Being here in Stellenbosch for two months now, I’ve been able to learn a little bit more about the culture, social traditions and norms both within the university and in the surrounding communities, like Lynedoch.
South Africa (and Stellenbosch in particular) is rooted in the legacy of the apartheid era and I’ve had many conversations and class discussions regarding the topic of race. Interestingly, people here in South Africa classify themselves not only as “black” and “white” but also include the category of “colored,” which is essentially a mix between the two (and doesn’t hold the negative connotation that it does in the states). Lynedoch Primary where I teach is predominantly a colored, Afrikaans school and most of the children come from surrounding farms, while some live in the nearby township of Khayamandi. South Africa also gets its nickname “the rainbow nation” from the fact that there are ELEVEN national languages spoken here. isiZulu is most widely spoken, followed by isiXhosa, Afrikaans, Sesotho sa Leboa, Setswana, and English. isiNdebele, Sesotho, siSwati, Tshivenda and Xitsonga are alsoincluded in the official languages.
My professor of the LSCE program, Grant Demas, is colored and because he grew up in the middle of the apartheid conflict, he has told us incredible stories about treatment of both himself and his siblings. Growing up, colored and blacks were not able to walk in groups bigger than two, for it was believed that (even if they were young children), these people could be conspirators against the system. Even today, Grant said, he has experienced discrimination despite his position and level of education.
While I cannot say enough great things about being here in South Africa, one side note I must add is the very conservative nature of Stellenbosch. Even venturing just as far as Cape Town, there is an extreme difference in the mixing of races and cultures; Stellenbosch on the other hand is definitely more conservative. It’s interesting to see people’s reactions when I tell them that I do work at Lynedoch and take the train twice a week to get there. Ninety-five percent of the students I speak to don’t know where Lynedoch is, even though it is literally 12 minutes away –right in their backyard! Their other reaction to the train is usually, “but is it safe?!” There are the usual characters that we’ve found on the train during our travels back and forth from Lynedoch (but then again, think about the subway system in NYC…) but I’ve also had some of the most interesting conversations with the other commuters on the train and wouldn’t trade these experiences for anything.
As I was sitting in the university gardens studying Tuesday afternoon, I was approached by a man dressed in work clothes asking for money. Usually these situations make me very uncomfortable (we’ve all been advised not to hand out money) and this happen often here in South Africa. He introduced himself as Simon and told me that he was very hungry and had to take his pills but had no food or money to buy food with. I took out my sandwich and offered to share it with him for lunch and we spent the next 20 minutes in lively conversation. Something Simon repeated over and over again was, “we are all one blood –even though we have different skins, I’m your brother, you’re my sister.” It was as simple as that.
On Wednesday a few of us made the trek back to Lynedoch during our day off to visit some of the families living on a farm down the street from the school. There we met with Cathleen, the grandmother of Ashrick, the young man Grant provides foster support for. Although she only knew a little English, her 8-year old granddaughter, Andrea, stepped in to translate and soon was energetically offering guided tours of the land, her cousins’ house and her personal garden! Hanging out with Andrea’s cousins, we noticed that they had very little of the material “stuff” compared to kids their age back home, yet found joy and entertainment in the same things –namely laughing and marveling at these foreign strangers in their home. They exhausted all of us as we planted flowers in homemade pots from empty ice cream canisters and ran around playing tag in the front lawn (even here in South Africa they use “eeny, meeny, miney, mo” to figure out who’s ‘it!’). I also so grateful the opportunity I have to engage with members of the community here at Lynedoch and experience yet another South Africa story.
Next blog post to come after traveling on the Garden Route…ostriches, monkeys, elephants, and world’s largest bungee jump bridge…hmmm…
"The small farming village of Lynedoch, nestled between the mountains of Stellenbosch..."
Chris, Sam, Andrea, Dara and me!
Andrea's cousin -only a month old! (and look at all that hair!)
Andrea's photo shoot
Andrea in her garden
showing off the apple tree
Cousin Riaano
funny face game!
transport for grapes (also great for getting rides!)
Phew. The past 48 hours have been nothing short of exhausting, challenging and hectic, but entertaining nonetheless. Corie, Elyse and I successfully pulled off our 7th grade ‘girls empowerment’ sleepover at Lynedoch on Friday evening and I sit here, relaxing and reflecting on the night.
Overall, the process was definitely a valuable learning experience for the three of us, especially in terms of planning logistics and making adequate preparations. I’ll admit that I was a bit anxious the past few weeks leading up to this weekend because we struggled with the administration at Lynedoch in order to get approval; while the principle and teachers were more than willing to accommodate our requests, hunting them down and establishing communication was a large barrier we faced. I’ve also learned never to take transportation for granted, for the three of us struggled with carting over R600 worth of groceries from the shops to our apartments and then arranging a way of getting it all to the school the following day (it’s amazing how often you use your car on a daily basis without even thinking twice!). It was also surprising to be given so much responsibility. At the end of the day, the doors were locked, the staff went on holiday and the three of us were responsible for managing these ten preteens for almost 24 hours.
But enough about my musings. You’re more interested in learning why I came home covered in yogurt and rocking a sparkly green handlebar moustache, no?
When our girls came rolling out of the van in their swimsuits and caked in sand from a day at the beach, we knew we were in for an interesting night. They soon had dug out the emergency fire hose and were water-blasting each other, making water stream out of their noses and their hair stand on end! They were excited to have full run of the building (literally!) and kept us busy throughout the night with constant head-count checks. As it drew time for dinner, they helped cut up vegetables for skewers and Lavonia’s father graciously came to braai for us. We introduced the girls to their first taste of s’mores and true to any good sleepover, they attempted to scare each other (and especially us!) with ghost stories and practical jokes.
Finally figuring out how to re-coil the fire hose? Check!
As to be expected with any group of girls full of sugar and on their first day of fall break, they were full of energy. Corie, Elyse and I were obviously challenged with maintaining discipline and respect with the girls –although there were only ten that attended, there might as well have been fifty! We kept the girls busy with activities: they entertained us with a choreographed dance (to a Justin Bieber favorite, of course!) and we designed positive self-image collages out of magazine cutouts. The girls also enjoyed visiting the “Lynedoch Primary Spa” where they received yogurt facials, complete with cucumber eye masks in addition to neon colored manicures and goofy makeup creations (hence my super-attractive glitter moustache).
Somehow, my camera always manages to get stolen for personal photo shoots...
Getting the ultimate spa treatment from our lovely masseuses
As everyone knows, very little sleep actually happens at a “sleepover,” and the girls were quick to inform us upon their arrival that they were going to “stay up alllllll night long.” (Here, I pause to offer a belated apology to all those moms who put up with those birthday party sleepovers I attended growing up where we refused to go to bed…) However by some miracle –perhaps it was a full day in the sun or the sugar crash after all those s’mores –it was just after 2am when the giggling turned into heavy breathing and the girls were all wrapped up in their bed sheet cocoons on the carpet.
The three of us must have been an amusing sight to see the next morning as we lugged our blankets, pillows and activities onto the train and then the 30-minute walk back home, covered in braai smoke, charcoal, with yogurt-crusted hair. Despite the challenges and frustrating moments we faced, I am so grateful for the leadership and support that Corie and Elyse added to the weekend –the fact that we were able to function successfully as a team made all the difference in the world. Not only was this experience an opportunity for us to bond with and have one-on-one time with our girls, it also made me appreciate our personal strengths that we bring to our group. I have come away with high spirits and expectations for our work for the second half of the semester!
Ok, if that title didn’t get your attention, I’m not sure what will. Yes, it’s true. Bieber Fever has found it’s way to South Africa.
Friday was the annual fundraising bazaar at Lynedoch and all of the LSCE students spent the day helping set up and prepare for the flood of family members that would soon pack the community hall at the end of the workday. We carted boxes of produce from the classrooms and spent the morning weighing and packaging bags of fruit and veggies to sell. (Dare I say they were some of the freshest grapes I’ve ever had?) By the time we were called back to lecture, I was wearing the fresh perfume of onions and fertilizer. Mmmmm.
Other stations were loaded with homemade mulva puddings and other (slightly unidentifiable?) desserts that were just as delicious! I loved seeing our students outside of the classroom setting and they enjoyed showing off their non-uniform outfits for us to admire (especially their multicolored shoe laces!). One of my 7th grade girls, Judene, shyly asked if I would like to meet her mother and using a little broken English and lots of big smiles, she introduced me to the rest of her family. The younger kids stared up wide eyed until one of the little boys broke the ice by roaring loudly and flexing his muscles, imitating a mini WWE wrestler, which put all into hysterics (needless to say, it was his go-to move for the remainder of the evening…).
Warning: this is what happens when the students steal your camera for a photo shoot...
I also learned that the saying “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” is very true. At one point I turned around and saw one of the mothers surrounded by a circle of students performing break dance moves to a Justin Bieber song blasting from the speakers. Turns out she just happened to be the mother of the most energetic and outspoken 7th grade boys in our class. What a surprise. She soon got the party started and the hall was soon full of cake-covered, candy-carting kids who were busting out Michael Jackson dance moves –yes, including the moonwalk. After a long week, it was the perfect mood to celebrate the vibrant Lynedoch community.
If these past few weeks have taught me one thing, it’s to be flexible and ready to “go with the flow.” Similar to my experiences in the Solomons (the internet café would be closed because it was “too hot” or “too rainy” or the runway suddenly turned into a grazing pasture…), Africa operates on its own itinerary.
This realization started on Monday as the 25 LSCE students made our way to the train station for our morning commute to Lynedoch. We sat on the platform, eagerly discussing and running over last-minute plans for our lessons that day. We waited. And waited. And waited. Occasionally, we heard the announcer over the speaker system, but being in Afrikaans, it wasn’t all that helpful (my conversational Afrikaans is currently limited to greetings, items of clothing and occupations –none of which offer an explanation as to why the train was late). We finally arrived at the school with only 15 minutes left of our first teaching period –not enough time to run our lesson of bodily systems. However, Corie, Elyse and I took in stride and instead took the opportunity to begin planning our 7th grade sleepover with our girls. Once we started brainstorming ideas with them, their plans began to get crazier and crazier (we had to limit them at the idea of a full-blown prom…). I loved their enthusiasm and creativity, though it will be interesting to see what the final product looks like! When the boys joined us after break, we traveled to Brazil, where we wrote diary entries from the point of a slave in the African-Brazil slave trade. We also experimented with a short cha-cha lesson –although I think they were better at teaching us how to shake our hips than we were!
I’ve also had the opportunity to get involved in a little bit of the local student life here! Most students are either a member of a ‘res’ or PSO (private student organization), which are both similar to Greek organizations in the states. Marlize’s PSO, Aristea, held its annual fundraiser dance on Tuesday. The theme: “nerds love spiertiere” (‘spiertiere’ literally means ‘muscle tiger’ so if you use your imagination and picture a bunch of Jersey Shore cast members roaming the dance floor, you’ve got a pretty good image of what the costumes looked like!). I practiced my sokkie moves (goal is to be a pro upon returning home!) and found my new favorite song ever (how can you not love a song with a chorus singing about “baby chocolates?”):
Marlize and I had so much fun tearing up the dance floor here that we decided to crash one of her friend’s glow party dance Wednesday night –and found ourselves covered in glow paint and highlighter. As I write this, I am still picking pieces of blue paint out of my hair. Also, for all who are familiar with it, the “undesirable dance partner” move is now a huge hit here in South Africa! Stellenbosch student socials will never be the same…
I encountered another “go with the flow” lesson on Friday, when the LSCE learners returned to Lynedoch for a full day of class on community development theory. In addition to Grant’s usual lectures, he surprised us with a window washing activity for us to gain “clearer perspectives” of working in the school. It was comical to watch the energy build as we all danced around to Michael Jackson while scrubbing the windows (South African style, using newspapers and a bucket of water!) After a full day of discussion, generating ideas, and project planning, the exhausted group of facilitators made our way back to the train station. However, it seems like the week was fated to end the same way it began; we sat on the train, docked in the station, hearing rumors that the train destined for Cape Town, which ran on the same line, was broken down at the next station. Not wanting to wait for hours (as it was getting closer to evening), we followed the herd of people from the station and began the 8 km walk home. As we marched alongside the dirt road with “bokkies” packed full of people in the back whizzing by on one side and a farm of ostriches and wildebeest on the other, I thought, “Only in Africa!” It also gave me a new appreciation for the transportation available to us everyday and made me realize the challenges that some of our students must face with walking from their farms to school every day. I will never complain about walking from upper to lower campus at PC again!
Sorry for the lack of reading material these past two weeks –I’m just now catching up after a fabulous two weeks of having the Wendel family visit Stellenbosch! It has felt like a vacation while on vacation and I’ve got the chance to do a lot of sightseeing with them along the coast and through Cape Town (school? What’s that?...)
While I won’t bore you with moment-by-moment details, here are some photos and highlights of the past two weeks:
1.Climbing Table Mountain with the Wendels
Despite our best efforts to arrive early in Cape Town to tackle the mountain, we began our ascent during the peak hours of sun and arrived sweating at the top 2 hours later. The view from the top is absolutely stunning (for those of us who weren’t afflicted with a fear of heights…) and we looked out to see Robben Island, Cape Town center and the Cape flats spread out in all directions. Incredible.
It means no worries....
Taking a well-deserved break
ta-da!
X-treme yoga! haha
2.Strand Beach
We spent the following day relaxing on the beach (and trying to even out the lovely hiking tans/burns we acquired the day before). Mom found the perfect candidate for a photo shoot –a cute little boy running around butt-naked on the beach –and tried to look as natural as possible while snapping photos…
After returning to Stellenbosch we discovered my new favorite restaurant, Java Café, which has been blessed with our presence a few times since!
3.Human rights lesson at Lynedoch
We’ve decided that our focus for the semester looks at human rights in various countries and how they compare. Last Monday we “took a trip” to America and explored women’s suffrage and the civil rights movement, comparing them to similar movements in South Africa. I ran a simulation with the kids, splitting them into two groups and only giving half “voting rights” on issues like lunch choices and field trip opportunities. The ones classified as the ‘women’ were not happy by the end of the exercise after I kept silencing their protests and it was interesting to watch their face light up with understanding once we discussed the simulation.
4.Cliffwalk
Took a trip to Onrus on the coast and enjoyed some beautiful sights and wildlife, while stopping to refuel along the way at cute seaside restaurants. (I can really get used to the ‘coffee shop-hopping’ itinerary here!)
enjoying the view
Dassies
seaweed tug-o-war
5.Humarus Braai
Julien made a delicious braai and introduced to the Wendel family to braai lamb, sausage, chicken, roosterkoek (homemade braai rolls) and mulva pudding… mmm mmm
6.Eliza comes to class J
After deciding that she has the best older sister in the entire world and who is so much cooler than tagging along with the adults for wine tasting, Eliza joined me for a day at university! She sat in on Afrikaans class and watched 20 international students struggle with rolling r’s and throat-clearing g’s (and I think ended up taking more notes than most of the students…)
7.Lynedoch Yoga
This past Monday the 7th grade girls had a wonderful treat for class –Mama Wendel came to teach yoga! While they laughed at the Afrikaan translation for the animal poses, I’ve never seen them so focused for a hour –even in shavasina at the end! (We even got stern –and slightly intimidating –Mr. Myburgh, the 7th grade teacher to join in for a few poses!)
8.Happy 21st Birthday!
Now, I know 21st birthdays are special on their own, but this one was even better than most– I was sung to in 3 different languages throughout the day (and well, being in South Africa…can’t really top that!). The Lynedoch students all crowded into the break room before class and sang:
“Veels geluk liewe maatjie omdat jy verjaar!
Mag die here jou seen en nog baie jare spaar!”
(They were so beautiful and it gave me the chills!)
I also got to wear a lovely homemade crown for the rest of the day, which seemed to invite a variety of birthday wishes…one of them being a strip tease from the Argentinean rugby team in front of McDonalds where we stopped for a coffee…wish I was kidding...
Mom got to see her first rugby game (Stellenbosch Maties v Praetoria Tukkies), although the rest of us sitting there were just as clueless and confused with the rules as she was. I have, however, finally learned the celebratory song played every time the Maties score –check it out, it’s so catchy!
