November 7th 2007
Here I am, 8 months into my African Journey. I have ten weeks left before I leave all this behind. My entire time here has been very reflective. My mind is filled with thoughts about justice, power, children's rights, politics, prejudice and God (love). So much has happened to me that it is often even difficult to explain how I feel now, but one thing is certain: I am a changed person.
Not only have I gotten to know more about the world and my place in it, but I have also gotten the amazing ability to see 7 African countries (South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozabique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Namibia). This blog though is intended to say a big huge THANK YOU to all of you who read this and support me both financially and emotionally. I thought I would compile a list of things that YOU(by supporting me) have helped me do here.
1. I was able to buy new black baby dolls for my little girls and cool police cars for my boys. Last week I had all of them close their eyes and put their hands out to recieve their new toy. They were so excited and immediatly began to play with them and continued for 5 hours!! Those cars were all over the playground and on every wall, while the dolls were held and kissed. That night the boys even slept with their cars!
2. Due to the chaos and disorganisation of this place it went unnoticed that one of the 9 year old girls did not have any shoes except for her school uniform ones. For her birthday some volunteers and I bought her a new pair of pink and white sneakers.
3. Some of the older girls were in need of their first bra so we bought them one.
4. There is a room in the oldest house on the property that is used for homework and "fun nights", it has been in need of some new paint and a remodel. Another volunteer fundraised all the money for the paint and supplies. I came up with the colors (avacado green and white) and had the idea for the older children to paint small "murals" on the wall. It has turned out so beautiful. Two volunteers are electritians and so were able to rewire the room for new lights and now the florescent light has been replaced with "gallery spotlights." The other day I was cleaning the bathroom in the same house when all the oldest children gathered in the room just to sing and talk. It was the first time I saw anyone want to be in the room because the atmosphere is so nice now.
5. I was able to buy nappies (when this place had no money) and regularly buy wipes for their little bums (there is never money for wipes... totally lame!)
6. And priceless is the amount of hugs, kisses, prayers and good talks I was able to give and also take!
This week alone has been very very difficult because the new little boy I wrote about before was taken home to live with his uncle today. For reasons I won't go into here, he was considered "unsafe". It makes us all so sad because we know that his uncle didn't want him in the first place because his mother (when she was alive) was considered "bad and shameful" to the family. I worry that he won't be loved and treated right. I hope I am wrong. So please remember to keep him in your prayers. He needs a safe childhood.
In other news look at my pictures. I have some new ones up. Also, I am sad to miss Thanksgiving this year. Some of us Americans are planning a volunteer thanksgiving with the germans. I will especially miss stovetop stuffing this year (hint hint)! For christmas it has been decided that we will take the children to the beach for the day! I am so excited. Christmas in a bathing suit!!
Love,
Melissa
Friday, November 9, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
a new child arrives....
Two sundays ago my Norwegian friend and I walked down our dirt road and crossed over the interesecting road to a large overgrown field. The sun was high in the sky and the mood was right for exploring. All around us was tall brown grass and then we saw a glimmer of pink. And it was gone. And then again the magenta pink rose from the field. The sun caught the dazzeling wings of the most beautiful Cricket or Grasshopper or Dragon Fly I've ever seen. We started to follow it's jumps. While on the blades of grass it's body was brown but once it lifted it's wings to jump the magenta pink popped out! The most beautiful insect I've ever seen. We continued walking on our hill and noticed that far below was a lake so we climped down the hill and came to a peaceful river ravine that lead to a stagnant pond. Not the fishing hole we thought it would be, but still a wonderful place to discover.
On our way back I was greeted by someone informing me that Creche was about to get a new child!! In creche we have 8 children between the ages of 2 and 4. We have been told that no more little children will be accepted. The thought of one more seemed so exciting. I had no idea what a handful this 4 year old would be! He also has a little sister who is 6 months old, but is not in our care yet. Over the last weeks I've pieced together Spomandla's story:
His mother is very sick with diagnosed TB (and probably undiagnosed AIDS). She is dying. They had no home so were living in sugar cane fields and peoples outside toilets (which are only ever a few pieces of wood nailed together with a tin roof, maybe). Over the last year it was Spomandla's job to fetch food from the surounding villages. At three years old he was walking hours alone and somehow collecting food to bring home. His body is visibly scared from the sharp leaves of the sugar cane and even after scrubing his feet in the bath the dirt is still stuck. His little sister was most likely the product of his mothers prostitution or rape. Many women exchange sex for money as their only hope to support the family. We are currently waiting for the test results of the baby. She has TB and most likely is also HIV positive. The whole story breaks my heart. This beautiful boy has endured such hardship and now he acts out violent and strange behavior with lots of choking and biting other people. Just watching him alone is exhausting let alone our other 8 crazy growing kids! Needless to say I am exhausted.
This week I am taking a lot of time to myself. The children have one week of school holiday and half of them are in an all day on-site life skills camp. I am teaching a basic drawing/art class for 6 kids aged 11-17! It's been fun. This has allowed me some time to have no real responsibilty. I realized that for the last 7months I have spent 8 hours or more a day with children (with some great holiday time too!) but, I am tired. It feels so good to just be reading and sleeping and not hearing any crying or screaming or my name said 300 times to wipe their butt or tie their shoes or give them water or the pink cup or the baby or the blanket or "Malezza, Asanda hit me!" The peace and quiet is nice, I just hope and pray that I am up to the task again some Monday!
One of the main thing the children argue about are two beat up broken dolls. One of these coveted dolls has no arms and the head always falls off. We have 5 girls who always want to hold or sleep with these dolls. They always have to share and inevitably we are left with at least 3 kids crying. I don't know why it took me so long to realie that I can fix this problem, but I need your help. I want to buy 5 new dolls. Now that I am in
Trombetta
Or paypal using my dads account for newgrip@juno.com
http://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_send-money
Please pray for strength because being here is a continual struggle. It's still very easy for me to feel lonely and overwhelmed!
Thank you again for all your support, just knowing that someone reads this makes me very happy!
love,
Melissa
Friday, August 31, 2007
this one is for Lizzy
My best friend for the first 8 years of my life. We were both non-germans living a semi-normal german life. Then our families decided to move us to the opposite ends of the world. She went back to New Zealand and I to America. It's been 10 or so years since we've made contact and she left a comment on my blog! I love the internet!
So, I don't know how to contact you back except through this! Please email me at melissatrombetta@yahoo.com
I want to know so much more about you now.
Otherwise, this week one of my little girls broke her arm badly at preschool and she has now been in the hospital for 2 days and had surgery where they had to put 3 pins in her arm to hold it together. It was so sad to see her little body in the big hospital bed. She should be back home tonight if the doctor thinks she is ready.
In other news we are successfully potty training 2 of the children. It's so exciting to see them succeed at this new task!
Gotta go!
love,
melissa
So, I don't know how to contact you back except through this! Please email me at melissatrombetta@yahoo.com
I want to know so much more about you now.
Otherwise, this week one of my little girls broke her arm badly at preschool and she has now been in the hospital for 2 days and had surgery where they had to put 3 pins in her arm to hold it together. It was so sad to see her little body in the big hospital bed. She should be back home tonight if the doctor thinks she is ready.
In other news we are successfully potty training 2 of the children. It's so exciting to see them succeed at this new task!
Gotta go!
love,
melissa
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Spring is here
Life goes on for me now living in South Africa, on a hill, away from everything and everyone I know and love back home. I had begun the countdown till home and now the countdown has started over again. I went from 3 weeks till I see my home to 5months. But it’s okay because this defiantly feels like, and is, the right thing to do.
I realize that I don’t write enough about the actual work I am doing here. That is partly because I don’t want to use the children as a tool to gain support or sympathy. Volunteers have been coming in and out of these children’s lives for so long that I feel like every cute or sad thing that happens gets exploited by all of us who want to have a special story or moment.
On the other hand, I am having great moment’s everyday with the kids here. If I am feeling sad or lonely I need just to step on the playground and instantly I hear the kids calling my name (in their special pronunciation of it), and we start to play or talk and all my problems slip away. But I struggle with the concept of “taking” vs. “giving” to the kids. I don’t want to take hugs and kisses and stories; I want to give them.
There is a very special challenge involved with raising children. I find myself constantly struggling with and learning how to deal with each child and their needs. One of the youngest children (she turned 2 in July) goes into intense tantrums over seemingly nothing and I struggle with ignoring her or giving her hugs and kisses. I find that with all the children if I am more affectionate then they are more responsive to me. The other day I took an older child (age 12) into the quiet counselling room and we sat and listened to soft music and read some bible stories and then we prayed. It was wonderful, because this is a boy who takes medication for his ADHD and can barely sit still, and he had his head on my shoulder and it felt really secure. I realize now that these children get very little (if any at all) alone time with a “mother” figure. It makes me so sad because most of the problems we deal with could be solved if they had the undivided attention of a parent who knew everything about them. This organization tries to provide a home for these amazing kids, but the set up is all wrong for providing their emotional and physical needs. I don’t think in 5 months I’ll be able to fix any of it, but at least I will try to do my best.
Here is a funny story:
The other day I was getting the kids in the bath. We have two volunteers for 8 kids. Our method is to get them naked and on the toilet and then they all go into the bath (which is very small). Sometimes they escape into the bedroom or even outside. So on wednesday it was a particularly crazy day and the same girl who throws the tantrums started screaming from the bedroom. I found her on the top bunk all alone ( I don't know how she got there!). She was naked and had pooped on the mattress and had gotten it all over her feet and legs and hands! I think it scared her so much that she was trembling. While cleaning her up (and getting some poo on me!), the kids in the bath were screaming and splashing and then one of the 4 year olds didn't want to get dressed and out of frusteration threw the cream on the floor and it exploded on all the shoes! I let out one loud "AHHH this is too much" and then all the kids were silent and one of the kids who was brusing her teeth from the sink said, "Meleezza, why are you screaming!" It was so funny to me and then I started laughing and all the kids joined in and we had a nice laugh together and everything was fine!
I got a note from a boy who is 12. He has an almost “sixth sense” about him. I can’t think of anything at the moment but he always seems to know how I’m feeling or what I’m thinking about. The note said,”
“…I just wanted you to know that you are incredible to me, and… I can’t say how much I love you, You are one of the best volunteers I’ve ever had in my life and remember that you have a very special place in my heart. From the oceans and blue waters you are the only one I find. Xxoo.”
How amazing is that? And this is why I find it so difficult to come home right away.
Now that I’ve decided to stay I’ve had to deal with all sorts of VISA and plane ticket problems. It’s been a bit stressful to sort everything out, but I am confident that it will all be okay. I have a couple requests:
Please continue to pray that God directs my plans and purpose here. I feel very overwhelmed and anxious at times.
Love,
Melissa
I realize that I don’t write enough about the actual work I am doing here. That is partly because I don’t want to use the children as a tool to gain support or sympathy. Volunteers have been coming in and out of these children’s lives for so long that I feel like every cute or sad thing that happens gets exploited by all of us who want to have a special story or moment.
On the other hand, I am having great moment’s everyday with the kids here. If I am feeling sad or lonely I need just to step on the playground and instantly I hear the kids calling my name (in their special pronunciation of it), and we start to play or talk and all my problems slip away. But I struggle with the concept of “taking” vs. “giving” to the kids. I don’t want to take hugs and kisses and stories; I want to give them.
There is a very special challenge involved with raising children. I find myself constantly struggling with and learning how to deal with each child and their needs. One of the youngest children (she turned 2 in July) goes into intense tantrums over seemingly nothing and I struggle with ignoring her or giving her hugs and kisses. I find that with all the children if I am more affectionate then they are more responsive to me. The other day I took an older child (age 12) into the quiet counselling room and we sat and listened to soft music and read some bible stories and then we prayed. It was wonderful, because this is a boy who takes medication for his ADHD and can barely sit still, and he had his head on my shoulder and it felt really secure. I realize now that these children get very little (if any at all) alone time with a “mother” figure. It makes me so sad because most of the problems we deal with could be solved if they had the undivided attention of a parent who knew everything about them. This organization tries to provide a home for these amazing kids, but the set up is all wrong for providing their emotional and physical needs. I don’t think in 5 months I’ll be able to fix any of it, but at least I will try to do my best.
Here is a funny story:
The other day I was getting the kids in the bath. We have two volunteers for 8 kids. Our method is to get them naked and on the toilet and then they all go into the bath (which is very small). Sometimes they escape into the bedroom or even outside. So on wednesday it was a particularly crazy day and the same girl who throws the tantrums started screaming from the bedroom. I found her on the top bunk all alone ( I don't know how she got there!). She was naked and had pooped on the mattress and had gotten it all over her feet and legs and hands! I think it scared her so much that she was trembling. While cleaning her up (and getting some poo on me!), the kids in the bath were screaming and splashing and then one of the 4 year olds didn't want to get dressed and out of frusteration threw the cream on the floor and it exploded on all the shoes! I let out one loud "AHHH this is too much" and then all the kids were silent and one of the kids who was brusing her teeth from the sink said, "Meleezza, why are you screaming!" It was so funny to me and then I started laughing and all the kids joined in and we had a nice laugh together and everything was fine!
I got a note from a boy who is 12. He has an almost “sixth sense” about him. I can’t think of anything at the moment but he always seems to know how I’m feeling or what I’m thinking about. The note said,”
“…I just wanted you to know that you are incredible to me, and… I can’t say how much I love you, You are one of the best volunteers I’ve ever had in my life and remember that you have a very special place in my heart. From the oceans and blue waters you are the only one I find. Xxoo.”
How amazing is that? And this is why I find it so difficult to come home right away.
Now that I’ve decided to stay I’ve had to deal with all sorts of VISA and plane ticket problems. It’s been a bit stressful to sort everything out, but I am confident that it will all be okay. I have a couple requests:
Please continue to pray that God directs my plans and purpose here. I feel very overwhelmed and anxious at times.
Love,
Melissa
Friday, August 3, 2007
"the journey" pt 2 Plus VERY important news
From Jo'burg we got on a 22 hour luxury bus ride to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe where we stayed with a man named Earnest and his family. Joyce and I met him here at the childrens home because he does some business of selling african crafts with the director of this place. He is a very kind man and opened his small home to us. Crossing the border into Zimbabwe took a very long time. We waited in many long lines and after hearing stories about the Zim. police I was a bit nervous about having to bribe the police or being questioned. After all we were bringing oil, mealie meal, and soap with us as gifts because they cost too much in Zimbabwe. I felt like we were smuggleing illegal items. But after 2 hours of waiting at 2 am we got through with no problems. We talked to some great people while waiting in the customs line. Again people were very suprised that two white girls were traveling into Zimbabwe. There were black market money changers on the bus when we found our seats. They offer the only affordable exchange rate, so the police turn a blind eye because they use them as well. They were thug looking guys whispering their rates to us. We decided to wait for Earnest's help before we got our money changed.
After sleeping very uncomfortably on the bus we arrived behind a wall at the bus rank. We collected our backpacks and waited for the gate to open. We were told that people behind the wall would be aggressive and try to steal our stuff. But of course, as our luck had it (the whole trip!) we were safe and Earnest and one of his daughers were waiting for us. A friend of his had an old Volvo station wagon with broken upholstery and rusted doors. We fit 9 people into it with our packs! In Africa there are no limitations to how much you can fit into a vehicle. I love it!
We drove through Bulawayo on a Saturday afternoon and it looked like a deserted American town from 1965. All the cars were from the same era and the shop fronts and wide streets seemed surreal to me, not at all the Africa of Zimbabwe I had imagined. Bulawayo was a large industrial town before the current Zimbabwean government messed everything up. We arrived in the township of North Pumela and all squeased out of the car. Earnest's home consists of one bedroom, one toilet, one bathing room (a square grey concrete room with one small window and a drain in the floor. This later became our bedroom with cardboard and some blankets) one sitting room with a DVD player and TV and a kitchen. There was at no point in time when the house had less the ten people in it: five children, one wife (who returned 3 days early from visiting her family 3 hours to the north just to meet Joyce and me!) the 92 year old grandfather, and countless cousins, nephews and neighbors who were around to visit with the white girls! The electricity was out when we arrived, as it is everyday between the morning and nightfall. We only spent about 30 hours with this amazing family but it was a life changing experience. We began to understand the real struggles of living in a country run by a heartless dictator.
-------
I am loving my time so much here. Everyday has beautiful moments in it. Every morning I sit outside in the sun and look over the hills to the cow pastures and huts that surround me and eat my breakfast in the quiet of Africa. The other volunteers are fantastic and I love my housemates. My job this week has been to update the volunteer manual: not an easy job. But I am learning all about jobs that I didn't know existed. Six months has given me just enough time to begin understanding this crazy place.
Here is the big news: I am 95% sure that I am staying another six months. This will give me the opportunity to see SO much more of South African life and give me a chance to learn more from these children. Some people here are even starting to call me "Auntie Melissa" and the Creche kids are like 8 little mysteries that I am just beginning to understand. I am reading a lot about children's development and it is helping me to get a better idea of what these kids need. Plus, by staying I get to have an African HOT Christmas.
I just have to sort out Visa things and Flight things. And to all my friends back home: I miss you, but this is too good to come home yet! Anyone reading this is welcome to visit me though!!!!
You can also send me post:
PO Box 453
Cato Ridge 3680
Kwa Zulu Natal
SOUTH AFRICA
Love,
Melissa
After sleeping very uncomfortably on the bus we arrived behind a wall at the bus rank. We collected our backpacks and waited for the gate to open. We were told that people behind the wall would be aggressive and try to steal our stuff. But of course, as our luck had it (the whole trip!) we were safe and Earnest and one of his daughers were waiting for us. A friend of his had an old Volvo station wagon with broken upholstery and rusted doors. We fit 9 people into it with our packs! In Africa there are no limitations to how much you can fit into a vehicle. I love it!
We drove through Bulawayo on a Saturday afternoon and it looked like a deserted American town from 1965. All the cars were from the same era and the shop fronts and wide streets seemed surreal to me, not at all the Africa of Zimbabwe I had imagined. Bulawayo was a large industrial town before the current Zimbabwean government messed everything up. We arrived in the township of North Pumela and all squeased out of the car. Earnest's home consists of one bedroom, one toilet, one bathing room (a square grey concrete room with one small window and a drain in the floor. This later became our bedroom with cardboard and some blankets) one sitting room with a DVD player and TV and a kitchen. There was at no point in time when the house had less the ten people in it: five children, one wife (who returned 3 days early from visiting her family 3 hours to the north just to meet Joyce and me!) the 92 year old grandfather, and countless cousins, nephews and neighbors who were around to visit with the white girls! The electricity was out when we arrived, as it is everyday between the morning and nightfall. We only spent about 30 hours with this amazing family but it was a life changing experience. We began to understand the real struggles of living in a country run by a heartless dictator.
-------
I am loving my time so much here. Everyday has beautiful moments in it. Every morning I sit outside in the sun and look over the hills to the cow pastures and huts that surround me and eat my breakfast in the quiet of Africa. The other volunteers are fantastic and I love my housemates. My job this week has been to update the volunteer manual: not an easy job. But I am learning all about jobs that I didn't know existed. Six months has given me just enough time to begin understanding this crazy place.
Here is the big news: I am 95% sure that I am staying another six months. This will give me the opportunity to see SO much more of South African life and give me a chance to learn more from these children. Some people here are even starting to call me "Auntie Melissa" and the Creche kids are like 8 little mysteries that I am just beginning to understand. I am reading a lot about children's development and it is helping me to get a better idea of what these kids need. Plus, by staying I get to have an African HOT Christmas.
I just have to sort out Visa things and Flight things. And to all my friends back home: I miss you, but this is too good to come home yet! Anyone reading this is welcome to visit me though!!!!
You can also send me post:
PO Box 453
Cato Ridge 3680
Kwa Zulu Natal
SOUTH AFRICA
Love,
Melissa
Friday, July 20, 2007
The Journey
My Southern African holiday has come to an end and I am happily back with the children.
Words and pictures can't do justice to the incredible experience Joyce and I had. We tasted, smelled, heard, and felt the heart of Africa. The experience will forever be etched in my heart. I didn't know how much 17 days could change a person, or how much joy and sorrow I could feel within a few days, or that I was capable of sitting on a bus for 24 hours!! I don't even know where to start in telling the story. Perhaps I'll just start at the beginning and see where it goes...
Our first destination was the small beach town of Tofo in southern Mozambique. It is situated on the very tip of a coral reef and thus hosts an abundance of brightly colored fish and turquoise waters! Our first stop would be Maputo and from there we thought we could find an easy way to reach our destination only 600km north. We heard about a youth hostel that offered a shuttle service at 5am; we would arrive in 6 hours giving us the day to play in the sea. We waited and waited for the shuttle to come. Finally at half past six we asked the security guard why the shuttle was not coming. He spoke no English but found us a taxi driver to take us to the closest public transport rank in order to find another way to Tofo. We arrived at the hub right as the sun was rising and the hustle and bustle of people selling and trading fruits and vegetables and earrings and toilet paper and bread and cameras and toys had just begun. We found a van heading north and hoped on. Then we waited. And waited. And waited until 9am when the driver decided the van was full enough to go. That's the thing about Africa: transportation is not quick or reliable. The music started pumping through the cheap speakers and we were off to the the sea! Or so we thought. Twelve hours later and five mechanical failures behind us the van finally wouldn't start again. We were still one hour from Tofo and it was dark. Only the driver spoke some English. He offered to call us a taxi to take us down the road to a hostel he knew of. As we were waiting by the road I noticed that our driver was underneath the broken down vehicle with a lit candle trying to fix whatever was wrong. Thank God there was no gas leak!
Without going into too much detail we found our way to the beach the following morning. The hostel owner in the town of Inhambane (where we ended up) was from Petermaritzburg South Africa,the same area we volunteer in! He took us to the beach where we soaked up the sun rays and enjoyed every palm tree and coconut. At this point I had started to get sick with a severe sore throat and fever. I pushed through and enjoyed the day at the beach. Our day ended with a huge feast of crayfish, prawns and calamari steak! Mozambique has the cheapest fish I've ever seen and the hostel owner cooked it all for us!
We had to return to Maputo the following day in order to catch our bus to Johannesburg, our next destination. Again the hostel owner was so helpful and happened to be on his way to Maputo as well. We arrived much quicker and safer than our way of arrival but the driver of this small bus thought it a very good idea to start playing the loudest African dance music at 4am!!! We got no sleep.
Now about Jo'burg. Statistics say it is one of the most unsafe places in the world with your chances of being raped, murdered or robbed very high. We only had about 24 hours. For the evening we stayed at the hostel and met some of the nicest people ever and had great conversation. The following morning we drove to Melville, a hip/trendy area, with some new friends from the night before. We ate cake and enjoyed some shops and that was the extent of our time there. For me it was disappointing that people scare you so much with all this "black-people-will-try-and-kill-you-so-stay-away-from-them" nonsense. Now having been many places as the only white person I see that people are only as scary as you want them to be. Which means to me that flashing a smile and saying hello breaks down all the walls of racial injustice and prejudice. By taking chances and allowing yourself to be the only white person on a combi taxi or hitching a ride like the black Africans do, you realize that fear is what keeps white people from interacting with black people. The media, the government, everyone, wants us to believe that black people are bad. They have succeeded in spreading this propaganda so well that the white people of South Africa now willingly segregate themselves from the black Africans without the law of apartheid to make it mandatory. Now its just a choice. A choice that is still being validated because of the fear we allow ourselves to believe. I really hate it.
----
And that is as far as I'll write for now. In a couple of weeks (hopefully) I will tell the rest of the story.
Things at at the project are going unbelievably well. I am having a hard time realizing that in 6 short weeks I will be back to my previous life. I am not looking forward to it. Somehow through all the chaos and frustration this project has really shaped me in many important ways. I will miss the kids and aunties and gogos so much, and surprisingly the volunteers have also become great friends. I have learned that 6months is not enough time to really experience something new... Its only now that I am feeling at home.
Words and pictures can't do justice to the incredible experience Joyce and I had. We tasted, smelled, heard, and felt the heart of Africa. The experience will forever be etched in my heart. I didn't know how much 17 days could change a person, or how much joy and sorrow I could feel within a few days, or that I was capable of sitting on a bus for 24 hours!! I don't even know where to start in telling the story. Perhaps I'll just start at the beginning and see where it goes...
Our first destination was the small beach town of Tofo in southern Mozambique. It is situated on the very tip of a coral reef and thus hosts an abundance of brightly colored fish and turquoise waters! Our first stop would be Maputo and from there we thought we could find an easy way to reach our destination only 600km north. We heard about a youth hostel that offered a shuttle service at 5am; we would arrive in 6 hours giving us the day to play in the sea. We waited and waited for the shuttle to come. Finally at half past six we asked the security guard why the shuttle was not coming. He spoke no English but found us a taxi driver to take us to the closest public transport rank in order to find another way to Tofo. We arrived at the hub right as the sun was rising and the hustle and bustle of people selling and trading fruits and vegetables and earrings and toilet paper and bread and cameras and toys had just begun. We found a van heading north and hoped on. Then we waited. And waited. And waited until 9am when the driver decided the van was full enough to go. That's the thing about Africa: transportation is not quick or reliable. The music started pumping through the cheap speakers and we were off to the the sea! Or so we thought. Twelve hours later and five mechanical failures behind us the van finally wouldn't start again. We were still one hour from Tofo and it was dark. Only the driver spoke some English. He offered to call us a taxi to take us down the road to a hostel he knew of. As we were waiting by the road I noticed that our driver was underneath the broken down vehicle with a lit candle trying to fix whatever was wrong. Thank God there was no gas leak!
Without going into too much detail we found our way to the beach the following morning. The hostel owner in the town of Inhambane (where we ended up) was from Petermaritzburg South Africa,the same area we volunteer in! He took us to the beach where we soaked up the sun rays and enjoyed every palm tree and coconut. At this point I had started to get sick with a severe sore throat and fever. I pushed through and enjoyed the day at the beach. Our day ended with a huge feast of crayfish, prawns and calamari steak! Mozambique has the cheapest fish I've ever seen and the hostel owner cooked it all for us!
We had to return to Maputo the following day in order to catch our bus to Johannesburg, our next destination. Again the hostel owner was so helpful and happened to be on his way to Maputo as well. We arrived much quicker and safer than our way of arrival but the driver of this small bus thought it a very good idea to start playing the loudest African dance music at 4am!!! We got no sleep.
Now about Jo'burg. Statistics say it is one of the most unsafe places in the world with your chances of being raped, murdered or robbed very high. We only had about 24 hours. For the evening we stayed at the hostel and met some of the nicest people ever and had great conversation. The following morning we drove to Melville, a hip/trendy area, with some new friends from the night before. We ate cake and enjoyed some shops and that was the extent of our time there. For me it was disappointing that people scare you so much with all this "black-people-will-try-and-kill-you-so-stay-away-from-them" nonsense. Now having been many places as the only white person I see that people are only as scary as you want them to be. Which means to me that flashing a smile and saying hello breaks down all the walls of racial injustice and prejudice. By taking chances and allowing yourself to be the only white person on a combi taxi or hitching a ride like the black Africans do, you realize that fear is what keeps white people from interacting with black people. The media, the government, everyone, wants us to believe that black people are bad. They have succeeded in spreading this propaganda so well that the white people of South Africa now willingly segregate themselves from the black Africans without the law of apartheid to make it mandatory. Now its just a choice. A choice that is still being validated because of the fear we allow ourselves to believe. I really hate it.
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And that is as far as I'll write for now. In a couple of weeks (hopefully) I will tell the rest of the story.
Things at at the project are going unbelievably well. I am having a hard time realizing that in 6 short weeks I will be back to my previous life. I am not looking forward to it. Somehow through all the chaos and frustration this project has really shaped me in many important ways. I will miss the kids and aunties and gogos so much, and surprisingly the volunteers have also become great friends. I have learned that 6months is not enough time to really experience something new... Its only now that I am feeling at home.
Friday, May 25, 2007
i#
May 25th
Life is good! Tomorrow Joyce and I leave for our 17 day cross continental trip! You can google our journey destinations; Durban-Maputo(Mozambique)-Johanesburg-Bulawayo(Zimbabwe)-Victoria Falls-Windhoek(Namibia to the orphanage Joyce started with)-Cape Town-Durban!! We will be using Luxery liners, public buses and chicken trucks to get around. We are both very excited and I am ready to get out of the cold weather here in the valleys.
This week South Africa experienced record breaking cold. It snowed 4 hours south of here (in a town we passed through last weekend) and Petermaritzburg was one degree celcius a couple days ago. We dont have any sort of indoor heating so it is just always cold. One night when I brought the kids back from dinner we went into the Creche to find it flooded (the tap was left open) and as we started cleaning the electricity went out. So I had to keep 8 kids happy and out of the water in the pitch dark and cold! Currently in my house the outlet for half the space is blown. So the fridge, burners, and outlets in one corner dont work.
Today Joyce and I ventured into Peitermaritzburg alone. It is the capital of the KwaZulu Natal region about 30 minutes drive from GGA. We started on Church St and went shopping by bartering on the street. We were some of the only white people around. It is a strange feeling to know that white people and black people still dont mix, and all of it is fear based. We were warned twice by white men in cars that it was unsafe to walk around the city. Another shop owner even recommended that we walk on the street away from the allys so as to not get mugged. I find it very interesting that the `black`areas are still the unsafe areas. But it’s confusing to me because you see old women and kids and it’s almost as if every warning we got secretly said „Ist unsafe for you but we dont really care thats it’s unsafe for the black africans.“ This is a concept I want to study more when I get to back to school.
We finally found the taxi rank (which is NOT like NYC!) and asked for the Taxi Buses headed to Cato Ridge. People were very suprised that we wanted to take public transport. Here they fill vans very full and drop you off where ever you need in a specific direction. It’s very convinient and cheap. By the time we made it to our dirt road it was dark and cold and then we ran the last mile home!
It’s hard to explain all the experiences I’m having here, but I currently feel very content. Since my last entry I have travelled to the St Lucia Wetlands park 4 hours north. It is an area that boasts 5 ecosystems in a very small area. Here was our day: first went on a very short hike and happened upon a watering hole where Zebras, and Wildebeast and Impala were hanging out! It was magical! Then we drove 30minutes and arrived at the pristine ocean beach of Cape Vidal. The waters were turquoise and warm. We were the only ones in sight! After swimming and running down small sand dunes we headed to Lake St Lucia and took a boat ride to see Hippos, exotic birds and Crocodiles at sunset! The next day we went on a 12 hour Safari and saw elephant, giraffs, antelope, worthogs, rhino and more zebras!
Holiday in South Africa is simply amazing.
The following weekend we drove 9hours south to Coffee Bay(the same distance from Holland to the south of France!). It is in an area called the Wild Coast where the Xhosa people live in bright turqiouse Rondaveles. The first day I took a 4 hour intense hike led by three local boys who wanted to show us the way. The hike led us through grassy hills and steep cliffs with goats and donkeys, cattle and sheep. We passed through villages and at all times we could see, smell and feel the ocean. Our destination was a place called the hole in the wall. It looked like a site for a pirate ship to be sitting. The hike was more beautiful than I can explain. We ended our day drinking beers and watching the big rugby game with some local old guys in a pub we came across! The second day we went horseback riding up and down the hills and onto the beach. It was so fun to be on a horse again!!
So as you can see I am very much enjoying my time. I would write more about the children but I think it’s a little too personal. This weekend we are doing a creative prayer event with the kids and I look foward to the conversations that come from it.
Thank you fort he support and letters in the mail. Even though I am happy right now I still get lonely and start to miss home.
Life is good! Tomorrow Joyce and I leave for our 17 day cross continental trip! You can google our journey destinations; Durban-Maputo(Mozambique)-Johanesburg-Bulawayo(Zimbabwe)-Victoria Falls-Windhoek(Namibia to the orphanage Joyce started with)-Cape Town-Durban!! We will be using Luxery liners, public buses and chicken trucks to get around. We are both very excited and I am ready to get out of the cold weather here in the valleys.
This week South Africa experienced record breaking cold. It snowed 4 hours south of here (in a town we passed through last weekend) and Petermaritzburg was one degree celcius a couple days ago. We dont have any sort of indoor heating so it is just always cold. One night when I brought the kids back from dinner we went into the Creche to find it flooded (the tap was left open) and as we started cleaning the electricity went out. So I had to keep 8 kids happy and out of the water in the pitch dark and cold! Currently in my house the outlet for half the space is blown. So the fridge, burners, and outlets in one corner dont work.
Today Joyce and I ventured into Peitermaritzburg alone. It is the capital of the KwaZulu Natal region about 30 minutes drive from GGA. We started on Church St and went shopping by bartering on the street. We were some of the only white people around. It is a strange feeling to know that white people and black people still dont mix, and all of it is fear based. We were warned twice by white men in cars that it was unsafe to walk around the city. Another shop owner even recommended that we walk on the street away from the allys so as to not get mugged. I find it very interesting that the `black`areas are still the unsafe areas. But it’s confusing to me because you see old women and kids and it’s almost as if every warning we got secretly said „Ist unsafe for you but we dont really care thats it’s unsafe for the black africans.“ This is a concept I want to study more when I get to back to school.
We finally found the taxi rank (which is NOT like NYC!) and asked for the Taxi Buses headed to Cato Ridge. People were very suprised that we wanted to take public transport. Here they fill vans very full and drop you off where ever you need in a specific direction. It’s very convinient and cheap. By the time we made it to our dirt road it was dark and cold and then we ran the last mile home!
It’s hard to explain all the experiences I’m having here, but I currently feel very content. Since my last entry I have travelled to the St Lucia Wetlands park 4 hours north. It is an area that boasts 5 ecosystems in a very small area. Here was our day: first went on a very short hike and happened upon a watering hole where Zebras, and Wildebeast and Impala were hanging out! It was magical! Then we drove 30minutes and arrived at the pristine ocean beach of Cape Vidal. The waters were turquoise and warm. We were the only ones in sight! After swimming and running down small sand dunes we headed to Lake St Lucia and took a boat ride to see Hippos, exotic birds and Crocodiles at sunset! The next day we went on a 12 hour Safari and saw elephant, giraffs, antelope, worthogs, rhino and more zebras!
Holiday in South Africa is simply amazing.
The following weekend we drove 9hours south to Coffee Bay(the same distance from Holland to the south of France!). It is in an area called the Wild Coast where the Xhosa people live in bright turqiouse Rondaveles. The first day I took a 4 hour intense hike led by three local boys who wanted to show us the way. The hike led us through grassy hills and steep cliffs with goats and donkeys, cattle and sheep. We passed through villages and at all times we could see, smell and feel the ocean. Our destination was a place called the hole in the wall. It looked like a site for a pirate ship to be sitting. The hike was more beautiful than I can explain. We ended our day drinking beers and watching the big rugby game with some local old guys in a pub we came across! The second day we went horseback riding up and down the hills and onto the beach. It was so fun to be on a horse again!!
So as you can see I am very much enjoying my time. I would write more about the children but I think it’s a little too personal. This weekend we are doing a creative prayer event with the kids and I look foward to the conversations that come from it.
Thank you fort he support and letters in the mail. Even though I am happy right now I still get lonely and start to miss home.
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