Ms. Specht's Africa Trip

The impending journey home

2008-08-07T15:21:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 7th of August while in Cape Town!

It is just about midnight as I sit here writing this, which will most likely be my last blog posting from Cape Town. I have a shuttle arriving tomorrow to pick me up for the airport at 7:30am…and after that I have one long journey covering many hours and many miles.

I thought I would share my travel plans with you in order to make you properly sympathetic:

Friday, 7:30am South Africa (12:30am Thursday night/Friday morning in Chicago) – leave hostel for Cape Town airport
Friday, 9:50am South Africa (2:50am Friday Chicago) – depart Cape Town for Joburg
Friday, 12:15-6:40 South Africa (5:15-11:40am Chicago) LAYOVER in Joburg (boo, long time)
Friday, 6:40pm South Africa (11:40am Friday Chicago) – depart Joburg for Dakar, Senegal
Saturday, 4:30am South Africa (9:30 pm Friday Chicago) – land in Dakar
Saturday, 5:30am South Africa (10:30pm Chicago) – leave Dakar for Atlanta
Saturday, 2:05om South Africa (7:05am Chicago) – land in Atlanta
Saturday, 3:55pm South Africa (8:55am Chicago) – leave Chicago
Saturday, 6:00pm South Africa (11:00am Chicago) – land in Chicago
Get bags and find a place to either: A) fall asleep B) Eat Mexican food C) Enjoy the warmth of summer or D) all of the above

All said and done, when I leave for the airport in seven and a half hours I am looking at over a day and a half before I get to my destination. I am hoping the puking lady isn’t next to me on the return flight.

Talk to all you Americans soon.

My Accent

2008-08-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 7th of August while in Cape Town!

One thing that I am excited about upon returning to the U.S. is people being able to understand what I am saying. As a Minnesotan I have been told that I have an accent many times during my travels throughout the United States, but South Africa is a little different. Here is a transcript of a typical conversation I’ve had while in Africa:

Dana: Excuse me, do you have a toilet?
Waiter: Hum, a toilet?
Dana: Yes, a toilet.
Waiter: Ohhh, you mean a toilet! Yes, we do…

Ok, I know this sounds silly, but it has happened numerous times. This is just an example, so many times during the last weeks people have had trouble understanding my think American accent.

There are two interesting facts:

First: the way that they said “toilet” was not that different than the way I said it
Second: they watch a great deal of American TV, so it is hard to believe they didn’t understand what I was saying

My Travel Buddies

2008-08-07T08:10:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 7th of August while in Cape Town!

Steven let me know about his disappointment concerning me blog. He believes that my readers need to know more about my travel companions, specifically about him. I thought I would let you know a little about Steven and Jill.

Steven, a Pennsylvania native, is currently a social studies teacher. He has plans to move to New York City upon returning to the U.S. next week in preparation for his new job with New York City Schools. He enjoys driving on the left side of the road and loves Toffer cookies. Jill, also from Pennsylvania, is currently a graduate student in the history department at Michigan State University. She is concentrating her studies on Zulu nationalism, primarily on women. She has traveled through South Africa several times during the last five years. Jill enjoys sleeping and is able to do it anytime and anywhere.

Table Mountain

2008-08-07T08:08:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 7th of August while in Cape Town!

Today we went to the top of Table Mountain, which was the last thing on my list to do before leaving Cape Town. We were concerned that we might not get to go to the top, since it is so weather dependent and winter in Cape Town is known to be unpredictable. In fact, the cable cars just started running again on Monday after being closed for the winter.

Our incredible weather luck continued for another day! We were able to take the cable car up and down the mountain. The cable cars are huge, holding 65 people at once or a total of 900 people per hour. The floor of the car rotates while moving up and down to provide riders with different perspectives. The cables are also 1200m long, weighing 18 tons. However, the counterweight system allowing the cableway to remain balanced weigh 134 tons each. The view of the city from the top of Table Mountain is unbelievably beautiful! You can see Robben Island and the harbor as well. Table Mountain its self is thought to by some people to be one of the oldest mountains in the world, over 600 million years. It is at least 6 times older than the Himalayas and 5 times older than the Rockies. The giant granite and sandstone mass that became Table Mountain was formed under the ocean’s surface and then carved by glaciers. The mountain is often cloaked by white, drifty clouds referred to as the Tablecloth. There are many myths surrounding the Tablecloth, the most famous is that a pirate named Jan van Hunks met the devil on the mountain and in attempts to save his soul he challenged the devil to a pipe smoking contest-where they continue to smoke today. The Tablecloth is actually the result of a meteorological phenomenon that causes the clouds to tumble down the side of the mountain throughout the day.

Long Street

2008-08-07T08:07:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 7th of August while in Cape Town!

Cape Town is known for having great places to eat! Many of the restaurants, bars and nightclubs in Cape Town are located around Long Street. Our first day here we stumbled, very hungry, into a place called the Clay Oven. The Clay Oven is a pizza place that was advertising 29R nahcos, which turned out to have fantastic homemade salsa and guac on them.

We also went to a place called Royale Eatery the second night, which was supposed to have the best ostrich burger (called the Big Bird), but they were all out-so I had a Hawaiian burger instead (beef with pineapple and some yummy sauce on it). It was the first beef hamburger I’ve had in, well, I cannot remember how many years and if they taste as good at home I am considering eating them more often.

Tonight we are headed out to Long Street again, although I am not sure where we are going to end up eating. We are meeting this kid named Justin that we met on the top of Table Mountain (he is from California and traveling by himself for a few more weeks). It is my last night in South Africa and I am I am pretty much packed up so I should be able to relax and have a good time tonight.

Conversation in Lesotho: What do you eat?

2008-08-06T15:04:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

I just remembered a conversation I had with a young woman in Lesotho. She asked how my village was different from her’s. I told her that there were a lot more people in my village, as many people as live in Lesotho all in one city. Then, I told her that the buildings were many stories high and there were not animals walking around the streets. She looked confused and then asked how there can be so many people and nothing to eat. I tried to explain that food was bought in stores, but overall she remained confused at why we would live so close together without animals and crops around us to eat. As a child of Lesotho, she is much more used to being a part of the meal preparation process-from animal in the backyard to dinner on the plate.

I guess that she had a good point.

Dinner in Bo-Kaap at Biesmiellah

2008-08-06T15:02:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

For dinner today we went to the Bo-Kaap district. This area is the home to the famously bright colored houses on the hill. It is typically known to be the Muslim area of town. We had a fantastic meal at Biesmiellah restaurant! I recommend the butter chicken to anybody visiting the area. After we eat we walked to the Rose Corner Café to get a candy bar and call for a cab. The market had a cabinet covered with money from around the world. It was really neat to look at all the different currencies, some of which were quite old. We offered a US dollar, but they said their customers would not be in favor of it being there.

Thoughts on Leaving

2008-08-06T15:00:00.003-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

I cannot believe that I have such a short time left in South Africa! I have had such an unbelievable experience and I cannot believe that it is almost over. It seemed like forever since I have been in the US, but I know that it has only been 7 weeks. Time is strange sometimes, huh, the days are slow but the weeks fly by.

I am excited to see my parents, I am going to try to get to Minneapolis before school starts up. I hope to see my grandparents, too. I also am excited to see Eric, who moved all my belonging from Columbus to Chicago without me while I was here.

I don't think that I will be able to truly express all that this trip has given me until I have more time to process it. I do know that going home will provide a bigger culture shock than other trips I've been on and I am nervous about the adjustment period....but I am a little excited to be able to walk around (skate around) by myself!

Thoughts on Leaving

2008-08-06T15:00:00.002-07:00

Weather

2008-08-06T14:59:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

We have been so lucky. Everybody in South Africa says that Cape Town has the most unpredictable weather in South Africa and, during winter, you can usually expect rain. Today was the first day I’ve worn a sleeveless shirt since I can remember-possibly since I arrived in South Africa.

It was sunny and beautiful! We are hoping for equally as nice weather tomorrow, since we are going to try to go to Table Mountain and the cable cars only run during nice weather.

Robben Island

2008-08-06T14:57:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

Today we went to Robben Island, the location of the maximum security prison was Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were held.

Prior to being used as a prison facility starting in the 1960’s, the island was used as a leper colony for Cape area lepers. Over 1500 people died of leprosy on the island, although only 300 burial markers remain. When building the prison the graves were ignored or knocked over, the prison sitting on top of the majority of where the cemetery existed at one time.

On the island we also saw the limestone quarry where Nelson Mandela and others were forced to do hard labor, crushing the stones that were used to make the roads on the island. After their release it was discovered that the in the quarry prisoners were often able to communicate more easily than other places about political issues, making the quarry the location of much of the ANC movements leadership discussions in the 70’s and 80’s. Prison guards watched the men working from above and their conversations could not be heard over the sound of the rocks being smacked. Unfortunately, many of the men (including Mandela) who worked in the limestone quarry currently experience eye problems after experiencing the sun hitting the glaringly white rocks all day. The crushed rock powder was also damaging to the men’s lungs.

It should also be noted that prison guards were frequently rotated and were on duty at the Robben Island prison for 6 months to 2 years. They were not allowed to work on the island longer due to the fear that the political prisoners might be able to alter their thinking.

Part of the tour also took us inside of the prison and to the cell where Nelson Mandela spent over 18 years of his life. The 2 meter by 2 meter square cell was shockingly small. For many years he slept on a mat on the ground of the cell, until her received a bed in 1974. It should also be noted that all of the tour guides at the prison were former prisoners; our guide was held at Robben Island as a political prisoner sentenced due to sabotage charges. He discussed the stress on education that the older prisoners placed on the younger prisoners and explained that, since he was only 19 when he arrived on the island, he continued his education while in prison.

The island also provided us an incredible view of Table Mountain!

Cape Town Morning

2008-08-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 6th of August while in Cape Town!

This morning I woke up very early again, I guess that my schedule here is now firmly established and I have become a morning person. I was antsy to get started for the day-but the fact that nothing was open yet and my co-travelers were still sleeping made me stay in bed reading a while.

Then, Steven and I walk to Green Market Square for the street market, which turned out to be fantastic. The square is located between several old, English styled buildings on a cobbled surface.

I ended up finding a few more treasures for my family and friends at home, as well as a beautiful table cloth that I am going to make into a blanket. It has the most amazing colors in it and will look lovely with me in Chicago.

The Cape of Good Hope

2008-08-05T14:19:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 5th of August while in Cape Town!

Today we drove down to the Cape of Good Hope, the southern most point of the Cape peninsula (but not of Africa, that is at Cape Agulhas National Park to the east of Cape Point). It popularly perceived to be the place where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet, although we now know that this geographically also occurs at Cape Agulhas National Park.

The cliffs above the point are over 200 meters high, providing a spectacular view of the vibrantly blue waters below. There was also a sign indicating how far the Cape of Good Hope lighthouse is from different points around the world. It was incredible to see that New York City is over 12, 541 km away!

Baboons

2008-08-05T14:18:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 5th of August while in Cape Town!

During our drive around the Cape peninsula we saw baboons! Including one that totally scared the beegeebers out of me! I was walking up a path at the Cape of Good Hope when a man almost bumped me off the path because he didn’t move. So I sort of swerved a little to avoid him and there was suddenly a giant baboon in front of me! They can also easily be seen along the side of the road while driving around. They are even considered pests by people living in the area!

African Pengiuns

2008-08-05T14:15:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 5th of August while in Cape Town!

Many people may be surprised to hear there are penguins in Africa, specifically the African Penguin. They used to be called the Jackass penguin because of the loud donkey-like braying call they make. Today we went to Boulders National Park along False Bay, to see the penguins for ourselves.

I guess that I thought that we would, you know, see a few penguins in the distance. I had no idea that we would literately be walking between and around penguins on the beach! Plus, there were thousands of them-they were everywhere.

These penguins are currently a vulnerable species; of the 1.5

Whale Video

2008-08-05T08:36:00.001-07:00

I am hoping this video of the whales we saw the other day will post because it was just too cool!

The Winelands

2008-08-05T08:28:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the morning of the 5th of August while driving to Cape Town!

As I mentioned previously, our accommodations in Franschoek were unbelievably nice. The Lavender Cottage is an incredible bargain considering the large size and plushness of the accommodations. After sleeping in yesterday morning, allowing our bodies to relax after several long days of driving and one marginal hostel, we woke and planned out day in the winelands.

We started with a cellar tour and tasting at Cabriere at Haute Cabriere. Although a few of the wines were good, a few were also-well-bad. In the picture you can see Jill dumping one of the less favored whiles into the slush bucket. The tour was nice and the tour guide, who also did our tasting, was informative.

Next we headed over to Boschendal for a tasting. We found the wines there to be fantastic! The woman running the tasting room was incredible helpful explaining the differences in the types of grapes, of which I never knew so many types of groups existed. While here we ate at the Bread and Wine restaurant, which got good reviews in our guidebooks, but turned out to be more expensive, less food, and not as tasty as we were hoping. The deserts there are fantastic, though.

Our final tasting was at the Boekenhoutskloof estate, home of The Chocolate Block wine, which they are famous for. The estate property here turned out to be very lovely and the tasting room new. The gentleman running the tasting here was very knowledgeable about wines and soccer, of which he expressed concern for the South African team and their lack of offense. Our day in the winelands was incredible pleasant.

The weather was perfect, the people were friendly, and the pizza place had half-price Mondays. Overall a great day!

Safety and Security

2008-08-05T08:27:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the morning of the 5th of August on the way to Cape Town!

South Africa has alarmingly high crime statistics. People here seem to be afraid almost all the time. In the evenings busy city centers turn into ghost towns as people head for the safety of their homes, not to return until daylight.

While staying in the Rosebank area of Joburg we were escorted across the street (it is an overpass because they are building the subway underneath) by security guards who tried to make us promise to call them when we were walking back. Although this seemed unnecessary when walking across the street, the hotel was the victim of an armed robbery right before we arrived and people are robbed frequently in the area.

In Lesotho there were armed guards, carrying menacing looking shotguns over their shoulders that walked around the perimeter. We were very safe within the borders of the Trading Post, but the guards made me believe that we had something to fear if the fences didn’t exist. This was difficult to believe, since we knew so many of the neighborhood youth…but then you heard the staggering rape statistics and were happy they were there.

When people heard that we were driving across the country they were surprised, issuing countless of warnings to be careful not to leave anything on the seat and to always have our doors locked when driving. The car-jacking rates are also very high.

Homes in South Africa are usually surrounded by huge fences, gates, barbed wire, and security systems. In some cases the home cannot be seen from the road, only the wall surrounding the home. Some people believe that insurance companies are in cahoots with security companies (insurance companies requiring the extra security methods in order to qualify for homeowners insurance). However, the extra walls, fences, gates, and more give people a sense that there is something “out there” that we don’t want “in here.” The crazy thing is that I have gotten used to seen the highly secured areas and hardly notice any longer.

It is hard because I would say that in some cases people seem overly paranoid and must be so exhausting to be afraid all of the time. However, the statistics seem to support their concern in some ways. For example, while visiting Jeppe Girls School in Joburg the teacher asked the class that Jason and I visited (for metrics, which is their senior class) for the students who have been the victim of crime to raise their hand-more than have of the class did, indicating robbery, home invasion, car-jacking, or worse.

I probably I have not probably been as concerned as I should be, sometimes walking with a small group back from dinner while in Joburg or heading out via cab for drinks with a group. However, there is definitely a large amount of independence that a woman gives up while traveling here. It would be out of the question for my to walk anywhere totally alone here and I miss that

The few things I miss from home

2008-08-05T08:26:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the morning of the 5th of August in the car driving to Cape Town!

There are a few things that I miss from home.

I miss Mexican food-really spicy Mexican food, because I haven’t really had anything spicy since arriving in South Africa.

I miss my family and friends-or at least being able to be in easy contact with them while I am here. At this point it kind of feels like people have forgotten about me. Sometimes it is a real hassle finding internet, but it is something we do almost everyday. However, it is a little disappointing when, after the hassle of finding internet, the only emails I have are junk. Also, although I have free incoming calls, the only people that have called me are my parents and since it is expensive I’ve only heard from them a few times. I miss being able to call somebody when I want to hear their voice. I’ve never felt so disconnected from my loved ones. It might take some adjustment.

I miss being in the loop when it comes to the news. While here I’ve only seen the international news a few times. I am excited to be able to see what has been going on in the U.S.-specifically with the presidential campaign process.

I miss feeling safe…I will talk about that in the next posting, since it deserves more attention.

Tipping

2008-08-05T08:25:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 3rd of August

One thing that I am a little sick of is tipping EVERYBODY.

For example, you are not allowed to pump your own gas and you have to tip the person who does it for you (which is usually ok, since they wash your windows as well).

When parking in public places (even outside the grocery store) some man is usually telling you which spot to pull into and then you are supposed to tip him to watch you car while you are inside, which is also ok because your car is a little safer.

However, when your car has been sitting somewhere for a considerable amount of time and you are getting ready to leave after eating or shopping and some man tells you that he watched your car—and it is possible that he works there, but it is also possible that he is just some man that saying he watched your car and really just standing there outside the store/restaurant asking for money…well, that is when I am not sure why I have to tip-but everybody does, because it is only 5 Rand, but over and over again it adds up.

Today, a man actually told me that I didn’t give him enough when I handed him 4 Rand-that he needed 5 Rand instead. This was strange considering other people gave him nothing-so I dug in my purse and handed over the extra Rand.

I guess that is just the price to pay for the safety of your belongings.

Lavender Cottage: Gable Manor in Franschhnoek (Winelands)

2008-08-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 3rd of August

When looking for a place for us to stay in the Winelands it was difficult to find a place for three people, most places are romantic rooms for couples visiting together.

From Columbus I found a link to something called the Lavender Cottage, which was owned by the Gable Manor resort. It looked nice enough and, although it was more expensive than most the places we were planning on staying, it was responsibly priced considering the area is touristy.

We arrived today not knowing what to expect…and we were totally stunned. The place is unbelievable; although I would not really call it a cottage-it is a huge fricken house! There are two big bedrooms with queen sized beds, a loft with a set of twin beds, a huge living room with vaulted ceilings, a full kitchen with a washer/dryer (which is sweet since our clothing pretty much stinks), a backyard, and there is even a fireplace. Also, the bedroom I claimed has a huge bathtub in it and I cannot wait to sink into a hot, bubbly mess of conformability. There are space heaters in every room, as well as extra blankets in every closet. I cannot remember the last time that I “had” more than one room to call my own-so having a whole house is overwhelming. Luckily for us, the Lavender Cottage has a great security system to make us feel nice and safe while we are cozily covered in all our extra blankets.

The place was a huge surprise for us, as we have been staying in backpackers and would have been happy with far less plush accommodations. However, it is a happy surprise-specially considering we are playing about $100 a night (divided by three makes it pretty affordable). I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this place to anybody coming to this area. In fact, this place is so nice that I would actually recommend people add this location to their trip simply to stay here!

Another splendid drive: Knysna to Franschnoek

2008-08-05T08:22:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 3rd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa There was not a bad view!

Hermanus and the Whales

2008-08-03T21:53:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 3rd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

We were reading out travel books and discovered that a small city in South Africa, called Hermanus, boasts to be the best place in the world to whale watch from shore. After sorting through some maps we discovered that it would be only about 40km off the N2 from where we would already be driving on our trip between Knysna and the Winelands, so we figured we should go for it.

Steven and I both planned on seeing whales if we were making the drive out of the way, but Jill was slightly less optimistic when it came to planning on seeing whales. Later she explained that she assumed that you would probably have to wait all day to hope for a whale sighting.

We pulled into the parking lot and started walking towards the area down the road where we saw people sitting and staring at the water. Before we knew it an enormous black and white tail flapped out of the water and smacked the surface, sending water flying up into the air. From there, we watched as the whales seemed to dance in front of us; surfacing, turning, bobbing their heads of the water, and jumping above the surface. It was spectacular! I have never seen anything like it, they are so big and graceful at the same time.

More images of Knysna

2008-08-03T16:36:00.001-07:00

Beautiful!

Knysna (Niez-na)

2008-08-03T16:05:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 3rd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

What I am going to say about Knysna is blatantly obvious to anybody who has ever has the privalage of visiting the small beach town: it is simply stunning in its beauty.

The hostel experience last night left something to be desired (I was so cold, the blankets were threadbare, there was a hole in the window, and no heater, but we were welcomed into the new day by the most beautiful of mornings. We headed over to the lagoon for breakfast, but they were not open yet-so we used the time to walk around the lagoon area. There were a large number of people out walking their dogs and enjoying the first sunshine of the day.

We ate breakfast at the East Head Caffe’, which served us fantastic omelets while sitting on an incredible patio overlooking the point at which the Indian Ocean enters the Knysna lagoon. After breakfast we headed to the beach and wandered around for a while, listening to the waves hit the rocks and watching the fisherman try to catch fish. After the ground level view of the water we headed up to the overlook to see the view from above.

I would strongly recommend anybody visiting South Africa and planning on spending time in the Western Cape come to Knysna-it will not disappoint!

Entering the West Cape

2008-08-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

Today Steven and I entered our 7th providence in South Africa, the West Cape. I cannot believe how much of the country I’ve seen in 6 weeks! Entering the West Cape was definitely a photo worthy moment for us. As we continue to make our way down the coast I am getting more excited about seeing Cape Town.

Tolkien

2008-08-02T13:33:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

The area we were driving today was the birthplace and home Tolkien, at least that is what people have told us. It is easy to image being inspired by the surroundings we found ourselves in and I could envision some of the book’s characters jumping out from behind the ferns at any moment.

We made a couple of stops at overlooks along the way to, well, overlook upon the beauty.

The Big Tree, The Tsitsikamma (Garden of the Garden Route)

2008-08-02T13:28:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

One stop on our drive today was in the Tsitsikamma forest, which is called the Garden of the Garden Route. The Garden Route is the section of the N2 that we are currently driving.

The Tsitsikamma forest is the home to the “Big Tree,” which we hiked our way into the forest to see. It was, indeed, a very big yellowwood tree. Maybe it was even huge. It is over 800 years old. It was nice to be able to walk around a bit and it is impressive how much greener this part of the country is.

Walskipper Restaurant, Jeffery’s Bay

2008-08-02T13:25:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

We left the game park and drove through Port Elizabeth, as we heard that there is not a whole lot to see if you are just passing through. My guidebook (thanks, mom) mentioned the small surf town of Jeffery’s Bay, which is commonly known to be one of the top three surf beaches in the world.

The adorable town is also the home to Walskipper, a restaurant literately a few meters from the crashing waves of the Indian Ocean. The restaurant does not spend a lot of money of ambiance (there are no walls and the floor consists of sand) because it doesn’t need to-it is already perfectly lovely. The food, which was served by a slightly unfriendly man, was fantastic. We were each allowed to slice ourselves huge chunks of homemade bread before our food came, which kept our appetites at bay why waiting for our food. I had the fish of the day, which turned out to be an enormous platter of fish and rice served on an enamel plate.

Overall the experience eating there was fantastic and it was a perfectly timed to break up our drive between Addo and Knysna.

Death Tour 2008

2008-08-02T13:25:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

I was sitting in the back seat while we were driving around the park to get to the main gate this morning. We were in a hurry. Suddenly, I heard a thud noise and Jill and Steven (who was driving) said “AAAAAAAAAAHHHH.” We had hit a bird-or rather a bird hit us, which was rather upsetting. Then, when we were almost stopped and turning into the park, although bird hit our windshield leading us all to scream.

Once in the park, we were immediately met by the face of a warthog which had been ripped off when it was being eaten, probably by a lion.

About a half our later we ran into several other vehicles, including a park truck, surrounding something-which turned out to be a dying baby elephant. It was struggling for breath and the other elephants in its family were huddled around it, this was the hardest thing to see.

As we were leaving the park after our game drive I was driving alone when the truck ahead of me hit another bird, sending a massive poof of feathers our direction.

Overall, I am not sure I want to see anymore things dead or dying, especially now on considering that we will mostly be in cities filled with people.

More pictures of Addo Park

2008-08-02T13:22:00.000-07:00

Addo Elephant National Park Animal Drive

2008-08-02T13:19:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 2nd of August in the car driving on the Garden Route to Knysna, South Africa

This morning we woke up early, which is not really that huge of an accomplishment when you consider our 9:30pm bedtime the night before, so we could participate in a morning animal drive through Addo Elephant National Park. The animal drives start on the other side of the park at the Main Camp, since we were at the Matyholweni Camp we had to high-tail it over to the drive-which we did (but there was a unsettling even that occurred on the way, which I will write about in the next post-which will be titled “Death Tour 2008”).

We paid our 180R per person and climbed into the open air vehicle to find out that we were the only people signed up for the morning drive, it was like a personal tour for the three of us!

As we made our way through the park by a knowledgeable guide it was impossible not to be impressed by the beauty of the park. Although the park does have ten lions, we were not lucky enough to see one this morning. However, we did see a whole host of other animals.

Warthogs: We saw of ton of these guys, which do a funny little prance when they are trying to walk quickly. They manage to be incredibly ugly, but endearingly sweet at the same time.

Elephants: We saw a great deal of elephants. They are huge; I cannot get over the sheer size of full grown elephants. Adult males can weight up to 7 tons, which is crazy to think about. For this reason they rarely lay down, since it is so hard to get up again, and they walk and run always leaving three feet on the ground. Elephants also only sleep 2-3 hours a day and never at once, they might nap for about 10 minutes and then wake up and immediately start eating again. In order to feed their massive bodies they can be found eating about 20-22 hours a day.

Buffalo: They have a strange horn-like-hat thingy on their heads. It was exciting to see them, actually, I never imagined they would be so neat looking in person and they are part of the “Big 5” everybody hopes to see while in Africa. We were also told that they are one of the only animals that will give absolutely no indication prior to attacking, unlike other animals that will demonstrate warning or angry behavior first.

Kudu: These huge antelope have beautiful horns, which you can use to help determine their age (at about 2 ½ years their horns will make a complete turn-after three turns the tips start to turn white). They are also incredible jumpers, capable of jumping 2 meters standing still and 3 meters from a run. These means they are able to jump over the park fence and come/go as they please.

Red Hartbeest: The second fastest antelope in South Africa, they are named for the reddish color of their coat and the heart shape of their horns. They are incredibly sweet looking.

Spotted Hyena: Although we did not see an adult, we saw a very young hyena pup peaking out of it’s borrow. Baby spotted hyenas are solid dark brown in color, earning their spots in time. White we were watching a bird landed near the pup and totally freaked it out, which was a little funny.

Ostrich: These huge birds are so odd looking at beautiful at the same time. Too bad they are pretty stupid.

Bokmakierie: This beautiful bird has such shockingly bright green and yellow feathers it is hard to believe you are seeing something made my nature!

One thing that we didn’t see, but saw a lot of signs about was the flightless dung beetle. It is illegal in the National Park to run over animal dung because the beetle digs into the dung to lay its eggs and the beetle is protected, therefore making the poop protected as well.

Drive to Addo Elephant Park and the Cabin

2008-08-02T11:00:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 1st of August

Tonight we are staying in Addo Elephant National Park in the cutest cabin you could ever imagine. It has a thatched roof, Steven suggested an elephant might try to eat it while we are sleeping-which would seriously scare the bee-geebers out of me.

The cabin has two beds and a pull out coach, a full kitchen, a bathroom, an adorable deck in the front, and a space heater…all for 605R (about $75). It is a little pricier than we have been paying, but definitely worth it. We were able to buy some groceries and after a cup-a-soup dinner I am all set. Tomorrow morning we will head out early to participate in a game drive and hopefully see a lion, as well as the elephants that we will most certainly see.

Stephen Biko Sites

2008-08-02T10:58:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 1st of August

Today we went an a mini-tour of Steve Biko sites by Jill’s friend Leslie, who is in King William’s Town (which is near East London) on a Fulbright doing research on Steve Biko’s Black consciousness movement.

Bantu Stephen Biko was born in 1946 in King William’s Town. He was a smart kid and was fairly political early on. He was accepted into medical school in Natal in 1966, were he became more political as time continued. He started working for what he called Black consciousness, which was a movement that encouraged Black South Africans to be proud of their blackness and to motivate them to do things for themselves. He was eventually kicked out of medical school for “failing academic performance,” but many people believe it was because of his political affiliations. During the 1970’s the south African government began to ban many anti-apartheid organizations and their leaders, Steve Biko was banned in 1974 but was allowed to continue doing work in the township areas around King Williams town. He worked to start a clinic run by Black doctors and nurses, small businesses for Black women and men, and other organizations meant to help people pull themselves up from their own poverty and fight oppression. In 1977 he was detained by the police and beaten to near death, he was then thrown naked into the back of a truck and sent to the hospital in Pretoria, hours away. It is debated as to his contention upon arrival in Pretoria, but it is well known that his death was the result of the beating by the police. These officers later requested amnesty during the Truth and Reconciliation committee, but were denied due to their inability to fully accept responsibility. Today Biko is honored by many South Africans for the contributions he made during his short life.

We started our tour in East London, with a visit to the stature located outside of city hall. Then, we visited the Zanempilo Clinic, one of Biko’s projects which is currently run by the government. Then we visited the Steven Biko foundation where Leslie spends much of her time doing interviews for her project. We ended up meeting a childhood friend of Steve Biko’s as well as his wife, who happened to be in the office while we were visiting. It was a big honor to be able to meet her and we found her to be an exceptionally kind person. After visiting the foundation, we went to his childhood home, which is now a national historic site and museum. Our last stop was the burial site of Steve Biko.

Overall, it was an excellent afternoon and I feel very lucky to have been able to see the sights with Leslie, who knows so much about Biko’s life and mission. It was fantastic and I am excited to read more about him in the future…and I will definitely be adding his ideas and movement into my curriculum in the future.

Morning at the beach

2008-08-02T10:47:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 1st of August

After finishing up at Linda’s this morning (once again, her place is fantastic) we headed back down to the beach to enjoy the sand and surf in the sunlight. The waves were huge!

We had the chance to watch some well dressed gentleman who were trying to collect water in giant plastic containers, apparently because the water has healing properties and can keep away bad spirits. The funny part was that they only rolled their pant legs to mid-calf and appeared to not want to get wet, so they would hold the container down to the sand but when a wave came they would hop/run away. This continued for an extended period of time.

Happy Birthday Leah

2008-08-02T10:46:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 1st of August

I know I won’t get to post this message today, since I am in the middle of a national park in South Africa and internet is so far from being available that it is slightly laughable, but I want to be able to wish my little sister the happiest of birthdays. Today, August 1st, she is turning the 2-7. I had a chance to call her this morning at 8:59am, which was 11:59pm California time, and welcome her into a new year of her life.

Here’s to you, Leah. I love you always.

East London

2008-08-02T10:44:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 31st July.

Upon arrival we met by Linda, who is a friend of Jill’s friend from MSU. Linda has been preparing the opening of her new bed and breakfast and we are her first guests this evening (and she is letting us stay for free!). The place is fantastic and I highly recommend staying here-I promise to post more information about the location and how to contact her soon. The bedding is lovely, the bathrooms are sparkling, the room is cozy, and the snacks are delicious. Overall, I am very excited about staying here tonight.

After getting settled we went out to dinner with Jill’s friends from MSU at a restaurant that had a terrace over the crashing waves-it was quite lovely. The food was wonderful and I must admit that as I sit here the “toughness” of the drive is definitely behind me: I am warm, well fed, and very happy.

The Long Haul

2008-08-02T10:42:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 31st July.

Today we woke up early and hit the road. We knew that we were in for a long drive, but we didn’t know quite how far. People kept giving different estimates, anywhere from 6 to 10 hours.

We had a quick stop at the airport to add Jill as a driver to our car and then we were on the N2 by about 8:30am, which would take us all the way to East London. When leaving Durban the N2 started off as a beautifully paved four-lane highway, complete with on/off ramps. The highway quickly turned into a two-lane road through the middle of nowhere that sporadically entered bustling small towns, with people blocking intersections for a few blocks and then quickly returned to the rural peoplelessness that existed through most the drive (although stunning in its beauty).

The hills, which were beautiful, were green-which marked the first real green scenery I’ve seen since arriving in South Africa.

We ended up stopping for a late lunch, which wasn’t planned but the empty road provided little in terms of options for a meal until about 11am when we rejoined at the sighting of a Wimpy sign. After the meal we were back on the road, finally arriving in East London around 5:00 this evening.

I must admit that it feels good to have the longest drive under our belts-and it should be noted that Steven likes to drive and had not complaints with doing all of the days driving. It should be noted that we never got to the AASA office to pick up our free maps and, instead, we used the guidebook that Andrew (thanks, buddy) gave Steven to guide us across the country.

Durban Dinner

2008-08-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 31st July.

For dinner our night in Durban we went to Wilson’s Warf and got some fish and chips. The restaurant was yummy, but there was an incident with the ketchup. I picked it up and turned it over to put some on my plate-and suddenly the entire bottle fell apart in my hand. My fingers were sticking in the bottle and tomato sauce (as they call it here) was pouring out all over the table and through the cracks onto my feet below. I just sat there with a stupid look on my face as Jill and Steven cracked up.

Luckily the server thought it was funny, too.

KFC

2008-08-02T10:40:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 30th July.

You cannot walk through a city without smelling KFC because as the smell from one restaurant starts to fade you smell the chicken from another. South Africans really seem to enjoy their KFC.

I hadn’t really thought about why there are so many KFC restaurants in South Africa until I mentioned something to Jill. She informed me that unlike most American restaurant chains (eg: McDonanlds), KFC never left South Africa when the sanctions against the apartheid government were established. It makes me a little uncomfortable knowing that companies like KFC profited from South Africans during the apartheid rule when others followed the sanctions that seemed to support Democracy. It is also frustrating knowing that ignoring the sanctions has allowed KFC to maintain a foothold in the South African fast food industry.

Therefore, I am not sure how I feel about a company like KFC getting the long term economic benefits associated with staying in South Africa during apartheid.

It should be noted that there are a large number of other fast food chicken options that are available for South Africans to enjoy.

Street name changes

2008-08-02T10:39:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 30th July.

One of confusing aspect of driving in South Africa is the name changes. Many areas continue to change the name of streets, cities, buildings, and more since the end of apartheid in 1994. The sign in this picture is in Durban, which still includes the former names of streets on signs to help confused people like us. You can image how frustrating it is in areas that have completely replaced signs or if you happen to purchase an map made prior to the changes.

Durban, South Africa

2008-08-02T10:34:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the afternoon of the 30th July.

Last night Steven and I drove to Pietermaritzburg, South Africa where we stayed for the night. I also met Steven’s friend from home, Jill-who is very cool.

This morning the three of us wok up, got some breakfast, and headed to Durban. Durban is known to be the warmest of South African beach cities and I was personally very excited about seeing the Indian Ocean. The drive from Pietermaritzburg to Durban was a quick one.

When arriving in Durban we headed directly to the hostel, called the Happy Hippo. It turned out to be fantastic. Then we headed downtown to take a peak around and visit a bookstore.

Then it was off to the beach! The waves were huge and I spent some time diving through them, enjoying the feel and smell of the water. After coming out of the water it sure felt good to have the sun warm my body dry-to feel genuinely warm for the first time in over a month (it was maybe 80F, probably upper 70’s). We ended up spending much of the day sitting at the beach, reading, and enjoying the perfect weather. Tonight we are headed out to find some dinner by the beach, yum.

Holy Crap! Driving in South Africa!

2008-07-29T12:23:00.000-07:00

Night of 29th July.

Today Steven and I had to say good-bye to the rest of the group at the airport and it was kind of hard to see them leave, it is going to be different without them-although I am excited to see more of the country.

We left to go and pick up the car and headed out of Jo’burg, Steven at the wheel. We drove for about two and a half hours on straight , flat road with almost no traffic before we switched drivers at a gas station. Then, I drove us in the dark, over a mountain, with no medium, and with lots of traffic. The car did not accelerate well on up hills so I let it coast down the hills…there was a car right on my tail for a while, even though I was coasting pretty well over the speed limit down a hill. Then, snap! A flash went off and the police got a nice picture of me speeding. The car then sped and passed us. Darnit. We made it to the hostel we are staying at tonight, but I had to re-park a few times to get it right.

I guess I should be lucky we didn’t hit anything; it is tricky with the gear-shifting on the left and no cruise control! Oh well, it is a little funny. Good news: radio said it is supposed to be beautiful in Durban tomorrow!

Hot Air Balloon Ride

2008-07-29T01:23:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the morning of the 29th July.

Anybody who knows me would probably agree with the following statement: Dana is not a morning person. Therefore, for me to wake up at 5:20am on a day that we could sleep in, well, it must be for a good reason. It was actually for a darn good reason:

I got to ride on a hot air balloon over a prehistoric volcano (now a crater), in Africa, with great people, at sunrise, while looking out for animals.

We met in the lobby at 5:40 and were picked up by the people from Airtrekkers. We drove about an hour into Pilenesburg National park and me the balloons, which were in the last stages of being inflated.

We climbed aboard and were quickly floating majestically over the park, watching the most graceful sunrise imaginable. It was a calm morning, so we floated pretty gently in the sky. We looked down and saw giraffes, hippos, an ostrich, a brown hyena, springbok, and more. The landing, which we were told can sometimes be the rough part of the ride, was even smooth as can be.

Overall, ride was fantastic, although a little on the chilly side. I am very glad that I decided to invest in such a wonderful memory and I recommend it to others who may have the opportunity in the future.

The Palace at Sun City

2008-07-28T13:54:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 28^th July.

Although half the group went on another game drive today in a van with Dick, the other half stuck around the lodge in the morning and headed over to Sun City in the afternoon.

Sun City was built in 1990 during the apartheid regime. The area is a tourist attraction built to rival Las Vegas. Although the hotel (which we paid to tour) is unbelievably extravagant, the fact that it was built on land taken from the people who lived there during apartheid to be made into a white only playground for the wealthiest of society is a little much to handle. The hotel uses a ridiculous amount of water, considering it is the desert, and the grounds are covered with palm trees….which are beautiful, I must admit. In fact, everything is over the top beautiful.

However, after going through experiences like we have the past five weeks, seeing the incredible poverty that exists in this country, the fact that a hotel charges $500-$800 (US dollars) per night is almost enough to make you sick. The fact that people actually pay that much for one night is almost unfathomable.

Regardless, I am glad that I as able to see Sun City and the Palace, just because I would not have believed it without seeing it.

Bakutung Lodge and Noro Kalahari Spa

2008-07-28T13:52:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 28^th July.

It was a beautiful day here at the Bakutung Lodge!

Many of us were planning to do the hot air balloon ride this morning, but it was too windy (which we were told when called at 4am). Although we were disappointed and have our fingers crossed for tomorrow morning, it opened up the day for us to try something else.

Many people decided to take advantage of the spa treatments offered at the Lodge’s spa. The Spa offers a wide range of services: massages, pedicures, facials and more! The most interesting option was the Ko Godimo Bust lifting treatment (the description reads: “Steam, exfoliate and mask are not only for your face. A very uplifting experience unfortunately not done by Brad Pitt”). However, nobody spent their 200Rand on that service.

Personally, my toenails look fantastic and the hour long treatment by the talented staff on my battered feet was well with the cost.

The pool deck was also inviting today, complete with monkeys who scurried around looking for attention and sorting through the garbage.

Additional Animal Park Pictures

2008-07-27T13:06:00.000-07:00

Yippie! More pictures from the animal drive :)

Bakutung Lodge and Animal Drive

2008-07-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 27^th July.

The hotel we are at has internet access…and overall it is beautiful! The only part that is a little strange about Pilanesburg is its apartheid era history. The area the National Park is located was the home to many Africans who were kicked off the land during apartheid in order to make a tourist park that was exclusively white until 1994.

Today Pilanesburg is a sort of play ground for people with money, specifically the Sun City area (which I will visit tomorrow night). The staff of the hotel met us at the front door when we arrived with fruit drinks on a platter for us, there was a sign out front welcoming our group, and we were handed our room keys. The rooms here are fantastic as well, it is the first double bed I’ve had since arriving in Africa and there is a huge patio. The grounds around the hotel are beautiful, including sprawling lawns and a lovely pool. They also have a large range of spa services that some members of our group might take advantage of tomorrow.

Dinner is included with our meals and it was an amazing buffet of game, veggie, cheeses, and deserts. So far, we are very impressed by the facilities here.

Immediately after arriving we dropped off our bags and met an open air vehicle for a game drive through the park. We spent about 4 hours driving through the park, which a superb guide who help spot the animals and provided interesting information along the way (for example, a giraffes tongue is 20-30 cm long and they might pass out if their head is below their heart for more than 45 seconds, so they drink quickly). During our drive we saw zebras (a group is called a dazzle), elephants, giraffes, impala, springbok, speenbok, a brown hyena (very rare), baboons, hippos, rhinos, a crocodile, jackals, and a large number of birds.

The drive was so much fun!

Tomorrow

2008-07-26T16:12:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 26^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Tomorrow we will be heading to the animal park in Pilansburg -which will most likely mean no internet. In fact, I am not sure when I will be able to post again, but I promise I will do it as soon as possible. After Pilansburg the group is heading back to the U.S. and Steven and I will be traveling down to Durben and onto the Garden Route to Cape Town.

See you all soon.

Painted Faces

2008-07-26T16:09:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 26^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Tonight we went to a traditional African restaurant for dinner. During the meal a woman came around and painted our faces. Some turned out sweet, some turned out-well-surprising.

Melville

2008-07-26T16:08:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 26th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Today was our “free day,” the one that Dick and Mark have been talking about the whole trip…and for most of us that meant a little more sleep this morning. Therefore, we decided to head out last night for dinner in Melville. After dinner we wandered through a few clubs in the area. Melville is known to be a very eclectic area of Johannesburg, everybody we met was incredibly and it was fun to be able to dance the night away!

Soweto

2008-07-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 25th July.

Today we sent to Soweto, the South West Township. This township was established as a mining town in 1889, but was never intended on being a large city. In 1904 there was a disease outbreak in Johannesburg and the black community was blamed and forced out of the city to form a township in what is now Soweto.

The area is home to more than 3.5 million people, covering a 120 sq/km area. There are currently three distinctive economic classes in the area. The upper class area has incredibly nice, expensive homes but the poor areas consists large areas of shacks piled on top of each other (may of which are illegal areas for people to live, but are not stopped by officials because the people have no place to go)-it was shocking.

While walking through the market area in Soweto I was surprised to see the men selling the meat directly off of cows’ heads (and eyes), which are not sold at a butcher shops and purchased by the men in Soweto. Apparently the meat is sold for cheap and is commonly fried up and eaten by taxi drivers in the area. It is also said to be the best cure for a hangover.

Our tour driver told us about the 4 biggest problems that exist in Soweto today, these include:

HIV/AIDS (There are over 150 funerals every weekend and 80% of those deaths are
AIDS related)
High Unemployment rate
Crime
Xenophobia

While in Soweto we had the opportunity to see one of the most famous streets in the world, the home of two Nobel Peace Prize winners on the same block. The Soweto homes of Nelson Mandela and Demond Tutu are walking distance from each other on Vilakazi street.

On our tour we stopped at the Regina Monde Catholic Church. During apartheid it was used as a political meeting place for revolutionaries, since they were not allowed to meet together in community center or other public places the church provided a perfect cover. One Sunday morning there were 7000 people meeting and worshiping in the church when the police (who had been told of the activities by an informant) came and opened fire on the members of the church. The bullet holes in the ceiling and windows continue to be a part of the church’s environment to help people remember what happened at the chuch.

We also had the chance to go to the Hector Peiterson Museum, which was fantastic. Hector Peiterson was a 13 year old boy when he was killed. Students in Soweto met to protest the apartheid government’s decision to require Afrikaans as the language used in schools and the language the exit exams would be written in. Students were against this decision because many teachers and students were not competent enough to use only Afrikaans and testing students in Afrikaans would not effectively prove what students learned. Other students saw it as another way the government was oppressing Black students in the townships. The staged a march on June 16th, 1976 to protest. However, they were met by the police who opened fire on the protesters and killed Hector Peiterson. There is now a museum and monument to remember the boy.

Soweto continues to grow and it is proud to be the site for the opening game of the 2010 World Cup.

One of Piet’s Stories

2008-07-24T15:07:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 24^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Peit told us the following story today about Nelson Mandela.

Soon after taking the presidency, Mandela showed up one afternoon to the presidential house and happened to see a figure jump back into the bushes. We he asked his aide about this he was told that it was one of the gardeners, who were never supposed to be seen-they were supposed to hide and avoid being seen.

When Mandela saw a man soon after he chased the man in order to tell him how much he appreciated the garden. The man was embarrassed and assumed he had done something wrong.

Mandela decided that he would invite the gardeners, all twelve, to a tea the following Friday and asked the gentleman in charge of the house to invite them. He refused, saying it was impossible because the men were never allowed inside the house. Mandela asked again and the man still refused…then Mandela demanded, as President, that he invite the men for tea and cookies the following Friday. All twelve men showed up, nervous, in their best clothing for the tea.

Following the tea, Mandela told them he wanted the opportunity to appreciate the garden the way he has. He took them out onto the lawn where he had a helicopter waiting to take the men up to see the garden from the air.

To me this story showed a little of the Mandela magic people in South Africa talk about.

Piet Meiring: Member of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee

2008-07-24T15:06:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 24^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

This evening we were lucky to meet with Peit Meiring, who was a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee. Piet is a retired Afrikaans theology professor from the University of Pretoria who was asked to join the committee in 1996 by Desmond Tutu, with the approval of Nelson Mandela.

For those of you that are not familiar with the purpose of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee, they were given the responsibility of overseeing the public hearings on the abuses that occurred during apartheid. Specifically, they heard about 27,000 cases of murder, manslaughter, rape, or severe torture that occurred during the apartheid era. The committee was set up for three reasons, 1) to hear cases of human rights violations, 2) to create a process to provide reparations and rehabilitation, and 3) to allow amnesty to individuals who met high expectations set up by the committee. Individuals seeking amnesty needed to tell the whole truth , they needed to prove their actions were based on director orders from superiors, and there needed to be a balance between the motive and the actions.

Overall, the committee provided people in South Africa the opportunity to share their pain with the public, allowing the chance to heal through forgiveness. I find the process fascinating and plan to read more about it when returning to the United States.

It was also great to meet Piet, who was a fantastic speaker and full of great stories.

Alexandra Township School

2008-07-24T15:06:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 24^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

One group of Fulbrighters went to a township school in Alexandra. The experiences they had in the township contrast greatly with what I saw at Jeppe. Once matched with teachers from the township it became obvious that the Alexandra teachers expected our Fulbrighters to do the teaching for the day…which they were not planning on doing, but did ok on the spot.

As the day went on the teachers and students seemed to trickle out of the school, failing to come back to the principal’s office to pick members of our group back up and many of the Fulbrighters spent several hours sitting the office.

We learned later that it is incredibly difficult to fire a teacher in South Africa. The union only allows teachers to be fired if there is sexual abuse, physical abuse, or if they are drunk on the job. Failing to show up for work or leaving during the day without notice is not groups for termination. In the Township areas many times teachers leave before 11am or noon, along with most of the students.

These schools are also incredibly under funded, these students are only expected to pay about 120R ($16) a year, but only about 5% following through on paying these fees-of which could potentially increase the quality of education for the students. Reasons for failing to pay include both ability based on high level of poverty and a sense of entitlement that comes from a constitution that guarantees education to students in South Africa.

The inequalities that continue to exist 14 years after the end of apartheid in Johannesburg are staggering. The location of the townships away from employment opportunities and good schools, along with long history of intentional inequality forced about the Black townships during the apartheid government has made change a potentially long and difficult process when it comes to the drastic inequalities that exist between schools a short 20 minute drive apart.

Jeppe School for Girls

2008-07-24T15:02:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 24^th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today was possibly my favorite day in Southern Africa thus far. Last night we divided ourselves into 4 groups, so each group would be ready to visit a different school this morning. Due to my experience at CSG I was excited to be a part of the group sent to Jeppe School for Girls-the only other person in my “group” was Jason.

When we were first dropped off this morning we were a little nervous, because we really were just dropped off…our van stopped and Dick told us who to ask for and we had our fingers crossed as we walked up to the security gate. Our nervousness turned out to be completely unnecessary. The school, specifically the history and geography department, was totally prepared for our visit. They had a schedule arranged for us to observe different teachers throughout the school day.

We started out the morning watching a 12^th grade geography class led in a review of African geography, followed by a 9^th grade history discussion about the Cold War. The class ended up having a long discussion about Communism, which was interesting to both Jason and I because we are used to American students who tend to “buy in” to the idea of communism, if not the practice. The South African students in the class seemed adamant that communism was a cause of the Cold War and continues to be a problem around the world today.

For our 3^rd and 4^th periods we were off to a different classroom, this time it was 12^th grade history students. The teacher explained that the students were working on projects and would normally have the class time to work independently. Instead, she allowed the class the opportunity to ask us questions about America. The discussion with the students was fun for us…they asked a wide range of questions. The questions and answer session was so much fun that the teacher during 5^th period decided to allow the opportunity to her students as well. Here are some examples of the questions we were asked:

Do you know any celebrities?
Is interracial dating popular in the U.S.?
What to American students do for fun?
What do students in the U.S. think about South Africa?
Do your students listen to African music the way that we listen to American music?
Do you worry that Bush’s policies in Iraq and Afghanistan will lead to World War III?
What is American fashion like?
How do American schools compare to South African Schools?
Do Americans believe that South Africans live in huts with animals?
Do you think that if Bush was president during the Cuban Missile Crisis instead of Kennedy the result would have been different?

Between periods 3 and 4 we went to the staff lounge for the first of our two breaks of the day for some pizza and tea, which was fantastic. The second break of the day came between periods 5 and 6. It should be noted that most schools in South Africa do not have a lunch period, since there are not cafeterias or food preparation areas. Instead, it is common to have two break periods (about 30 minutes each) that can be used for studying, eating, club meetings, opportunities for teachers to meet with students, or relaxation. The teachers are also on break at the same time-break coverage rotates throughout the staff during the year. It is a nice schedule and allows time for people to breath in between class session.

The last two periods of the day were spent in a double session on 11^th grade history, which was focusing on imperialism and colonialism in Africa. Two case studies were used to demonstrate, the first being Benin and the second the Congo. The teacher, who asked if it would be ok to ask us questions, started off the class something similar to this:

Ok class, we have been learning a lot about imperialism. Many people argue that the current imperial power in the world today is America…let’s ask our American visitors to comment on that, shall we?

And then the class looked at us waiting. We were a little stunned at first, but after a moment or two of silence I think Jason and I provided a pretty darn good answer. We indicated the difference between the United States and international companies based in America, explaining that the goal of these companies is to increase profit margins. However, the teacher continued to push for a little while, asking us follow-up questions. It was actually nice to be questioned in this manner, so many of our presenters have worked so hard to make us feel comfortable that the anti-American sentiments we were told exist in South Africa seemed difficult to believe.

At the end of the day we were given a tour of the school and provided an opportunity to ask more questions during a meeting at Jeppe Boys School later in the afternoon. Jeppe School for Girls has about 890 students and appears to represent the racial make-up of Johannesburg. The school is semi-private, receiving a rather small portion of the operating fees required to run the school from the government. The higher school fees also help pay for the school to hire more teachers than in a totally publicly funded school to help decrease class sizes (which were between 25-30). Therefore, Jeppe students are middle or upper class and about half the Black students at the school live the township areas but Jeppe has good reputation and parents want the students to have better educational opportunities than would be provided in the township schools. The school tuition is 15,000R (about $2150) per year and teachers make about 10,000R ($1250) a month.

University of Pretoria (again)

2008-07-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 23^rd July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

We went back to the University of Pretoria today for a few briefings…but since we were a little early for our meetings we had some free time on campus to eat and hang out. It was definitely some interesting people watching.

Until the 1930’s English was the primary educational language of the institution, but during the 1930’s growing Afrikaans nationalism led to the deletion of English from the institution. It was not until the 1990’s that courses began to be taught in English again. Following the end of apartheid in 1994 the campus began to admit Black students. Now, the campus seems to be fairly integrated-although, after sitting and watching for a few hours you begin to notice that most of the students sitting in groups by race in the student union eating.

The students seemed considerably wealthier than at the University of Free State-Qwaqwa, which we visited a few days ago. In fact, it felt like a lot of American University campuses I’ve been on: Mike found the invitation to the Drinking Olympics, we saw a guy on a unicycle, and there were some guys wearing strange uniforms.

Our last meeting of the day was with Tony (sorry, missed his last name) who discussed with South Africans water concerns. He was an energetic speaker who gave us new information about topics we’ve been discussing throughout the past weeks while in South Africa and Lesotho.

Southern Africa is incredibly dry, only 1% of rain water becomes part of the stream system in an area that gets very little rain. This part of South Africa (Joburg/Petoria) differ from the other major cities around the world in that it wasn’t built on a waterway. Most cities used coastal areas or rivers as natural locations for cities, using the resources the water provided to build up the city. This part of South Africa, however, was never planned but grew out of the mining industry. In fact, Joburg (which is the largest city in the region) was only meant to be a small mining stop but with the discovery of diamonds all that changed. Today, although Johannesburg provides 25% of the countries employment opportunities, it is 100% dependant on external sources for water. For these reasons, the Lesotho Highlands Water Authority and the water provided by it is incredibly important.

Another thing we learned is that although South Africa is dependent upon Lesotho for the water, Lesotho is dependent upon the dam project for the electricity is provides-making it impractical for Lesotho to try to withhold water during any potential conflicts that could occur between the two countries. In addition, water recycling, desalination, and potential dam projects were all discussed.

Overall, it was nice to listen to somebody who was so obviously passionate about his job. He did a great job stressing the importance of creativity and innovation in order to solve the water shortage problem.

Voortrekker Monument

2008-07-23T14:58:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 23^rd July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we visited the Voortrekker Monument in Petoria and I am still not sure that I am entirely comfortable with the visit. The Monument was built in 1949 to honor the voortrekkers (which were Boer pioneers) that traveled across South Africa to establish Petoria in 1835, which became known as the Great Trek. The Monument also honors the victory of the Boers at the battle of Blood River during which they fought against the Zulu and the leader of the battle who the city of Petoria is named for (there is talk about renaming the city because of this). The museum continues to house the eternal flame, lit to symbolize the “light of civilization carried forth by the Voortrekker movement,” which to me does not necessarily have a place in a post-apartheid society.

Although the information the museum shares may be historically accurate, they seem to be missing a huge piece of the picture-things that seemed obvious to me when walking through the museum. The fact that the land the Voortreekers believe God gave them was already inhabited by the Zulu is completely missing from the museum. The only way you would even know Zulu were involved in the conflict is through the images depicting them being defeated by well dressed Boers. The fact that the Afrikaans/apartheid government would spend so much money building such a magnificent museum to honor the Great Trek during an era that offered Black South Africans so little in terms of freedom is also shocking.

The place was a little too much for me, to be honest. It would be like having an enormous monument to honor the expansionists at the Battle of Little Big Horn and ignoring the fact that American Indians were involved.

The gift store was also strange…you could buy a mug with a picture of Nelson Mandela’s head on it or one with the pre-1994 flag.

National Park Service of South Africa

2008-07-23T14:57:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 23^rd July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Our first stop this morning was at the National Park Service of South Africa to have a presentation about Transfrontier Conservation Areas. Our presenter was Ms. Peit Theron, who did a fantastic job explaining the specifics of the international parks South Africa is a park of. As a Minnesotan, the explanation reminded me a great deal of the relationship that the United States and Canada have to run the Boundary Waters Canoe Area.

The Transfrontier project allows countries to form a single park, crossing national boundaries for the benefit of the animals that inhibit the area and the people who want to visit. The relations between the different countries vary, depending on the political and social climate of the country South Africa is negotiating with. Ideally, the fences along the borders would be taken down to allow animals and people to flow freely within the constraints of the park-or at least arranged a shared entry gate into the park from more than one country. However, this takes a great deal of negotiation to orchestrate and it is not possible in areas where cross-border crime is a concern.

The planning process to arrange a Transfrontier Conservation Area is intense, usually taking 1-2 years. Then the process moves into the treaty phase which also takes up to 2 years. After those components are completed the project moves to the development phase, which can take 25 years and is managed by a joint committee of members from each country.

University of the Free State-Qwaqwa Branch

2008-07-22T11:25:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 22^nd July.

Today we stopped for a few briefings at the University of the Free State Qwaqwa branch. The people who greeted us were exceptionally nice and welcoming, providing us with a tea upon arrival and a lunch later in the day. We were given a nice talk about the history of the Qwaqwa are, which was a part of the former Bantu State for Black South Africans prior to the end of apartheid in 1994. The area is approximately 99% black and very poor (the unemployment rate is about 64%). The University, which is almost exclusively black, began as a college for the students living in the Bantu area and became a branch of the University of the Free State in 2001. About 2500 students attend the University, which is could easily be one of the most naturally beautiful campuses I’ve ever seen.

After our talk, we were taken to a few local entrepreneurs to see how their businesses are run. Specifically, we went to a shop that makes blinds (and other goods) from grasses. They are beautiful! It is too bad they do not yet ship to the United States.

Overall, as I sit on the bus headed to Jo’burg, I am reflecting on what was a very pleasant afternoon.

Golden Gate

2008-07-22T11:24:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 21^st July.

After a brief visit to the caves on our way out of Lesotho, we crossed the border back into South Africa. Many of us were impressed by speed at which we passed through customs/immigration.

We are spending the night in Golden Gate National Park at a beautiful hotel. The scenery stretches before us in a spectacular display of yellows, with tall cliffs and swaying grasses as far as you can see.

The hotel even has a play area, with includes two in-ground trampolines-which we had a great time bouncing on.

Back to Formosa Textile

2008-07-22T11:23:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 21st July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

After reading a post on this blog, our group was invited back to the Formosa Textile factory to see their water treatment facility. This invitation was a big surprise, since I believed that my blog was only drawing the attention of my family and friends in the U.S. Our group decided that we would accept the invitation to stop by the factory in Maseru on our way out of Lesotho this morning.

In 2007 the factory the factory began building a new water treatment facility, in addition to the structure that was created when the factory opened. The new facility does an even better job of cleaning the water than the older facility, making it possible to recycle 70% of the water back into the factory to be used again.

The remaining 30% does flow into the river, but only after the suspended material is removed from the water. We were shown the dark blue solid material that is leftover from the filtration process, which is quite impressive.

Toys

2008-07-22T11:23:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 20th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Toys in Lesotho are often handmade. For example, I saw many soccer balls that were made of plastic bags tightly wound around garbage and, although they did not bounce, the children seemed to enjoy almost as much as when they had a real ball. Young boys could also be seen through out Lesotho pushing wire cars. These cars are more incredible the closer you look, the turn with the steering wheel they hold in their hands to push the car (the axel actually moves) and the wheels are made out of anything from old pop cans to spools from thread.

Some of the toys remind me of pictures that I saw in the U.S. from the Great Depression, when given little to work with children are often capable of creating great amounts of fun and entertainment.

Condom Distribution

2008-07-22T11:21:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 20^th July.

Throughout Lesotho condom dispensers can be found in public bathrooms (usually the men’s bathroom, but sometimes the women’s) for free. Often these dispensers are empty, indicating that they are being used. The public campaign against HIV/AIDS concentrates heavily on safe sex. Part of the problem, however, is that the emphasis is usually on educating women, while it was made clear to us that the sexual decision making belongs almost exclusively to the men in the community. Also, since the majority of the schools in Lesotho are religiously owned (although publicly funded) the way that HIV/AIDS is discussed in the curriculum also varies. We told that most of the Catholic schools in Lesotho continue to teach an abstinence based curriculum, even with the staggering HIV rates and the low age of average first sexual experience. To me, it borders on being unethical for schools to fail to adequately prepare their students for the reality that exist in the communities they live in and failure to teach them the basics of sexual health could be construed as a failure on their part.

Last night at the Trading Post

2008-07-22T11:20:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 21st July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Last night was our last at the Trading Post and I am a little sad to see our time there end. The people who own the Trading Post, Jenny and Ashley Thorn, along with their amazing staff made sure we had an unforgettable time. It really began to feel like home.

Although, I am not sure that Eric is going to like how spoiled I got while there-having somebody clean my room, make my meals, and wash/dry my clothing…it was hard to get used to having people do everything for me and it will be hard getting used to doing it for myself again. Overall, every one at the Trading Post made sure that we were as comfortable as possible.

It was also hard to say good-bye to the children outside the Trading Post. It was outside the front gate with the children that we spent most of our evenings. We played soccer, told stories, taught sign language, saw their homes, and laughed for hours.

I am extremely glad that this program gave me the opportunity to spend some much time at the Trading Post in Roma, Lesotho.

Ramabanta Trading Post

2008-07-22T11:20:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 20th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Early Saturday morning our group left for Ramabanta, which is further up into the mountain than Roma. The road to the Ramabanta Trading Post was windy, rolling and very beautiful.

The weather was amazing this week in Roma and the warmth followed us up into the mountains. Although we started the day with many layers on, but mid afternoon it was comfortable with only a few layers on.

Upon arrival we were welcomed by the incredibly nice staff and shown to our gorgeous rooms. While we were putting out things away, local men brought their horses to us and prepared them for our ride. Most of us set out for a 3-4 hour ride through the mountains. When I say in the mountains, I mean it. We were up and down some very steep terrian. There were some points during which I was a little nervous, like when we were headed down a long steep hill…but the horses ended up doing fine after a little prodding. Some of them were a bit more stubborn than others (like mine, for example, who was both lazy and stubborn). We ended up riding for 5 hours and 20 minutes after relying on the advice of small children as to the way back to the Trading Post. The length of the ride made some of us a bit sore. The end of the ride brought us back to a gravel road, where some of us became a bit too confident on our horses. Mike, for instance-who is totally fine-but managed to take a bit of a fall off his horse. It actually scared the crud out of all who saw it happen, it was a slow motion, lean-like fall off the side of the horse after the guide wacked his horse in the butt to hurry him up.

It should be mentioned that some members of our group skipped the horse backing ride and went with Dick up the other side of the mountain to see the waterfall. The whole group could not go because the van would not make the trip safely due to the quality of the roads, so Dick took the few people who didn’t want to ride in the car.

After a wonderful ride, we were welcomed back to the Trading Post main lodge to an enjoyed the warmth of a fire and the company of the group. We also saw some traditional dancers and musicians perform on the front lawn as the sun set. Dinner was served at 7pm and it was fantastic-and welcomed after such a wonderful and long day. After dinner most of us headed out for a little star-gazing, which was hindered by the brightness of the full moon.

Then, it was early to bed. The generators at the Trading Post are turned off at 10pm and most of us wanted to make sure our electric blankets were still on when fell asleep.

Traditional Healer

2008-07-22T11:18:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 18th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

After Monique and Emily M. requested the opportunity to see a traditional healer, a woman at the Trading Post arranged for us to visit her village and meet with one.

We drove on the main road to the edge of the village, but the van was unable to make it onto the rocky road (some of the roads in Lesotho are something you have to see to believe) so we got out of the van and walked into the village. Since the village is a little off the beaten path they do not get a lot of visitor and a large parade of Americans drew a little attention. Again, we had several children follow us on our walk to the healers house. We had to make a quick stop at the Chief’s house in order to get permission to visit-it is customary to ask the chief permission before doing anything within a village.

The healer explained to us (through Mary, a worker at the Trading Post who translated for us) that her gift was passed down from her ancestors. Her hairstyle was made exclusively of beads, as is the custom for Basotho healers. She explained that her medicine is not separate from western medicine, but will work in harmony with it. Therefore, if somebody is very sick (ie: AIDS) she will recommend for them to go to the clinic (this is not the case with all healers, some of whom believe they can cure AIDS). In addition, she practices Catholicism, which some members of our group had a difficult time appreciating (but for me came more naturally given the openness of my family to accept things that are “outside the box”).

Upon returning to the van, a car stopped by to see if we needed help…and the person offering the help was none other than Kennedy, the Rasta-Basotho-drummer we met the week before! It was a hoot to see him again.

Leratong Community Center Day 2

2008-07-22T11:16:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 18th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we split into groups again for our community projects. I went back to Leratong Community Center with four other Fulbrighters. I spent the morning crocheting again and appreciate how impressed the girls pretended to be with my skills.

Upon returning after lunch, the students opened the large bags of American flags that Doug brought and each waved one while singing different songs to us, which was quite special.

However, I am not sure that we will be welcomed back into the United States in a few weeks… we played capture the flag again. Only this time instead of old water bottles as “flags” we used actual flags. In fact, we used two of the U.S. flags that Doug brought and the kids LOVED every second of the game. Some of the rules were lost in translation, but overall the kids were fantastic and began to create good defensive strategies to protect their own flags. It was so much fun to watch and the kids seemed to enjoy the idea of the game. My favorite moment of the day was when a smaller child crossed the center line, his flag-filled arms raised above his head and an enormous grin on his face.

It was a rather good use of small American flags if you ask me.

Maseru Sun

2008-07-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 17th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today is King Letsie III’s birthday and a national holiday in Lesotho. To celebrate we finished off the evening with a fantastic dinner at the Maseru Sun hotel. It was a great time and I would recommend the buffet dinner (including Mongolian BBQ) to anybody visiting Lesotho.

It should be noted that we did have two briefings prior to dinner, so we were all very hungry by the time 6:30 came around and felt that we had earned our dinner.

Math Card Games

2008-07-22T10:29:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 17th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Following breakfast this morning a woman came to demonstrate math card games used to increase appreciation for math facts. She brought with her a young man and continued to beat all of us when playing the game, which are very educational.

The games turned out to be very fun and many of us decided to purchase copies and I am sure that we will enjoy playing them with our students and families.

Leratong Community Center

2008-07-16T11:29:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 15th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we split into groups to do different projects. I went with a group down the street to the newly constructed Leratong Community Center. This building was created to provide the large number of orphans, many of which have been orphaned due to the AIDS pandemic, a safe place to go. The Community Center is run by volunteers who organize a range of activities to help the young people become healthy adults. They learn more about positive self esteem, health issues, life skills that might provide them an income (like crafts), play games, and practice cultural activities.

During the morning I worked with some girls and boys learning to crochet. At first they were skeptical that I would know about such things, but once they saw me work they because to ask for help and it was very fun to teach them. During the second part of the morning I worked with Mike and Doug trying to teach a group of energetic youngsters how to play capture the flag. It was interesting working with the interpreter to explain the rules…at one point we forgot an important rule and it became obvious when the started playing. Once we got it sorted out they had an awesome time! It was so fun watching them strategize and work together to protect their flag. It was also nice to teach them a game they could possibly play in the future to entertain themselves.

When we returned to the Community Center after lunch a group of older students and women had arrived to demonstrate some traditional dancing to the younger students. I was having a great time watching the dancing and was even swaying with a toddler when an older woman came up to me and told me I should go dance with the group. At first I was nervous, but then I thought-well, when is the next time I will be invited to participate in a traditional Lesotho dance? So, I went out and tried to do the dance—but I am not sure that my booty moved quite right. When the song we over I thought I was too…but the woman came back up to me and tied a skirt around my waist and said “now you are Basotho!” Then she pushed me back out to dance some more.

I’ve never danced with people cheering for me like that before and I have to admit, even though I know that I was not good, it did not stop me from having an incredible time. The rest of the afternoon the little kids giggled at me and moved their butts imitating my dancing and all I could do was laugh!

The Primary School

2008-07-16T11:28:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 16th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

This morning we went to visit the local primary school, which is one of the nicer buildings in the area. The building of the school was funded by the Catholic Church, but the church does not have anything to do with the costs associated with running school. The money for the teachers comes from the federal government, which now provided primary school (1st-7th grade) for free. However, the number of students has increased and the number of teachers has not. Therefore, each grade has one teacher (except for 1st grades which has two teachers because there are 130 1st graders). All of the students spend the entire day with a single teacher in the same classroom. Class sizes range between 58-100 students this year.

Since it is winter break the students are not in session (they still have break in the winter because there is no heating in the school). However, the 7th grade students have to continue taking classes during their break because they are getting ready for the exit exam that will occur for them in October to determine if they will complete primary school and be ready for secondary school. There were 58 students in the 7th grade and we were allowed to visit their class and introduce ourselves. The students sang us a beautiful song and, I must admit, of our students were so well behaved I might not mind having 58 at a time.

One thing that is a little different from the U.S. is that the students in a classroom might range greatly in ages. For example, the 7th grade classroom we visited had students between the ages of 11-18. This is because some students might need to take time away from school to serve as a herdboy, they might be called to work to take care of their families, they might be orphaned and unable to pay for uniforms/books, or they might not have passed (we were told that most students repeat at least one grade).

Daka aka Marijuana

2008-07-16T11:27:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 16th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

There are a few of us who walk in the morning before breakfast. While walking in the morning, very early, you smell Daka smoke blowing through the air. You smell it in the afternoon. You smell it at night. You pretty much can smell it anytime, but it is particularly strong in the morning.

You see small children, usually boys, smoking it in the corners.

It grows outside peoples homes.

Nobody seems to do much about it, even though it is supposed to be illegal. We were told that the police only go after big sellers trying to get it across the border and, for the most part, it is South African police that are trying to stop it and Lesotho police have other things to do.

Mohale Dam

2008-07-16T11:27:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 15th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we took drive out to the Mohale Dam, which is part of the Lesotho Highlands Water Authority project. To get to the dam we risked our lives, traveling on an incredibly rolling, steep on both sides, icy pass through the mountains (Eric, you would have LOVED it). It was a long series of switchbacks through some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen-probably some of the most beautiful in the world.

The dam is part of the project that has been created through a partnership between Lesotho and South Africa to help both countries. One of the assets that Lesotho has is water and it is something that South Africa needs. Therefore, the dam project has been created to provide South Africa with water (through a long underground tunnel) and Lesotho the energy provided by the hydroelectric plant associated with the dam and the money for the water they provide South Africa.

It has also provided Lesotho with a tourist opportunity, as the dam and the waterways created by it are absolutely beautiful. I would encourage anybody to visit this area, it will take your breath away it is so amazing. The pictures will not do it justice.

We were allowed the opportunity to drive over the top of the dam, walk into the dam, and then drive down the back side to the river below. The drive down and up were very steep and a little nerve wrecking, probably even more so for our fearless driver Patrick. It was a wonderful day trip for us all!

Ministry of Education

2008-07-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 14th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Pictures will be posted even later...sorry!

This evening we visited the Ministry of Education. It was unfortunate that we had so many visits during the day, because we were pretty tired by they time we got there and probably would have asked many more questions if it was not so late in the day. That said, he was an excellent speaker. It was nice to have somebody speak so honestly and openly about the educational system.

He explained that students taken all of their classes in Sesotho during grades 1-3. Then, during grades 4-6, students start to learn more English. Finally, grades 7-12 are taught exclusively in English.

After each level of school there is a test to determine if students will pass on to the next level, although many students don’t pass between grades based on teacher’s recommendation. The exit exam upon completed 12th grade is the Cambridge Overseas Exam, which is not a highly valued exam around the world at this point in time. Therefore, students completing high school in Lesotho are often required to complete one year of pre-college/university coursework to be ready to start their college education. This includes the National University of Lesotho.

For funding, Lesotho values education highly and 12% of their GNP is spent on education-which is the highest in Africa. However, there are still some concerns. For example, for every $1 spent on primary school student’s education, $200 is spent for a college student’s education. Less than 1% of the education spent on special education and, although only 20% of students receive pre-school, only 1% of the education budget goes towards that as well.

The speaker emphasized the lack of qualified teachers as a huge problem. Around 40% of primary school teachers lack the appropriate certificate. He continued to say that, at the current rate of teacher certification (there is a distance education course for current full-time teachers) it will be 2015 before all of the teachers will be certified.

He also stated the connection between religious institutions and schools continues to be a problem when trying to teach life skills courses. This seems to be a larger problem when it comes to sex education and information about HIV/AIDS (which infects about 35-40% of Lesotho).

Overall, the speaker was very interesting and it was a great way to end our day of great speakers.

Ear Infection

2008-07-16T11:25:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 14th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Pictures will be posted even later...sorry!

I have an ear infection. Yes, it hurts. Yes, it is annoying. However, I’ve had enough ear infections to know that it is an ear infection…but I was nervous about it getting worse because of the cold weather.

Here in Lesotho I did not need to see a doctor, but could simply go to the pharmacy to purchase an antibiotic. The pharmacist didn’t think that I would actually buy the medicine that I asked for once I told him the price, since it was expensive. I bought it anyway-it was 175R…which is about $22.00, without insurance. Can you imagine? It would have been more at home when using my insurance!

We met the King…and he poured out tea!

2008-07-16T11:24:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 14th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Pictures will be posted even later...sorry!

Today we had a meeting arranged with the King Letsie III, but it is hard to know if meeting with some higher ranking members of government will end up working out. So, we were really excited this morning when it appeared that the meeting with the King was going to happen.

Prior to the visit, we were reminded to stand when the King enters and instructed not to ask the King any political questions. Lesotho is a constitutional monarchy (and a democracy), like England. This means that the King is the Head of State and his role is largely ceremonial.

We were welcomed into a room in the royal palace around 12:00. We spent about a half hour asking him questions and then we had a surprise-the King had prepared tea for us. There was a lovely spread of rolls, buns, cheese, fruit, and sandwiches. At the end of the table the King was waiting to pour our tea for us. It was a real treat.

After getting our food, we spent more time chatting in the sitting room. Our discussions included the U.S. presidential election, of which he indicated that, although he does not think that it will make a difference in Lesotho’s policies, it would be a definite novelty to have an African American U.S. president.

Our visit ended with a photo session outside the palace, during which he allowed us each to pose for individual shots with him.

Overall, the visit was fantastic and I although I am not ruling it out, I would doubt that I will have tea served by another King anytime soon.

Formosa Textile Visit

2008-07-16T11:23:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 14th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Pictures will be posted even later...sorry!

This morning we visited Formosa Textile, one of the large factories in Lesotho. Although I was interested in visiting one of the factories, it turned out be even more fascinating than I thought it would be. We were also

The factory we visited makes denim, which they sell to textile manufacturing companies that make jeans for Levis, Old Navy, Wal-Mart, and Gloria Vanderbilt. Every month they make 1.5 million yard of fabric, of which between 30-50% goes to the United States.

We had the chance to see the entire process of the denim being created starting with the large bales of cotton in the warehouse, then the spinning of the cotton into thread, next the weaving of the thread into fabric, and finally the dying of the fabric to the dark denim color. After the fabric is created it goes to quality control to be checked for inconsistencies.

One aspect of the process that stood out from the others is the dying process. This is because we were not allowed to take pictures of this part of the production. We were told that it was because of copying protection, since the company specially made the equipment. However, our group believes environmental concerns were the real reason they did not want pictures of the dying process taken. Specifically, considering the deep blue river that is located near the factory.

Returning to the Trading Post

2008-07-16T11:21:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 13th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date. Pictures will be posted even later...sorry!

After leaving Bloemfontein it was a short two hour drive back to Lesotho. At the border we filled out forms, showed our passports, and smiled at the guards like border-crossing experts.

As we turned down the road towards the Trading Post a large contingency of small children started running after the van yelling our names. We were welcomed back to Roma in style.

After dropping my bags off in my room, I spent the next few hours playing soccer with the children with some of the other Fulbrighters. In fact, I spent a considerable amount of time throwing the ball at children’s heads and encouraging them to keep their eyes open.

In case you were wondering what the Trading Post was like, I have attached some pictures to give you a better image.

Garbage and Recycling

2008-07-13T01:35:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

It can be incredibly difficult to find a garbage can in Lesotho or South Africa and recycling bins are nonexistent. In fact, garbage is commonplace on the sides of streets and you will often find large piles of garbage in ditches. There is also garbage all over Maseru. The garbage problem is intensified by the fact that Lesotho has no garbage pick-up or landfill. There really are not a whole lot of options for your garbage, unless you want the garbage to sit around your yard (which people keep very clean and are often sweeping).

The “darker” side of Bloemfontein

2008-07-13T01:35:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Most of the outer edges of the city of Bloemfontein consist of Townships, which are incredibly poor areas of town. Although people are not longer forced to live in these areas based on race, the economic segregation that continues to exist is unimaginable. The large degree of economic and educational changes that were necessary following the end of apartheid never happened within many of the Township areas, and the people continue to live in the type of poverty that you may not associate with modern South Africa.

People live in shacks made of whatever they can find, often pieces of scrap metal. It is surprising that any government would allow people to live in such horrendous conditions. For my students, do you remember the pictures of the hoovervilles I showed you during our study of the Great Depression? Image mile after mile of that type of living condition-that is what the Township looked like.

Navy Hill

2008-07-13T01:31:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

In Bloem, there is a place called Navy Hill. It named that because the German Navy provided the Boers with naval guns in fight the British from the top of the hill. Anyway, at the top is a nature park and an overlook.

While driving through the park we saw several animals-the kinds that you probably would assume we would see while in Africa! We saw giraffes, wildebeests, springbok, and ostriches! It was pretty neat to be driving and all of a sudden see them at the side of the bus.

We also enjoyed a beautiful view of Bloemfontein, which is a sprawling city.

Our Bloemfontein Home

2008-07-13T01:27:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Our hotel in Bloem is called the College Lodge, since it is located near the University of the Free State. There is a cat that hangs out at the front desk and sometimes he is the only person working. It was funny when we came back today and our bags were “missing,” only to be found in the closet. In fact, the maid took all of our clothing (which was folded on the chairs in the room) and put them in the closet.

Our room (Allison is my roommate again) is quite small, which is nice because it warms up fast. Our toilet seat and cover is made of green wood.

There is a swimming pool and although it feels balmy compared to Lesotho, it is still only about 45F outside so I think we might skip it.

There are two huge malls within a few blocks of each other, both walking distance from our hotel. It is strange that these huge malls would be so close together-and they both seem busy all the time. One strange thing is that they close early according to American standards. For example, today is Saturday and stores close earlier than weekdays, all the stores closing between 3:00-5:00. It is nice, though, because you can do all your shopping in one place including grocery shopping. Bookstore were interesting, they had whole sections for Afrikaans books, and it was fun to see what music was on the South African top 10.

The Cubana Night

2008-07-13T01:26:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

While in Bloemfontein we wanted to try a little nightlife, since nightlife at the Trading Post in Lesotho consists of an evening fire that usually ends by about 9pm (yes, we are a little lame but we get up early and we are non-stop the whole day). Anyway, Doug and Marshall were already out and said we should join them. On the phone, Doug told us the place was called “Chewbaca,” so that is what we tried to tell the taxi driver who only spoke Afrikaans. It turned out that it was actually called “Cubana,” which is funny considering Doug’s attempts during Sesotho lessons have concluded in Spanish responses.

The place was warm, had good deals, the people working were friendly, and one member of our group was enjoying the hooka. On tv, instead of sports, they were showing a fashion show, which was a little strange.

The bathroom attendants were very aggressive in their attempts at earning rand. In the ladies room the attendant told Allison to use soap and then waited with a towel to dry her hands, and in the men’s room the attendant saw the US dollar in Doug’s wallet and asked for it instead of rand. Then, when Mike went to the bathroom, the attendant asked for something from America instead of money, so Mike gave him a bracelet. Then the guy thanked Doug for sending his American friend when he went to the bathroom a second time.

Overall, it was a fun night and we still managed to make it back to the hotel by a little after 11pm.

The Afrikaans Art and Music Festival

2008-07-13T01:10:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 11th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Our weekend in Bloemfontein coordinated with an Afrikaans Art and Music festival. People were selling a wide range of objects in their booths. Allison and I were walking through and there were some very persistent salesmen trying to sell us oil paintings they had made themselves, after finally getting away we were surprised to see the same paintings in other booths and we were glad we didn’t purchase the ones we saw from the first “artists.”

There were several people selling crocs…actually, it may have said “cruc” on the label because it was clear that the Croc Company was not benefiting from the counterfeit sales of the shoes. There were also several people selling dried meat products, included biltong.

The most interesting thing was the musical stage. From far away Allison said that it sounded like Jimmy Buffet. However, upon getting closer to the stage I started to pick out the words that were being sung in a sad sort of cowboy manner…. “Vindshied viper slap in time..” It was a very interesting, Afrikaans-cowboy version of a normally excellent Janis Joplin song done by two middle age men. I will try to upload the video, but the shaking camera due to my giggling must be overlooked..

Bloemfontein

2008-07-12T04:38:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 10th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we left Lesotho and made our way back to South Africa for the weekend. We are in Bloemfontein, which is about two hours from Lesotho—but it seems like another world.

After being in Lesotho for a week and a half, the buildings in Bloem seems very tall and fancy. The air smells different (and feels different in your lungs, lower altitude). We do not stand out as much due to our race as we did in Lesotho but, it is strange to have people assume that I speak Afrikaans simply because I am white. (Especially when I find Afrikaans to be as big of a mystery as Sesotho.) In addition, Bloem seems to be more segregated than the area we stayed in Jo’burg.

Today we had 5 different speakers in a row. Some of them were really good speaker and were very interesting…I took about a zillion pages of notes, but I am not going to bore you with the details. One interesting component was about language in school. Apparently, after 3rd grade in South Africa schools/testing only occurs in either English or Afrikaans-regardless of the home language of the child and regardless of the fact there are 11 official languages of the country. This has led to the continuation of segregated schools, as the majority of students in the Townships areas go to English schools and the majority of white students go to Afrikaans schools. This segregation continues to exist at the University of the Free State (where we were unable to buy t-shirts because the shop was closed for winter break) because college students continue to take classes in one of the two languages. We did not realize that the segregation would continue to exist so heavily in parts of South Africa, although now it seems to be largely economically based, the lack of fully integrated schools cannot be helping to break down the walls that exist.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

2008-07-12T04:37:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of the 10th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

During our visit to the ministry of Foreign Affairs we had a briefing with the actual Minister, which was very nice of him. He spoke to us for about 20 minutes and then had the top secretary in the department present a PowerPoint.

During the presentation it was made clear that Lesotho values Democracy and human rights. This is partly due to their need for aid and the willingness of countries to provide aid to places with good track records in those areas. Nevertheless, the continued to state the importance of those people to the Basotho government left us with high expectations.

Our group noticed major inconsistencies during the presentation. For example, the stated need to support Democracy, but then supporting governmental regimes that might provide “stability” (later in the day they came out in support of the Mugabi presidency in Zimbabwe) or the stated desire to support a the self-determination of a country, but then openly supporting the One China policy of PRC (issues: Taiwan and Tibet).

These inconsistencies of other were problematic for us Fulbrighters, who were hoping for the government would be more willing to stay consistent with beliefs and actions.

However, I am starting to appreciate the position that Lesotho is in. As an aid-dependant country, they are always trying not to rock the boat. There is a need to follow the lead of their “big brother” (South Africa) because it could be dangerous to do, at the economy of Lesotho is tied directly to the economy of South African and the other SADC countries. In addition, they openly admitted that there are times they have voted with the U.S. in the UN simply because it didn’t hurt them, even if they didn’t really like the vote. I guess that it is just another consequence to leading a small, economically insecure and landlocked country.

The Drum Session with the Basotho-Rasta-Quaker

2008-07-10T09:28:00.003-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 9th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

The other night we experienced something interesting-we spend the evening with a Basotho-Rasta-Quaker named Kennedy. He explained that when he discovered he was HIV+ he left his home and wanted to find some time with nature.

Now he has built a school for AIDS orphans where he currently lives. We all sat around a big bonfire in a circle and spent over an hour or so playing West Africa drums as a group.

Kennedy was quite a character. Many members of the group believed he possibly smoked something prior to our visit, as he seemed a little, actually a lot out there in la-la-land but it was still a unique experience and a lot of fun.

Secondary School Education

2008-07-10T09:28:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 9th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Although primary school is free in Lesotho, secondary education requires payment. Secondary school can cost between 1200M-2400M ($160-320) per year, not including textbooks and uniform feels. This is too expensive for many families and many students are unable to continue their education after 7th grade.

We were told by Jenny Thorn, the owner of the Trading Post, for US$200 you can provide a student’s tuition, books, and uniforms. For US$300 you can also provide the student with a daily food allowance for an entire year, which is important because many of the students are orphans and cannot work to provide for themselves.

If you are interested in providing money to help a child continue their education, instructions will be provided on a future blog posting.

Lesotho College of Education and Educational Challenges in Lesotho

2008-07-10T09:28:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

In recent years, primary school has been made free in Lesotho. For this reason, there are large numbers of students in primary school.

Primary school: 400,000 students
Secondary school: 80,000 students

Today we visited the Lesotho College of Education, where teacher training in Lesotho occurs. This College is separate from the University, which is different from the U.S.

Lesotho faces a huge teacher shortage, due to the increase in the number of students when primary schools (until grade 7) became free and due to the number of teachers who have died due to the AIDS pandemic. Therefore, the Lesotho College of Education has two different types of programs for people interested in becoming certified teachers.

First: a traditional program for students interested in attending school full time. The program lasts for 3 years; the second year is spent in the classroom doing students teaching activities. Individuals can choose the primary school program or the secondary school program. Primary school teachers are required to be able to teach all subjects, up to the 7th grade level. Secondary school teachers are required to choose any two subjects to focus on.

Second: this program is only for primary school teachers, since there is a much greater need for them. If a teacher is already teaching full-time, without a certificate, they can participate in the 4 year part-time program that allows them to continue teaching and pursue a certificate at the same time by participating in classes two weeks each semester.

Since Lesotho places such a high emphasis on education (education is almost never free in under-developed countries), it is not surprising that scholarships are also available for individuals who want to become teachers.

In addition, the government of Japan has just built the College of Education an amazing new science building, complete with labs, as part of a humanitarian presence to promote education in Lesotho.

Prices

2008-07-10T09:27:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

One thing that stands out when shopping is prices. It can be difficult to guess how much an item might cost, some things are much cheaper than they would be in the U.S. and some are much more expensive. In a developing country, specifically one that is an enclave of another country, it is all about access and demand.

Here are some approximant prices:
Cardboard poster tube (which was very difficult to find-only one store in Maseru sells them) – M69 ($9.20)
Bottle of good red wine – M35 ($4.66)
One beer – M8 ($1.07)
One can of coke (coke light or diet coke are unavailable here) – M5.50 ($0.73)
Doctor visit and prescription (one person in our group was ill) – M130 ($17.33)
Soccer ball – M220 ($29.33)
Hand woven Basotho hat – M10 ($1.33)
Math textbook (which students are required to purchase for themselves) – M165 ($22.00)
A large, woven, wool wall hanging (which are very Sesotho, but not very many Basotho people can afford them – M522 ($69.60)
15 minutes of internet (but it is slow, not available in Roma where we are staying, and load shedding prevents use at times) – M3 ($0.40)
1 minute call to the U.S. – M14 ($1.87)

Also, it should be mentioned that Lesotho’s currency is the Maluti, but they will also accept rand anywhere and at an even 1:1 ratio. However, South Africa will not accept Maluti, so we will need to make sure to spend or exchange our Maluti before leaving Leaotho.

Lesotho, Sesotho, Basotho..oh my!

2008-07-10T09:26:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

There might be some confusion concerning some of the terminology I’ve been using regularly…

Lesotho (le-sue-too): the country and land
Basotho (ba-sue-too): the people living in Lesotho
Sesotho (se-sue-too): things that are of Lesotho or the Basotho, like the language

Hope this helps!

Load Shedding

2008-07-10T09:26:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it will be posted at a later date. Internet connection is dial-up, therefore images will be attached upon returning to South Africa during the weekend of 11-12 July. Sorry! I have the pictures picked out and will post as soon as I can!

Load shedding is an interesting thing to get used to. Load shedding occurs because there is deficit of electricity (South Africa is in the process of building several new coal electric plants to accommodate the increase energy demand). Therefore, electricity goes out for several hours a day, at different times in depending on the area.

For us here in Roma this occurs sometime in the morning, usually around 7:00am. This can be problematic for people trying to shower since the water pumps need electricity for good water pressure to be established. It can also make the morning colder because your electric blanket will go off and ease you into the chilly morning.

Load shedding in Maseru happens later in the day, which is a problem for restaurants (which seem to temporarily shut down during power outages) and internet cafes (the computers are improperly turned off about once day).

I also seemed to notice that people don’t use elevators in public buildings and, as I was walking up six flights of stairs, it occurred to me that being a passenger in an elevator during load shedding would not be a fun experience.

HIV/AIDS Posters

2008-07-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it will be posted at a later date. Internet connection is dial-up, therefore images will be attached upon returning to South Africa during the weekend of 11-12 July. Sorry! I have the pictures picked out and will post as soon as I can!

There is a strong difference in health policy, specifically concerning HIV/AIDS, between South Africa and Lesotho.

Concerning South Africa, there seems to be a lack of appreciation for the seriousness of the problem. In fact, governmental officials will refer to HIV and AIDS instead of HIV/AIDS-indicating there is not a definite connection between the two. In addition, the government of South Africa continues to advocate for nutrition programs as a method for battling with the virus. In terms of the ARVs, there seems to be a real suspicion that the United States and the pharmaceutical companies are working to take advantage of the people of South Africa. Some people believe that the ARVs simply don’t work and others believe that they are actually detrimental to an individual’s health and cannot be trusted. There is also the Zuma rape case, during which he stated he showered following a sexual experience with an HIV positive woman to prevent transmission. This created more confusion in the minds of South Africans.

As soon as you cross the border into Lesotho there are huge billboards advocating safe sex. Billboards and posters are posted throughout Lesotho, specifically in public facilities. In addition, ARVs are available to HIV positive people in Lesotho for no cost by the government (which has a negotiated cost and economic assistance through a wide variety of programs). All of the governmental officials we have met have also expressed concern over the HIV/AIDS pandemic without prompting, which was not the case in South Africa. Some of the posters are quite overt, encouraging people to be more comfortable talking about preventive measures.

Lesotho Blankets

2008-07-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July.
It is winter in Lesotho, which I think I have probably mentioned at least a billion times, and so it can be quite cold.

In fact, there are whole days during which I have not really felt warm.

The Basotho people remedy the weather by wearing clothing appropriate for winter. This usually includes the wearing of a Basotho blanket. These blankets are often brightly colored and patterned, often with maize images or patterns an American might associated with cards (specifically spades). The blankets are made out of wool and are incredibly warm. They are worn in many different ways, depending on the individual’s sense of fashion, the size of the blanket, and the desire to stay protected from the elements. Common ways to wear the blanket in Lesotho include: as a cape around your shoulders, wrapped around your entire body, or wrapped around your waist like a skirt.
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These blankets are not exclusively utilized in the rural areas; it is just as common to see a person walking through downtown Maseru sporting a brightly colored blanket over their shoulders as it would be in the rural areas herding sheep.

Many of us Fulbrighters have already purchased our own blankets and, although we haven’t yet worn them to on our governmental visits, we have used them to keep us warm at night.

Thaba Bosiu

2008-07-10T09:23:00.002-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 7th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

The most famous person in Lesotho is King Moshoeshoe (Mo-shway-shway), the King famous for uniting the Basotho people together. As a protective measure, Moshoeshoe led his people to the top of a mountain plateau that allowed for livestock to graze, provided fresh water, and afforded them the opportunity to see enemies approaching from a great distance. In fact, when attached they could even drop rocks on them and force them down the cliffs.

Today we climbed up this mountain. In fact, there are two ways up the mountain-a) straight up, steep, and probably a little dangerous and b) winding along the side of the mountain and much safer. For some not to interesting reasons, I was left to climb alone with Dick, Allison, and Doug. Dick allowed us to choose which path we would take, I wanted to take the one straight up the mountain but did not realized I was choosing for the whole group (including our senior member, Dick) when I said so. I must admit that I remain impressed by Dick’s capabilities. Although he needed a few breaks, he managed to walk himself right up the side of that mountain-hardly using his walking stick!

At the top we saw Moshoeshoe’s house, viewed the graves of him and his predecessors, and were amazed by the beautiful views. The guide would not allow us to walk down the steep path. I think he mentioned something about it being dangerous.

Baylor Children’s Clinical Centre of Excellence

2008-07-10T09:23:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 7th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

While at the July 5th party a member of our group (Emily M) met a women from the U.S. who is working at the Baylor Children’s Clinical Centre of Excellence, which is a clinic that was created through a partnership between Baylor Medical Center in Houston, TX, Bristol-Myer-Squibb (excuse the lack of spelling, I am typing without internet now and posting at a later time), and the government of Lesotho. UNICEF has been involved in a project the clinic is now working on to get medical services to people who live higher in the mountains and too far to travel to Maseru.

The Clinic, which is a beautiful building, was established as a pediatric facility that concentrates on HIV/AIDS. All patients can receive care at no cost and the clinic sees and average of 100 patients every day. The funding for the ARV’s used to treat HIV come from the government of Lesotho, which as partnered with the Clinton Foundation (President Clinton is highly revered in Lesotho). In addition to medication, the caregivers of the children (usually grandparents, neighbors, or older siblings) are taught about the importance of good nutrition and provided information about protecting themselves from transmission.

Most of the doctors have applied through Baylor Medical Schools following their residencies, although they are required to participate in a month long training in Houston to learn more about treating pediatric HIV. American doctors also receive a percent of medical school loan forgiveness for every year they are here. Although the initial commitment is for one year, several doctors have added years to their stay in Lesotho.

The waiting room had a shockingly large number of people waiting, some many that children were sitting on the floor and some stayed outside. It was also surprising how few men there were…of the 150 or so people in the waiting room I saw two men. The doctors emphasized the large gender gap that exists for seeking care and we have heard mentioned by other speakers.

The clinic seems to be a great facility and one the people of Lesotho are thankful for. I worry about changes in international policy that may influence funding, as the free aspect of the clinic is of extreme importance for many of the impoverished people living in Lesotho.

Traditional Dance

2008-07-10T09:22:00.001-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 6 July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Upon returning from our exciting drive today, some children greeted us at the gate and a large group performed a traditional dance for us. One boy played a drum and sang, accompanied by the other children singing. Three young girls had grass skirts on top of a skirt made of bottle caps that would bang together when dancing. The dance was very rhythmic.

A girls of boys was goofing around and were called on to perform a dance of their own, which was also very entertaining but much more modern. They were accompanied by a young man playing a bucket drum.

I talked to one of the dancers at the end of the performance and she said that she has always danced, loves to perform, and was glad that we were there to watch.

The Adventurous Drive

2008-07-10T09:21:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 6 July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Yesterday our bus/van blew a tire, which was not that big of a deal because we had a spare. However, the stop to repair the tire was not open today (nothing is open on Sunday), so when we were on our way to Thaba Bosiu and another tire blew…well, that became a problem. We were on some back roads, seriously back roads with large rocks and we must have gone over one of them hard enough to puncture the tire.

It happens that today is the coldest day since we arrived, I don’t think the sun came out at all and frost remained on the ground. When we all piled off of the bus it became clear that the only way to stay warm would be to start walking, figuring the bus could pick us up once one of the rear tires (there are two on each side in the back) was moved to replace the busted front tire.

We drew a lot of attention on our walk, as the road we were on is not yet completed and the people are probably not used to large numbers (10 or so) of white people walking by. At one point I was offered a donkey and I had to try to explain that I don’t have a place for a donkey (big sorry to Eric if he would have wanted the donkey to ride to work).

Allison and I tried to give some kids stickers, but they were a little nervous about us and made me set them on the ground…but then they didn’t know what they were so I had to demonstrate on Allison how to make them stick (now there are a bunch of kids in rural Lesotho wearing Mickey stickers.

When the bus picked us up the adventure was not over yet…we still had the unfinished bridge to cross, which went ok. Then some kids were waving us not to go down this road, but we did anyway only to discover that it ended when a giant truck blocking the way and large piles of gravel all the side for miles. Overall, construction in Lesotho appears to happen even more slowly than in the Midwest.

The Weavers

2008-07-10T09:20:00.000-07:00

The following blog post was written on the evening of 6 July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

Today we visited the weavers in TY. They do amazing work, creating beautiful wall hangings from hand-spun sheep wool. All of the hangings were beautiful, but many were very large-too large for many of our homes.

Instead many of us settled on smaller hangings, since they are more practical in terms of a place to hang them. It was also nice to see a woman weaving in the studio.