Odds and Ends

As the title of this post indicates, here are just some thoughts about things happening in my life over here. I have broken it into sections so it is easier to read...

Elections

Below is a not-so-brief synopsis/list of facts/opinions/musings of what I have learned about politics here in South Africa (mostly second hand information from my South African friends). The election is April 22nd.

-Party loyalty is HUGE. The ANC is the leading party and likely winner solely because it is Nelson Mandela’s party that pulled SA out of apartheid in 1994. People feel indebted to this party and therefore obliged to vote for it no matter what. Even though Jacob Zuma has been charged with rape, corruption, money laundering (among other things), and had no formal schooling, people are still ready to vote for him out of loyalty and lack of education about policies and other candidates.

-People continue to vote along racial lines. Even though apartheid was overturned 15 years ago… it was only… 15 years ago. Many people here still identify with their racial group due to the entrenchment of apartheid policies within South African culture. Undoing the damage is going to take more than just time. Ok, so here is an issue for you to ponder: The justice in land redistribution. Background: Since so much land was seized from black South Africans during the apartheid regime and redistributed to white South Africans, some discuss the idea of land redistribution back to black South Africans. This is a tricky question, however, because the whites have owned the land for over 50 years now. The question: How could one justly take that land away from the whites who have lived there for a few generations now? What about the black and colored South Africans living in townships who can’t pull themselves out of poverty? Can there ever be justice in this situation? What do you think? Welcome to my politics class, the land of never-answered never-ending questions and puzzles about liberal democracy.

-Political parties are also very regional. Here in the Eastern Cape, people generally talk about ANC, DA (Democratic Alliance, and note their strangely similar campaign logo to Obama) and COPE ("Congress of the People," a new rising breakaway party from the ANC). In KwaZulu-Natal, people are primarily talking about IFP (Inkatha Freedom Party) and ANC. Joburg and Cape Town will have different stories too. Really the only party that is effectively crossing regional lines is the ANC, which is one of the major reasons why their victory is imminent.

-The new rising generation of voters (i.e. university students) was born into a free South Africa, and they therefore do not have the same loyalty to the ANC as the older generations do (and they also have education, which most of the country lacks). This new generation is starting to take initiative in voting not by party, but by policies. It is a really exciting for many of my south African student friends who are attempting to make an informed choice, even if ANC victory seems inevitable. Just last night there was a formal debate between representatives from each major party. I didn’t attend (I wanted to let the voters get seats) but I heard it was a very interesting evening of debate and questions. Also, recently the youth leader of the ANC was scheduled to come visit Rhodes. That caused quite a stir because of the many strong feelings about Jacob Zuma and the ANC. It is sooo interesting to be here at the univeristy in such an exciting time for the students and for the country!

Reading Camp

This past weekend I volunteered at a 24-hour reading camp for about 20 10-year-old kids from the township. Run (kind of) through the Anglican monastery here in Grahamstown, this program helps with remedial reading education in weekend and week-long camps throughout the year. It was an amazing, exhausting, beautiful, challenging, and rewarding experience.

The kids who came are all learning English as their second language. Their first language is Xhosa (the main indigenous language here in Eastern Cape, pronounced with a click in the beginning). The children were all very bright, SO well behaved, and so excited to learn! This camp provided them with extra attention to give them a boost with their confidence and with their reading skills. Saturday morning consisted of 6 different stations to work on phonics, writing, reading comprehension, etc. Lindsay (from BC) and I were in charge of the reading comprehension station, where we read a story with them a few times and had a simple discussion about plot, characters, setting, etc.

This was just as much READING camp as it was CAMP! On Friday and Saturday afternoon, the kids got to do fun activities like hiking, campfire with marshmallows, games, songs, stories, arts and crafts, abseiling, etc. It was so fun to watch them experience the excitement of each new activity and join them in that exciting activity! Sorry I don’t have pictures – but Lindsay took a lot, so our experience was well-documented. Remind me to show them to you when I see you next :)

CAMP CAMP CAMP!

Speaking of CAMP, a few of you have been asking if I will be back this summer. The answer is YES! I will be working at Deer Run again this summer for the second 3/4 of the summer, starting second session. Yay! This means that:
a) I get to have another summer at one of my favorite places in the world with some of my favorite people... and
b) Since I am starting work at camp later, I get to stay for the the first few days of the Grahamstown Arts Festival, the biggest arts festival in the whole of AFRICA! That's right, in this tiny little town out of all places in South Africa! I am stooooooked to see how it transforms to accomodate thousands of extras for about two weeks.

Coming Up in the near future:

-a Potjie on Friday (this big cookout thing that I actually don’t know much about, I will tell you more later when I am more informed. Apparently we eat stew… outside…)

-a hiking trip on Saturday and Sunday (yay!!!)

-three tests next week – Anthropology, Economics, then Politics. Should be a fun week.

-BC course registration (for senior year?!)

-APRIL VACATION!! Much needs to happen before I will be frolicking for two weeks with three other Americans on the infamous GARDEN ROUTE and then the Mother City, CAPE TOWN. I can’t waaaaaaaaait until April 4th!!


Sorry for a wordy blog post. Thanks to my faithful readers for getting to the end :)
Much love to all! Please let me know how you are doing and stay in touch!

--Lindapants

Lessons Learned

I have learned a lot here in Grahamstown in the last five weeks. I obviously can't really record ALL of the lessons, but here is a short list of a a few I have (somewhat painfully) re-learned in the past week:

1. The sun will still burn the unprotected skin on a cloudy day. Especially the South African sun...in the summer...by the water...not wearing sunscreen (I am too embarassed to even post a picture. ow.)

2. When there is a fire drill or alarm, you are required here (at Rhodes) to take a blanket outside with you. (Sensible, right? Somehow I never learned this advice back at BC despite the 5+ fire alarms in the middle of winter in 90 last year)

3. South Africa has a very very high rate of HIV infection. I went to the hospital for the first time on Friday. I joined the medical team for rounds in the hospice ward. I would estimate that 75% of the patients (in hospice) have opportunistic infections due to AIDS. I think about 50% of the patients we saw had TB. UNAIDS estimated that in 2007, six million people were infected with HIV in South Africa.

4. I actually did seem to lose my school work ethic somewhere over the Atlantic (well, come to think of it, I lost it back in December. Before Christmas). I have found it quite difficult to sit down and do work here. As soon as I try... the words "I'm in South Africa" start creeping into my mind and make me find something better to do. Like... having rooibos tea and rusks with res friends. Or chilling on the roof. Or posting on my blog. Or going to the beach. I think you get the idea...

5. I am not always ... "proud to be American." I was not surprised to see that Coca-Cola products, KFC, and MTV are longstanding incorporations into the daily life of South Africa (and much of the rest of the world, for that matter). Some food for thought: As Peter Raven, from my Anthropology textbook, says, "if everyone lived like Americans, you'd need three planet earths... to sustain that level of consumption." And, "on average, one North American consumes hundreds of times the resources of a single African."

On that note, I will be turning off my light and getting some rest before the start of another crazy week. Much love to all at home and abroad. Miss you!

Love,
Linda

Giraffe, Politics, and a Roadtrip

Hello everyone!!

So life lately has been both really busy and really fun...here is a summary.

Last weekend on Saturday, Geoff (our BC program coordinator) took us in his truck to two nearby game reserves. We left early in the morning so we could see more animals – they all hide and sleep during the hottest part of the day. It was a really fun and adventurous day, complete with a picnic at a bird-watching hut, prickly pears, and a little bit of off-roading to see the following: giraffe, ostrich, zebra, baboon, springbok, kudu, antelope, tortoise, and MASSIVE earthworms (i.e. 3 feet long). It was a really fun trip :) Here are a few of MANY pics:

We saw these signs... but not all of the animals on the sign. Maybe next time!

To my fellow Deer Runners: every now and then, did you ever wonder what a springbok looks like? I was never in that cabin, but here are 3 grazing springbok!

Ostrich!
Allegra, Lindsay, and Me - 3 out of 4 of the BC girls here at Rhodes. This is us in the bird-watching hut.

GIRAFFE IN THE ROAD (obviously.)
A herd of (what I THINK is) some kind of reedbuck, but it also could be antelope. As soon as we pulled up, they all started STARING at us. We silently took as many pictures as possible but they quickly ran away.
And last but not least, ZEBRA!

Last week I took my first Rhodes test - in politics! The test was quite HECTIC, but I love that class because it is really challenging me to critically think about social issues & ideals and government. Not easy, but REALLY cool :)

This past weekend (yesterday and today) I went to Jeffrey’s Bay with two other BC girls (Sheneita and Lindsay) and two friends from my res (Sarita and Katie). Jeffrey’s Bay is a beach/surf town about 3 hours away from Grahamstown, so we rented a car and took a road trip. The beach was beautiful, and the town really quiet and relaxing (almost ghost-town quiet, we couldn’t figure out where everyone was)! We stayed in a really cute homey backpackers hostel (with a LOT of character) in the center of town just a 5-minute walk from the beach. It was a fantastic group of girls, and we had a lot of fun travelling together! Overall, the trip was just stunning… even though it didn’t all go exactly as planned. These trips never do… Here are a few pics of J-bay:

Sheneita from BC (left) and Sarita from Joburg in our awesome hostel.
Katie, from Port Elizabeth - our lovely reliable safe driver!Sheneita and Lindsay, on the beautiful J-bay beach.
We woke up to see the sunrise this morning. And... nobody complained! Impressive. Although it was cloudy, the sky was beautiful and the beach was so peaceful! We also saw lots of dolphins playing in the waves! Stunning.

Well, that's it for today. Please let me know how you all are doing (How is/was spring break?? How is COSMOS? How are classes/How is school?? Do you know your summer plans? How is Europe/Asia/Austrailia/South America/North America/Africa??)!!!!

Love,
Lindapants

Has it really been almost 3 weeks?

In some ways I feel like I just got here... but I also feel like I have been here forever. Time always seems to pass that way...

DISCLAIMER: This is a long entry, so I will break this post up into sections to make it easier. If you are pressed for time, here is a short summary: I am settling in, and it is really great to finally have some kind of routine! I am making friends, loving classes, and getting involved!

Now for the longer version…

LIVING AT RHODES

I LOVE my res! I have met so many wonderful and lovely new friends! We had a formal welcome dinner Wednesday night with the 2 other girls’ residences with whom we share our dining hall. It was lovely! Dining hall food in general has taken a little bit of getting used to (I am now vegetarian!) but mostly because of the strict mealtimes. You are required to eat in your specific dining hall, and only at specific times: Breakfast 7-8, Lunch 12-2, Dinner 5-6:30. I am slowly getting used to it, but I definitely have some snacks in my room to help with late-night hunger after such an early dinner. Now for a few pictures of life in my res...

My friend Joy and me on the roof in front of a beautiful double rainbow!

Some girls in front of my res before the formal dinner on Wednesday! Note the Dingemans sign at the top of the picture – this res has definitely been around since the 1970s.


Another group of lovely ladies before the formal dinner!


CLASSES

My routine here is much different than back at BC. First-year students usually take four subjects, and most first-year classes meet five times per week, including four 45-minute lectures and one 45-minute tutorial (discussion section). So I am in class for the same amount of time as a normal course load back at BC. (…Which is actually way less than what I am used to, since, as a nurse, I have many more hours than a normal course load). This system makes for a confusing schedule, because classes meet at different times and in different places every day. I am slowly getting used to it, and finally settling into a routine. Classes are FASCINATING and I love them so far! I am still taking politics, economics, anthropology, and ethnomusicology. I could talk for a while about each… but the most FUN is the weekly ethnomusicology music lesson! We are currently learning a rain dance (simultaneously including drums, song, and of course choreography) that originates in Zimbabwe. SO COOL!

EXTRA-CURRICULAR

My volunteer placement(s) is still TBD, but will most probably be the HIV/AIDS testing/treatment center (the Raphael Centre) and possibly the local hospital. I am really looking forward to getting involved in these organizations. Like many universities, Rhodes is really a bubble and is far removed from the reality that Grahamstown is for most of the inhabitants. I am (and have been) really ready to get outside this “bubble” and get to know more of the community. In terms of other involvement, I officially joined the gym/spinning and the mountain club (RUMC). RUMC takes hiking and climbing trips every weekend and also opens the climbing wall twice a week. Basically it is amazing. Why don’t we have a mountain/hiking/outdoors club at BC??

TRAVEL PLANS

I am making travel plans to see more of South Africa than Grahamstown (it is a wonderful little place, but there is much more to see in this amazing country)!! First on the agenda is a trip to a local game reserve on Saturday (I think to see elephants and maybe giraffes!!!) Next weekend, I plan on going to Jeffrey’s Bay, a beach town not too far from here known for its surfing and sand dunes. You can even go sand boarding on the sand dunes (like snowboarding, just on SAND!)!! I will be traveling with the other BC girls here as well as other South African friends! Those who have been to SA, any specific destination recommendations?

CHURCH

Church hopping has engulfed my last two Sundays here. Some say there are enough churches in this small town to go to a different one every Sunday of the year, and many of those churches are within walking distance of campus. I am probably going to start attending the Anglican Church regularly but stay involved with the Baptist student fellowship. I will play things by ear! (If you recall, in the last pictures I posted I pointed out the tall Cathedral in the center of town – this is the beautiful Anglican Church, where I will be attending!!)


CONGRATS for reading this whole thing !!
Please everyone keep me updated about your lives! I love hearing from you, and I do check my email regularly :)

Love,
Lindapants

some pictures!

Hello again (I always seem to post twice in one day)...

Even though I have been bad about taking them, here are some pictures of Grahamstown! I haven't taken many more than this.

This (above) is a view of Grahamstown from the top of a hill on the outskirts. If you look closely in the right hand side of the picture, you can see a cathedral. This is the center of town - the Anglican Church. Just opposite the cathedral is the clock tower (off white, square) - that is the center of Rhodes. We are very close to town!


This is also Grahamstown. This is a photo of the township, on the outskirt section of town. Townships were created during Apartheid as places for colored and black people to live. Even though Apartheid was abolished 14 years ago, many of these communities have not been rehabilitated at all. Unemployment is at a HIGH percentage in this part of town.


This is one more final view of Grahamstown. This photo is taken from the ROOF of my res! The roof entrance is right near my room and I intend to spend a lot of time there :)

That is all for now - sorry there aren't more. I promise I will take pictures with the people I have met and other more interesting things like that!

--Lindapants

lingo & observations

This unorganized list that may be of use to you if you decide one day to visit South Africa. If not, I hope you find some of these observations and differences interesting :)

LINGO (some is South African, some is Rhodes)
-tomato sauce = ketchup

-dawny = a first period class (at 7:45am)

-jersey = sweater/jacket/cardigan

-hectic = anything that isn’t normal, easy, or status-quo (I generally hear the word in almost every single conversation I have with a South African student: “that lecture was quite hectic” or “She is a very hectic person, hey?” or “I hectically ran to the grocery store through the rain”)

-queue = line (i.e. at a store)

-marks = grades

-hash key = pound key (on a phone)

-SMS = text message

-surname = last name

-18/2/09 = February 18, 2009 = 2/18/09 (that is taking some getting used to…)


OBSERVATIONS
-Everyone drives on the wrong (left) side of the road here. Therefore, when crossing the street, instead of looking LEFT first, it is in one’s best interest to look to the RIGHT first to avoid being run over by a car (and they don’t stop here – I don’t think there is a law to “yield to pedestrians” like we take advantage of in the states).

-Unlike the crazy “hectic” northeast, everyone walks rather slowly here. One might even call it “meandering.” As many of you know, this is quite an adjustment for me as I am a speedwalker back home (and still sometimes unsuccessfully attempt to be one here)

-Rooibos tea is as common as normal tea and coffee here, and is the most amazing herbal tea EVER. It is packed with antioxidants and is really good for you! Rooibos, in Afrikaans, means “red bush” and is grown here in South Africa. I generally have 2-3 cups a day, or even more if there is the opportunity (it is THAT GOOD).

-Another note about hot drinks: coffee is always instant (even though I don’t drink it). I also found that throughout Burkina Faso last summer.

-Unfortunately, it seems that mayonnaise shows up more frequently in food/recipes than I might otherwise prefer… (mayonnaise isn’t really my favorite condiment, in fact I generally avoid it at all costs)

-The fruit is much smaller here. Like many other agricultural countries, South Africa ships its biggest and best produce to Europe and the US (next time you buy produce, check the sticker. You may be surprised at the number of miles it has traveled before actually consumed. I think that the bananas in the BC dining halls actually come from South Africa. Can anyone confirm that??)


Much love to all!
Love,
Linda

p.s it is 100 degrees here today.

keeping in touch

Hello again,

I just wanted to let you all know that internet here is a little bit different than at home. We have a limited bandwidth, and every two weeks if we use too much then we are cut off until the next cycle starts. Things like videochatting, facebook, and downloading anything use up the quota quickly.

The BEST way to keep in touch with me is through email. I have set up gmail to forward to my Rhodes email (to use less quota) and I check it frequently! I am also on gchat/aim somewhat frequently. I will be checking facebook and other blogs (and blog comments) far less (perhaps once a week or so).

Skype will unfortunately not work on my computer on this network. I am still looking into an internet café in town to get some skype time every few weeks. If you want to set up a skype date in the next few weeks, PLEASE email me and I will let you know when I plan to go camp out in the café.

Cheers!
-Linda