There is More to South Africa Than its People

  On Friday morning, Jen and I left for Kruger National Park in the north of South Africa on the Mozambique border. The park is the best (and really the only) place to see wild animals home to South Africa, including their 'Big 5' animals, which are buffalo, rhinos, elephants, leopards, and lions. It was amazing to be able to see such animals I usually can only view from behind a barrier at a zoo back home. We were sometimes as close as twenty feet away from these animals. It was crazy.

  We stayed at the Pretoriuskop camp in Kruger for three days and two nights. In those three days we were able to go on four 'game drives,' which is what they call your safari rides. The game drives last about three and a half hours. We stayed in tents with cots and were served breakfast and dinner at the camp. The chef was very good. All of our meals were so delicious. The staff was very accommodating as well, serving snacks and juice throughout the day and always having purified water ready to drink. I would highly recommend spending at least two nights in Kruger to anyone who is visiting the country. I was surprised when I got here that wild animals were not roaming around as much especially in rural areas. Like I said before, Kruger is really the only part of the country where animals big cats live.

  The weather was great for our game drives, and we saw tons of animals on each one. Although we did not get to see any lions unfortunately, we did see many other animals. I was fortunate enough to see part of a leopard, though. We saw elephants, buffalo, zebras, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, wild dogs (with really cool coat patterns), and many species of birds and antelope. I did take pictures, as you can see below, but they are not very good quality. I did not bring an actual camera on my trip because I did not want to spend the money and most of my pictures came out great with just my iPhone anyways. I could have used a real camera on the safari. The feeling of being so close to all of these huge animals was inexplainable. In that instance, you remembered what it was like to see them in a zoo, but at the same time the feeling was much different not having any fences between you and them.

  I would say, however, that my favorite part of the Safari trip was meeting so many unique people from all over the world since Kruger is a top tourist destination in South Africa. It was so interesting to talk to people over dinner about their respective countries and backgrounds or what brought them to South Africa. Jen and I had the fellowship pitch down pretty well by the end of the trip. We met people from Costa Rica, Italy, Poland, France, India, Dubai, and, of course, South Africa. Experiences like this really make me appreciate my education even more, especially one unique to Providence College. I am a huge proponent of the liberal arts and interdisciplinary education I am fortunate to receive at Providence College, but I now have another reason to encourage this kind of learning. I have hear of many people, some I have known personally, who get hung up on traveling the world after an experience like study abroad. People decide that they may want to take a break from school or hold off on getting real world job experience until after they travel the world. But, I think it is a mistake to even consider the possibility. The reason why I enjoy traveling and meeting people from around the globe is because I enjoy having conversations about things occurring in both our counties and other countries around the world. If I did not have the last two years of college in my mind, there would be no way that I could hold conversations with people especially about things outside the United States. How are you suppose to have semi intellectual conversations about art, music, language, politics, science, education, healthcare, and other cultural topics. You cannot do this without a solid education. And I understand there are certainly people for whom a college education is not the right choice after high school or who need to begin making money as soon as they can, but for those for whom this kind of education is possible, I deeply encourage you to see this advantage to learning and experience it for yourself.

Wild Dog (yellow and black coloring)

This was the closest we got to a large animal. It was unbelievable. 

It is hard to see, but there are two giraffes in this picture

JW

Holiday Like a Capetonian

  Jen and I arrived back in our respective cities yesterday about 3:00 pm. Our flights out of Cape Town were between 11:00 and 12:00, so only had time to eat breakfast and check out before heading to the airport. We arrived at our hotel at about 12:00 Saturday afternoon. Our short vacation away from our service sites was incredible. We did a lot in those three days, but it was  still relaxing. I now understand just how beautiful the city really is. The theme of the weekend was that we could not manage to take a bad picture. Everywhere we went we were accompanied by breathtaking views of the ocean or the mountains, sometimes both. We were, however, glad to be coming back to our service sites for a couple more days. It was nice being on a plane and knowing I still had another week here in South Africa. 

  On Saturday afternoon, we went to a harbor called the V&A Waterfront. Designed with the harbors of San Francisco and Sidney in mind, the waterfront was complete with local venders, restaurants with ocean views, a mall, a ferris wheel. and an aquarium. It is certainly a hub of the city. We had dinner at an Italian restaurant right on the water. We both agreed we wanted pasta because we had not tasted Italian food since we left for South Africa. On Sunday, we took a cablecar up to Table Mountain, estimated to be one of the oldest mountains in the world and even older than the Himalayas. It was amazing to be able to look over the entire city. People were there from all over the world to witness the spectacular views. Some people we met even hiked up the mountain either one way or both ways. In the afternoon, we were able to go in the water at a beach not far from our hotel. Monday was rainy unfortunately, but it did not really interfere with our plans. We took a city sightseeing bus to a botanical and a place for lunch. The bus ride itself was a highlight of the trip because we got to see almost every part of the city, from the informal settlements to the most luxurious mansions in Cape Town. The three days went by too fast, but I am glad we fit in so much.

First picture in Cape Town

Now, I am trying to enjoy the last couple days I have at the St. Martin Project before I leave on Friday for a Safari at Kruger National Park. I hope that I have enough time to say goodbye to all the people who have made my time here so unforgettable. 

JW

I'm Sort of a Celebrity Now

  I did not include in yesterdays post the events from Wednesday. One of the friars living in the house, Fr. Brian, manages a Catholic radio station in Johannesburg called Radio Veritas. Founded and still operated by a Dominican named Fr. Emil, the radio is a platform for evangelization including programs such as daily mass, both intrafaith and interfaith discussions, and other local news. I was fortunate enough to get a tour with Fr. Brian of the station and meet the many people who make it all happen. I even got to do the reading during mass on the air. The station is made of radio hosts, producers, marketers, financial advisers, etc. As I was speaking to a woman who is responsible programming on the air, she thought that it would be suiting to interview me during the week leading up to Youth Day about my role in helping with the St. Martin de Porres Development Project. I was honored and very excited to not only be able to share my own perspectives on the organization, but to market the project to a wider audience. I hope that listeners got a sense of the motivation of the project and the outstanding work that we do at the plot. If you would like to listen to my moment of fame on Radio Veritas, click on the link below to view the podcast. My Interview with Fr. Emil

I would also like to mention that Radio Veritas is financed completely by donations. They need about $50,000 per month just to run the station. If you would like to donate to keep the radio going, it would be much appreciated. You can donate on the right hand side of the screen if you click on this link to their website. Donate to Radio Veritas

As I mentioned previously, today is Youth Day, a national holiday celebrated all over South Africa. I was looking forward to celebrating today with the children at the St. Martins site, but the water is still not working. Fortunately, I was able to come to Fr. Marks parish in Kwa Thema. I played soccer and other games with the youth following a meeting they organized with Fr. Mark to address ways to increase the presence of youth in the church community. Lunch was also served at the church for everyone in attendance. After the festivities were over, I gave the kids Rosaries that were donated by the campus ministry at Providence College and blessed by our Chaplain. The children really enjoyed and appreciated the gift not only as a way to remember me but also to use in their prayer. 

Playing soccer with the kids in Kwa Thema

This is Lethokuhle. She is 9 years old and wants to be a pilot.

Tomorrow morning I leave for Cape Town. I hope my small vacation to another part of the country is enlightening as much as it is relaxing. Stay tuned for those pictures. 

JW

Laughter, Dancing, and Smiles

  I apologize for this post coming an entire week after my last. Needless to say there has been a lot going on around here. For the past week, I have been diving even deeper into my service at St. Martins, and exploring my own impressions and points of view of South Africa and the people living here. In this post, I hope that I can do justice to the rich culture that I have been exposed to during my time here. I have already touched on a few aspects of the cultures in South Africa, but I hope to offer a deeper understanding of what I am experiencing, especially being a foreigner.

  One day early last week, I had begun to feel more frustrated than usual with the language barrier here. It is a lot harder than I anticipated to communicate with those involved with St. Martins, especially the workers. With the kids, it doesn't really matter that much if we cannot fully understand each other because I know what they are trying to say most of the time anyways. For instance, the children and I do not need to speak the same language to have fun with each other while playing a game. The beauty of games is that, for the most part, you just need to pick up on body language that signifies something to do with the game. Soccer is soccer no matter what language you are speaking or what your background is, even though it may actually be called football. However, it is important for me to talk with the workers to learn about South Africa and St. Martins in addition to just passing the time before the children arrive in the afternoon. The problem is that the people at the project don't like speaking English because it is not their first language. I completely understand that they are not comfortable with it because they are not exposed to it very much, and it is not their mother’s tongue. Although I can relate to them having been in situations myself where someone of a different language needs to communicate with me and my friends, it is obviously problematic for me since I only know a few words in Zulu as of now. Don’t get me wrong, I am definitely surprising even myself in how quickly I am picking up the language, but I only understand generally what people are talking about and not exactly word for word. It’s really difficult for me sometimes because I can easily feel left out and, even worse, feel bad when people expect me to be fluent already. There are times when people ask if I am understanding what is happening in the conversation, and, of course, I respond "not really." The following day the same person may ask me the question again, and, of course, I respond "not really." I'm realizing, though, that this is just one of the invaluable exposures I am so fortunate to be experiencing here in South Africa. It will be incredibly important for me to have dealt with and overcome language and cultural barriers for success in any career, especially one in medicine. 

  So, the title of this post is in fact ‘laughter, dancing, and smiles’ because I have found that these three things are universal across languages and cultures. If I am having a bad day because I am frustrated that I cannot explain something to somebody in English or cannot understand something else in Zulu, I try to remember that these three things go much further in humans than any words I could say. If I am struggling to pronounce a word in Zulu, such as someone’s name, I simply smile, laugh at myself (a lot), and keep trying to make an effort. If I am sitting with the workers and we run into a language issue while talking to each other, I can pull out my speaker and we can forget whatever we were talking about and just dance. They love to dance. I have enjoyed sharing American music that I like and hearing South African music that they like. I am also slowly learning how to dance like a South African. It is not easy for someone of my complexion haha. In addition tot he workers, the children have been dancing most everyday over the past week in preparation for celebrating a holiday tomorrow (more on this if you keep reading). It has been incredible to experience traditional songs and dances, and, most of all, to witness such passion from the kids wanting to be involved with them. Again, watching the children singing and dancing makes me forget all about the barriers we face between our languages. In a way, times like these make the frustrating moments of trying to communicate words seem insignificant. So, I always look forward to when I can be an audience member to the outstanding things these kids can do. 

Practicing Dances for June 16th

  Tomorrow is June 16th, which is a national holiday in South Africa. June 16th is Youth Day. The day is to remember the lives of students lost during the peaceful march that is referred to by the Soweto Youth Uprising. Due to the strict and unequal education changes that was brought on by the Bantu Education Act in 1953 established by the Apartheid government, African people were feeling even more disenfranchised and abandoned than before. Among other things, the act mandated that African students learn all subjects in Afrikaans and English languages. Students from the class of 1976 marched peacefully in the streets in opposition to these unfair inequalities for non-whites education in South Africa. What began as a peaceful demonstration developed into a horrific massacre when police began firing at the students. This tragic scene led to other uprisings in Soweto and all over the country that day and for an entire year after. The significance of June 16th lies in the fact that students, young people, were the ones who ignited the motivation to make change happen for the progress of Africans living in South Africa. On Youth Day, we recognize that young people are capable of influencing real change in their societies. St. Martins is supposed to participate in special events and activities for the holiday tomorrow in order to emphasize the empowerment that the children should feel from celebrating Youth Day. But, I am still not sure if that will be happening due to water issues at the plot that will prevent any festivities from occurring there. 

  In other news, Fr. Mark celebrated his birthday with us on Monday. My friend Lindo and I cooked an African dinner for him and others in the house. Some items on the menu included spinach and chicken liver, chakalaka, fried chicken legs, pasta and meatballs (with a South African twist), and, for dessert, peaches, jello, and custard. I was glad to be part of cooking the meal because I had an opportunity to understand more about how they prepare the food here that I have been eating. We had an enormous meal, and it was wicked good (haven’t heard that word in a while). Yesterday, we went out to a restaurant for Lindo’s birthday. I am happy I could be part of her celebration as well. I also enjoy experiencing different restaurants in the area. I think it’s funny when I read dishes on the menu with ‘American style’ or ‘New York Style’ in the names. 

The chefs of the night (well she cooked most of it)

Lindo made all the decorations for the dining room.
It looked really nice.

  Well, unfortunately, my time here is running down. I have plans to take a trip to Cape Town this weekend with my friend Jen from PC who is serving in Montebello. I am excited to see a completely different part of the country for a few days. I here it's similar to Europe, but I have never been to Europe, so hopefully Cape Town is a close second best. I also look forward to spending some time with Jen to catch up on our last four weeks we've spent in separate parts of the country. 

That's Br. Dominic for you

Me trying to read Zulu

Some of the Care Givers

Some of the Child and Youth Care Workers

That's it for now. I hope all is well back home. 

JW

Halfway and still going strong!

  I have been taking a lot of pictures during my time here in Springs, but I have not shown too many of them yet. And I would like to share another post because it has been several days now since my last one, but I do not have the energy to write too much. So, I figured it would be best just to post some pictures that I have been wanting to show. Enjoy!

Serving the kids their lunches

The usual dishwashing crew

  So, I taught the kids baseball last week. They had never heard of it before. The only person who did know what baseball is was my friend David because he had played it on a team when he was little. I taught the kids how to stand at the plate and hit the ball, and David explained most of the rules in Zulu.

David trying to explain these strange rules

Our designated pitcher

I went on a home visit with Aunty Betty (on the right)
and we took this picture with some of the residents

Aunty Betty and I also visited a daycare in the community (they call it a 'crash')

  During the day before the kids get to the site, I often play games with the workers after they have finished all their work in the morning. The only problem is that sometimes they are so active in playing the games that they do not have as much energy to play with the kids in the afternoon.

This game is called 'fruit salad.' It is similar to 'move your butt.'

Some of the Care Workers at St. Martins

  This past Sunday I went to the art/music district of Johannesburg. I cannot remember what the area was called because it is a Sotho word. It was a very nice part of the city. There were people from all over the country from different backgrounds. I really enjoyed seeing the many booths making food to order and all the artwork and souvenirs being sold on the streets. I was also glad to be take to another part of the province I am staying in because I got to see a very different way of life. It is difficult to understand South Africa as a whole when I am witnessing the same things in Springs all the time.

The pulled port sandwich on the right was delicious. In Zulu, we say it was 'umnandi.'

  

Some other pictures from the St. Martin site 

JW