Internet connections have been spotty ever since I left Jo'burg over 10 days ago. I had a lovely time staying at my uncle's farm, River Dene, for a whole week. Something that has surprised me on this trip, my 6th visit to South Africa, is that I feel somewhat comfortable in the country. Things that once seemed so novel - chocolate smartie candies, melk tarte dessert, the smell in the air, lace curtains, white washed walls, cold toilet seats, tea at all times of the day, 80s music that never goes out of style, having someone else pump the gas, iron gates on all windows - are familiar this time around. Not sure if this is because I'm staying for so long that it feels this way or if I've finally reached a threshold where I kind of know this place.
Nonetheless, South Africa holds a lot of new things in store for me. I begin my work in Viljoenskroon on Oct. 6th, this coming Monday! I don't know much more now than I did 4 weeks ago about what the situation will be, however I have picked up a little information along the way. I will be staying with the Botha family in an area similar to Illinois' cornfields, though they call them mealie farms here. Miriam, the wife in the couple, is a constitutional lawyer and worked on the 1994 SA Constitution and has been an activist within her community. She also helped found Dramatic Need, the organization I will be working with. DN has updated their website with more videos and photos so consider a new look: www.dramaticneed.org
I've been visiting my new baby cousin, Rebecca Lynne, her mother (my 1st cousin) Georgia and my other sweet cousin Robyn in Cape Town. It's just been a brief visit but has given me a chance to also get acquainted with the area before I move here more permanently to teach in January. I visited the outside of the school I plan to work from, St. Paul's Primary, which is in the colorful Malay district known as Bo Kaap. By chance, another distant relative has offered me an furnished flat to live in that's just a 20 minute walk away in the Oranjezicht neighborhood. Quite exciting to finally have some more concrete ideas about where I'll spend my upcoming months! This will most likely be last family-oriented post for a while as my volunteer experiences will soon take over. It has been nice to be re-acquainted with so much family but as I've been away from work for over a month now, I am quite ready to begin teaching and dirtying my hands in paint!
No comments:
Post a Comment