Back in Cape Town

I've had quite an adventure traveling around Southern Africa. This trip included Zimbabwe, a stop in Botswana, and Namibia. I had an absolute blast and (as always) learned a lot from the experience. Over the next few days I will be blogging and adding pictures about my experiences. Blogs to come: world cup game experiences, Zimbabwe/Vic Falls, Sandboarding and School Visit in Namibia, Traveling stories, Public Transport in Southern Africa (including hitchhiking), and other super fun updates! Get excited!

Also, next week I start my second semester of classes and will also begin tutoring. I was selected to tutor first year International Politics -- and I'm so excited about it! :)

Zimbabwe

Sarah and I got to Zimbabwe a few days ago and are having an absolute blast. I guess this is one of the places you're warned about going and a bit nervous about because of the media portrayal. Every preconception I had has been absolutely eliminated since being here. I have not felt unsafe in the least and have only been met by friendly people willing to help in any way they can. We had lunch with some guys at the bus stop in Bulawayo before coming to Victoria Falls and a very interesting conversation. We walked over to a stand that was selling pap (kind of like grits and eaten very frequently in SA and Zim) and some meat. Instead of buying, some men invited us to eat with them (with our hands, after they were washed of course) and we had a lovely conversation. They also looked after us and made sure that we got on the correct bus to Vic Falls and had good seats! :)

We got to Victoria Falls yesterday and saw the falls this morning -- absolutely stunning. So beautiful.

Last note - the night sky in Zimbabwe is probably one of the most stunning things I've ever seen in my life -- so so beautiful! I've never seen the milky way so clear or so many stars at once!

Vic Falls, here I come!

So I haven't been back in Cape Town too long, but I've decided to take full advantage of my break from school (which is only two more weeks) and head out to Victoria Falls. I am so excited about going there-- i've been wanting to do it since I got here. My friend Sarah Harvey from CofC has been visiting during the World Cup and we decided to take a trip north and explore more of the region. We are flying to Johannesburg and then taking a bus through Zimbabwe to Victoria Falls. I think we may also get down into Botswana to go to the Chobe Game Reserve. I'm very excited about it and look forward to sharing lots of pictures and stories... from this trip and my last one! :)

African Travel Adventure

I've been traveling around South Africa and now to Swaziland during the past week or so. I'm having a blast and just wanted to update in case anyone has had some trouble connecting with me since I've been away.

The trip has been Cape Town to Durban, Durban to Richard's Bay and a small village near there that I don't know the name of, then to St. Lucia, now in Swaziland. We'll leave Swaziland tomorrow probably. It's been amazing so far and travel has included a 24-hour bus ride, minibus taxis, hitchhiking, cars, trucks, some walking, and lots and lots of spontaneous decision-making and fun!

I met up with a friend from Semester at Sea and one of his Peace Corps buddies... it's been great so far. I'll update with pictures and details when I get back to Cape Town!

Crazy Fans!

One of the things I've enjoyed taking photos of during the World Cup --- all the CRAZY FANS!! Hope you enjoy just a few of the photos of fun fans from all over!

World Cup!

The World Cup started on FRIDAY June 11!!!! So exciting. That said, I thought I would update everyone at home about thoughts about the World Cup here and also events happening because of the World Cup. Fascinating stuff. Never did I think that I would be in a place that would host such a massive international sporting event. So glad I am! One of my favourite things about all of the World Cup hype are the various country flags that you see everywhere. In an effort to truly be “ready to welcome the world” (South Africa’s slogan for the world cup), restaurants, shops, citizens, taxis, busses, you name it – have plastered international flags of all the participants everywhere. It’s quite amazing. It is also cool to see the support for Bafana Bafana (South Africa’s national team) with all of the South African flags flying from cars and homes. Don’t tell the American team, but I’m even sporting a Bafana Bafana bracelet!

Until the World Cup started, I would have said that many of the locals were sort of “over” the World Cup because they’ve been hearing about it since the second that South Africa was awarded the hosting rights. The construction, discussion, hype, and everything had been going on for years and many locals (including some of my friends) seemed kind of frustrated and a bit tired of hearing about it all. That was until it all actually started. The sense of unity and excitement that came with 11 June was amazing! The fan parks were packed, the streets were crowded, people everywhere were waving flags, wearing country colors and gear! It was amazing. And it still is. Everywhere I’ve gone during the past few weeks has been taken over by soccer fans. The friendly competition and fun patriotism has been unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.

11 June 2010 -- I've never seen such a friendly and fun display of flags, national pride, and excitement! It was so much fun walking through town and going to the fan park and cheering just for the sake of friendly sport. I was sporting a Bafana jersey (South Africa's national team) in bright yellow like most others, which was such fun! (I've gotten a USA scarf for the USA vs England game, not to worry -- i haven't become a South African yet, haha!). The sounds of vuvuzelas blowing overwhelms all other noises throughout the city. The vuvuzela was selected as one of the official emblems of the 2010 games. They're fun to play with, but quite loud and I'm sure I won't be as enthusiastic about them once I've been hearing them non-stop for a month. I live about a five minute's walk from the Green Point stadium, so a lot of the fan stuff is going on just outside my front door!

Township Debating League (TDL)

Photo: Two of my students from TDL :)


As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been volunteering with an organization called the Township Debating League (TDL). This organization works with youth from the townships around Cape Town to develop critical thinking, public speaking, and debating skills. The organization was founded in response to the lack of a proper debating organization for township youth (a debating league was already in existence for the more affluent schools). TDL is part of an umbrella organization called Ubunye that is organized and supported by UCT students. There are also local private donors for funding needs. Ubunye also has tutoring programs, a media program that assists students in developing school newspapers, and a mentoring program. I chose TDL because of my experience with debating and the opportunity to encourage critical thinking. Also, the topics we discuss in TDL tend to be about current events, politics, and world affairs (need I say more?). Every Thursday afternoon, I go to LEAP School in Pinelands (not in a township, but attended by students bussed from local townships) to lead workshops about debating. The students here are such a pleasure to work with. They are high school age (14-18 years old) and it is a co-ed school. The students have qualified to attend this school either through application or recommendation from a previous school and specifically focus on math and science.

Recently, we had a tournament. My school sent two teams to the tournament and they divided boys and girls (just because the students wanted to, not because it was required by the school or the organization). The day we spent at the tournament was so much fun because it allowed us to bond more and for me to get to know the girls much better. They are so sweet and had such a good time. They did three debates during the day. The first one they lost and you would have thought someone had killed their dog -- they were so sad. I told them that it was okay and they'd do better next time. We talked about strategies and how good it is to practice and continue through even when you don't win. We also talked about what they learned from the first debate. After the next debate, they waited for me outside of the volunteers' room and had sad faces. I asked them how they did and they immediately started cheering and told me they won! I was so so proud of them and they were so happy! They also won the next debate as well. The winning and losing, of course, is not the important part and I think most teams win and lose some of the debates. It was great to be a part of the whole event. Students from the 20some schools that TDL operates in come together to debate and get to know one another. It's a lot of fun. Anyway, thought I'd let yall know a bit about what I'm up to.