but they still grow it deep in the forest. It was a nice little hike. It was a fun, learning experience. After this, there was a stand where they had Rastafarian stuff for us to buy. **EVERYTHING I BOUGHT HAS BEEN STOLEN THOUGH…. I had bought a real cool hat, a marijuana bracelet, and earrings. All gone.. someone in my program stole them oddly enough. I left them in the van on the last day and someone took them. I thought these folks were rich! But hey, I guess rich people steal all the time… George Bush, Enron, etc.**
Anyway, after this, we went back into town. Jayden and I ate at some seafood restaurant. It was really good. We ordered too much though. They had really big portions. For some reason, we ordered sushi and an order of fish and chips (fries). But, I was full before I even got done eating my sushi! I found Abdul later on and gave him my leftovers. He’s a human garbage disposal; he’s never full!
After lunch, Jayden and I headed over to a mall. It was really small, but when you haven’t been in a mall for so long, you don’t care. There were some nice little stores. We decided to stay in town a little longer than everyone else too so that we could be able to look around more and enjoy the nice day. Knysna is a really nice town. After shopping in town, we headed to a little outdoor market. I felt like I had spent too much money, so I made sure to only bring 50 rand with me ($7). So, when this guy tried to make me buy this photo album, I was like “All I have is 50 rand!” I eventually talked him down to the 50 rand. It was funny. He was trying to sell it for like 180 rand at first. Hahaha **This stuff was also stolen along with my other stuff. I bought a nice, casual, purple dress and a classy little brown dinner dress from the mall. I even bought some accessories to go with the brown dress at this little market outside. And the photo album I bought was made from banana leaves, and it was really cool. BOOOOO to whoever stole it.**
After shopping, I was driven back to the beach house. It was almost time for dinner. For dinner, we headed to a restaurant right by the water. It was a ritzy place. My appetizer was a salad, but the cheese was a little too strong on it for my liking, so I gave it to Maggie. SHE LOVES CHEESE! I had some seafood curry pasta for my main course. It was really good, but some of the seafood was a little too fresh if you know what I mean. I don’t like seeing my dead food in its shell. So, I just put the oysters aside. The curry wasn’t spicy either; it was more of a ginger, sweet taste. It was unexpected, but I liked it. For dessert, I had a chocolate mousse. It was good, but by the time we got to dessert, everyone was in a ridiculous mood. People were acting so silly. There was a cherry on everyone’s mousse, but Jayden stole Josiah’s… so he stole mine as a threat to her… then I stole it back and ate it… so he put lemon juice in my mousse. It was stupid but fun! And the mousse tasted better with a little lemon juice in it too. Hahaha. Then after much inappropriate talk on behalf of Abdul, I decided to drink a little bit. I had a few (ONLY A FEW DAD!) tequila shots. The shot glasses here are smaller than in America, so I didn’t see any danger in it.
Needless to say, I don’t remember much after this. Sorry. I think we danced, because Hestea, our director, wanted the last night to be kind of glamorous. So, she asked us (Me, Jayden, Siobhan, and Noel) to do the Cupid Shuffle, a dance we had previously tried to teach everyone nights before. I don’t quite remember much, but from the pictures, it looks like we had fun. Hahaha

After this, I remember arguing with Josiah about something… I don’t remember what exactly. I think there was music, so I might have danced ?? And I don’t remember how we got to the beach house from Buffalo Bay, the crab shack, that night. No one has told me I did anything ridiculous, so I am happy about that. But I don’t like not remembering things. I’m in SOUTH AFRICA! I want to remember every moment. So, I haven’t drank any alcohol since. Don’t worry dad.. it’s cool! I’m good! I promise!

This was the end of our Spring Break. The Garden Route was great! I had a great time. The next day, we headed back to Stellenbosch. And, I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO THANK EVERYONE WHO GAVE ME ANY KIND OF MONEY! I GOT TO DO EVERYTHING I WANTED TO DO, AND I DIDN’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ANY MONEY. IT FELT SO NICE TO JUST RELAX AND WORRY ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE OTHER THAN PRICE FOR ONCE. LIKE, YOU REALLY DON’T UNDERSTAND. I WAS AVOIDING LOOKING INTO MY BANK ACCOUNT BECAUSE I THOUGHT THERE WAS NOTHING IN THERE, AND WHEN I FINALLY DID AND SAW THE BALANCE, I WAS SO OVERJOYED. I hope the things that “walked-off” are returned, because a lot of the things I bought during this trip were gifts for all of you. I love everyone! See you in less than 2 months! <3 dani


There are more pictures and video, but the internet is going so slow! I will be sure to post them later!

:-D

Expect a huge update soon!

Topics...
-Spring Break
-Men, Drinking, and the Club Scene
-Heritage Day
-Meeting Desmond Tutu
-Hiking up Table Mountain

The Afrikaner

I have developed a troubled relationship with the Afrikaner. An Afrikaner is a White person who is South African and speaks Afrikaans. They are very privileged, and I find that many of them are drunk from Wednesday-Saturday.

I went out Wednesday and tonight, Saturday (really, I guess it's Sunday now). Both times were to celebrate my friend Cassandra's, who is from Missouri, never-ending birthday celebrations. We always go to McDonald's after we go out, because for anyone that has been drinking, the food at McDonald's is so greasy, that it soaks up all the alcohol and prevents hangovers. It is also the only restaurant that is open and is fast.This is a well known fact, and every night McDonald's is packed full of people, including many drunk Afrikaners!

Wednesday night, they were breaking in and causing disorder in the line. So Cassandra, in an low but aggressive tone, tells everyone that there is a line. There's a fuss or whatever, but I think everyone eventually does get in some sort of line. Then, the Afrikaner in front of her is so drunk that he's not paying attention, so Cassandra breaks in front of him. He starts getting loud and stuff. An argument breaks out. He starts talking in Afrikaans. It was just all a loud, big mess. It definitely ruined what was otherwise a good evening. Then later on at the table, this guy made the gesture as if he was going to throw a fry at our table. And let me not forget that my friend Brittany and I were on our way to the McDonald's and were asked if we were from the Congo by a drunk Afrikaner speaking French. And, just a disgusting observation, the ketchup dispenser wasn't working, so an Afrikaner girl opens up the canister, dips her cup in the thing of ketchup, and lays the pump just sitting out for the next person. Oh yeah, and another disgusting observation, a guy was so drunk and probably so high that he ate 3 Big Macs, a McFeast, and a fry with his eyes closed. There was mayonaise all over his face. It was gross. It was just a disgusting night.

Tonight, GOT BETTER... joke. -_- Jayden and I were standing in line to get something to eat after celebrating Cassandra's birthday (again! hahaha.). All of a sudden, this random Afrikaner comes and sneaks his hand up Jayden's dress!!!!!!! And then he walks right past like he did nothing wrong. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! It was one of those speechless moments. Where you don't know whether it's real or not. But it was real... he didn't apologize or do anything. He pretended like he didn't do anything wrong. The manager came from the back and looked at us and we were like "HE PUT HIS HAND UP HER DRESS!" So, the manager had security kick him out of the restaurant, but really, in America, that guy would have and should have been arrested. And none of the other Afrikaners stood in our defense. None apologized for their friend or corrobarrated our story. I am POSITIVE we were not the only ones who could have seen it. I forgot one of the worst parts.. THEY ALL STARTED SINGING A SEXUAL SONG ABOUT MCDONALDS TO US. We couldn't really understand what they were saying, but they were making sexual hand gestures and saying the items on the McDonalds menu. It just pisses me off, because there is another fun night out ruined. And I feel bad, because Jayden was like about to cry and I had to tell her to "Hold it in." She did not deserve that at all. We were in a club with at least a hundred Colored and Black men and not ONE of them went under her dress... only the Afrikaner at McDonald's.

I am sure there must be "good" Afrikaners out there. I am just not sure I have met many. I have heard that it's just Stellenbosch. I heard Capetown and Johannesburg are really liberal. I sure hope so, or I fear for the future of this country.

The Butterfly World Fieldtrip

The program I volunteer at Kayamandi through takes the children on a field trip each semester. This time, we went to Butterfly World. I was really nervous to see how the children would act outside of the classroom, but I was happy because I knew this was probably the first time a lot of them had ever gone outside of the township.

About half of our class didn't show up for school that day, because they couldn't afford the field trip $price$. It made me really sad. I wanted them all to experience leaving the township for the day. Some of my favorite students weren't there! Papama (pa-pah-ma), who is the sweetest little girl in my class, and Anthini (an-ti-ni), who looks like Nelson Mandela and eats his boogers, didn't come! I was disappointed. Even with only half the class there, the kids were a lot to handle. Bukiwe disappeared for a while. I guess she was collecting the field trip money and permission slips from all the other classes. While she was gone, the children were acting a fool like usual. Then, she came back, made them stand outside while we waited for the second round of transportation to come pick us up, and disappeared again. This time she disappeared for about an hour. The children were acting a fool. Akhona (ah-ko-na), who is usually one of my favorites because she is really smart and is the singer of the class, was getting into fights with all the boys. Finally, she hit a boy, he kicked her and she fell down, and I just let her cry.

Akhona before she started acting a fool.

A few children were behaving, but most of them were either fighting or trying to get a hold of a puppy that wandered up to the school. Children are naturally too rough with animals. Cassandra, another teacher's assistant from Missouri, USA, and I saved the puppy and tried to teach the children how to be gentle with it. We named the puppy Obama (hahaha) and Cassandra hid it in her purse while it took a nap. Finally, it was time for our group to go to Butterfly World. As soon as the bus began to move, the children began to sing songs. Africa really is a musical place!

Butterfly World is nothing like I thought it would be. I thought it would be just butterflies... but we saw spiders, lizards, monkeys, exotic birds, chickens, roosters, and ducks! The butterflies and the more exotic animals were kept inside this huge green room that had been kept at a tropical temperature. It looked like we were walking through a forest! When we first went in, there was one little girl who cried and screamed! She DID NOT want to go in there. She was so afraid. There was a group of white children there too. I noticed that they were more curious than our children, who were curious and yet nervous and cautious. It made me happy that we were taking them out of there comfort zones. There were absolutely no problems with the children either. They were so quiet and well behaved the entire field trip.

The butterflies flew EVERYWHERE! They were so big and brightly colored... they were kind of scary. After seeing a huge iguana, a little monkey jump on someone, and having butterflies flurrying around my head, I decided that it was time to relax. While the kids explored a bit more and ate their snacks, I went into the cafe and had a cup of tea, chips (fries), and a cheeseburger.

To see more pictures of our field trip and see more pictures of the children I work with, click here!

Bad Weather and Sore Throats

All of the students began getting sick. People have gotten everything from bronchitis to pink eye. This guy named Matt had to get surgery, because he had an absess in his throat and it had to be drained! So, when Maggie's throat began to hurt, I was worried. She went from firecracker to old maid in just a few days. Finally, I made her get out of bed and go to the doctor. It turned out she had a serious case of tonsilitis. However, the antibiotics she got from this doctor only worked for about a day. After two days, she was back to feeling bad. I mean, she couldn't swallow... talk.... laugh... it was too painful. So, she had to go to the emergency room. They gave her like SERIOUS antibiotics, and she's begining to feel better. At the same time I was trying to be play "doctor" to Maggie, Jayden came down with flu-like symptoms, and I myself began to feel a little sick.

I had to walk about 20-30 minutes with 2 heavy bags of groceries in the dark,rain, and cold from the grocery store, so when I began to feel sick, I wasn't surprised! I had already had a sinus infection weeks ago, so this wasn't the first time I had gotten sick, however, this time it was a little different. It felt like mucus from my nose was just dripping directly into my throat, and therefore, I had a sore throat. I couldn't blow my nose, because the mucus was so far back that it was basically already down my throat. Luckily, I brought Vapor Rub with me, so that stopped the mucus. I also bought some little over the counter medicine to help as well. My flatmate Lacey took care of me too. She gave me her last sleeping pills, when I couldn't go to sleep, and made me the most soothing cup of tea I ever had in my entire life. Now, I am hooked on tea.

The tea they have here is called Rooibos tea, and it is DELICIOUS. I am going to bring some back to America! It smells like cooking turnip greens or collard greens, but it tastes so good. I go to restaurants and order cups of tea now! Like, there's nothing better than drinking some Rooibos tea on a cold day.

Speaking of the weather, IT IS COLD AND HAS RAINED FOR TWO WEEKS STRAIGHT! I am not joking nor exaggerating. It seriously has rained for two weeks. Everyday.. rain! It's partially the reason why everyone has been getting sick. The weather has been just awful. It's hard to have a good day when the sky is gray.. and it's cold.. and wet. It's just been even harder not to be homesick. I miss the sunny skies of Tennessee!

home sick.

i know this is lame, but i am getting homesick. like, i feel like "i came... i saw... i expierenced... and now i am ready to go home."

things have reached a plateau. without all of the activities, i have gotten home sick. i miss familiarity. i miss seeing something funny, turning to arielle or david law, and not having to say a word because they saw it too. i miss truly knowing people and having them truly know me. i feel like everything i say and everything i do is being examined with a fine-toothed comb because everyone is trying to figure out who everyone is. it's driving me nuts. there is no way someone is going to truly know me in 4-5 months. just quit trying and have fun with me instead.

i hate school. i am just sick of learning things. i should have taken a break after highschool or something. i am just sick of the education enviornment. am i really supposed to remember all that stuff anyway?

i miss my family. i miss david, paige, and pam. i just miss things that are familiar.

Smoke, birds, and men (witty observations)

EVERYONE SMOKES! I mean...EVERYONE! All of my professors... all of the South African students.. EVERYONE! Just to get to class, I must walk through a cloud of cigarette smoke. I don't want to judge people who smoke. My dad smokes. It's just that I didn't expect for everyone to smoke. The students from other countries also smoke a lot too. I think that only in America has smoking become unfashionable. Anyway, I'm sure my lungs are brown just from being around all of these smokers.

The birds here do not chirp. They have rhythm. It is the funniest thing I've ever seen and heard. I remember learning in African Music class at Vanderbilt that in Uganda, one of the instruments they use there is meant to mimick the sound of a particular bird there. I believe that the reason Black people are so rhythmic and musical is because of the birds in Africa. Each bird seems to have its own song here, and I'm sure the Africans couldn't help but pick up on the birds' music. Although waking up to some bird literally singing every morning gets annoying, I know I will miss their songs when I am back in America.

African men are... (looking for a nice word).... aggressive. Not all of them and definitely not the educated ones. The ones that are working class are the ones that scare me. When I am walking, they always whistle, honk, make kissing sounds, etc. This one guy had to have broken his neck looking at me when he drove past. The other day, this guy says something in Xhosa, which he realized I didn't understand. Then he goes, "Hey baby!" (sounds like "aye bah-bee"). It's not that men in America don't do the same thing, but here it happens everyday. I've had whole truck loads of men kiss at me and stuff. Even when I feel like I am looking ugly, I still get harrassed. It's ridiculous and scary.

Oh Stellenbosch...

Things are becoming a routine and time is starting to speed up a bit, which is good.

Classes are pretty good. They are kind of depressing though. All of them deal with Apartheid in some way. The only class that doesn't deal with Apartheid is my Photography class, but it still makes me depressed. For one thing, this class is not on campus. It is located across town, so I have to catch a van at 9:30 a.m. in order to get there. If I am late for the van, I miss the class. The second reason why I don't like this class is because I don't have a professional camera. I can't do the projects right, because my camera does not do all the things she asks for. It makes me mad because I usually like to try my best on things... and with this camera, I am not able to do all the things she tells us to do. The last reason why this class sucks is because the teacher is boring. She has to talk for 3 hours about photography. I learn stuff, but it's not terribly interesting. The class is just too early and too long. But, Josiah does not want to be the only Black person in the class for some reason, so he has convinced me to stick with it.

My schedule is like this...
Monday - South Africa and the Literary Imagination (9-11:50 but he always ends early)
Tuesday - Three African Women Writers (2-5)
Wednesday - An Overview of South African History (2-5)
Thursday - Social and Economic Problems in Africa and South Africa (2-5)
Friday - Photography (catch van at 9:30 and class is from 10-1)

I have a little problem with all of my classes except one. In "Three African Women Writers," the professor is a little too excited about the class and has way too many requirements. In the history class, the professor goes off-topic the entire time. The "Social and Economic Problems..." class would be perfect if it was smaller, but there are like 40-50 people in it, which is not condusive for discussions. And, I've already vented about Photography class. The only class that I really enjoy is "South Africa and the Literary Imagination," where I get to not only read good stories, but talk about South African politics and culture at the same time. I really like the class.

I must confess... I eat McDonald's like every other day. It's not that I don't like the food here. The food here is really good. I eat at McDonald's for the same reason I ate at McDonald's at home... because it's cheap and fast! I also eat at this place called Debonair's often. They have some of the best pizza I've ever tasted! There is this one place called The Hungry Lion, which is similar to Church's Chicken in America... the chicken is greasy and the prices are way too cheap. They don't have biscuits though. They don't have biscuits ANYWHERE in Stellenbosch. There is a KFC here, and it doesn't even have biscuits! When I'm not trying to eat cheap... I enjoy rice and chicken curry, pancakes (they are really more like crapes), sushi, bacon-banana-cheese toasted sandwiches, pastries with some kind of meat (or possibly bean) paste in the middle and all kinds of other items. I'm glad I am not allergic to eggs anymore, because every restaurant seems to serve omelettes all day here.There are many deli's and restaurants in town. I hope I will get to try them all.

The one thing I miss about home is the food! I MISS TACO BELL! I MISS CHINA GARDEN! I miss going to Cracker Barrel or Herman's with my dad and step-mom after church. I miss going to Red Lobster (Jasmine has an expensive taste in food) or Chili's with my momma. I miss Moe's burritoes... and cheap, salty popcorn from Target. I miss going to Ci Ci's Pizza with David. I get home a few days before Thanksgiving.. and between then and Thanksgiving, I plan on gaining at least 10 pounds. And, on Thanksgiving day, I plan on gaining another 10 pounds. Before I left the U.S., my pants were getting a little harder to get over my thighs. Now, they are loose and I'm already having a hard time keeping them on my hips. I need to buy a belt!

My friends' still like to go out partying too much. As a matter of fact, the whole school seems to go partying too much. They start partying here on Wednesdays, and they keep partying every night until Sunday. Everyone here is really social. So, people just go to bars and pubs to socialize and drink beer. Stellenbosch is a small town though, so the party scene is not that good, especially for anyone looking for a hip-hop club to dance in. All the good hip-hop clubs are in Capetown.

But, I do hear many cars blasting hip-hop music, and it's never a Black person driving the car either. It's always some White guy or girl blasting hip-hop music. Every store I've been into plays music too. Not that calm, elevator type music we play in America. They play real music. It's no thing to be at a grocery store and hear some Mary J. Blige or something. It's crazy. Also, people are big into techno music, and I can't understand why. We went to this one club and they were playing techno music... it was awful. And, people were actually trying to dance to it. Like.. they were bouncing up and down! It was funny.

I think I already mentioned how important wine is in South Africa, but let me just repeat that. WINE IS VERY IMPORTANT IN SOUTH AFRICA. Not only does everyone drink it and every restaurant sell it, but it's important to the South African economy. We went to the Wine Festival. There had to be over a hundred wine estates there giving out free samples of their wine. There were also people giving out samples of cheese, chocolate, jams, and other things. Now... I am NOT a drinker. I have a really low-tolerance level, and it doesn't take much for me to get drunk. Basically, I got drunk at the wine festival from all the glasses of wine! Everyone was making fun of me too because I got drunk off of wine! I can't help it.. I don't usually drink.

But hey, now I know that I cannot just drink wine lots of wine. Hahaha.. that's a good lesson to learn.