If
you imagine Charleston then downsize it, add more plants and dirt paths, surround
with huge craggy mountains, then fill with Californians who all have accents, you
have Stellenbosch. The university is huge and beautiful. The town is full of
coffee shops and cafes.
I
live in a residence on campus where a woman comes in to clean the bathroom a
few days a week (I don’t make the rules) and I have had a few interesting
interactions with her. She has a slow gait, like that of a very pregnant woman
and cleans with a tired shuffle. I try to be polite and tell her thank you,
like my mama taught me, but she always gives a sigh of a laugh and says
‘pleasure’ but seems to think I’m quite silly for saying so.
I
made a bunch of iced tea but the only place I had to keep it was an empty screw
top wine bottle. I woke up one morning and was pouring a glass when she came
in. She didn’t react.
…
One
Saturday a few friends and I took a short train trip to a cheetah sanctuary. We
had just gotten off the train and were walking along the platform as the train
started pulling out one of the men like hanging out of the compartment, grabbed
my arm and yelled something but all I heard was ‘whitey’. Later I noticed the dirty print of his hand on my arm.
…
The
International Office took all their students on a trip to Cape Town our first
weekend here. We drove through one of the biggest townships in South Africa, a sea
of shacks that stretches to the horizon, home to 1.5 million people. The homes
are made of whatever people can get their hands on, mostly wood and corrugated
tin. The community appears very dynamic with people selling a variety of goods
and services, like old windows and doorframes and or hair salons.
Our
guide tried to explain some of the complications of the situation. Many of the residents
were displaced into these racially segregated communities during the apartheid.
Tests were used to determine race, including one where a pencil was stuck into
the individuals hair and they were told to lean forward, if the pencil stayed
they were black, if it fell they were white. As part of their reparations the
government is building homes for these people (so far 3 million since the mid
1990’s, but don’t quote me on that). However, some of the people in these
townships have excess income, evidenced by satellite dishes, that could be used
to move but they are waiting for the free home promised to them by the
government.
Electric
poles run through the townships going from the city to city so residents will
illegally tap them which drives up the prices for the people who are using it
legitimately. South Africa has a huge wealth gap, and situations like this only
hurt the shrinking middle class.
The
tour also took us to Clifton Beach where we all came spilling out of the bus
and onto the sand. The beach is so beautiful, surrounded by 12 peaks called the
Apostles and the infamous Table Mountain. Tourists were hiking up and
paragliding down the mountains, sprinkling the sky with colorful dots. The natural
beauty was briefly interrupted by the more than occasional group of grown men
running around in their soggy skivvies and speedos kicking a soccer ball.
…
The stories of pain and loss surrounding HIV/AIDS are unreal. It seems that we, well I
guess I can only speak for myself, have distanced myself from the pain that I
know people are experiencing all over the world, it is too much to feel all the
necessary emotions. I realized, though it seems so callous, that I believed
that the Africans who lost multiple children and family members to AIDS were
somehow less affected by these tragedies then us Westerners would be. That
somehow because these things happened all the time they were less painful. It
can be hard to remember that no matter a person’s circumstance, they are human,
they have feelings and emotions that are legitimate.
…
The
university puts on a street festival called Vensters each year where there are
22 large groups of first years that act out plays. They were mostly in
Afrikaans so we had no idea what was going on but they all included lots of
choreographed dances, which were hilarious to watch.
…
South
Africans are very relaxed. A bunch of students were sitting in the classroom
before the first meeting and the professor, about 70 hunched over with gray
hair, walks in and goes ‘hello, well we have ten minutes, and I want to go have
a smoke, who smokes?” so one kid raises his hand and they both go outside and
have a cigarette together. Despite their casual manner the professors seem
really intelligent and to truly want to get to know their students.
…
In
Stellenbosch it can be easy to forget where you are. The town and university
are predominantly white and is very westernized. The blacks you see are often doing hard labor or
homeless. There is much evidence of the apartheid. There are subtle reminders
of the danger present, homes have electric razor wire on top of barbed wire
fences and spikes on trees or anything that could be climbed on. People are
mugged and worse on the streets at night. Cars often don’t stop at stoplights or signs
because, at night, it is safer not to.
…
Despite being quite Westernized, in South Africa cross walks are called zebra
crossings and streetlights are robots. Band aids are called plaster and zucchinis
are baby marrow. Kale is called rocket and cucumbers are gherkins. You pay extra for decaf coffee and an
iced coffee is a milkshake. At a restaurant you seat yourself and have to ask
for the bill (or you sit there for hours waiting).
…
Tuesdays I go to an elementary school in the near-by township
for a few hours and teach in one of the classes with a few other girls. The
biggest difficulty is that the children pretty much don't speak English. The
teacher can translate but that is somewhat cumbersome. The kids are really
funny and quite smart. One girl in particular is half the size of all the others.
She always seems to end up in the middle of a big group of rowdy boys. It does
not seem to faze her though. Last week the kids were all singing and dancing,
it was great to see. The songs had real rhythm and soul, quite different from
American kids do. They made us and 'head, shoulders, knees, and toes' look
really frigid.
...
I
have only seen a small portion of South Africa but can assure you that it is
unlike anywhere else you will see. The landscape is inspiring, the poverty is
humbling, overall the experience is quite remarkable.
An
art instillation in Stellenbosch often used as a
landmark when giving directions.
One
of many beautiful stretches of beach in Cape Town. The water here is really cold, too
cold for the Great Whites so it’s a good choice for swimming. In the background
are the 12 apostles, whose name is a mystery since there are 17!
Sunset view from my window.
Hiking up Stellenbosch Mountain.
Lots of new friends on the trail.
We
don’t let nosebleeds get us down! (with Laura, my roommate)
A main
mode of transportation in Cape Town is mini buses. Drivers pack people in a then careen around the city. Drivers often have lots of personality, dancing the whole way blasting
South African house music. Another time we took a sharp turn and the front door, luckily with no one
riding shot gun, flew open. One local passenger calmly leaned his body through
the back window and pulled it shut. This is Alessandro crammed backwards into one.
These food shots are from the Old Biscuit Mill Market. An oasis of delicious homemade
food, homegrown produce, wine, beer, desert and anything else you could want to
eat. It is jam packed and full to the brim of people trying to satisfy their
cravings.
Inside
the District Six Museum, the largest site of human
removal/displacement which happened in the 1990’s under apartheid government.
Blakney
and I on the train headed back to Stellenbosch.
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