Home Again

So I made it back home without any problems and actually met many people on the plane. Ironically, on my first flight, I was sitting next to someone who did a semester abroad at UCT as well and who lives in Seattle. I hadn’t known her before because she went through a different program. It was fun to talk to her about the adventure and what we were excited for when we got home. On the second flight, I met a lady who had been traveling already for a couple of days. Her first flight had been cancelled due to weather problems and so she had to spend the night in the Johannesburg airport. I really enjoyed talking to her about her experiences and impressions of South Africa and she liked to talk about them. I liked hearing someone else’s point of view and it kind of reminded me of my first couple of weeks in the country. It is amazing how a little time and experience illuminates a whole new world. I enjoyed talking to her about some of her experiences and being able to explain why things happen the way they did. We talked a lot about a whole host of things including how South Africa has illuminated God’s working in our lives. It was great to have the company and the time flew by.

I brought lots of gifts home from South Africa. Actually one whole suitcase was pretty much filled with little things for my family and friends. But my major thing to bring home were these giant chocolate cookies. We bought 13 of them to give to people who had had birthdays and to share with people. In total, the cookies weighed 16 pounds. It was ridiculous. Most of the cookies were able to be put in my luggage however, I knew I had to carry 3 on the plane with me to give to my PLU family. They were meeting me at the airport and so I didn’t want to dig them out. Plus, I didn’t have any weight room in either of my suitcases so it worked out. Of course, when I got to customs they asked if I had any food. I had to say yes and thus I got put in the extra security line where they have to scan your bags and stuff. Everything went through just fine except for my bag with the giant cookies in it. The customs official took one look at the cookies and just said, “Those are GIANT cookies!” It was great. So far my family has eaten half of one. We cut it into small pieces and eat it with a little vanilla ice cream. It is great!

Anyways, I have been apprehensive about coming home. I knew that I had changed and wasn’t sure that I would fit in with my friends the same way that I did. I wasn’t sure if I was going to get bombarded with the question: “How was Africa?” I hoped that I could catch up with the place that had changed while I was gone. There are just a lot of things that are unsure. So far, I have been fine. I am really glad to be home. I tried to keep up on things at home and I think that helped. Sometimes I do feel left out of the loop but most of the time I am just really happy to be with my family and see my friends. The only hard part is now I know that I have already spoken about South Africa too much. I already get the glazed look like “Oh, she is talking about Africa again.” It is so hard because you know that what you have seen and heard and lived has given you a new awareness. People do things differently in other places. That type of living has now influenced me. I can’t go back. I am different but I understand that everyone does not always want to hear about it. Luckily, though, I have Lane. When we want to reminisce, it is fine. I have an outlet, which is really nice.

I can’t describe how I have changed. I know that this experience will live on with me for the rest of my life. I am not sure that I would ever go back to South Africa. It is a very nice place but it is hard to live there. I wouldn’t be able to really travel because I would constantly think about being a tourist. I didn’t much care for being a tourist there because it seemed really fake to me and just frustrated me more. There are still a lot of major issues that the country needs to figure out. I mean that is not to say that America doesn’t have its own issues but I realize that because I have lived here all my life somehow I am more tolerant of our issues.

It was a hard semester for me. I realized that a large school was really not the place for me. I really had to work hard for my grades and I didn’t really enjoy the learning environment. Probably if I was there for longer, I would develop some deeper relationships but really I miss talking with my profs and having the ability to learn more and have them care about what they are teaching instead of learning everything by myself. Additionally, every day in South Africa I had to battle stereotypes and racial issues. I had socioeconomic status differences shoved in my face every day when I walked to school, went to the grocery store, or even looked around my room. In America, all of these issues are packaged up and hidden so you don’t have to see them every day. I know that makes me seem like a horrible person to not want to see my privilege every day. But honestly, I already feel guilty. There is only so much that I can do in my life. There are only so many people that I can help. It makes me feel so bad every time I see someone in need and so somehow not being bombarded constantly makes me more able to focus and gain the skills to help, while also allowing me moments to be happy in my life.

My experience in South Africa has had its great moments and its difficult times. All of my experiences have made me more independent, more well rounded, and more adaptable. I feel like I am able to uncover hidden truths easier and navigate unfamiliar territory with greater ease. I am no longer afraid not to know how to do something before I try it. God has blessed me with safety in my travels and in just having the ability for this experience. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. It has become an integral part of my being. I am not done traveling or seeing new things. But that being said, I am happy to be home where life is less difficult. I am happy to be where I know and understand life because I have lived it for 20 years. I know the dynamics of my own culture. I do not have to second guess my assumptions on how something will work. I am sure that I will be ready for the adventure again soon but my year has had enough adventure for this 20 year-old girl. I am happy to be home!

Last Night

For the past few weeks, I have been really excited to come home. I have been homesick. I have missed being normal and all the rest. However, you know as much as I have complained about Liesbeeck, at the moment it is home. I leave a part of myself here having lived in this space, having met and influenced people. In the same vein, people have influenced me and completely changed my world. I couldn’t really explain how I am different but now I know that I have been transformed. I am anxious to come home because I don’t know if I will still fit in like I did or if I will turn people off because I talk about my experience too much. I don’t know how difficult it will be to adapt to life back at home. I know that my friends and family have also changed while I was gone and I must also meet them where they are. Not everything is as it was when I left. I know that I will cope just fine. I mean I knew these would be issues but I guess the reality hadn’t really sunk in to me. I will keep writing as I come back in order to complete my narrative of my journey. It doesn’t end just because I have come back. At least for the first couple of days I am sure that I will still feel the effects of my journey but maybe not.

Anyways, goodbye has really started to become true. Last night was my last night in Liesbeeck. Before Lane left he saw a cockroach in his bathroom. I guess they have infested all of Liesbeeck. I am really glad I didn’t know about it until the last night because I have to shower in there tomorrow. I slept for the last time on really uncomfortable beds (this time without sheets or a pillow…CIEE made us turn them in even before we left…I was too cheap to get a hotel). For the last time, I woke up under a giant bank of windows (with a giant crack in the wall) to a beautiful blue sky. For the last time, I woke up to “CAPE TOWN” as the mini bus drivers honk and yell at people to get in their taxi headed for Cape Town (it actually took me about a month to know that is what they were saying because their accents were so convoluted).

Today is my last day in Liesbeeck. I have already had to say goodbye to good friends and more goodbyes are coming. It is with the realization that you have lived with these people, that you have experienced life with these people that you realize that it wouldn’t be the same without them. Lane’s roommates were like my own. They were like my family. Adolf, as much as he was awkward, was super friendly to me and showed me the ropes of the science faculty. Vongani, was the man you would talk to about music and all sorts things like that. I actually helped him with his ear training…score one for Lauren. Celia was great. She was spunky and always bought too much food. She would always pawn it off on Lane which meant of course that I would get to partake as well. They were really my family, maybe dysfunctional and sometimes frustrating but a family nonetheless. It will be hard to leave them. I have already said goodbye to Celia and Adolf. Vongani will be around today to keep me out of trouble and to make sure that I actually talk to someone today but the reality is that this is it. This is the end.

Goodbye Liesbeeck! I hope never to come back but will always cherish my time here regardless.

Flight Info

For all those who like to watch the flight tracker I thought that I would let everyone know my flight details. It is good news that I checked in today without any major changes. Lane checked into his flight this morning to find that it had been completely changed. It would now take him 7 hours longer and an extra flight. Needless to say everything is smooth sailing over here for me. I leave Friday November 20 and 8:55pm in South Africa which is 10:55am PST on Friday November 20 just so you get used to calculating the time change!

The Itenerary is as follows
British Airways: Flight 58
11h 40m , 6011mi From Cape Town - D F Malan (CPT) Cape Town, South Africa
Departs: 8:55 P.M. To
London - Heathrow (LHR) London, United Kingdom
Arrives: 6:35 A.M.
Aircraft Boeing 747-400 (Jet)
Economy/Coach Class
________________________________________
British Airways: Flight 49
9h 41m , 4783mi From
London - Heathrow (LHR) London, United Kingdom
Departs: 2:20 P.M. To
Seattle Tacoma Intl (SEA) Seattle, WA
Arrives: 4:01 P.M. (on average it is 3 min late btw)
Aircraft Boeing 777 (Jet)
Economy/Coach Class


Hope this helps. Love you all and see you soon!

Finals/Goodbye-UCT

I am finally finished with the long and drawn out process that is finals at UCT. They were 3 weeks of exams plus a study week and after having a final on the first and last day I feel like I can appropriately say there are plusses and minuses to the American system and the South African system of exam schedules.

I can understand the reasoning for such a long exam period. When the final grade is over half based on the final exam, studying is a very important commodity. The lengthening of the exam schedule provides students with less stress because they have more time to study. Also, because of the formality of the tests with a certain number of desks in between each student and so such, only a few venues could be used to accommodate the tests. The extended schedule makes it easier for the school to schedule all the needed faculty and venues.

The drawbacks that I found were that I didn’t study more just because I had more time. I stressed more because I knew that I should study but if I did I would forget all the details by the time the test rolled around. It was very unfortunate really. Also, the lengthening of the test time meant that I could not travel. And while that sounds really selfish, it would have been nice to go up the garden route. My test schedule really meant that I couldn’t though.

But I am done finally with finals. I think all of them went fine. A few of the classes I was the first one done but no big surprise. I take tests fast because I make less mistakes that way by not over-thinking anything. I just always worry that my answers are not complete enough because none of the questions are ever multiple choice. Time will surely tell. But regardless I finally feel like I have a handle on this school. I know that I can succeed under any schooling system given time to adapt. I have learned a lot about my learning style and I feel like learning in a different atmosphere makes you learn not only particular subjects but also about yourself.

I am glad to go home to my university but I will always hold UCT in my heart as my other university, a home away from home.

Somerset West

This weekend Lane and I had the ability for a completely new experience in Africa. It seems like around every corner there is always something new. While I am ready to come home, I love the fact that I am not done here. I have only scratched the surface on the complexities of life here in South Africa and now that I understand the basics, a completely new world is available. Anyways, this weekend was great. We went to visit a white Afrikaans speaking family. My dad has a coworker that was originally from South Africa. He volunteered his family if we needed anything while in Africa. Well I contacted them about some suggestions for travel. After that, we stayed in contact and asked us to come and spend a weekend with them. They live in a suburb of Cape Town called Somerset West. It is primarily a Afrikaans area. The scenery is spectacular and the area hosts some of the biggest wine country for the whole of South Africa.

Yolanda, her husband Jaque, and their three year-old daughter Lia came to meet us on Saturday morning. They were kind enough to pick us up from our residence and take us all over the greater Cape Town area. They wanted to show us what they considered the must see events in the area. They first took us to a winery called Fairview, that also had goats and made their own cheese. It was really funny because Lane had just been complaining about the cheese that they had in the supermarket. We don’t really shop at the high end supermarkets and all the cheese that isn’t imported is cleverly named cheese. I many ways it sort of resembles plastic. Needless to say, when the West’s said that real goat cheese was involved, Lane was all in. The cheese was very good and we got to look at the goats. Lia would run around and look at the fish in the pond. She was very cute. She only spoke Afrikaans so I did not know what she was saying most of the time but it was fun to watch her run around and look at the fish and the goats and things. She is an active little girl. Also, quite awkward, at the same place I ran into my professor for my last final in African studies. It was really awkward because he is a very …interesting guy…and it just seemed like hypocrisy. He talked a lot about privilege so it seemed weird that he was spending his weekend in a place of lots of privilege. For sure it was a pleasant time for the most part and the weather couldn’t be better.

Next on our tour of the greater Cape Town area was a Lion Park (really a sanctuary). They rescue lions from game parks and zoos or wherever they are being mistreated. They are very clear to say that they don’t believe in domestic breeding of lions of hand-held captivity. It was great. Who knew places like that existed. Anyways we saw a whole bunch of lions lazing about in the sun. Though I did learn that they eat 3-8 chickens a week (dead of course) but they eat more when it is cold and less when it is hot. Interesting little tid-bit. But probably the most exciting adrenaline rush of the lion park was when Lia spotted a snake. It was probably some sort of mole snake because it soon disappeared in a hole. However, I don’t much like snakes so I wasn’t too thrilled. Lane and I hadn’t seen lion in Africa yet so it was great to check off another of the Big 5. I guess 3 out of 5 is not so bad.

By this time is was getting to be late afternoon so we made it back to the West residence. They had moved in about two years and at that point it was a major fixer upper. Jaque told me that it took him 6 months to clear all the foliage so that he could get to all parts of his property. They pretty much gutted the house and added a little addition to the bottom. So now they live in a beautiful house and in the basement is a flat for Yolanda’s parents. It works out well for both sides. Yolanda’s parents are able to watch after Lia and have the company. Anyways, we met the entire household. Everyone was very nice. Sas (Yolanda’s dad) made a big filet of fish and we ate the best meal we have had in Africa. A home cooked meal is somehow always the best. Maybe it is the shear amount of butter but maybe it is the company and the love that goes into each bite. Either way it was absolutely delectable. Fien (Yolanda’s mom) made a traditional South African dessert called Milk Tart. She translated the recipe so I am going to attempt it when I get home. I can’t really explain what it is. I mean it is sort of a mix between a custard and a pie…mild in flavor but still really good. As a good gesture I also brought some dessert. It was the chocolate peanut pretzel clusters that have saved my butt on many occasions. My aunt Karen sent me the recipe when I didn’t have the best of baking locations in the res. People have loved them and so Yolanda insisted that I gave her the recipe to that.

Interesting we learned that they like to camp. They leave for the weekend and just enjoy being free from the house and such. Well Jaque had made some hot cocoa with a giant marshmallow. He has a real sweet tooth and is the first to admit it. So he was talking about his love for marshmallows and then I realized camping…marshmallows…wow I would really like a smore. Well of course the West’s don’t know what that is. Apparently it is an American tradition. Who knew! Anyways, I had to send the directions for one of those as well. It sounds comical but it is amazing how little things so engrained in your head are different among peoples. They told me that they like to dip their roasted marshmallows in melted chocolate and chopped nuts. Maybe I will try it that way sometime.

It really was a great weekend. It was nice to get away from Cape Town central and nice to see a new perspective. It makes me realize how much I am persuaded by a particular perspective because of the people that I interact with on a normal basis and because of where I live. What a way to spend your last weekend in Cape Town!

Table Mountain

This is another one of those must do’s. Everyday we go to school and we walk towards UCT with devil’s peak as its backdrop. I think there are something like 230 trails up and around the mountain so we were excited to see what we could do. We talked to our RD a couple of weeks ago and he told us that we could leave directly from UCT and there were some trails that went up. This sounded pretty straight forward so we waited for a nice day to climb.

Lane had a final last week Tuesday. It was supposed to be nice and sunny so we planned to go up after he finished with his final. It ended up being a really sunny day but a little hot. On the way up, we saw Rhode’s memorial. It was just something to do I guess and after all that stuff about UCT I had to at least take a look. There was a beautiful view. We took a mini break and then went up the mountain.

We were leaving the memorial to the trails but there were a lot of different trails to pick from. We had no idea what we were doing or where we were going. The parking lot attendant seemed to notice that we were lost and asked us where we wanted to go. We told him and he sounded skeptical and said that it would be a three hour trip there and back. We weren’t phased because we had plenty of water and food. Then he told us all the directions but there were a lot of turn heres and do this etc. I quickly forgot some of the details and so did Lane. But we went up anyways to at least see what we could do.

We got ¾ of the way of the mountain. It had been a pretty steep climb thus far. I was prepared for switchbacks and the like but they never came. We climbed stair after stair after stair and it was HOT! But we made it ¾ of the way up and then there was a trail divergence. Neither trail continued to go up so we had no idea which way to go. We deliberated for a while and chose to go left. It seemed the most like a trail rather than a road. Anyways, I still don’t know which way we should have gone but we never did make it up to the top of the mountain. I suspect that it was at this divergence we should have gone the other way. Regardless we hiked for a while and saw some great views. We hiked for about 4 hours in total and who knows how far we went …probably not that far but my legs did hurt in the end. We ended up just going down the trail and then turning back after we got a little tired. Ironically we found a trail that probably would have taken us to the top on the way back. Such is life I guess.

It was a fun experience. Later we were told how we should have done it but we will see if we actually get to do it again. At least we had a unique experience and saw part of the mountain that most people don’t get to see. We saw the attendant on our way down. He seemed surprised to see us and we told him that we took a wrong turn and so we decided to come back. He just smiled and we talked about how hard the climb is to get up as far as we did. We looked pretty gross I must admit. He was a really nice guy and I am glad that we got to meet him. He was funny.

After we got down, we ran into some RA's from the program and they looked at us like we were crazy for climbing up on that day. Chenai was like "I will never understand white people" She thinks that we are crazy for expending so much effort to climb the mountain. She didn't understand the appeal. It was funny.

In all, we didn’t necessarily accomplish what we had set out to do but had fun anyways. We sat and ate our lunch overlooking the city just 200 feet from the top of the mountain. It was really fun and it is one more item off the checklist!

Robben Island

So Robben Island is one of the must see tourist attractions in Cape Town which means that 1) it is expensive to go on and 2) it is filled with tourists. But I knew that I had to be one of those tourists in order to get my full experience of the city. I couldn’t return home and say that I hadn’t done it. So anyways, my American flat mate had been talking with CIEE about going and somehow she worked it out that if she got at least 10 people together they would fit the bill for the entire trip. Well it wasn’t so hard to find 10 willing people to go and so last weekend all 20 of us traveled to the Cape Town Waterfront to embark to Robben Island.

For those who at this point are like…what is Robben Island? I will give a little history. The name itself comes from the Afrikaans version of the word and means “seal island” (though we didn’t see any seals when we were there ironically). This island has always been used in order to isolate people from the mainland. At the beginning of the 18^th century, the island was used to contain political prisoners during colonial wars with natives. By 1845, the island morphed its role into containing a leper colony to keep them isolated from the mainland. However it is most notable for housing the largest population of black and colored political prisoners in the Apartheid, namely Nelson Mandella.

The whole thing sort of reminded me of going to Alcatraz in San Francisco but a little less daunting. At least we didn’t have to hear the walking tour with the former criminal testimonies and the deep echoey footsteps. Those who have been there know what I mean.

It was a beautiful day. We left through Nelson Mandella Gateway on the waterfront. We boarded a little catamaran called the Shikuleikele. I have no idea how to pronounce it so don’t ask. It was about a 20 min ride with little turbulence. When we got to the other end of the line, everyone disembarked and headed for the guided bus tour of the island. Our tour guide was an ex-political prisoner from the 1960’s. Apparently, there was an old prison and a new prison. The old prison was a very nasty place and the inmates from the old prison actually constructed the new prison. Our guide spoke a little about this but not in great detail. We also saw a limestone quarry, which is where the political prisoners spent most of their day. The limestone that they collected really wasn’t used for anything but to kill time. Though working in the quarry was not so great. The sun would reflect off the rock and every prisoner that worked in that quarry had eye damage because of the rays. What is interesting though, is that they prisoners had a cave for a toilet but they would actually congregate in the toilet area and talk about politics. The tour guides comment on the stupidity of bringing all the political prisoners to one place. It would have been better to isolate them so they weren’t able to collaborate and undermine the government while still in jail.

At the end of the bus ride, we stopped at the new prison where another ex-political prisoner told us about life inside the jail. Then he showed us Nelson Mandella’s cell and were on our way a mere 2 hours later.

It was an interesting tour but I was a little frustrated coming out of it. I realized then how much my perspective was shaped by living in Cape Town rather than by merely traveling through as most people on the tour were. The guides tried to tell us how much better South Africa was today and that they had no problems in the modern world. They were ready for the World Cup…etc. It was very frustrating because every day we are confronted with the vast inequality that still lives in and among Cape Town let alone South Africa. They have come a long ways from the days of Apartheid and I recognize that, but it was frustrating to listen to what I considered propaganda for much of the tour. I tried to take some tidbits out of the tour that I found interesting and let the other bounce off but that sort of tourism is a bit frustrating. It also makes me wonder how people from South Africa and Cape Town respond to the tour if they go at all. Most tourist destinations are not meant for the residents and most residents don’t go to them. But if they did, I wonder what they would think of the ideas that were being pumped at the tourists. It is an interesting thought.

In all, I was really happy to go. I didn’t have to pay for it, which was nice. Also, I found out a little about myself how much I feel like I have learned about this place. I think that it will also make me view how I look at any new place and try to find something deeper than what is given to me. It is one check off my list of things to do and places to see on the “before I come home to-do list” that is ever shrinking!