Hi!
I am very excited to be kicking off my new blog with a little bit of experience in South Africa behind me already. Even though it's the 31st of July, I've already been in my program for three weeks now! It's winter here in the southern hemisphere, but most days are still in the 60s and 70s
when the sun is out. This semester I'll be studying with CIEE's Service-Learning in Cape Town program, which has already proved to be a fantastic choice. Our program has just ten people, and we live together in a big house right across the street from the University of Cape Town. We're taking three classes (Research Methods, Poverty & Development and our choice of Xhosa or Afrikaans). We also volunteer 15-20 hours a week at a local NGO or school, and end the semester with a major capstone project. I chose to take Xhosa, a local click language, and am very excited to start mastering the new sounds - although it certainly is a challenge!
I chose to come to Cape Town because I knew that I wanted to be in Africa, and the service-learning program was more like my major at home than any other program I could find. Human services is a service-learning based nonprofit management major, and our research methods class will even count towards my degree. I also thought that it would be interesting to do service in a country where history is still being made, so post apartheid South Africa certainly fit the bill. We've already visited a number of townships, including Khayelitsha, Guguletu, Manenberg and Langa.
After two weeks of orientation, tours, sightseeing, and settling in, we started classes and service work last week. I was struggling to choose between Young in Prison, which works with youth in conflict with the law, and Yabonga, which works with children and youth who are infected or affected with HIV/AIDS. I visited both sites this week, and even took part in a drum circle at Pollsmoor Prison! However, I have decided to go with Yabonga. After spending some time in the townships I couldn't imagine working anywhere else for the next four months. Yabonga hosts after-school programs for children, youth and adolescents in a number of townships, including Khayelitsha. I am hoping to do most of my service in the field, although I am excited to see the inner workings of a foreign NGO as well. I'll be going in next week to work out the specifics of my project and hours, so I hope to have a clearer idea of my plans soon!
< Our two-week orientation ended with a weekend at a high ropes course. This was the Burmese Bridge - 15 meters in the air! >
On Sunday, we attempted to climb Table Mountain. We got lost, but we did see some zebras along the way!
Great post, Laura! You have my admiration for taking on a language outside the Indo-European family. Best of luck with your studies and your work with the kids. I think you made a great choice, and will be doing a lot of good as well as learning.
ReplyDeleteSue