Easter Weekend: River Rafting in Namibia

Friday morning at 4am we were picked up and we started our Journey to Namibia, which was an 8-hour drive. After getting through customs we arrived at out first campsite where we learned about the trip, boats, and safety. Friday night we had a wonderful traditional meal cooked by the staff at the campsite and began our nights sleeping on the ground outside. When the sun rose on Saturday we woke up, went over safety, packed up our boats – 2 people per boat – and were on our way. Each day we paddled for about 6 hours, stopped for lunch around noon, and continued to paddle to our over night sites, which did not have bathrooms or any facilities. We slept outside under the stars on the grass or sand every night, and all our food was cooked over a fire by our guides. Every morning started with sunrise and we were all in bed by 9:30pm. I fell out of the boat once on a rapid- oops! But it was tons of fun and my boating partner, Jessa, didn’t even realize I fell out haha. It was pretty hot every day – Id say up in the 90s, but I didn’t burn at all YAY! The water varied between flat water, which was more difficult to paddle through and rapids. Our first day we had to fight the wind which was difficult, but day 2 and day 3 we had a nice tail wind which was helpful. On day 3 during our lunch break we got to swim down a set of rapids, which was really fun, but very exhausting.

Our guide joked he would never do this with his wife because it would lead to divorce and I’m not surprised! It requires a lot of teamwork and the back passenger depends on the front for directions and the front depends on the back to actually turn the raft. Communication is key, and luckily Jessa and I handled it very well!

We returned late afternoon on Tuesday- Overall the trip was a blast, our guide was phenomenal, and the food was fantastic… But I’m a city girl through and through J

Spring Break Africa Style

Spring break started on Friday, March 16^th, with us waking up at 3:45am to pack, what we were told was a bus, and to be on the road by 4:30am. The bus ended up being what the group refers to as “the aquarium,” a large truck with floor to ceiling windows – kind of resembles The Ducks you can ride in Boston or Devils Lake, WI. Our tour guides, Jimmy and Johan, have been doing this trip with the Marquette group for 5 years and were very lively, easy going people. Day 1 consisted of an 8-hour drive to Chinsa Beach, when we arrived we had a late lunch on the waterfront and then checked into our Backpackers (a slight upgrade from a hostel but still dorm style bedrooms.) Once we arrived we were split into rooms and some people went to explore the town, and pick up food to BBQ. I ended up having food poisoning – seafood pizza for lunch wasn’t my smartest choice – and I hung out with some other girls who were not feeling too well either. That night the boys BBQed as usual, and then it started raining so we all hung out in the common room and most of us were in bed before 9:30pm.

On March 17^th, St. Patrick’s Day, we left the backpackers around 6:30am and drove two hours to THE TALLEST BRIDGE BUNGEE IN THE WORLD!! Once we were there we were weighed and geared up! To get to the bridge you must walk on this grate walking bridge – SO SCARY, it felt like you could fall right through. On the platform of the bungee jump you could see the Indian Ocean, which was attached to the river we would be jumping over. On the platform they went over safety instructions and announced the order in which we would be jumping, then they started blaring music to get us pumped up! I was jumper 5! From the platform you could watch the monitors and see people jumping/ hanging. When it was my turn they had me sit down and they wrapped this, what appears to be very simple, device around my ankles, and then helped me hop to the ledge. I got a very fast 5-4-3-2-1 count down and was sent on my way. The jump was SO COOL, but I had to remind myself to keep my eyes open as I fell the 71 stories! It was actually pretty peaceful falling/ hanging there, but after a minute of hanging there I was ready to be brought up J Then they send down a guy on a harness to attach to you, get you sitting up straight, and they bring you up. Once my feet were safely on the ground I was ready to go again! Haha. After everyone went we got back on the road since we had a 7hr drive to our next destination. This place was in the middle of nowhere but not even a 5min walk from the beach! We were divided into two dorms, and in my dorm we had some random guy from Germany who quit his job and relationship to travel the world – his goal is to hit all the continents in 2 years, starting with Africa. Pretty cool guy, but a little weird, so one of the boys, Kevin, decided to come share a room with the 3 of us girls who were placed with the guy from Germany. The rest of the group had their own dorm across the way. We then attended a dinner with all the other backpackers – butternut soup, stew, potatoes, and veggies, all home- made YUM. After dinner we migrated to the backpackers bar to listen to the drum circle, which was so cool and turned into a pretty fun evening of learning how to play drums and dancing. Then a few of us walked down to the beach to put our feet in the water – it was FREEZING, and then we went to bed. The next morning we had another group breakfast, packed up, and left.

From there we drove another 8 hours to Coffee Bay, a rural village on the water. Coffee Bay was given its name because hundreds of years ago a ship carrying coffee sunk and all the coffee went into the bay. This backpackers was probably the best out of all of them, and we loved it even more because we got to stay 2 nights, not just arrive and leave within 12 hours like our past two destinations. Our first night in coffee bay we went on a short hike to watch the sunset and then had dinner around the campfire. The next morning, at 7:30am, I had a surfing lesson!! It was so much fun, but only completely got up on the board 2 or 3 times. IT IS MUCH HARDER THAN IT LOOKS! After our surf lesson Charlie, Jessa, and I went for a horseback riding tour on the beach, while the rest of the group went on a hike to a rock formation called “the hole in the wall.” We all spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the small village and napping in hammocks. That evening we had another meal around the campfire and we celebrated one of the staff member’s birthday. Bright and early the next morning we packed- up, ate breakfast, and were on our way to Durban.

Durban is the second largest city in South Africa, predominantly Indian, very dirty, and over crowded. We arrived at the Happy Hippo Backpackers around 8pm, where we met another girl from the house who was on her own spring break trip. After arriving we went out to dinner on the boardwalk, and had amazing Indian food. After dinner we were all so exhausted we just went for a short walk and then went back to the backpackers. The next morning we spent a few hours on the boardwalk, walking around and shopping. At noon we got back on the bus and were off to Johannesburg. We had dinner on the road and arrived in Jo-burg around 10pm. The next morning we woke up very early and left for our tour of Soweto, The Apartheid Museum, Desmond Tutu’s House, Nelson Mandela’s House, and the Peterson Memorial. It was a very long, but very educational day. The Apartheid Museum was done extremely well and I found it to be very interesting. At Nelson Mandela’s House we learned that the Michigan Legislator requested George Bush issue an apology for the CIA’s / America’s involvement in arresting Nelson Mandela, but the president declined their request. In Nelson Mandela’s house there is the framed request from the legislator. After our tours we went grocery shopping and bought stuff to BBQ back at the backpackers. That evening we did a night wine tour and learned how to “properly” taste wine. The wine was good, but I left there knowing relatively the same things I knew going into it. We also ad dessert there, delicious chocolate mouse cake with berries J

Finally it was Friday and we were off to Krueger National Park! We arrived in Kruger in the late afternoon and after we checked in we went on an hour safari tour. We then returned to our bungalows, went out to dinner, and went on a night drive. During our night drive we saw a black mamba, the most poisonous snake in Africa, elephants, rhinos, and an owl. The next morning we went on a 10 hour safari game drive in our “aquarium,” where we saw the big 5 = leopards, lions, rhinos, elephants, hippos. We also saw crocodiles, many species of birds, zebras, giraffes, and springbok. That evening (Saturday) our driver, Jimmy, BBQed for us, which was SO delicious, and then the group spent the night sitting around the fire talking. We woke up early for a quick elephant tour, where we got to ride the elephants. Sadly, it was very touristy and we got to sit on them and go in a circle, but it was still cool to say I did it! Right after we left to drive back to Jo-Burg to go to the airport. Our flight was delayed so we had dinner in the airport and eventually returned to Cape Town around midnight. 

LOST IN TRANSLATION: Random things that have come up

-        I still have no clue what side of the sidewalk is the appropriate side to walk on à some say left, but when I’m on campus I feel like I am being run over either way

-       Using the words black, white, and colored is completely acceptable à it is just like saying someone has blonde or brown hair

-       Personal space or what we would consider “being too friendly” is acceptable, but it is also what makes most of us feel most uncomfortable.

-       Some people will give you the politically correct version of the Apartheid and the politics behind the Townships (this is the case with the majority of people I have met,) but some have very strong negative opinions about how people are lazy and wont move into the government funded housing because they don’t want to pay the small amount of rent – and I believe it is important we hear this side too. This relates to an article we read in one of my social welfare classes called “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” This article discussed students going over seas trying to “fix” 3^rd world countries but really causing more harm than good or providing help for those who don’t need or want it.

-       Jenny, the Place of Hope Manager, made a good point that at the end of the day our goal as social workers should be to be out of a job – meaning a world of peace wouldn’t need social services. Sadly the reality is more and more people are turning to social services every year.

-       The majority of cars here are stick shift so it is not surprising to see stalled cars in the middle of intersections – we have been that car

-       Some people equate race with wealth and our ability to be here makes us seem like rich snobs with American accidents- this has been an issue at some of our sites, people not appreciating us there because they think we are rich white kids trying to change the world

-       Band-Aid = plaster .. A boy in my preschool was bleeding and I had to ask 3 different women before someone understood that the boy was bleeding and needed a “plaster”

-       Traffic Lights = Robots

-       Pancakes = Flap Jacks

-       ICED COFFEE DOES NOT EXIST.. If you ask for it you will get a milkshake, so we have learned to just ask for regular black coffee and bring it home and add ice

-       Turn Signal = Indicator

-       French Fries = chips

-       Chips = Crisps

-       Stroller = Pram

Valentine’s House Dinner and Shark Diving = Best Weekend Ever

On Friday, February 17^th, (exactly 6 months until my 21^st Birthday WHOOT WHOOT,) we went into Camps Bay, which is a beautiful beach, wealthy town. We went to a restaurant called The Bungalow; the whole restaurant is outside on a cliff that looks right at the ocean. All the tables are couches and there is even a pool. I had sushi and tried one of the specialty drinks. We all got dressed up and beforehand took pictures like it was prom, it was very cute. After dinner we went out for ice cream and tried to return home early because we needed to be up at 3:45am to go SHARK DIVING. At 4:15am the diving company picked us up and we drive 2hours to the #1 shark hotspot of the world. We were given breakfast and coffee (finally) and then brought to the boat. We were only 15minutes away from shore when we saw our first shark. We all suited up in wetsuits and 7 of us at a time were able to be in the cage. We saw SIX different great white sharks; they were literally inches away from our faces and one even jumped out of the water. After the dive we returned to shore around 9:30am, had an early breakfast and were driven back home. On the way home we saw baboons crossing the road, apparently it is equivalent to deer crossing the road at home, there are even signs saying “beware of baboons” on most the roads.

“Sharks are friends, not food.”

Valentine’s Day Fundraiser for The Place of Hope

To give you a quick overview of how AMAZING the night was this was my facebook status that I posted right after returning home from the fundraiser:

“Least touristy experience I'll ever get in Africa + The most spiritual understanding I'll ever have + Meeting/ sitting with a chair of the Economic Development committee of Cape Town + Being randomly honored for my service + randomly running the raffle of an event I wasn't even supposed to attend = Best Night in South Africa so far aka The Place of Hope Valentine's Day Fundraiser.”

I returned home from service around 3:30pm and at this point Emily and I hadn’t officially accepted the offer to attend the Fundraiser with Jenny, the director of The Place of Hope. I had a safety and spring break meeting and Emily didn’t want to attend alone. So I decided to go grocery shopping and while out we made the executive decision to go – this meant I had less than 2 hours to find an appropriate outfit, shower, and get ready before Jenny would pick me up! I was literally running around the house like a chicken with their head cut off trying to find something that would be appropriate, and since Jenny didn’t explain what to wear I was a little stressed out. I finally settled on a black and blue skirt I had brought, my housemates black top, a black sweater, and flats. My friend Corinne did my hair in this adorable braided bun. I attended the beginning of the safety meeting where we discussed past incidents, the possibility of a night security guard, and how the camera system works. Basically, the house is as safe as you make it – if you bring people in you risk things being stolen, and when you are out, if you walk with a group and are aware of your surroundings you are more likely to be safe.

I was then picked up and we drove to this sports complex in town- surrounded by baseball fields and located in front of the Mountains, it was beautiful. The event consisted of a traditional dinner, live music, and speeches. I sat at a table with Emily, Jenny, Jenny’s family, and the Economic Development Chair of Cape Town, and his wife. The man who was singing - only love songs of course because this took place on Valentine’s Day - was amazing. The food: 3 types of chicken, potato salad, regular salad, noodle salad, potatoes, rice, and fruit all prepared in the traditional African way. The speeches were amazing- women who used to live in the shelter came and told their stories. Jenny spoke about the importance of the shelter, and even honored Emily and me. And by the end of the night I ended up being the person running the raffle – butchering the South African names to the best of my American ability J

Hearing the stories and the spiritual component used at Place of Hope was extremely eye opening and I can’t even imagine missing this event. 

First Day of Service

On Tuesday, Feb 14th,  I had my first full day of service at The Place of Hope. When I arrived it was explained to me that the woman who runs the shelter, Jenny, had meeting sin town and wouldn’t be in till mid afternoon so I should work in the “crèche” or daycare. I was lead to the daycare where I met the main teacher Veronica, and the other intern, Emily, who is from Germany on her gap year, working at different non- profits within South Africa. She has been at Place of Hope for a month and will be moving on to her non- profit mid- March. Emily and I were put in charge of the younger group of children, 0-3years old. These kids just looked like a bio-hazard, covered in snot, and dried food on their faces. YUCK. I was disappointed because I was told that my internship would not include babysitting but tat is exactly what I was asked to do. Emily and I spent the next 3 hours trying to entertain the younger kids, who were just not having it. While we were with the one group, Veronica was working on a Valentine’s Project with the 4 and5 year olds. These kids seemed excited to see a new face in the classroom, but shortly turned into obnoxious, rude kids, telling me they didn’t have to listen to me. At this day care all the children have a 2.5 hour nap time after lunch, during this time, Emily, another teacher, and I walked around the local town in which Place of Hope is located. This town had many different sized houses, but the town itself is what I imagined most south African towns to look like, more desolate, lots of street vendors, with more obvious signs of poverty one might not see in Observatory or in the more “posh” areas of downtown cape town. After we walked around Emily and I met with the director of the shelter, Jenny. She explained to us that in the future we would not be in the daycare but organizing donations, running classes and programs for the women, and helping with fundraising, and other departments where they have had to let people go because of financial difficulty. During this time I also met woman who for the last 20+ years has been on the committee for the largest bicycle race, which happens in South Africa every March. This year, she is organizing a way to get the women from the shelter involved – the racers need these bags for belongings and something to do with the timing mechanisms they use for the race, so she has found someone to teach the women how to sew and the women will be sewing thousands of these bags. At the end of our meeting we were also invited to the Valentine’s Day Place of Hope Fundraiser, which happened to be that evening, and Emily and I graciously accepted the invitation. By this time it was a little before 3:00pm and my transportation had arrived to pick me up to go get another housemate and return home. 

Everything is starting to come together

Everything has finally started to come together. Most of the house has started working at their service sites (I start Tuesday.) My friends Lauren and Charlie seemed to have he most intense experience so far, they are both working at a school and after their tour the principal just dropped them off in their own classrooms and said "okay, teach whatever!" Unbelievable!!! Lauren said she taught math for 2 hours and Charlie said he tried natural sciences but eventually they just spoke about America! To me that is the coolest and scariest experience ever!
Besides that we have been going to classes for 2 weeks now. I handed in my frist paper, watched some ridiculous movie about Botox and what is happening to women in society and had my first group presentation this morning. For my Leadership in Grassroots Organizations we will have group presentations every friday morning. ugh.
Last night we had our second reflection where we talked about our expectations going into the program - how much would be South Africa how much would be service and how much would be learning compared to how its actually been (it was an art project and we all know my art skills lol.)
Most of the house joined the hiking/ camping club at school and are on a long weekend trip, there are 8 of us home and this weekend the plan is to go this restaurant known for its desserts, check out The Old Biscuit Mill, go watch Kevin (our housemate) in his volleyball tournament, and attend a bbq on Sunday!.. Oh, and homework of course :)

Make sure to check facebook for updated pictures!!!