First Days in Cape Town

I'm here!!! What a beautiful city, and Cross Cultural Solutions is proving to be a pretty cool program so far.

Day One was spent touring around the wealthy, touristy parts of Cape Town and seeing some of the sights. The photo above is of Table Mountain, the ever present landscape feature in the horizon. We drove high up on a hill where we could see the entire city and the ocean below, and I must say, I think it's the most beautiful place I've ever been. We also went down to the waterfront and went on a walking tour of the nearest neighborhood, Rosebank, where we can go for food or shopping.

Day Two was spent visiting the Townships, where African blacks and coloureds live, mostly in severe poverty. I have had to get used to the fact that "coloured" is not a derogatory term in South Africa as is is in the U.S., rather it refers to anyone of mixed race or any skin tone other than white or black. This tour was lead by Mama Ivy, a vibrant isiXhosa woman who knows the townships in and out. She brought us to the two largest black townships in Cape Town, and also to the coloured township where I will be working, Athlone. We walked around and snapped photos as dorky American tourists do, which surprisingly didn't seem to make anyone uncomfortable except us. We also went to a really great community center where they teach women how to make handicrafts and earn a living. The tour ended at Vicky's B&B, "South Africa's Smallest Hotel" where a local woman has invited visitors to spend time in the townships as they would any other tourist destination. She had an interesting time explaining this concept to her neighbors, who were skeptical of why strangers kept coming to her house. Now her business is thriving with the full support of her community and several other women have opened similar houses.

Tomorrow I start my volunteer work, which will be at Blossom Street Primary School. I will be a teacher's assistant for the first week or so, and then I will move into a social work role as yet to be fine tuned. I had my first run in with South African children today in the townships. I am told that they are very affectionate, playful, happy, and fascinated with white people's hair:)

I have daily e-mail access, so write to me! I will also be getting a South African cell phone soon, so let me know if you'd like the number.