Living in South Africa 2012

August 4, 2012 – District Six Museum Tour – Long Street Party

2013-04-29T05:37:00.001-07:00

Today we visited the District Six museum along with the UCT students. Due to my laziness, I stole the explanation from the museum’s website…

“District Six was named the Sixth Municipal District of Cape Town in 1867. Originally established as a mixed community of freed slaves, merchants, artisans, labourers and immigrants, District Six was a vibrant centre with close links to the city and the port. By the beginning of the twentieth century, however, the process of removals and marginalisation had begun.

The first to be 'resettled' were black South Africans, forcibly displaced from the District in 1901. As the more prosperous moved away to the suburbs, the area became a neglected ward of Cape Town.

In 1966 it was declared a white area under the Group Areas Act of 1950, and by 1982, the life of the community was over. 60 000 people were forcibly removed to barren outlying areas aptly known as the Cape Flats, and their houses in District Six were flattened by bulldozers.

The District Six Museum, established in December 1994, works with the memories of these experiences and with the history of forced removals more generally.”

So basically people of all color and class were living together peacefully in a vibrant area…until the devil himself became the leader of South Africa. A system called apartheid was enforced and eventually led to the segregation and extinction of life in District 6. Sad story right? The tour was even worse.

A victim of District 6 was our tour guide. We stood in one spot for about an hour while he explained two pictures. I wore my uncomfortably stylish sneakers today so I had to take a seat on the floor while he tried hard to put me to sleep. He stopped talking for about 10 seconds, and then told us to take about 10 steps back. He then announced that the tour was over. WHAT?! We didn’t even walk pass the lobby yet. But whatever, I was ready to go explore Cape Town and go shopping. At our own will, we checked out the rest of the museum and took pictures. Then we were off to explore the town!

We went back to the market area that we passed when we first got off the train this morning. It looks like a flea market, except bigger and full of African inspired stuff. I probably went to everybody’s vending stall. I just wanted to buy everything! But I only had enough money to buy a few little things, of which I won’t tell. We made plans with the UCT students to go out to Long Street tonight so we headed back to UWC to get ourselves ready.

July 28-29, 2012 – Guguletu Township Homestay

2012-09-24T15:49:00.001-07:00

Saturday

For the weekend, we stayed in a township called Guguletu. In general terminology, we stayed in the hood. IES staff split us up in groups of two and three so that we could stay with a particular family for the weekend. I was paired with Kayana. Kayana and I met our sister for the weekend and she took us home. The first thing I asked for was food. You know a big girl like myself gotta eat in small intervals of time.

Our sister offered to make me an egg sandwich but I insisted on making it myself. I don’t like being treated like royalty…and I she probably wouldn’t have made it how I wanted it. I made me a nice sammich with three slices of bread and an egg between each slice. It was gone in 2.5 seconds. Shortly after I stuffed my face, we began cooking breakfast so that it could be nice and warm when our mama got home. We prepared potatoes, maize meal, and chicken. No our sister prepared that. Kayana and I just peeled the potatoes and cleaned the chicken.

When our mama got home, I stuffed my face once again in 2.5 seconds. When I finished eating, everyone else was on her first bite. And I’m absolutely sure I didn’t get my plate first. My mama and sister watched me in disbelief as I got up to go put my plate in the kitchen. I had to break the silence with an “I THROWS DOWN!” They laughed. We watched a soccer game between two rival national teams as I waited for them to finish their food. Kayana was over there eating like she only got one taste bud, trying to make sure all the food passes over it. I wanted to take her plate so bad.

I started catching a case of the itis and started to prepare my mind for bed when a bunch of people barged through the front door. DAMN! This many people live here? Our mama assured us that they were only visiting cousins. Whew! I thought I was about to be sleeping on the floor. Our new cousins took us to go see a sheep get slaughtered at the house around the corner. I learned that a sheep tongue is very strong…and so are human tongues probably. After meeting a few people we decided to head back to the house to catch up on sleep. We had to go to church the next morning.

Sunday

Yawn! What’s for breakfast? Why am I the only one awake? I thought old people always wake up early. Not my mama! I figured that by the time I take a shower and get dressed, she’d be awake and done with breakfast by then. I went into the bathroom and was reminded that there is no shower. There was just a bath with a tap, but hot/cold gauge. Not even shower curtains. I tippy toed into the kitchen looking for pot to boil some water in. I scrimmaged around the stove making a lot of noise that woke mama up. She came into the kitchen and made me look bad. There was an electric kettle sitting on top of the table waiting to be seen by me. She just filled it with water and plugged it in. I’m glad I woke her up because she remembered that she had to make breakfast.

I had a very awkward time in the bathroom. Inside the bath tub was a huge bucket.. I filled it with the hot water and left a little to brush my teeth. I added some cold water to bucket, but not too much to make the water not warm. I had to bend down every time I wanted some water on my body, which was a lot! Taking a bath is supposed to be a relaxing experience; this was torture. I now appreciate the little weird, low-water-pressure shower we have in our dorms.

I got in dress in my Sunday clothes and walked to the kitchen. As I presumed, breakfast was ready right on time. Mama served us cereal, 1 slice of toast, 1 fried egg, a slice of tomato, and a huge block of butter. Everything disappeared in 2.5 seconds and I asked for more. Sweet as mama is, she couldn’t say no. :) I demolished 2 more slices of toast and we were off to church.

I don’t even know why they call this place a church. We didn’t talk about God not once. We were dancing and singing songs and having a good time. It was more like a gospel concert. I’m not complaining at all, I just wish they would call it, as it is – a gospel club.

After clubbing in the name of Jesus, everybody was ready to eat lunch. IES organized for us to have lunch at a famous spot called Mzoli’s. If you ever visit Cape Town, you have to go! It is an outdoor party from morning till dark, filled with alcohol, women, cars, and meat. Basically MAN HEAVEN. Why don’t we have places like these in America? I’m writing a letter to Obama ASAP.

July 18, 2012 – IES (Institute for the International Education of Students)

2012-09-24T15:48:00.001-07:00

Our drivers picked us up from our UWC campus at 3pm. We got into two separate vehicles and headed to UCT to have a class with the other IES students. IES by the way, is the name of our study abroad program. They are the ones that plan all those extravagant getaways I’ve been talking about. If you, or other people you know, want to study abroad, IES is the way to go. (I wonder if they’ll pay me to promote?) Doubt it.

So let’s just forget about this whole story . . . seriously. Bye!

July 16, 2012 – First Day of Class

2012-08-28T09:02:00.001-07:00

I’ve got first day jitters! I couldn’t wait to get to my first class. I woke up extra early, toasted my outfit nice and crisp, and got ready. My bag was already packed form last night so it didn’t take me a long time to be out the door. Mission: to find this Nutrition class. I’m quite familiar with the campus, but it’s so huge that sometimes it gets confusing. I made it to the vicinity where the building was, but it had a few entrances. After a few embarrassing cases of trial and error, I finally made it to the inside of the building. Dang, just when I thought I was safe, I realized that I don’t know where the classroom is. ME14 it says on my schedule. I asked a lady where ME14 was and she said, “it’s the room next to this one.” LOL I totally knew that.

I slowly opened the door, thinking that everyone was going to turn and stare at me as I walked in late…but nobody was in there! I figured everybody else was running late also. I took out my laptop and took advantage of the free Wi-Fi. Of course I went on Facebook to pass the time. I watched a funny video that Theo sent me. OMG! Anybody who knows me is aware that I go ballistic when I find stuff funny. I almost cried watching that video. Fortunately, nobody walked in to witness my crazy side. I don’t know what kind of first impression that may leave. Why didn’t anyone walk in yet? I tried to use the 20-minute rule (if a teacher doesn’t arrive in class after 20 mins, then the students can leave), but then I realized that this is not America. Nobody cares about a 20-minute rule.

I got fed up and started walking around the building in hopes of finding this class. Why was I so determined? I could’ve easily gone back to my room to eat some food and sleep. I went into an office and asked a lady where the Nutrition class was. She brought me downstairs to the bulletin board and there it was…ME11. This classroom was right across from the bulletin board, which was right next to ME14. I walked into the classroom and found only three other students there. I thought the teacher was going to scold me for being late, but she was actually elated to have a fourth person in her classroom.

She handed me a syllabus as I took a seat in the front row. I turned to the page that everyone was on and followed as the teacher explained each bullet. On the next page were paragraphs that explained Carbohydrates, Lipids, and Proteins. The teacher looked at me and asked me to read the first paragraph. I did. After I read, there was short silence the teacher then proceeded to ask me the same series of questions that I hear everyday.

o Are you from America?

o Where in America?

o Why did you come to South Africa?

o What are you studying?

o Where are you staying?

o Do you miss home?

o What have you done here so far?

o How long are you staying here?

o Do you like it here?

… And I say Hell Yea, hell yea, hell yea….LOL!

These are among the popular questions that all the American students get asked everyday.

My teacher is a very nice, soft spoken, short lady who probably wouldn’t hurt a mosquito. I’m looking forward to learning as much as I can about Nutrition. Her syllabus is a little lengthy, but I’ll see it through.

We continued discussing the syllabus and the other students read as well. Class was over in 10 minutes. I went to my room and slept like a baby.

July 13, 2012 – Garden Route ~ Day 2

2012-08-19T15:50:00.004-07:00

It’s cold as hell in this house! Waking up to a cold room makes me not want to get from underneath the covers. So I didn’t. I got dressed right under those blankets. I didn’t wake up at 6:30 like I said I would so I had to hurry. When I went to go brush my teeth, I discovered that there’s no hot water! Oh hell no! I’m so glad they had a stove in the kitchen. I had to boil some hot water in order to brush my teeth. It was about 7:30 when I decided to go get some breakfast at the café house. The bus was supposed to leave at 8:00am sharp so I had to hurry. But I didn’t hurry. I hate rushing because I always forget to bring something important.

I whipped out my sexy red umbrella and made my way to breakfast. On my way, I saw a nice, fat chicken just walking around in the yard…that must be tonight’s dinner. I got to breakfast at about 7:35, and of course everyone was leaving to get on the bus. I figured I had enough time to eat and catch the bus. The food looked so delicious. They had eggs, toast, every flavor of jam you can think of, guava juice, muffins, bake beans and a beautiful fruit salad. I ate everything I just named. When I looked up from my plate, I noticed that I was the only one left in the room. Where did everybody else go? I looked at my watch and saw that it was 8:02. O crap! I ran to the bus…I’m lying, I walked to the bus and saw that everybody had their bags and belongings with them. Why are people bringing their bags? Maxine, the IES director at UCT, said that we aren’t staying here tonight. How was I supposed to know this information? I had to go all the way back to my room to pack my bags. William M, my RA at UWC, was in the room next to mine with Theo. I looked into their room and saw them rummaging around like squirrels. “Why aren’t you guys on the bus?” I asked. “Because we just woke up.” LMAO. That answer made me feel better because I wasn’t the only late one.

When we got back to the bus Maxine was saying something about respecting other people’s time. I shook my head and boarded the bus. She let William M have it! She scolded him for about five minutes. That poor guy, he just had rough night. I’m not even mad that I was late because breakfast was amazing; I was too elated for anyone to bring my spirit down. I supposed that’s how people feel after they’ve smoked weed? See my little children, there are other things in life that can put you at complete ease – Food being number one.

Today we’ll be doing more fun activities. First we will be canoeing up some random river in the mountains. Then later on, we have a choice between going to an elephant sanctuary, or visiting some monkeys, or paragliding, or seeing the Tenikwa wild cats. Of course I chose to see the wildcats. How can I come all the way to Africa and not see a leopard and a cheetah? And plus this was the cheapest option. It cost way too much just walk next to en elephant and have him eat out of your hand. And who the hell would want to see some crazy monkey so early in the morning? They are too mischievous. Before we could get off the bus, we bombarded with a bunch of big cardboard boxes. OMG! MORE FOOD? Now I was getting sick of eating. How many times are we going to get fed? We literally JUST had breakfast. But I took like three bags of food anyways. I wasn’t hungry, but I could still eat.

So about the canoeing trip – it was too damn cold to be splashing in river water. It was like 12 degrees Fahrenheit outside, and it was raining as usual. A few of us decided to stay on the bus~ Dontranika, Kayana, Will, William M, Theo, and me. We are the smart ones who don’t want to get sick in another man’s country. I watched the others from the bus window as they dressed from head to toe in black garbage bags. They looked like a moving garbage disposal. Some of the boys from UCT took their shoes off so that they won’t get wet. What? You will have dry shoes but you will come back to the bus with frost bitten athlete’s foot. Great decision.

As they canoed, the rest of us went to go watch people bungee jumping from a bridge. Now that’s one thing you won’t get me doing. The fall was too far down. And it looks even scarier because it’s smacked between two huge mountains – so it seems as if you’re falling into hell. I admire the jumpers for their bravery though. I think after you bungee jump there is nothing else to look forward to in life. That’s at the top of the list of crazy things you’ll ever do before you die. I’ll leave that for when I’m 89 years old.

I felt a drop of rain and immediately sprinted to the bus. LOL. I could get recruited to the Olympic track team at the rate I was running from those raindrops. A few minutes later, the canoe group came back looking like frozen chickens. They tried to pretend that they had the time of their lives but we weren’t buying it. They were like “OMG, that was so much fun!” No it wasn’t LOL, you look like you couldn’t wait to get back to the bus.

The bus left after everybody got settled in. We made our way to the paragliding (zip lining) area first. The people who chose this particular activity got off the bus…in the rain. Next stop was the elephant sanctuary. The people who wanted to walk with elephants and feed them got off the bus…in the rain. Then there were the few, the proud, the wildcats! The bus driver saved the best for last. When we got off the bus the rain stopped – because God likes us better, the sun started shining and one wild lion somewhere in the world roared its biggest roar.

We waited in the gift shop area for our tour guide to come get us. I know it’s not a coincidence that we have to wait about 15 minutes in the gift shop before we started our tour. That’s just designated time for tourists to spend as much money as they can while they anxiously wait. It’s proven that people tend to spend money when under stress, whether good or bad stress. My sources? …My mom and her friends. The tour guide came to get us and brought us into an empty room with benches. He had a move set up for us to watch before we began our tour. The movie basically gave us some background history on the African cats and their endangerment. It also gave us safety tips for when we come into contact with them.

And then we were off! We visited the lonely leopard first. He had a whole section to himself because he needed space to run and exercise. He was very well caged in because he’s not afraid to attack people. Even though he was in the biggest cage I’d ever seen, I was still scared. If he had jumped up onto the side of the cage, as the tour guide said he has done before, I would’ve peed myself. But he didn’t. I got a few photos and videos of him licking his paw; he’s so cute…and BIG. We then saw some other cats that I cared nothing about. I just wanted to get to the popular demanded ones.

African Wild Cat

When we finally got to the cheetahs I was very excited. By this time I wasn’t afraid of the cats anymore. Well, until the tour guide opened the gate told us to walk in. Excuse me sir? How about you go first so I have time to run while they eat you? He reassured everyone that they wont attack us if… (1)we keep standing tall, (2)don’t make any sudden moves, and (3)speak softly. What?! He just told me to not be myself around these two cheetahs. He brought in another guy who works with the cheetahs everyday. The guy’s job was to keep the cheetahs calm while we look at them, touch them, and take pictures. When it was my turn to take a picture, the female cheetah turned around and showed me her teeth. Oh hell no! I wasn’t about to be anybody’s dinner while I’m in Africa. My body was telling me to run, but my head reminded me that I couldn’t make any sudden moves. So I just stood in one spot until the cheetah realized that I was the boss and she needs to sit the hell down.

I knew it was time to leave the cheetah’s territory when the female one started running around. Her ears got erected and she was sniffing around suspiciously. “Excuse me Mr. Tour guide, I think she wants us to leave.” He eventually took my advice and left them alone. I can definitely say that is he closest I’ve come to being eaten by an animal. I think I would’ve been totally fine if a cheetah bit me because that would be an awesome story to tell my friends and my children in the future. Unfortunately I wasn't bitten, so we’ll have to stick with this lame story.

We moved on to looking at some little animals that look like a cross between a chipmunk and a rat. They were the ugliest things I’d seen up until we walked to a green pond area. There were some birds about as tall as Musiq Soulchild, with some long beaks. Yuck, they were so ugly that I had to take several pictures of them. Our tour ended with the ugly looking birds, but I still had the thought of the cheetahs in my mind for the rest of the day. Wildcats are amazingly beautiful animals.

Everyone got back on the bus as we headed to the elephant sanctuary to pick up some people. They took a long time to get to the bus so I decided to go inside. It was dark and scary but they had a fireplace. BINGO! I warmed myself up for a bit, but my mind kept roaming. I wonder if anyone will try to stop me if I go back there? I walked to what looked like the backyard of the place, and there they were! I saw the elephants…FOR FREE! Hahahahaaha! I just got something for free that people actually have to pay for. There were no security guards or people who took themselves too seriously, so I figured I can do whatever I want to. I got on the swings and relived my high school days for a bit. Then I made myself a cup of tea and drank it by the fireplace. I still don’t know whether or not any of those amenities were free. But hey, THIS IS AFRICA!

After my free luxurious spree, it was time to leave. We were driven to another lodging place. This place probably looks ten times better when it’s not raining. The entrance looks like a place for a wedding. We walked under vines that blossomed beautiful flowers. Dontranika and I ended up being roommates again. Kayana and Will were roommates in a room across the courtyard. Our rooms were the cutest I’d ever seen. And the courtyard had a water fountain in the middle that reflects light into your room at night. It’s like sleeping in an aquarium…a very cold aquarium.

We were called down to dinner about an hour later. The food was gross. There wasn’t much to choose from, and the main course was beef. I don’t eat beef. So I had carrots for dinner. -___- I wasn’t hungry anyway. After everybody ate we went back to our cute little rooms to chill. Kayana, Theo and Will came to my room. We talked about everything under the sun. It was a funny night…up until Theo started talking about witches and curses. He tried to cast a spell on me with his lucky rock that he bought at the Wildcats place. That boy needs Jesus.

I told everyone that I was about to take a shower (hint to get the hell out). They all got out, but as soon as I got ready to lock the door William M and one of the UCT RAs came in. DAMN! Just when I thought I could get some sleep. I tried to keep the conversation short but it wasn’t working. After about 30 minutes of trying to get these guys out, I was finally successful. I go to take a nice, hot shower and sleep like a baby. They had heating blankets too!!! I slept peacefully on clouds.

July 12 – Garden Route Fieldtrip

2012-08-12T06:37:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of our weekend away from school. I got up at 4:20am. WTH! I toasted my outfit on that darn heating panel, brushed my teeth, and got dressed to be on the bus by 5:00am. Can’t believe I have to leave my bed to be outside this early. Dontranika and I briskly walked outside at about 4:59 and 59 seconds (lol). I was amazed when I looked up and saw the biggest tour bus in South Africa. I walked on the bus and noticed that it had been taken over by the other students from the University of Cape Town. They were spread all over the bus with their legs across the isles. They are too comfortable in here. I couldn’t find anywhere to sit. So I bombarded my way to the back of the bus; Rosa Parks wouldn’t approve. I made it my duty to wake up as many people as possible on my way to the back. I allowed by bag to bump people and when I said sorry, I said it loud enough to wake up another person. Screw them and their hangovers.

So I was sitting next to the toilet that smelled like old doo-doo. Kayana came on the bus last and sat next to me. The driver finally decided to pull off, and we all discovered that he couldn’t drive. It took this guy like 20 minutes to reverse and pull out of our housing complex. He probably bought his licenses at Shop Rite. It took him about another ten minutes to get onto the main street.

Then our tour guide, Riaan, started talking on the microphone. He was basically telling us what would be going on for today and the rest of the weekend. But he was saying a lot of unnecessary things, like the name of the highway we’re driving on. What the hell is so special about Route 62? I’ve learned however, that most South Africans like to hear themselves talk… about nothing! After a half hour of listening to himself (because everyone was sleeping), I saw a sheet of paper being passed around. When it got to me I saw breakfast options. YESS!!! FOOD!!! I checked off the veggie burger and mango juice options.

An hour later we pulled up at a gas station. I thought it was a bathroom break, but Riaan got on the microphone to clarify that this is where we are eating. I don’t mind him talking about food on the mic. Everybody got off the bus, rushed into the Steers restaurant and waited for our food. So one thing that I now know is that fries in South Africa are called chips, and they are served with, between, in, or around every meal. Yea, it makes America seem healthy. Please, my fellow Americans, don’t go and start putting fries in between everything. You will die of South African Chips disease. It’s real.

Breakfast was delicious; it just didn’t fill me up. However, it was enough to put me back to sleep on the bus. After what seemed like a 10-minute nap, the bus stopped again. Dang, another bathroom break! Who has the weak bladder on the bus? I say we leave them behind! Kayana informed me that it had been about an hour since we had breakfast. Oh, ok well then I guess people need to excrete wastes. By the way, this is supposed to be an eight-hour drive and we have no idea where we’re going.

As I tried to fall asleep for the third time, Riaan got on the mic again talking about the places we are passing. First of all, there is nothing but mountains and bush outside. Second of all, everybody is sleeping, and third, if we wanted to know where we were, we would wake up and read the signs. Get off the mic! I saw another sheet of white paper being passed to the back of the bus so that calmed me down a little. When the paper got to me, I read LUNCH OPTIONS. YESS!!! More Food!!!

What the hell? Ostrich kabob? I’ll go with the chicken kabob and grape juice. About another half hour into the trip we pulled up at an Ostrich Farm. I was excited about visiting the ostriches because I heard we could feed them and ride them like horses. =] Ostriches are very stupid. Their bodies are the size of a motorcycle, but their brains are the size of a quarter. Some people got to kiss the ostriches – NASTY. After we met the ostriches, we fed them and rode them. Now why would I want to eat something I just met?

While waiting for our food, there was a random guy playing a guitar. Seems like the only songs he knew were Bruno Mars’ songs. We sang along with him and danced to make him feel special. I sure wasn’t going to tip him. When they served us our food it was cold. WTF! I saw that Theo got the ostrich kabob…it’s probably the same one he kissed. That’s like kissing a girl then eating her. That’s not nice. I tasted the ostrich meat tho. It reminded me of chicken kidney. Ew!

After we left the ostrich farm, we made our way to the Cango Caves. It wasn’t very far from the ostrich farm. On the way there we got another food sheet. This time it was our dinner choices. I sure don’t mind being fed like this on the regular. What the hell is on this menu? Frickin kudu, which is antelope meat, and springbok – some random animal I never saw before. Thank God it had one chicken selection – sweet onion chicken.

At the Cango resort, we had an option of doing a standard, walk through tour of the cave or an adventure tour, where we get to climb and slide and bend and fall through rocks. Who wants to do a basic standard tour? Surprisingly, half of our group chose the standard tour… dummies.

Imani and Theo’s excuse for not doing the adventure tour: “I don’t want to scratch my precious camera.”

Screw your stupid Canon name brand, bifocal, extreme vision cameras! I can’t stand photographers.

Needless to say, the adventure was AMAZING! The tour guide was funny but damn he wouldn’t shut up! I told you these South Africans love to hear themselves talk. One girl from Virginia was whispering in the back while he was talking and he let her have it. He was like, “…excuse me Miss Virginia, can you not talk while I’m talking? Thank you.” LOL. He’s a diva. The hardest part about this cave thing was trying to through the smallest crevices in the cave. And we had to slide in an upward direction. It took all my strength to get through that dark tiny hole. How the hell did the girls with wide hips fit? Something I’d never understand. By the end of the tour, my clothes were wet and dirty, and I was sweating like Dwight Howard.

When we got back on the bus, all I could think about was food. Even though I was still full from lunch. I just think I have an eating disorder; I have no control over my cravings. I’m going to skip the part about what happened in the bus and go straight to dinner. OMG! Sweet onion chicken is the best thing made on earth. The onion didn’t even taste like onions – because I hate the taste of onions – they tasted more like honey-glazed heaven. Have you ever had honey-glazed heaven? If not, you’re missing out on life.

I couldn’t help but notice how slow Kayana was eating. When I finished my food, which was in 2.5 seconds, she was still on her first bite. I had to help her finish her dinner in time.

PART TWO

You would think our day ended after dinner. Nope, in fact, we were just getting started – some of us at least. We drove to a lodge about an hour away from the restaurant. They made us gather in groups of four and gave us keys to our own rooms. They were more like little houses on a huge space of land. There were 4 beds, a kitchen, and bathroom in each. The first thing I did was remove my cave infested clothes and throw them away. I didn’t want to bring home any cave diseases with me. I took a burning hot shower then tried to get settled in bed. Why did three random UCT students open up our door looking for “the party” on three separate occasions? These people should be exhausted from our long day. Next thing you know, Theo came through saying they’re having a party next-door and they want me to teach the white girls how to dance -___- Have I ever introduced myself as a professional dance teacher? I went anyways =]

I met Thomas, Genevieve, Jasmine, Nijla, Will…and some other people. Oh gosh, they were so drunk. They definitely bought bottles of wine from the restaurant we went to for dinner. If the legal drinking age is 18, then why not take advantage? Anyways, Genevieve was the one that couldn’t dance to save her life. I asked her to show me what she has so far. She bent over and started shaking her whole body offbeat like a two year old. “What the hell are you doing?!” I shouted at her to stop immediately. It was horrible to watch. I coached her a bit, but there was no hope in sight for her. She would start out good but end up having a schizophrenic outbreak. LMAO!

Even though Thomas didn’t have rhythm, at least he taught me some ballroom dance moves. Will was actually good at dancing on girls. He had rhythm and he didn’t look as weird as Tom and Genevieve. After we got tired of dancing, shit got crazy. Tom and Jasmine were play fighting, and then Genevieve jumped in. Three drunken people just rolling around the room…it was hilarious!

I looked at the time and thought “o crap, we have to be up at 6:30 in the morning.” I wanted to leave smoothly but they were using my iPad to play music. How can I leave without messing up their party? I told them I was going to get something from my room and be right back. Lies! I went straight to bed. I texted Theo and told him to bring my iPad whenever he leaves. My roommates, William, Kayana, Dontranika and I had a conversation before we went to bed. It was hilarious because the person we were talking about walked right into the room like ‘HEEEYYY GUYS!’ LMAO!

July 11, 2012 – UWC Orientation & Registration

2012-08-02T01:14:00.001-07:00

How many orientations and registrations are we going to have?! We don’t even orientate at our orientations nor register at our registrations. At 9:00am I was speed walking to the venue on campus. When I got there I wasn't even mad that it was early and freezing outside because the smell and sight of breakfast put me at ease. There were glazed donuts, little fancy tomato pizzas, hot tea, apple juice, orange juice, and my favorite mango juice. I ate everything that could fit on two plates. I do not play games.

So everybody scrambled into the lecture hall; it looks like an auditorium. There was a UWC tote bag and a free pen along with the program on everybody’s desk. I LOVE free things! We started off by passing the microphone around the room for introductions. There were a lot of international students from different parts of the world. When the mic got to William, from Howard, he introduced himself then set the record straight. “…Not all American men wear their jeans below the butt, thank you.”

The head of International Relations, Ms. Lamson gave us a welcome speech, followed by the director, Mr. Jackson. They said something about welcome to UWC, it’s a colored school, and this year is their 50^th anniversary. Then Ms. Lamson offered a prize to the person who can remember the name of the person she was about to introduce. I LOVE prizes. The lady she introduced went up the podium and started giving her speech in a low, monotone voice. O gosh, she was so boring! But I still wanted my prize so I stayed awake as she put everybody else to sleep. She was talking about South African history from the beginning of time until now. Who cares what happened in the 1400s? She only had a half hour to get the job done and she went over time.

Anywho, when she finished her speech I started clapping to indicate to the sleepers that she was done. She handed over the microphone to Ms. Lamson. I was hoping she didn’t forget about the prize because I would remind her. Luckily she didn’t. She popped the question and my right hand immediately flew up.

“Yes, Chantal what is the name of the speaker?” she asked. “Sipokazi Sambumbu!” YESS!!!! I got a free t-shirt. I LOVE free t-shirts! I can see that people were wondering how I remembered that very complicated name, but if they weren’t asleep they would’ve noticed it was written on the program. Hahahaha!

We had another long, boring presentation, then an excited one by Cape Town tourism. This is what I came for. I want to hear about cool stuff. They talked about shark-cage diving, surfing, mountains, and party – awesome! Smart as I am, I knew that I had to take notes because they had a bag of free gifts sitting on the table up front. Just as I thought, they decided to quiz us on their presentation. They asked the first question and my right hand immediately flew up. I answered correctly and got a free water bottle and a gym bag. At this point, everybody in the room envied me. LOL. Two other people got prizes.

The next presentation was about HIV/AIDS. This lady came to tell us in 30 minutes what we already know. Her story of how she contracted the virus was very moving though. Be careful guys! She didn’t have any prizes so I wasn’t really feeling her speech (shrugs). When she got off the stage, a cutie walked on. He had all my attention, and he had a bomb presentation…and prizes! LMAO His prizes were gym bags with t-shirts inside of them. How do I know? Because I won four of them. If wealth depended on how much free stuff one person has, I would be Bill Gates.

Best part of today is that they put lunchtime right in the middle of the program. I ate everything that could fit onto three plates. Why does the food taste so good in South Africa? America needs to step their game up. They called us back into the auditorium after lunch for more boring talk. You can’t feed me and expect me to pay attention afterwards. God sent one of his angels from above and told Ms. Lamson to excuse all the Howard students from the rest of the program. Amen!

We left and went shopping. We had to prepare for our long weekend tour.

July 10, 2012 – Orientation with UCT at Muizenberg

2012-07-28T01:41:00.000-07:00

My RA, Alicia, came knocking at my door at like 8am this morning. We are supposed to be in Muizenberg by 9am to meet up with the other study abroad students from the University of Cape Town.

“Chantal, are you guys ready?”

Ummm “yea we’ll be down in a minute,” I lied.

I searched for my outfit, put it on the heater, ran to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, went back to my room, checked my phone and saw a missed call and a text message. I already knew it was somebody from the group telling me to hurry up so I didn’t even check. I started getting dressed at about 8:20. I put on my warm sweat pants, socks, sneakers and shirts. It was freezing outside so I also had to throw on my jacket.

My roommate and I ran downstairs to meet up with everyone. It was still dark outside and we had to take public transportation to our destination. Why couldn’t we do this on a warm afternoon? I don’t think the UCT students were THAT excited to meet us. We took a minibus [taxi] to the Belleville station. I’ve never seen chaos like this before. There were like a thousand other taxis going different places, metro busses were swerving around tight corners, people were rushing to be on time for work, and men were gawking at women.

We all ordered train tickets at a small window with a man on the inside. We weren’t really familiar with our new currency so it us a while to pay for all the tickets. You can tell that the man was getting irritated with us. But screw him; a part of his job is to be patient. It’s called customer service. After we got our tickets we made our way to the train station. The trains run flat on the ground like cars. When the train came I noticed that everyone boarded only on the last 3 cars.

“Why isn’t anyone going to the front the train?” I asked my RA, Will. He said that’s where people get robbed. LMAO Yikes!

I found out later that the real reason nobody sat in the front is because you have to have a first class ticket to do so. WTW! First class tickets cost an extra R3.50. Bump thaat! [Kendrick Lamar voice]

The train was packed with people going about their early morning businesses. The worst part was the smell. A homeless man walked thru our car and spoiled my whole morning. The train remained stinking even after he left. After about another hour of holding my breath, the train finally got to the Cape Town station. I had no idea my lungs capacity was that great. I might take up swimming as a hobby.

Anyways, I got a little excited that we got off the train… only to find out we have to get on another train. We crossed the platform and got on the train all the way at the front this time. It was the same story, crowded, stank, and took forever to get to Muizenberg. Let me tell you something thought – that train ride was worth it! Muizenberg was so beautiful. As soon as we got off the train we were greeted by the sound of the ocean crashing into rocks on the shore.

We met up with the UCT students and had breakfast at a restaurant on the shore. I had a pizza topped with tomatoes for breakfast. It was huge, but good. Some people ordered a French toast meal and literally got two dry slices of wheat bread. LMAO!!!! When did two slices of bread ever fill anybody up? [Shots fired at Kayana Marks]

After breakfast we headed across the street to a local radio station. Don’t get excited, we didn’t go on air. We just used their big, empty room as a spot for presentations and mini lectures. Naomi, our IES Abroad “mother” spoke to us about… I don’t know lol. But during her speech, some of us students were whispering so she definitely put us in check. I like her; she doesn’t play that!

A group of young adults came in to talk to us about fun stuff like mountain climbing, surfing, shark cage diving, and an Amazing Race. We need a strong team for the amazing race. So far we’ve got Theo, Dontranika, Imani, Liz, Will, and me. Once again, Naomi had to shut us up for trying to create a team while the people were giving their presentation. How rude! I learned my lesson; I sat all the way in the back for the next presentation. I don’t want to go back to America.

The following presentation was the best! It was Hannah and Trevor from 2waytravel.com. Yes, I’m promoting. Trevor is thee sexiest man I’ve ever seen up close. It was like looking at a photo-shopped picture of Brad Pitt. How can one man be so perfect? He must have a major disorder or something; he’s too good-looking to be real. He was about 6”4’ in height, nice muscle mass, his hair was blond and perfectly spiked, his face was unrealistically chiseled, and his voice was soothing! He probably sings well. Next weekend is our Garden Route trip hosted by 2waytravel; I hope he’s going to be there. Hannah was gorgeous too. They should have kids. That’s all I have to say about 2waytravel.

And I think I should end my story here.

July 9,2012 – US Consulate

2012-07-28T00:54:00.002-07:00

By now you should get the drift, I toast my clothes and brush my teeth every morning in that order. Today I didn’t have much to do until around 2pm. Two vehicles came to pick up everyone to take us to the US Consulate in Cape Town. That’s basically a branch of the embassy that takes care of US citizens’ problems while they are overseas.

There were 3 guys and one female talking to us about safety and what the purposes of the consulates are. The first guy was old, the second one was ugly, and the third one was cute! The third guy reminded me of Ryan Reynolds from the movie Green Lantern. He didn’t have much to say though. I do remember his weird laugh, “Ehhhhhhhhhh.” LMAO!

Our driver took us to the supermarket to get some food after we left the consulate office. We went to a popular supermarket in the area called Pick n’ Pay. I got me a chicken samoosa to help satisfy my hunger craves. I finished it before I got to the register. I probably wouldn’t pay for it if I were in America, but people out here will beat you down for their money. So I let the cashier scan the empty bag that the samoosa came in.

While I was checking out my items, I couldn’t help but notice that there was an extension of the store on the other side. They sell clothes too! This is like a mini Wal-Mart. Of course I made my way over there. Hopefully I could find a winter jacket or a thick sweater to shield my heart from this piercing cold that NOBODY warned me about. (-___-) I saw some sweaters that I couldn’t afford so flexed all the muscles in my body and fought the cold air on my way back to the car.

By the way, in all my journal entries, I want you (the reader) to know that it’s been raining since we got here. It never stopped raining. It rains everyday. I always have an umbrella with me. My shoes are always wet. My upper lip stays misty. My eyebrows stay hydrated. I’m always walking in mud. I don’t think I can swim. So just keep it in the back of your mind that all the fun we’ve been having, has been in the rain. I don't like rain.

July 8, 2012 – Peninsula Tour

2012-07-26T13:19:00.001-07:00

We were all supposed to be ready to leave campus today at 8am sharp according to our calendars. I woke up at 7:22am, brushed my teeth, took a shower, toasted my outfit, and then I was ready at about 8:30am. Of course Alicia came knocking at my door asking if I was ready, and I got a phone call from Theo trying to rush me. Pssht!

As expected, the van was parked downstairs waiting for my roommate, Will, and me. After about 10 minutes, we were on our way to a tour of Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula.

This was our first time actually going into the city of Cape Town, where it has a more shopping area, bar going, New York City type feeling. The tour guide sat in the front seat and talked through a microphone hooked up to the bus stereo. He talked half the bus to sleep before we even got into Cape Town. When we finally got there, we saw where the Dutch started building a castle in the 1700s. It would’ve been quite lavish if the English didn’t attack them and take over South Africa. We also saw the exact same spot where Nelson Mandela made his speech after he got out of prison. After a good history lesson, we drove down the coast of South Africa with a view of the frigid Atlantic Ocean.

We saw so many nice houses and beachside condos. I have to buy one of those in the future. Driving from Cape Town to Cape Point, we probably passed about 10 different beaches. We made a bathroom stop about halfway up the mountain. Who would’ve thought a toilet would have such a nice view? It made you want to take a pee even if you didn't have to. The water was so rough, just crashing into the rocks and creating a great sound and image. The only downside about this rest stop is that the rain was falling. I protected my camera with my sleeve and took pictures anyway.

We got back into the van and drove to Boulders National Park in Simon’s Town where we visited the African penguins! On the walk to the penguin area, vendors were selling little arts and crafts related to the penguins and to South Africa. They were beautiful. The penguins weren’t as I expected to be. I thought they’d be large and awkward and kept in a confined area. This particular species was actually the size of an adult chicken and they were roaming freely on the beach. They first arrived on the shore of South Africa in 1982 and started growing their colony. Now, the beach is only reserved for the penguins to use.

After we viewed the penguins and took hundreds of pictures, we began walking back to a restaurant that was located at the entrance of the tourist attraction. Dontranika found a small, round, yellow fruit on the floor under its tree and decided to pick up two for us. I asked one the vendors if the fruit was safe to eat and he approved. We took the fruit into the restaurant, washed them in the restroom and brought them to the table. I didn’t want to take the risk of being the only one to eat the fruit first and die so I gave a half to Theo and convinced him to try it first. It was actually good – a little sour, but good.

Oooh!!! While I was in the bathroom washing my hands and washing that fruit, one of the waitresses in the restaurant came out of a bathroom stall and didn’t wash her hands! LOL! I don’t know what she was doing in there but she should’ve washed her hands before touching people’s food. I’m glad she wasn’t our waitress. I would have probably asked her kindly to cleanse her paws.

Our waitress took our drinks orders and came back shortly with them. Mine was horrible. I ordered pineapple juice and got a tall glass of dry pulp. Does pineapple even have pulp? I felt like I was swallowing a straw hat whole. The food came shortly after. I had a big deep fried fish with fries. It was good. I traded some of my fries for some of Theo’s yellow rice – biggest mistake! That rice had no flavor whatsoever. For dessert they brought out ice cream with chocolate syrup. Why ice cream when it’s like below 0 degrees outside?

Jasmine’s ice cream came with fruit all around it because it was her birthday. We all sang her happy birthday as the waitress placed the bowl in front of her. She’s so sweet. The second best moment was looking out the window at the beautiful view of the ocean as the sun shone over it.

We left the Boulders and headed down the Cape peninsula. On the side of the street we saw a baboon acting a fool! They look just like they are in cartoons – brown fur, pink butt and curved tail. A few kilometers later we saw ostriches on the side of the street eating weeds. So random animals just wander about in Africa like the respected citizens they are!

We finally got to Cape Point, which is a breath taking view of the ocean and the mountains. We took the coolest pictures you can find in the world there. While we were taking in the spectacular view, I saw an animal resembling a deer. “What is that?” I asked the tour guide. He said something like a kudu. It’s supposed to be in the same family as deer, but a different species only found in Africa. As long as that thing doesn’t come close to me I’ll be fine. We began our 1.5-hour hike with no idea of the amount of exercise we were about to encounter.

Along the way was so much beautiful scenery. The rough waters crashed into the mountainside below us. I took a few pictures and videos to capture and remember the experience. This has been the best trip so far.

July 7, 2012 – Sick day

2012-07-26T13:06:00.001-07:00

We had nothing planned for today. I slept until about midday. Took a shower, toasted my clothes and got a call from Tebogo to come down to the Student Center. Dontranika and I got ready and went down there. I wasn’t feeling so well. By the time we got there I was feeling completely sick. I was weak and could barely walk on my own. Tebogo brought me to a medical truck right outside. I laid down on the bed in an effort to ease some of the pain, but the smell of the pillow made me nauseous. What the hell kind of dirty pillow was that?

Some guy who thought he was a doctor came with a stethoscope and tried to figure out what the problem was. As usual, the final decision was to give me some pills. I don’t want pills! I just want to go to sleep until the pain goes away. We got a ride back to my room, where Tebogo made sure I was tucked in and ok. Then everybody else left and went to the mall.

Dontranika, Alicia, and Tebogo checked up on me periodically via text messaging to make sure I wasn’t dead. I appreciated that. They came back from the mall about 5 hours later and planned to go to the barn again. Dontranika and I decided to stay in our rooms instead. About an hour later, I heard someone screaming my name from outside. I opened my window and looked out. Sure enough it was Tebogo checking up on me. That’s my homie!

July 6, 2012 – UWC Campus Tour

2012-07-20T14:22:00.002-07:00

Today I awoke at 8am because Tebogo said he was going to make breakfast. Judging from last night’s chicken, I figured it was worth getting up early. I put on my toasted clothes and headed to his kitchen. This guy was just getting out the shower…no breakfast in sight. He saved himself by offering to buy my roommate and me breakfast at the student center. Our stupid campus tour started at 10am on the coldest day ever. Why was it so cold? They told us that Cape Town doest get as cold as D.C. winters, but they clearly lied. This was some Buffalo, NY type of cold. Anyway, they were showing us places on the tour that we already knew of. My main focus was on this breakfast that Tebogo is going to buy me. I could care less about the tour.

Breakfast was good. I had an egg, tomato, and cheese sammich with a cup of hot tea. Oh and a little donut-like coconut flavored snack. Yummy! That’s where the tour ended for me. I could go back to my room and sleep. But you know that didn’t happen. We went to the computer-networking place to get our computers aligned with the UWC campus system. It's kind of like going to iLab to activate our Howard Internet. I was so happy when we go Internet. The first thing I did was type in Facebook.com and uploaded some photos.

The second best part of the tour was the museum. We learned more about apartheid and the people who made it possible for South Africans to be free from a terrible caste system. We saw documents from the women rights movement and evidence of extreme segregation. It all reminded me of Jim Crowe, the American Civil rights movement, and women’s suffrage. I realized that black people all over the world went through similar struggles.

The rest of the tour was boring (yawns). I went back to my room and slept like a baby. Later, Imani, Liz, and Theo awakened me. We all had the same problem – our Mac books weren’t getting an Internet connection. Damn, damn, damn! We went upstairs and waited for Dr. Toungara to come talk to us about I don’t know what. All I know is that by the end our meeting we ordered pizza and juice. Gosh, the pizza was gross! It was like eating cardboard with rubber toppings. DeeeeeLish! NOT!

The rest of the night failed because it was cold, rainy, and our movies weren’t playing on the television screen. We all went back to our rooms and did our own things.

July 5, 2012 – Langa Tour

2012-07-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

As usual, I woke up and toasted my outfit on the little heating panel. Today we took a tour to the historic Langa Township; area code 7455. It is located about 2 miles outside of our campus. Langa is home to many sports and music icons in South Africa. We all got on a mini bus from our dorms and rode to Langa. Once we arrived at our tour guide’s house, his family welcomed us to their home/restaurant where they served us hot tea and sandwiches. Inside their home were some African drums and other instruments. Theo and I played the drums for some time until our tea was ready.

After tea and snacks, we walked around the neighborhood while our tour guide gave us some important history of the blocks we walked and the buildings we passed. We interacted with the locals everywhere we went. We definitely felt right at home. As we moved to the lesser-developed parts of Langa, we began to see the struggle that a lot of people face with regards to living conditions and quality of life. We entered a cluster of buildings, similar to the projects in America, where it is evident that the people there need some intervention. Regardless of the conditions, the children were fun!

We heard a loud drumming sound coming from inside of an empty room. We then saw a group of preteen girls dancing and singing to the beat. So of course we joined them. The little children were also very friendly. They came over to us, held our hands and took pictures with us. They were so adorable! The teenage boys weren’t too fond of us. They didn’t care about outsiders being in their neighborhood. They barely looked our way.

We got back into the mini bus and drove a few meters down the road. When we got out I couldn’t help but notice all the smoke clouding the air I wished to breathe. “We are going to try some South African delicacy,” the tour guide said. I looked over my shoulder and saw too many dead sheep heads. Ewww! I don’t want to meet my food before I eat it. Anyway, our tour guide cut up the flesh of the sheep head and had us try pieces of it. I thought it was disgusting. I’ve had sheep meat plenty of times before but I don’t like eating the head of any animals.

Back into the mini bus, we drove a few more feet to another part of Langa. There were people selling arts and crafts and accessories. I spent R120 on a necklace, a bracelet, and a keychain. Initially it would’ve cost me R150 but I used my bargaining skills. Any who, we made our way to an art gallery/performance center nearby. There were so many amazing pieces of art in that building. If I had the money I would buy every single piece. But since I’m not balling like that I bought a picture of a tiger and a mirror glass piece designed like the South African flag. Yes, I was happy with my purchases.

Right outside of the art gallery was the administrative square where the passport office used to be during the apartheid era. In the very same spot that we were standing is where thousands of people marched to burn their passports. They were fed up of the system and decided to take a very bold stand. The police’s language of control back then was violence, so they opened fire into the crowed and killed 67 people on the spot.

We went back into the bus and had our snacks. Those sandwiches and little mango juices were great! I’m definitely bringing some back to the states. Any who… we arrived at another monument on the side of a busy street. It was a huge statue with seven human body outlines in it. They represent the seven young men that were killed because they decided to take a stand and speak out for their rights. We sat on the statue while our tour guide educated us about the incident and later on recited a poem that he wrote in the perspective of the youngest of the seven guys.

Down the block was another monument of a Fulbright scholar from the Unites States, Amy Beihl. She was a white study abroad student who a lot of work in the community for a period of four years. One day after dropping off a friend, she was pulled out of her car by four black men, who saw her as a representative of white oppression. They brought her off to the side of the street and stoned her to death. Today, one of the men who participated in her murder is the leader of the Amy Beihl foundation, which is geared toward completing the work that Amy started. Amy’s mother, Barbara, forgave the guys for what they did to her daughter and invited them to become founding members of the Amy Beihl foundation. She has a darn good heart if you ask me.

Our tour was concluded. As we headed back to campus, we reflected upon our tour. We also talked about guys who aren’t real men and women being too strong for their own good. According to Theo, “the strong woman syndrome, if not treated early, can lead to the lonely bitch syndrome.” LOL. When we got back to campus I checked my pockets to make sure that I had everything. The jewelry I bought in Langa was missing! Damn, they were in my snack bag that I threw into the trashcan next to the seven men monument. That’s R120 down the drain. I’m going to get it back some way or the other.

I went back to my dorm to take a nap. As soon as I woke up, I met up with the others and we decided to go to The Barn. I would say it’s similar to the punch out at Howard, only 10 times better. There is a bar, a restaurant, a pool table, some tables for seating and a big dance floor. The best part about it is that it’s right on campus, not too far from our dorms. The legal drinking age here 18, so enough said. Only 2 of us in the group do not drink – Kayana and I. I played a game of pool, danced a bit. A few hours later we went back to our dorms. I was starving so I asked Theo’s roommate, Tebogo, to cook some chicken. Let me tell you, Africans can cook! I sopped up all that gravy with bread and licked all 10 of my fingers. The itis kicked in so I my night wound down from that point. Today was awesome!

July 4th, 2012 - Braai

2012-07-18T23:20:00.002-07:00

I woke up this morning at about 9am and put my cold outfit on the heating panel. I figured that when I go brush my teeth and come back, my clothes would be warm and ready to wear. At 10am, Dontranika and I were out the door. We met up with the other Howard students who live in the buildings next to ours. I could tell from looking at us as a group that we were very excited but also very cold. We all underestimated the weather. Winter in Cape Town is no joke! They say it doesn’t get as cold as the States, but you would have to pay me a million dollars for me to believe that mumbo jumbo.

All eleven of us followed Alicia as she gave us a tour of the campus and got us registered in school. I notice that there is a diverse group of people in Cape Town. Blacks, whites, Indians, Asians and unidentified were in presence. We made our way to the student center, which is the equivalent of Blackburn in my opinion. They had food shops throughout the building, dining, and vendors selling accessories. I couldn’t get anything to cure my mild starvation because I didn’t have any South African money, and none of the vendors accepted debit. So needless to say, I went without food for a long time.

After a few hours of doing serious stuff to get us settled into school, we had a 4^th of July braai(bbq). OMG! I don’t know if South Africans in general are great cooks or they just hired the best catering service for us, but that is the best cookout food I’ve ever had! (Deep breath) Barbeque chicken tender to the bone, barbeque lamb, sausage links, some vegetable pot pie looking stuff with cheese on top, pasta salad, roasted potatoes, strawberry cheesecake, and crème filled puff pastry with dipped in chocolate. (Exhales). You know I had seconds.

My new friend Wes, who is from Zimbabwe, entertained us. He brought his music and his friendly personality. Of course I told him to play some Jamaican music, and that’s when our braai turned into a party. I was teaching the older folks some Jamaican moves, while a couple of students taught the rest the electric slide. I also learned some words from the Afrikaans language. Mynames means my name is and Totsins means goodbye!

After the braai IES Abroad provided us with transportation to go shopping for food. But guess what? Chantal only had US currency! While everybody else shopped for food, the driver took me to the airport to hopefully exchange some money. Vivian was the woman’s name who worked at the exchange bureau. She asked me for my passport. “I left that in my room, can I use my ID”? “No, we need your passport to process anything”. Yea, I don’t like Vivian. I had to ask a random lady to exchange the money for me; she looked like she just got off the plane so she should have a passport. I explained my situation and asked her nicely to exchange the money for me. She said no. L People here are so mean! Anyway, I repeated the process to this lovely guy from Antigua and he said “yes, no problem”. Give it up for the Antiguans!!!

I made it back to the grocery store while everybody was checking out and paying for their goods. But they couldn’t leave me so I took my time. LOL. I bought the usual cornflakes, soymilk, chicken, seasonings, tissue, rice and pasta. All that came up to 271Rands. We drove back to our dorms to unpack our grocery then call it a night. But that didn’t happen. My suitemate and I went across the courtyard to visit two other students, Wilson and Theo. We met their roommates who are also very cool people. We talked and laughed and learned some more African languages. We all then left and went across the courtyard to the other girls’ rooms. We hung out there for the rest of the night.

July 3,2012 - Arrival

2012-07-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

Cape Town, SA – Ahhhh! When our plane landed in Cape Town, I felt a mixture of relief and excitement. I was relieved that this 25-hour journey had finally ended, and I was excited to be in my new residents for the next five months. Even though that airplane food was awesome, I was anxious to be in my new dorm room.

As I walked off the plane a huge gust of cold air blew all my hair to the other side of my face and goose bumps invaded my body. “Crap! It’s winter here”! I thought to myself. I was wearing a jacket, but I had on my summer shorts that I left DC in. I had to fight the cold wind to get to the airport shuttle that stood about 50 yards from the plane. A few minutes later, I arrived at the Cape Town International Airport. I claimed my baggage and headed to exit when a lady stopped me and asked if I was with Howard University’s group. YES!

Just when I thought I was saved from the winter breeze, we waited about five more minutes in the cold for our ride to the University of the Western Cape (UWC). The campus looked scary in the dark. There were no streetlights from the well-guarded front gate to the campus. I felt like I was driving through a horror tunnel with trees swaying on both sides… and then there was light! The campus is beautiful!

Our newly erected dorm is set up like a double in the Howard Plaza Towers, where I have a suitemate and we share a bathroom. The kitchen is outside of the suite and it’s huge. It even has dining tables and a red couch to put your feet up and watch television. Behind the red couch is a sliding glass door that leads to a balcony. Yea, our dorms are fancy. My suitemate, Dontranika, is a Howard student also. We’re cool.

The resident assistant, Alicia hooked us up with a care package a few minutes after we arrived. It was a big basket of everything you will ever need in the kitchen – even a cheese grater! My bed was nicely spread when I got to my room. It had a whole sheet set, two fluffy pillows, a comforter, and a huge blanket. The room also came furnished with a gigantic wardrobe and a fridge. I felt right at home.

Some challenges I noticed on the first day were the electrical outlets and the heating system. The outlets here have three circular plugs instead of our usual two little slots. I couldn’t plug in any of my electronics. So much for bringing my blow dryer, and flat iron, and computer, and iPad, and speakers, and cell phone. LOL. And about the heating system – there is none! There is this flat piece of metal about the size of basketball backboard that plugs in and heats up, but it doesn’t protrude the heat. So literally only the heat panel is hot. The rest of my room is freezing. Good thing they gave us that big comfy blanket.