Well I presented my Indep. Study Project stuff (again) for a special research symposium at Smith last weekend... Looking over that thing that dominated my life last semester brought back all those great memories, and also the not-so-great ones (um, bedbugs anyone?)...
I have this list of all these South African idiosyncracies that I miss and that I think we all actively need to work on bringing over to the statess... For example, integrating "hectic" into our everyday vocab, calling traffic lights "robots" (because they clearly are), walking around barefoot--everywhere, calling napkins serviettes, and systematically removing all trash cans (or "rubbish bins"). There are obviously some things that we all love about South Africa that will never hit it big here, like putting mayo on everything (including pizza--yummy, *gag*), making cream soda the color of fluorescent nuclear waste, making people pay for plastic bags at the supermarket, and, of course, minibus taxis.
Otherwise life has been pretty decent, particularly the last week since the weather has finally decided to cooperate. Unfortunately, the nicer the weather, the less work gets done... which is tough considering how much work there is at the end of the semester-- ugh.
Anyway, I actually have a pretty cool summer lined up so far. I'm taking a bit of a break after classes end and traveling with some friends to Reykjavik for a week, then visiting a friend who's abroad in Italy for a week... After that I'm interning at this foundation called Africa Now that's based in Oxford, England. They do some pretty cool work and it's a pretty small org (at least on the British end) so I'll hopefully be able to actually do some real work for them. Anyway that lasts abour 6 weeks and then I'm going to Sierra Leone (and possibly Liberia) with a few kids from Amherst because we've started an org and raised some money to build schools for girls. I'm really excited about that trip, though my parents are clearly freaking out about security. It's all good though because we're going under the auspices of UNICEF so we'll have a UN security detail (sounds pretty hardcore, right?)... That takes us to the middle of August and then... I dunno... probably just relaxing :-)
I hope you're all well and that the end of the year isn't too hectic!
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Monday, December 20, 2004
Goodbye South Africa
Last weekend was a flurry of goodbyes to Cape Town, shopping, partying, and days on the beach (though not in the water because the Atlantic there is basically the Antarctic Ocean). It was quite difficult to say 'bye to Cape Town, a city I have after 4 months come to consider another home.
On Tuesday morning, after our free weekend, the whole group was bused to Hermanus, a pretty beach town about 2 hours from CT, known for the "best land-based whale watching in the world!" Of course, the whales are not currently around, so we saw jack shit. We did spend a fair amount on time on beach, and actually swimming in water as this was the Indian Ocean.
We also had some pretty corny "de-orientation" sessions about the issues of re-entry etc... Bascially you all should be very sensitive and eager to hear about my experience :-P All is all though it was great to spend the last four days just with our group. On Friday after a nice lunch on a wine farm, we drove to airport and said goodbye to our Academic directors and to the kids who were staying around CT for the holidays.
Anyway, I'll gloss over the 22hrs inside an airplane, which basically consisted of watching many many crappy movies and downing several mini bottles of wine. So after a grand total of about 32hours of traveling, I got back to the USA yesterday morning! And even though I'm slightly traumatized by the bloody cold, I am happy to be home, back up at my country house, with my family, my dog, and our new kitten. I am planning on sequestering myself here for a couple of days to unpack and readjust, but I will definitely be back in the city and ready to party on Monday evening.
Hope to see you all very soon! Happy Holidays,
Kisses,
Eve
On Tuesday morning, after our free weekend, the whole group was bused to Hermanus, a pretty beach town about 2 hours from CT, known for the "best land-based whale watching in the world!" Of course, the whales are not currently around, so we saw jack shit. We did spend a fair amount on time on beach, and actually swimming in water as this was the Indian Ocean.
We also had some pretty corny "de-orientation" sessions about the issues of re-entry etc... Bascially you all should be very sensitive and eager to hear about my experience :-P All is all though it was great to spend the last four days just with our group. On Friday after a nice lunch on a wine farm, we drove to airport and said goodbye to our Academic directors and to the kids who were staying around CT for the holidays.
Anyway, I'll gloss over the 22hrs inside an airplane, which basically consisted of watching many many crappy movies and downing several mini bottles of wine. So after a grand total of about 32hours of traveling, I got back to the USA yesterday morning! And even though I'm slightly traumatized by the bloody cold, I am happy to be home, back up at my country house, with my family, my dog, and our new kitten. I am planning on sequestering myself here for a couple of days to unpack and readjust, but I will definitely be back in the city and ready to party on Monday evening.
Hope to see you all very soon! Happy Holidays,
Kisses,
Eve
Friday, December 10, 2004
Final days eAfrika
Wow the semester has certainly sped by... I can't believe I only have 10 days left in South Africa! However I have been trying to make the most of my time left, which has actually been helped by the fact that my mother is down here visiting. I met up with her in Joburg last Saturday, and we spent the weekend in Zimbabwe. We saw Victoria Falls and did a little safari/touring of Zim. Needless to say that the trip was great. The falls are amazing, particularly the aerial view we got from our helicopter ride(!)
We got back eKapa on Monday evening (I'm staying with her at the hotel), and I spent Tuesday showing her around... A long walk around the city (and some shopping along the way) and a visit to my family in Langa. Yesterday was pretty exciting bc I managed to convince my mom to join me in an activity I've wanted to do for a long time: cage diving with great white sharks. Oh yes, I was in a cage, in the Indian Ocean, with my mother, and great white sharks. Unfortunately, I got horribly sea sick (which never happens to me, but the sea was quite rough where we were anchored) but I just stuck it out. I even puked while I was in the cage :( Anyway it was really cool, and not scary at all. We saw about 8 different great white sharks, varying in size from 2.5-4 meters (juvenile size)... The best view was from the boat, and I only saw two sharks through the murky water while I was in the cage. The sharks were actually quite shy and didn't usually hang around for too long--except for this one huge female who kept sneaking up and stealing the bait. Despite losing about 5 pounds over the side of the boat, it was totally worth it. (Check out shark pics.)
Today is my mother's last day in Cape Town, and also the day that my massive ISP is due. Obviously this trip has been planned for a while so I actually finished the mega-research project last week, a whole week early. Yes, all 65 pages of it. (*pause for applause*) Thank you, thank you. Anyway I'm just finishing up some proof-reading now (clearly) and then I have to print it and get it bound.
So off to finish my work, and then hopefully have some time by the hotel pool before our big celebratory dinner tonight ;)
Love to all... and I guess I'll be seeing a lot of you in about 10 days!
The intrepid, adventurous, shark-diving E.V.E
We got back eKapa on Monday evening (I'm staying with her at the hotel), and I spent Tuesday showing her around... A long walk around the city (and some shopping along the way) and a visit to my family in Langa. Yesterday was pretty exciting bc I managed to convince my mom to join me in an activity I've wanted to do for a long time: cage diving with great white sharks. Oh yes, I was in a cage, in the Indian Ocean, with my mother, and great white sharks. Unfortunately, I got horribly sea sick (which never happens to me, but the sea was quite rough where we were anchored) but I just stuck it out. I even puked while I was in the cage :( Anyway it was really cool, and not scary at all. We saw about 8 different great white sharks, varying in size from 2.5-4 meters (juvenile size)... The best view was from the boat, and I only saw two sharks through the murky water while I was in the cage. The sharks were actually quite shy and didn't usually hang around for too long--except for this one huge female who kept sneaking up and stealing the bait. Despite losing about 5 pounds over the side of the boat, it was totally worth it. (Check out shark pics.)
Today is my mother's last day in Cape Town, and also the day that my massive ISP is due. Obviously this trip has been planned for a while so I actually finished the mega-research project last week, a whole week early. Yes, all 65 pages of it. (*pause for applause*) Thank you, thank you. Anyway I'm just finishing up some proof-reading now (clearly) and then I have to print it and get it bound.
So off to finish my work, and then hopefully have some time by the hotel pool before our big celebratory dinner tonight ;)
Love to all... and I guess I'll be seeing a lot of you in about 10 days!
The intrepid, adventurous, shark-diving E.V.E
Friday, November 26, 2004
*yummy* it tastes like oppression
Just a quick note to update and to wish you all a happy turkey day (well, to those of you who are American or in the US at any rate)! It's so weird being out of the country and away from my family on my favorite holiday--especially since I'm usually in charge of Thanksgiving at home!
Anyway, my group decided that we had to have a Thanksgivng, so we had an ex-pat celebration last Sunday. Everyone participated by bringing a dish and yours truly was of course in charge of the turkey/stuffing/gravy/pecan pie. Actually there were 3 turkeys, yes 3, because I was feeding over 25 people. Needless to say that I did actually spend the entire day in kitchen. We had a great dinner though and a really nice evening all together (the pics were added to the website). There was tons of yummy food--enough that I've been surviving on left-overs most of the week. However it was a little surreal because it's summer down here, I mean, we had dessert around the pool.
Actually this whole "eternal summer" thing is messing with me a little bit. I've been wearing capris and tank tops for 6 months now; I am ready for wool sweaters, boots, scarves etc... It's definitely going to be quite a shock to arrive back home in NYC in mid-December and be greeted by snow, ice, and sub-zero wind chills.
Well I'll let you back to your copious meals and inevitable indigestion as I have to get back to work (I spent the whole day visiting corporate-sponsored small business programmes),
Love to all,
Eve
Anyway, my group decided that we had to have a Thanksgivng, so we had an ex-pat celebration last Sunday. Everyone participated by bringing a dish and yours truly was of course in charge of the turkey/stuffing/gravy/pecan pie. Actually there were 3 turkeys, yes 3, because I was feeding over 25 people. Needless to say that I did actually spend the entire day in kitchen. We had a great dinner though and a really nice evening all together (the pics were added to the website). There was tons of yummy food--enough that I've been surviving on left-overs most of the week. However it was a little surreal because it's summer down here, I mean, we had dessert around the pool.
Actually this whole "eternal summer" thing is messing with me a little bit. I've been wearing capris and tank tops for 6 months now; I am ready for wool sweaters, boots, scarves etc... It's definitely going to be quite a shock to arrive back home in NYC in mid-December and be greeted by snow, ice, and sub-zero wind chills.
Well I'll let you back to your copious meals and inevitable indigestion as I have to get back to work (I spent the whole day visiting corporate-sponsored small business programmes),
Love to all,
Eve
Friday, November 19, 2004
Summer in Cape Town
Molweni everyone,
Yes, it is summer in Cape Town! Warm, sunny, beautiful weather... that I obviously have not yet had the chance to take advantage of because I am in the library most of the day, everyday. No, the program is not all fun, traveling, and hospitalization, there is legit work involved. Actually there's quite a lot now because I'm working on my independant research project. Lectures/ classes are over and now we're free—a relative term in this situation obviously. The focus of my project is corporate social investment programmes (CSI) and their role in nation-building and development (fun fun fun). I've gotten really lucky and managed to get interviews with the directors of CSI programmes of huge companies (like Shell). Next week I'll be visiting some of the projects around Cape Town and then focusing on writing this mother of a paper--40 to 60 pages total.
However, I seem to be one of the few actually taking this seriously. My roomates spend more time chilling at the beach and smoking pot than studying. But that's their decision and, besides the fact that they regularly ravage the contents of the fridge, the living arrangements are going really well. Our flat is so cute; we have a little patio with lots of flowers and a huge tropical hibiscus plant, a sun room, stained glass doors, high ceilings etc...
Plus the neighborhood in Observatory is really nice, with little boutiques, lots of cafés and bars, random second hand shoes stores, organic food markets. Come to think of it, it's actually a lot like Northampton. With less lesbians. And no snow.
Alrighty, I'm cutting the rambling short this time... mainly because I really have to get to work transcribing these interviews.
Kisses,
Eve
Yes, it is summer in Cape Town! Warm, sunny, beautiful weather... that I obviously have not yet had the chance to take advantage of because I am in the library most of the day, everyday. No, the program is not all fun, traveling, and hospitalization, there is legit work involved. Actually there's quite a lot now because I'm working on my independant research project. Lectures/ classes are over and now we're free—a relative term in this situation obviously. The focus of my project is corporate social investment programmes (CSI) and their role in nation-building and development (fun fun fun). I've gotten really lucky and managed to get interviews with the directors of CSI programmes of huge companies (like Shell). Next week I'll be visiting some of the projects around Cape Town and then focusing on writing this mother of a paper--40 to 60 pages total.
However, I seem to be one of the few actually taking this seriously. My roomates spend more time chilling at the beach and smoking pot than studying. But that's their decision and, besides the fact that they regularly ravage the contents of the fridge, the living arrangements are going really well. Our flat is so cute; we have a little patio with lots of flowers and a huge tropical hibiscus plant, a sun room, stained glass doors, high ceilings etc...
Plus the neighborhood in Observatory is really nice, with little boutiques, lots of cafés and bars, random second hand shoes stores, organic food markets. Come to think of it, it's actually a lot like Northampton. With less lesbians. And no snow.
Alrighty, I'm cutting the rambling short this time... mainly because I really have to get to work transcribing these interviews.
Kisses,
Eve
Friday, November 12, 2004
diet Africa --low in carbs and political commentary
Helloooo everyone--
Terribly sorry about being slightly incommunicado recently... I know most of you must have been panic-stricken with the thought that I might have relapsed and been re-hospitalized. No such luck I'm afraid. Or maybe you were so absorbed in following the democratic processes in the US that you completely forgot about me. I won't go on some long diatribe (as promised in the subject line) but I would just like to say how weird it was "watching" the election from down here. Also, the fact that Mugabe is my neighbor to the North and that Swaziland still has a divinely appointed absolute monarch definitely puts Bush in perspective. (END POLITICAL RAMBLING HERE)
Well, last week we were in Stellenbosch, a small city in the wine country about an hour away from Cape Town. It's an really pretty city, surrounded by vineyards (yes, we did go on a wine tasting) and it feels a bit more like a big town with tree-lined streets, lots of cute cafés and boutiques.
It almost feels like a New England or even parts of Europe--which was basically the goal, because, fun fact about Stellenbosch: it's considered the intellectual birthplace of apartheid. All the prime ministers and architects of the apartheid went to the university of Stellenbosch. In fact, the legacy of apartheid is very strong there, and the white population (a majority there, duh) has some pretty fun views on South Africa as a new democracy. Most of them are comfortable, middle class farm-owners, and are semi-comparable to people from "Middle America." Well I won't delve into all the fun fun fun ignorant racist bullshit things we heard during our stay, but I will give you a fun fun fun anecdote about the family I stayed with there:
So about 3 months ago, the parents were car-jacked, at gun point, in their driveway. The father was shot and killed, and the mother was also shot but she survived. The bullet is still lodged in her chest, actually in is in her lung, which is why they can't remove it. Their 15-year-old son witnessed the whole thing from inside the house. But, you know, they're "fine with it."
WHAT?!
Yeah, it was pretty intense. And quite irresponsible on the part of my program directors to put me with a family that experienced such violent trauma so recently--as if I'm equipped to manage this situation. Thank god that we were paired for this homestay as well... My friend Becca and I were able to sort of support each other and take turns muttering sympathetic remarks to the family.
Ok so Stellenbosch is finito, and now we're on our last homestay. This time we're staying with Coloured families (that is the appropriate SA term to refer to people of mixed-race) in Cape Town. We just started that homestay last night, and my family is really nice. I'm staying in a nice proper, middle-class, mostly Christian suburb with about half the group, with the other half staying in the city center with middle-class Muslim families (during Ramadan, I know).
As you may have noticed, there are some organizational issues with the program, and yours truly is getting a teensy bit frusterated. Well I'm certainly not the only one, and we all vent to each other and mock our weird and quirky program directors: Shane, a short, middle-aged man from Ireland via Zimbabwe, stutters, loses his reading glasses several times a day, and can't drive us anywhere without making a minimum of 17 U-turns. Zed (see, even the name can be mocked) a lanky, middle-aged man from Zimbabwe plays rugby and comes to class with black eyes, tries to pose as a father-figure, and walks around bare-foot in the office (it's a South African thing). Scariest part? They both hold PhDs.
Well the 'structured' part of the program is almost over, and we'll all be starting our independent research projects next week. So for the remaing 5-6 weeks of the program (times flies, no?) we'll be living in Observatory, a cool, studenty, bohemic-chic area of CT. I found an awesome flat and am living there with 4 friends. We are all so excited to settle in and not be living out of backpacks... you have no idea how draining it is to be shuttled from family to family every few weeks, explaining the program over and over and repeating the same life-story spiel etc.
Anyway, we have afternoons free this week to do preliminary research for our ISP (indep. study projects) so maybe I'll go do that rather than further clogging your precious inboxes,
Love to all,
Eve
Terribly sorry about being slightly incommunicado recently... I know most of you must have been panic-stricken with the thought that I might have relapsed and been re-hospitalized. No such luck I'm afraid. Or maybe you were so absorbed in following the democratic processes in the US that you completely forgot about me. I won't go on some long diatribe (as promised in the subject line) but I would just like to say how weird it was "watching" the election from down here. Also, the fact that Mugabe is my neighbor to the North and that Swaziland still has a divinely appointed absolute monarch definitely puts Bush in perspective. (END POLITICAL RAMBLING HERE)
Well, last week we were in Stellenbosch, a small city in the wine country about an hour away from Cape Town. It's an really pretty city, surrounded by vineyards (yes, we did go on a wine tasting) and it feels a bit more like a big town with tree-lined streets, lots of cute cafés and boutiques.
It almost feels like a New England or even parts of Europe--which was basically the goal, because, fun fact about Stellenbosch: it's considered the intellectual birthplace of apartheid. All the prime ministers and architects of the apartheid went to the university of Stellenbosch. In fact, the legacy of apartheid is very strong there, and the white population (a majority there, duh) has some pretty fun views on South Africa as a new democracy. Most of them are comfortable, middle class farm-owners, and are semi-comparable to people from "Middle America." Well I won't delve into all the fun fun fun ignorant racist bullshit things we heard during our stay, but I will give you a fun fun fun anecdote about the family I stayed with there:
So about 3 months ago, the parents were car-jacked, at gun point, in their driveway. The father was shot and killed, and the mother was also shot but she survived. The bullet is still lodged in her chest, actually in is in her lung, which is why they can't remove it. Their 15-year-old son witnessed the whole thing from inside the house. But, you know, they're "fine with it."
WHAT?!
Yeah, it was pretty intense. And quite irresponsible on the part of my program directors to put me with a family that experienced such violent trauma so recently--as if I'm equipped to manage this situation. Thank god that we were paired for this homestay as well... My friend Becca and I were able to sort of support each other and take turns muttering sympathetic remarks to the family.
Ok so Stellenbosch is finito, and now we're on our last homestay. This time we're staying with Coloured families (that is the appropriate SA term to refer to people of mixed-race) in Cape Town. We just started that homestay last night, and my family is really nice. I'm staying in a nice proper, middle-class, mostly Christian suburb with about half the group, with the other half staying in the city center with middle-class Muslim families (during Ramadan, I know).
As you may have noticed, there are some organizational issues with the program, and yours truly is getting a teensy bit frusterated. Well I'm certainly not the only one, and we all vent to each other and mock our weird and quirky program directors: Shane, a short, middle-aged man from Ireland via Zimbabwe, stutters, loses his reading glasses several times a day, and can't drive us anywhere without making a minimum of 17 U-turns. Zed (see, even the name can be mocked) a lanky, middle-aged man from Zimbabwe plays rugby and comes to class with black eyes, tries to pose as a father-figure, and walks around bare-foot in the office (it's a South African thing). Scariest part? They both hold PhDs.
Well the 'structured' part of the program is almost over, and we'll all be starting our independent research projects next week. So for the remaing 5-6 weeks of the program (times flies, no?) we'll be living in Observatory, a cool, studenty, bohemic-chic area of CT. I found an awesome flat and am living there with 4 friends. We are all so excited to settle in and not be living out of backpacks... you have no idea how draining it is to be shuttled from family to family every few weeks, explaining the program over and over and repeating the same life-story spiel etc.
Anyway, we have afternoons free this week to do preliminary research for our ISP (indep. study projects) so maybe I'll go do that rather than further clogging your precious inboxes,
Love to all,
Eve
Friday, October 22, 2004
Free, free at last!
Wow it feels amazing to be online and back in business. As most of you know, I did not complete the week-long rural homestay because I got sick and had to be hospitalized. Yes, hospitalized in Africa. Rural Africa. Oh, there are many anecotes, including going into "town" to see the doctor via donkey-cart. Indeed, you read that correctly, a cart pulled by donkeys... four small, skinny-ass, mangey, probably diseased donkeys.
Anyway the hospital was not as bad I'm making it out to be. It was totally clean and non-sketchy, and I had a private room. Plus I got to be on morphine for a couple of days which was awesome. I'm still on antibiotics and painkillers, which are def essential bc I'm more than totally depressed about baseball. At least I'm not in Massachusetts having to live through this, and besides, there's a lot more to life than baseball. I'm not going to make a list now, but let's just say that not being confined to a hospital bed def puts things into perspective (I was in quarantine, aka not allowed out of my room in hospital and I was there for 6 days... human contact whittled down to nurses and my friends on Days of Our Lives).
Well, I'm back with the group now, currently staying in Durban in really nice apartments on the beach.
Actually I should probably head back to those now bc the group should be getting back soon, plus the Bold and the Beautiful is on...
Lots of love to all, and extra love to those who sent flowers, get-well emails, and who called me while I was in the hospital!!
-EVE
p.s yes, 6 days in the hospital+painkillers=addication to crappy american soaps
Anyway the hospital was not as bad I'm making it out to be. It was totally clean and non-sketchy, and I had a private room. Plus I got to be on morphine for a couple of days which was awesome. I'm still on antibiotics and painkillers, which are def essential bc I'm more than totally depressed about baseball. At least I'm not in Massachusetts having to live through this, and besides, there's a lot more to life than baseball. I'm not going to make a list now, but let's just say that not being confined to a hospital bed def puts things into perspective (I was in quarantine, aka not allowed out of my room in hospital and I was there for 6 days... human contact whittled down to nurses and my friends on Days of Our Lives).
Well, I'm back with the group now, currently staying in Durban in really nice apartments on the beach.
Actually I should probably head back to those now bc the group should be getting back soon, plus the Bold and the Beautiful is on...
Lots of love to all, and extra love to those who sent flowers, get-well emails, and who called me while I was in the hospital!!
-EVE
p.s yes, 6 days in the hospital+painkillers=addication to crappy american soaps
Saturday, October 09, 2004
Africa Update
Molweni Abahlobo, (Hello friends)
Life in SA have been going pretty well, as usual, despite having to deal with huge inconvenience of no phone/money/credit cards/ID etc... as well as dealing with tons of bugbites all over my body (yeah, it's those damn bedbugs again).
Last weekend we participated in a short program with the Direct Action Center for Peace and Memory. The center was created by a bunch of former-MK guys (militant branch of the African National Congress which was responsible for the so-called acts of terrorism that helped bring down the apartheid govt) and they showed us around all the different townships around Cape Town. The experience of actually standing in places where the police opened fire with live ammunition on groups of children, of hearing stories of how they watched their friends die and of how they fled the country to receive military training was quite intense. Most of them were in their mid- to late-thirties, meaning that they started participating in the armed struggle when they were kids, like 14 or 15 yrs old. To say the least, it was amazing and very emotional to interact with these guys...
The rest of the weekend was the complete polar opposite. My friend Liza's parents were in Cape Town on their way to a safari trip, and they got us a hotel room where they were staying. The Cape Grace is the nicest hotel in Cape Town and five of us (Liza, Sara, Jamie, Elliot, and myself--aka the Select 5) were treated to 24-hrs of luxury--definitely a nice change from Langa, but slightly surreal and disconcerting after the earlier experiences of the weekend. Liza's parents took us out to a fab sushi dinner and then bankrolled a night of drinking and debauchery at several of the Cape Town hotspots (is it just me or do I sound like some corny tour guide? who actually uses the word "hotspots"?).
On Sunday we had an amazing brunch at the hotel, chillaxed at the Waterfront, went to the movies (Harold and Kumar go to Whitecastle--that's how hungover we were), and then took a chauffered new 7-series beamer back to good ol' Langa.
The week otherwise has been somewhat uneventful, but it was our last one in Langa homestay. I'm definitely going to miss my over-protective mama constantly asking me if I'm hungry and baking fresh bread for me; little sisi Tina who I taught to "high-five" and who, upon seeing my copy of Long Walk to Freedom, cried out, "Mandela!"; the kids in Langa who yell out "mlungo!" (whitey) when they see me walking around; laying on the bed with the whole family and watching American soaps and random movies like Under Siege 2... I will not however miss the cockroaches, or the bedbugs, or the bathtub that has no shower head (super practical for washing my long hair), or getting up at the ass-crack of dawn every morning. We have a farewell party tonight with all of the host families coming together and then tomorrow we head out to the Eastern Cape.
Our workload has def intensified, but it's still pretty easy. Xhosa is going well-- I can tell you to go to hell and describe in detail the process of washing dishes, but I'm not really sure how to ask where the bathroom is.
Anyway, off to the Eastern Cape tomorrow morning, bright and early! The eastern cape province is a rural and poor province, and we'll be staying there with Xhosa-speaking families for a week (apparently their English is VERY limited). Picture mud huts, grazing cattle, chickens and goats running free, women balancing huge water jugs on their heads... your basic imperialistic perspective of traditional African societies. After a week there, we are being treated to a weekend on the coast where we can chill on the beach etc. before heading to Durban for a week of classes. Then back to CT on Oct 24! Woohoo. All that to say that I won't be in touch for about 10 days. I know it'll be hard for some of you, BUT one of the program directors has lent me a cell phone until I can get a new one.
I miss you all and hope that life is good, whichever continent you find yourself on,
Yitschani esihogweni,
Eve
p.s sorry about ending with that last sentence with a preposition
p.p.s "Yitschani esihogweni" means go to hell
Life in SA have been going pretty well, as usual, despite having to deal with huge inconvenience of no phone/money/credit cards/ID etc... as well as dealing with tons of bugbites all over my body (yeah, it's those damn bedbugs again).
Last weekend we participated in a short program with the Direct Action Center for Peace and Memory. The center was created by a bunch of former-MK guys (militant branch of the African National Congress which was responsible for the so-called acts of terrorism that helped bring down the apartheid govt) and they showed us around all the different townships around Cape Town. The experience of actually standing in places where the police opened fire with live ammunition on groups of children, of hearing stories of how they watched their friends die and of how they fled the country to receive military training was quite intense. Most of them were in their mid- to late-thirties, meaning that they started participating in the armed struggle when they were kids, like 14 or 15 yrs old. To say the least, it was amazing and very emotional to interact with these guys...
The rest of the weekend was the complete polar opposite. My friend Liza's parents were in Cape Town on their way to a safari trip, and they got us a hotel room where they were staying. The Cape Grace is the nicest hotel in Cape Town and five of us (Liza, Sara, Jamie, Elliot, and myself--aka the Select 5) were treated to 24-hrs of luxury--definitely a nice change from Langa, but slightly surreal and disconcerting after the earlier experiences of the weekend. Liza's parents took us out to a fab sushi dinner and then bankrolled a night of drinking and debauchery at several of the Cape Town hotspots (is it just me or do I sound like some corny tour guide? who actually uses the word "hotspots"?).
On Sunday we had an amazing brunch at the hotel, chillaxed at the Waterfront, went to the movies (Harold and Kumar go to Whitecastle--that's how hungover we were), and then took a chauffered new 7-series beamer back to good ol' Langa.
The week otherwise has been somewhat uneventful, but it was our last one in Langa homestay. I'm definitely going to miss my over-protective mama constantly asking me if I'm hungry and baking fresh bread for me; little sisi Tina who I taught to "high-five" and who, upon seeing my copy of Long Walk to Freedom, cried out, "Mandela!"; the kids in Langa who yell out "mlungo!" (whitey) when they see me walking around; laying on the bed with the whole family and watching American soaps and random movies like Under Siege 2... I will not however miss the cockroaches, or the bedbugs, or the bathtub that has no shower head (super practical for washing my long hair), or getting up at the ass-crack of dawn every morning. We have a farewell party tonight with all of the host families coming together and then tomorrow we head out to the Eastern Cape.
Our workload has def intensified, but it's still pretty easy. Xhosa is going well-- I can tell you to go to hell and describe in detail the process of washing dishes, but I'm not really sure how to ask where the bathroom is.
Anyway, off to the Eastern Cape tomorrow morning, bright and early! The eastern cape province is a rural and poor province, and we'll be staying there with Xhosa-speaking families for a week (apparently their English is VERY limited). Picture mud huts, grazing cattle, chickens and goats running free, women balancing huge water jugs on their heads... your basic imperialistic perspective of traditional African societies. After a week there, we are being treated to a weekend on the coast where we can chill on the beach etc. before heading to Durban for a week of classes. Then back to CT on Oct 24! Woohoo. All that to say that I won't be in touch for about 10 days. I know it'll be hard for some of you, BUT one of the program directors has lent me a cell phone until I can get a new one.
I miss you all and hope that life is good, whichever continent you find yourself on,
Yitschani esihogweni,
Eve
p.s sorry about ending with that last sentence with a preposition
p.p.s "Yitschani esihogweni" means go to hell
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
super fun news!
Hey everyone!
Quick update on the fun activities of this past weekend. I had a true South African night on Saturday because, you guessed it, I got my handbag stolen! Or as they say here, I "involuntarily redistributed my wealth."
So my wallet containing cash, credit cards, health insurance info, etc PLUS my new cell phone are gone... meaning I have none of your phone numbers AND there is no way to reach me. Obviously I'm thrilled at having this unique experience, as are my parents who are busy canceling cards and trying to get new ones sent to me in Africa. I love this place.
Quick update on the fun activities of this past weekend. I had a true South African night on Saturday because, you guessed it, I got my handbag stolen! Or as they say here, I "involuntarily redistributed my wealth."
So my wallet containing cash, credit cards, health insurance info, etc PLUS my new cell phone are gone... meaning I have none of your phone numbers AND there is no way to reach me. Obviously I'm thrilled at having this unique experience, as are my parents who are busy canceling cards and trying to get new ones sent to me in Africa. I love this place.
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Eve's in Africa
Molo everyone!
Well the week of orientation/getting-to-know-you went quite well. It took place at a semi-crappy hotel in the mountains outside Cape Town.... the beautiful location and hotsprings pool made up for the cold-ish nights and the bedbugs (seriously, there were literal bedbugs).
At the end of the week, we (the group is 22 people) went to Cape Town and stayed at a backpackers (basically a hostel) on the Waterfront. On the first afternoon in the city, we had a drop-off; bascially they gave each of us a little assignment and dropped us off in random places all around the city. Some examples were researching student life, or going to a museum... Mine was to research queer/gay culture in Cape Town. I was a little intimidated by the topic, but once I was dropped off, I get into my element. I actually ended up talking to tons of random people who were so enthusiastic to talk to me and so curious about what I was doing. After an hour or so off wandering from place to place, I found a gay bar and basically chilled with a bunch of gay guys, drinking beer and chatting for about 2 hours before heading back and reporting to the group in a "de-brief" session.
On Friday night we went to UCT to hear Nelson Mandela speak, which was amazing.
The lecture was a tribute to Steve Biko, a very prominent political thinker and member of his political party (ANC) who was tortured and murdered under apatheid. Since we had to read Mandela's autobiography before coming (Long Walk to Freedom, which I highly recommend btw) we could really follow what he was talking about... plus, despite his age, he is still a very moving and emotional speaker.
Anyway the time at the Waterfront was a nice time to get further acquainted with the city and party a bit. The night life in Cape Town is great. It feels pretty Euro, but with an African flair--like London and New Orleans had a kid and raised it in Jamaica. Plus it is SO CHEAP... a dinner for 5 people, including drinks and dessert at one of the best restaurants in the city cost about $180 (for real); and cocktails at most bars are about $3! Such a refreshing change from a summer of big-spending in London and NYC .
Well on Saturday we moved in to our homestays in Langa, the Xhosa (black) township on the borders of Cape Town. It's basically a ghetto--kids running around in the dusty streets, mangy dogs in small packs, fruit stands by the road--and the families are quite poor. However, they are so excited that we are here to learn about their culture, as well as learn about the US. They are so warm and welcoming! I'm living with a woman, Florence, who was a housekeeper and cook for many years (she baked fresh bread and muffins for me!) and is now retired; her 25-yr-old daughter Pimkie, who works at a university cafeteria; and Pimkie's daughter Tina who is the cutest and sweetest little 3-yr-old ever. They all share one room and sleep in the same bed, which is traditional here, and I have a small bedroom to myself. Despite it's size and location, the house is clean and decently maintained (besides the odd cockroach here and there). But it's still in a township, meaning it's not safe to go out at night, and it's not even that safe for me to wander the streets alone during the day. Thank god for little Tina who accompanied me on my strolls around the neighborhood on Sunday when I visited my friends living nearby.
So that was the weekend, and we started classes yesterday. Actually that's a lie because we started our Xhosa (the X is a click sound, very tricky) classes during orientation. Anyway the program, though affiliated with the University of CT, does not have classroom facilities on the UCT campus, but we have full access to the computer labs and libraries, and the profs come to lecture to us. The campus is a very long steep walk up hill, which is annoying, but a great workout.
Ok everyone, I'll stop boring you with the details of my life... as you can probably tell, I'm really enjoying myself and the program is off to a great start. It will certainly be a life-changing experience.
Hope that you're all doing well!!
Kisses,
Eve
Well the week of orientation/getting-to-know-you went quite well. It took place at a semi-crappy hotel in the mountains outside Cape Town.... the beautiful location and hotsprings pool made up for the cold-ish nights and the bedbugs (seriously, there were literal bedbugs).
At the end of the week, we (the group is 22 people) went to Cape Town and stayed at a backpackers (basically a hostel) on the Waterfront. On the first afternoon in the city, we had a drop-off; bascially they gave each of us a little assignment and dropped us off in random places all around the city. Some examples were researching student life, or going to a museum... Mine was to research queer/gay culture in Cape Town. I was a little intimidated by the topic, but once I was dropped off, I get into my element. I actually ended up talking to tons of random people who were so enthusiastic to talk to me and so curious about what I was doing. After an hour or so off wandering from place to place, I found a gay bar and basically chilled with a bunch of gay guys, drinking beer and chatting for about 2 hours before heading back and reporting to the group in a "de-brief" session.
On Friday night we went to UCT to hear Nelson Mandela speak, which was amazing.
The lecture was a tribute to Steve Biko, a very prominent political thinker and member of his political party (ANC) who was tortured and murdered under apatheid. Since we had to read Mandela's autobiography before coming (Long Walk to Freedom, which I highly recommend btw) we could really follow what he was talking about... plus, despite his age, he is still a very moving and emotional speaker.
Anyway the time at the Waterfront was a nice time to get further acquainted with the city and party a bit. The night life in Cape Town is great. It feels pretty Euro, but with an African flair--like London and New Orleans had a kid and raised it in Jamaica. Plus it is SO CHEAP... a dinner for 5 people, including drinks and dessert at one of the best restaurants in the city cost about $180 (for real); and cocktails at most bars are about $3! Such a refreshing change from a summer of big-spending in London and NYC .
Well on Saturday we moved in to our homestays in Langa, the Xhosa (black) township on the borders of Cape Town. It's basically a ghetto--kids running around in the dusty streets, mangy dogs in small packs, fruit stands by the road--and the families are quite poor. However, they are so excited that we are here to learn about their culture, as well as learn about the US. They are so warm and welcoming! I'm living with a woman, Florence, who was a housekeeper and cook for many years (she baked fresh bread and muffins for me!) and is now retired; her 25-yr-old daughter Pimkie, who works at a university cafeteria; and Pimkie's daughter Tina who is the cutest and sweetest little 3-yr-old ever. They all share one room and sleep in the same bed, which is traditional here, and I have a small bedroom to myself. Despite it's size and location, the house is clean and decently maintained (besides the odd cockroach here and there). But it's still in a township, meaning it's not safe to go out at night, and it's not even that safe for me to wander the streets alone during the day. Thank god for little Tina who accompanied me on my strolls around the neighborhood on Sunday when I visited my friends living nearby.
So that was the weekend, and we started classes yesterday. Actually that's a lie because we started our Xhosa (the X is a click sound, very tricky) classes during orientation. Anyway the program, though affiliated with the University of CT, does not have classroom facilities on the UCT campus, but we have full access to the computer labs and libraries, and the profs come to lecture to us. The campus is a very long steep walk up hill, which is annoying, but a great workout.
Ok everyone, I'll stop boring you with the details of my life... as you can probably tell, I'm really enjoying myself and the program is off to a great start. It will certainly be a life-changing experience.
Hope that you're all doing well!!
Kisses,
Eve
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