A whale of a time

This past weekend, my study abroad program took us to Hermanus, a little town about an hour and half away from Cape Town. Because its FINALLY spring, its whale season. This means that the entire coast is dotted with whales who have come up from Antarctica for the nice weather.

I wasn't really expecting much because I hadn't done much research on where I was headed toward, but it ended up being one of the most beautiful places I've seen while in South Africa. 

It's a very touristy town, and is known for its shark diving and whales. 

Spring time flowers!

We went to Hermanus on South African Heritage Day, which is also known as National Braai Day (or national barbeque day). 

So, the entire town set up tents and grills and played music and hung out on the beach. 

Baby seal we happened upon!

Red cappucino. Rooibos tea latte with honey.  Rooibos is a South African tea that its known for. Sooo delicious. 

Seafood pasta with a view of the sea, can life get better?

This guy is the world's only whale crier. He walks up and down the coast and blows his horn when he sees a whale so everyone can rush to the shore to look. At this time of year, that's pretty much constantly.

There was a flower festival going on in Hermanus, which was cute but not not really my thing. The flowers were beautiful, especially the protea, but I can only look at flowers for so long.

Me and a few others who felt the same way about staring at flowers took a tuk tuk (preferred method of transport in Hermanus...more on that later) back to town to instead stare at whales. We walked down this little cliff path and saw about 5 whales playing in the water. 

Me, having a whale of a time. 

I wasn't very good a whale photography, but we saw a TON of whales. Pretty much every time I looked at the ocean, I saw a whale. They would leap out of water, flip their fins, do what whales do. They were so peaceful, as was the whole town. It was a much needed break from hectic city life. 

I love the Dutch style arcitecture in Hermanus. South Africa was largely built up in the 70s and 80s, which weren't the best time periods for architecture, but the Dutch style homes are one of the exceptions to this rule.  

Hermanus craft market. 

I'm not really contented to sit and look at the ocean all day, so I broke away from the rest of the group and wandered through out the town exploring. Hermanus is tiny, touristy, and quiet but I still liked wandering around a bit. I came across this adorable vintage shop.

This alley. 

This garden, where a wedding was taking place, but I was careful not to take any stalker shots of them on the other side of the garden.

This adorable little independent bookshop.

A typical Hermanus house showing its South African pride. 

Because it was national braai day, we cooked a big feast at our hostel. We over cooked, and ate about half the food that we prepared, but it was delicious. We had pap with tomato sauce, boerewors (South African sausage, typically made by Afrikaans farmers), salad, and rice with a vegetable curry. 

Tuk tuk, what tourists use to get around Hermanus. 

What's funny is that we actually saw a lot of baboons... 

On Sunday morning we woke up super early and went for a hike up to a lake in the middle of this valley. We walked out to a little stand in the middle of the lake...

The bridge on the way to the stand was almost there. 

This water was the coldest I'd ever felt, and that's coming from a girl who spent many summers on the coast of Maine. 

Glad to know that the watch out for the baboons sign was completely necessary.

Went back with some friends to get brunch on the coast and left most of the group behind to chill on this stand. 

It was a very relaxing weekend. This weekend, I'm going to Durban for a day, and then driving down the Wild Coast, the eastern coast of South Africa that is far more rural than most. 

Let me know what you think!

One thing I haven't talked much about is my volunteer work. I work with a group of 6 9th graders from Khayelitsha, a township in Cape Town. I teach them English and Life Skills (which is an actual school subject here), and it is difficult. I'm trying, but I think that I need to accept the fact that I am just a horrible teacher. I think they learn more when we just sit and talk about things than when go by the prescribed curriculum. The lesson plans that they give us are pretty rough to teach. I wasn't really given any sort of training or direction, just plopped down in the middle of this kids and expected to positively impact their lives. And I expect that of myself as well, but I don't have much experience in this field so I'm not exactly sure what I should be doing.

Classroom where I teach

It's difficult because I've talked to people who grew up in townships, and they say that when people like me came and tried to teach them, they looked at the person and thought "this person is rich. this person is white. this person is smart. this person had all the opportunities that I will never have. this person has nothing in common with me" and then tuned them out. I'm not saying that this is what all the kids do, but I would probably look at me in a judgmental way if I were them as well. I try to teach in a way that takes their background into account.


Last week, we drove all the way from university to Khayelitsha, only to be turned away by the police. The people in the townships get electricity by hooking up wires to the main power lines so that they don't have to pay for electricity. The government shut one of the main wires down, and there were riots, so it would have been dangerous for us to go in. That was really strange for us. I felt horrible because the kids were probably waiting for us to come, and we never showed up.


This past Thursday we did a unit on poetry. I read them a few poems, and explained to them what poetry was, and then I had them write some.


For the first one, I had them each write one line on a piece of paper and pass it to the next person. This is what came out of it:


Life is a challenge,
Live it to the fullest.
Life is an opportunity,
Take it with both hands.


That's a lie. 
Full of blue panties. In the days of the dinosaurs. 
No matter what has happened to your past
You must hold on.
You must be strong for your tomorrow. 


I made the boy who wrote full of blue panties cross it out. But how incredible is that. I had 9 kids this week because I had to take on a couple of extras, but they each wrote one line. With the exception of the blue panties line, isn't that beautiful? It reminds me of one of Mother Theresa's poems:


Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is bliss, taste it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.


After that, I had them each write their own poem. Here's a couple: 


My name is Sex
My surname is condom. 
I'm aids years old
and if you do my 
name without my
surname
you will get my age. 


Another:


Money
Money is important
Money talks
Money can kill you
It can get you out of poverty.


One more:


Life
Life is difficult
Life extant everyday
Life comes with hard
No one who knows what your life will be.
Keep going with your life
do hard, do your opportunities that your life
No judge about your life
Don't your friend play about future and your life. 


And another:


Life is a challenge
Life is a journey
In life there are many ups and downs
You must choose the right from wrong
Mind your self
Mind your steps
Learn from your mistakes
You must choose from right and wrong
Don't forget who you are and what you want
Don't forget to be there
Where you want to be
Or your life looks impossible.


One last one:


Poem:
Brothers and sisters
The children of their mother
look at them when they are together
look at them when they smile to each other
they joint a hard to beat combination


to see them not fighting each other is a blessing
to see them softly chatting is a blessing


but why are you doing this to your brother? 
Why are you doing this to your sister?
Don't you know that he's your flesh?
Don't you know that your blood is running through her veins?


Think of the pain your mother must be feeling
She tried all her best to make you who you are


Is this the way of saying thanks to her?
Or is this the punishment you are giving her for letting u here?
Oh! What a cruel punishment. 

Brothers and sisters, lets stop killing each other.
And start protect each other.


TOGETHER we stand.
DIVIDED we fall. 


I'm speechless. They are unbelievable. 


If anyone has anything to say about the poems, or has suggestions for things I can do to help teach these 9th graders who live in a township, please let me know. I'd love some help!

A strange encounter

Many of things that have happened to me in South Africa, have been...well...different....


Here's an example:
Today I had a long day and no lunch, so instead of lunch I grabbed a granola bar and some gummies in between meetings. So I'm walking to meeting # 3 of the day, eating the gummies, and an african guy with a thick Xhosa accent comes up to me, and here's how the conversation goes:

Him: you're eating candy?
Me: yeah, gotta get my sugar fix
Him: you're going to get fat
Me: i don't think a few gummies are going to kill me
Him: no, girls put on weight really fast
Me: ummmm i think I'm ok
at this point im wondering WHO IS THIS GUY 
Him: you're boyfriend is going to break up with you
Me: no, he's not
Him: yeah, he is. you get fat and he won't care about you anymore
Me: um, well, my boyfriend will still love me, despite me eating a few gummies
Him: well, if he doesn't break up with you he's going to cheat on you. you'll stop being able to hold his attention.
Me: no, he won't.
 meanwhile, I'm walking this whole time, this guy is just following me walking next to me, on campus which is SUPER safe.
Him: well in the black culture, thats what we do
Me: I guess thats just a cultural difference
Him: you only date white guys?
Me: my boyfriends is hispanic (which is only a half lie)
.... and then SPRINT away. how WEIRD is that?
So I threw out the gummies.


The weirdest part was him telling me that in black culture they cheat on their girlfriends.I know a lot of Xhosa people, and have interacted with countless black South Africans. What he said is not true at all, but the fact that that is what he chose to tell me about his culture in our brief, 90 second interaction was just so bizarre to me. He had no idea he was american, no idea about my background, but that is how he decided to portray himself. 

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro: The essentials

Source: http://www.climbmtkilimanjaro.org.za/Route.html

I took the Machame Route, also known as the "whiskey" route. It can range anywhere between 6 to 10 days, depending on what you want your pace to be. The slower you go, the better acclimated you become. My dad and I had no trouble with 6 days. He runs marathons, but had no experience with altitude, and I run about 3-4 miles, 4 times a week. But I also go to school on a mountain, and have to walk up it every day to get to class. I don't think that had anything to do with my success, though. 

Things to bring that might not be on your gear list:

1. Toilet Paper

2. Chapstick w/ sunscreen

3. bug spray (for base/ hanging out in the city)

4. sunscreen

5. pepto bismol (altitude and diamox can mess with your stomach)

6. lotion (high altitutde=dry hands)

7. sunglasses

8. ipod (for bonding with group/ helping you get to sleep/ taking a break from hiking conversation)

9. wipes

10. purell (1 big for refills, 1 small to carry around)

11. gaitors

12. hiking day pack with waist and chest support

13. flags/t-shirts/signs for summit

14. journal & pen ( you'll need to write down the emails of all the people you meet, even if you don't journal)

15. Warm weather clothes for before you go up the mountain and  in your hotel afterwards

16. Money for tipping ($200 per hiker) and for buying a t-shirt or map at the end ($15)

17. 3 1 liter water bottles- the more water you drink the better

18. snacks- even though you have no appetite on the mountain, snack continuously, especially on summit day. You need energy. 

Biggest nerd in Tanzania in all my gear

 Yes, i brought big blue up Kilimanjaro. Thought my dad was bringing a hiking day back to Africa. Instead he brought big blue. Big blue made my back sore, so don't so the same. 

Tips:

1. Do it for charity: Raise money for whatever charity you would like. Kilimanjaro is a tangible goal that will encourage people to donate. A lot of people I ran into were doing this, and I wish I had thought of it. 

2. Do your paperwork: Remember that you need a yellow fever vaccine and $100 for your Tanzanian visa when you arrive (although you can get this from the Tanzanian embassy before hand)

Basic Swahili:

(excuse my spelling)

Jambo- Hello

Mambo- Whats up

Vipi- How is it?

Shwari- Fine

Poa- Cool

Rafiki- Friend

Ahsante- Thank you

Karibo- You're welcome

Zuri- Good

Sana- Very

Naipenda- I like 

Nakupenda- I love you

Chakula- food

Kahawa- Cofee

Kahawa na maziwa na sukari- Coffee with sugar and milk

Hakuna Matata- No worries

Hakuna shida- No problem

Hakuna noma, hakuna tabu- no problem

kuma shida- there is a problem

maji- water

majimoto- hot water

maji baridie-cold water

Pamoja

Kilimanjaro Day 6- The Last Day

Our last day was so sad. We were absolutely exhausted from the night before though, and our first shower all week was within grasp, but we were so sad to leave our group. We got so used to spending all of our waking hours with them. Separation anxiety happened immediately following... 

Here's a few pictures from our last morning:

The toilet tent. Yes, some companies tote a makeshift toilet around and set it up for you. 

The tent that my Dad and I shared for 5 nights. By the end of it, we were ready to kill each other. 

Our eating tent. 

How cute is Bima's shirt and bow tie? Miss him so much!

Chillin.

The crew. Pamoja means together, and its my favorite Swahili word. 

John and the bracelets he makes.

John enjoyed taking pictures. 

Me and Dad with Moshi and our bag of sleeping gear, shoes, and toiletries. 

Me pretending that I'm a porter and John having a great time having a photo shoot. 

Epa giving me some last minute Swahili words. I told him to write down "nakupenda" which means I love you. All the people in front of us thought I was proclaiming my love for him, and turned around to stare.

A pretty flower along the path. On the last day, we were on the lowest level and there were sooo many more plants and flowers along the trail. 

We were the first people off the mountain, and I was the first person to sign the book that day. 

Writing down my memories of the summit! Was wayyy too tired the day before. 

Taking baths, trading gear, celebrating being done. 

Chaos with all the vans of trekking companies picking up their clients. 

Finally back at Rivertrees, the end of our journey.