Stickers, & Cheetahs, & Drummers, OH MY!

Yesterday, Friday, was my last day in school before Holiday.  They go to school year-round here in South Africa, so Friday marked the end of their first term.  Two weeks off until the next one starts!  That means us Grand Valley students will travel :)


It was a slightly frustrating morning.  My CT put me to work by checking over grades, which isn't terrible, however, it left me in the faculty room the entire morning without any student interactions.  Also, the checking was super easy to do and apparently she wasn't expecting this.  Basically, it left me with a lot of time to read part 2 of the Hunger Games trilogy :)


After school was out, all of us GV students hung out at my host family's pool for the afternoon.  We realized the pool is entirely salt water.  Crazy, right?!  


Since yesterday was the 22nd birthday of THREE of us, we celebrated with gelato and cake at one family's house and then a few of us moved to the Irish Pub in town.  Safe to say that we all felt at home at that bar!  Very relaxed and great conversations had by all!


Today was a very busy day!  We started out doing our Kayamundi Township tour.  This is the township that my high school is in and where all of my students are from.  It was very eye-opening.  We saw how a majority of our students live.  So many huts and dirt floors.  The kids SWARMED us!  As soon as someone pulled out stickers (or stamps to the children), we never saw the end of them!  It was great and definitely brought tears to a few eyes.  We got to see the preschool and day-care center they have there, as well as the orphanage.  There has actually been one GV student that was on this same trip that ended up coming back after graduation to work in the Kayamundi preschool.  Don't think it's my calling, but still interesting that it's an option.


Tonight, we all traveled to the Spier winery.  There is so much there!  Our first stop was the Cheetah Rehabilitation Center where, guess what, I got to pet and take a pic with a full-grown Cheetah!  And after that, I got to move over to the Aviary and hold a massive owl on my arm.  So awesome, I could not get over it!  The best part of all, however, was the dinner.  We ate at the restaurant attached to the winery called Moyo.  Such a beautiful restaurant under the night sky!  After being seated, the workers come around and paint white dots on your face, everyone with different designs.  Then, they explain to you how the buffet works.  SO MUCH AFRICAN FOOD!  Those of you who may be wondering, of course I had steak!  It was actually Impala steak!  Absolutely everything I ate or drank was incredible!  During dinner, was had drummers as our entertainment.  It was so much fun!  We all have agreed to come back at the very end of our trip.  VERY worth it!


Tomorrow morning we head out all over the country for our 2 week holiday.  It actually starts with a 7 hour drive tomorrow :P


During this holiday I have no idea when I will be able to access the internet to update this blog but I'll do my best.  I miss you all and hope you're finishing out your school year strong!!


More Later!


AB

Cape Town & The Macarena

Our trip to Cape Town yesterday was so great!  Yes, the train was a little "dodgy," as my host mom likes to call it, but the views were worth it.  

Besides the incredible sites of Table mountain and tropical plants, our first stop was the District 6 Museum.  This museum is all about where colored people were designated to live during Apartheid.  It was crazy to see how it was and to read the stories.  They were forced to live in specific ways like caged animals.  It made me think about a mixture of the Holocaust ghettos and the US in the 50s and 60s.  It's also still crazy to see the amount of racism still here in South Africa.  I guess these things take time.

Next we traveled to Green Market Square which consisted of a bunch of little shops filled with so many different South African crafts and gifts.  Lots of bartering went on here!  Unfortunately, it was so much fun that at the end, our group thought we lost Andrea.  Luckily, we found her!  But sadly, for her, this incident is becoming a running joke :P

We got to see the Malay district streets which are lined with so many brightly colored houses!  So beautiful!  Side note, Mom, Dad, Mary, & Jim: I saw a Hilton near this area ;)  Just sayin'!

Basically, Cape Town is awesome and I cannot wait for our next trip back there to travel up Table Mountain, walk through Robben Island, and visit the beach :)

Today, however, was my second day at school.  I was terrified when I first got there because my Cooperating Teacher basically told me to take over all of her classes and then left the room.  Luckily, I knew what words to put through my head and got a smile on my face.  It went so well!!  Yes, I did teach my different classes about bacteria and food webs, however, I also incorporated community building with my students.  I had a fun discussion with a few regarding Jay-Z and Beyonce (everyone thinks that because we're from America, we're all bff's with celebs!).  I also taught some students the Macarena while they are teaching me their dances.  It felt great to connect with these students, even though repeating lines from our conversations was a must.  Definite confidence booster :)

Tonight, I'm going for a run with some friends here, further exploring the city and University (no worries!  We're leaving soon!  It's 4:30 here!).  Then it's a designated night in with Phoebe, the girls, and Lutz and Gemma (the dogs!).  Tomorrow is only a short day at school and then it's a pool party to celebrate 3 of the GV students turning 22.  Crazy!

More Later!

AB

Made it here safely & First day of school!

Hello, all!

I am officially in Stellenbosch!  It was an extremely long flight, but 3 planes and 2 days later, we're here!  The weather here is incredible!  Nothing but blue skies and hot weather!  Not to mention all of the mountains I see in every view, including my classroom windows!

I had my fist officially day today.  I was VERY scared when I first got there.  I had no idea what class I'd be in and what teacher would be with me.  In the end, I am with a Life Science teacher named Marilyn.  The schools here are a lot different then at home (especially my Team 71 friends at Grandville Middle!).  There is definitely a language barrier.  They do speak English in the classrooms, however it isn't any of my students first language.  They actually speak in a language that basically requires a lot of clicking noises.  It's crazy!  And extremely hard to understand.  I'm determined to learn it ;)  I'm also learning Afrikaans from one of my host sisters, Genevesa (yes, she's named after one of the Galapagos Islands!).  

Tomorrow is a public holiday and we'll be headed to Cape Town on the train for the day.  We'll be visiting some museums and shop areas.  Should be a good time.

I would write more about my adventure but I'm in an internet cafe and racking up the minutes.  Soon, we should be fixing up our interenet at home so I might be able to write more later.  

I miss you all and I hope all is great back in the states!  I am currently 6 hours ahead of you Michiganders so I need to get back to Phoebe's house (my host mom!) for dinner!

More Later!

AB

Hello!  

I am currently blogging from a computer lab at Grand Valley's Devos Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  Yep, still in the states.  Just finishing up some last minute homework before I leave for SOUTH AFRICA!  I think it's finally starting to hit me.  I only have one more education class to finish up and only 2 more days at Grandville Middle.  Time has flown!  I am really going to miss my students; however, I must say that I'm excited to visit them in May with stories & letters from my Stellenbosch friends.

Saturday is the big day!  I'll be departing around noon on this great new adventure.  I feel like I don't even know what to expect!  I'm ready for whatever life brings my way.  I will try my best to experience this trip with an open mind and an open heart, learning from each happening.

I'm not sure how often I will be able to update this blog, but I promise this won't be my last post!  Thanks for following in my adventures!  I hope you enjoy :)

More later,

AB