- I got super weird tan lines on a hike to Camps Bay last weekend--one of the most beautiful beaches in Cape Town. In order to "fix" these unsightly tan lines, I ended up burning my back into a pretty lobster-y shade the next weekend. Damn the African sun!
- I've been known to cook in large quantities. Like, very large. My most recent creation was an ostrich meatloaf filled with tons of veggies and peri peri sauce. I seem to only use the one industrial size soup pot whenever I cook.
- I can't wait for summer. Can't. Wait.
- Living in the American house is still an adjustment--being with 20 other people constantly can get a little overwhelming, which is why it's been great to have a few good friends outside our main group to go escape with :)
- I'm starting to [think about] writing my article(s). This means compiling all my research from the past four months, including my interviews I'm still conducting, into a paper that will [hopefully!] be published in a journal. Pretty daunting task!
- We're doing these things called "body maps" in one of our classes. We're basically drawing pictures on an outline of our bodies to represent our answers to these deep, intense questions our "professor" poses us. It's taught by an Anglican priest and it is supposed to guide us on our "journey of transformation" here in SA. Questions like "where do I come from?" and "what is the relationship between mind, body and spirit?" I'm trying hard not to roll my eyes constantly and at least appear to take this seriously. But in all honesty, it's quite frustrating to have to take a class like this. I would much rather learn some actual SA history (since I'm getting history credit for it) than this "finding yourself" class. Oh well, at least it's easy!
- There is no decent Mexican food--because there isn't a Latino population here at all. I think that we should all be a little more grateful for the South Americans in the US because I sure am missing a good burrito with some pico de gallo!
- I really wish I could go to The Rally to Restore Sanity in DC on October 30th. You should all go!!
Monday, September 27, 2010
Quick Update
Not much new to tell you, so I thought I'd put a few thoughts down in bullet form:
Monday, September 13, 2010
One month later
As my last German friend in Cape Town left for home, the instant arrival of 20 American students ensured I wouldn't be without foreigners in this city. I said goodbye to Blencathra and moved down the street to my new home (still in the ritzy upper class neighborhood of Tamboerskloof) filled with UNC study abroad students.
The following week I took off from work and participated in my programs orientation week. Surprisingly, I realized how much I needed this week to re-orientate myself to my new surroundings. My new life in the same city was going to be much different from the independent style I had grown accustomed to these last three months. Minus the stress of traveling in a huge group, it was nice to be re-introduced to Cape Town and explore the city through the new eyes of my peers. Robben Island, city centre, Cape Point, Table Mountain--our first week was completely packed with a "welcome to the city" marathon.
Lets just get one thing straight. America--we are a LOUD bunch of people! On our balcony, in the kitchen, walking down the street, in restaurants and bars, on buses--everyone knows when Americans are approaching. For me, spending three months trying really hard to blend was for two reasons--one: pride and the desire to assimilate and two: basic safety reasons traveling alone or in groups. Being foreign in addition to American often makes you a target for muggings).
So learning to be comfortable loudly walking in a giant group of Americans in down town Cape Town was a huge adjustment and still something I'm getting used to. On Friday we take the Jammie shuttle (the University bus that is free for students and faculty) to UCT for class. Just imagine it: enormous group of Americans loudly pile onto a bus and completely take it over. Conversations fly across the bus, trying to talk to strangers at 8:30 in the morning, questions about this and that--once we got off, our lovely TA told me I looked like a 13 year old at the mall with her mom, my expression was clearly "Mooooooooom you're embarrassing me-get me out of here!"
Despite the adjustment to constantly living with group dynamics (Real World: Cape Town. It's totally happening with or without the camera crew) it has been quite lovely being surrounded by people again. This weekend a lot of us hiked to Camps Bay--a relatively easy 2 hour hike up into the mountains surrounding Cape Town and ending at one of the most gorgeous beaches in the city. Picnic on the rocks overlooking the crashing waves, watching the surfers in the frigidly cold ocean waters, laying on the beach, reading our books for class (needed to slip in that academic stuff somewhere in this post...) and getting ridiculous looking tan lines--yeah, I'll happily trade half my senior year for this.
The following week I took off from work and participated in my programs orientation week. Surprisingly, I realized how much I needed this week to re-orientate myself to my new surroundings. My new life in the same city was going to be much different from the independent style I had grown accustomed to these last three months. Minus the stress of traveling in a huge group, it was nice to be re-introduced to Cape Town and explore the city through the new eyes of my peers. Robben Island, city centre, Cape Point, Table Mountain--our first week was completely packed with a "welcome to the city" marathon.
Lets just get one thing straight. America--we are a LOUD bunch of people! On our balcony, in the kitchen, walking down the street, in restaurants and bars, on buses--everyone knows when Americans are approaching. For me, spending three months trying really hard to blend was for two reasons--one: pride and the desire to assimilate and two: basic safety reasons traveling alone or in groups. Being foreign in addition to American often makes you a target for muggings).
So learning to be comfortable loudly walking in a giant group of Americans in down town Cape Town was a huge adjustment and still something I'm getting used to. On Friday we take the Jammie shuttle (the University bus that is free for students and faculty) to UCT for class. Just imagine it: enormous group of Americans loudly pile onto a bus and completely take it over. Conversations fly across the bus, trying to talk to strangers at 8:30 in the morning, questions about this and that--once we got off, our lovely TA told me I looked like a 13 year old at the mall with her mom, my expression was clearly "Mooooooooom you're embarrassing me-get me out of here!"
Despite the adjustment to constantly living with group dynamics (Real World: Cape Town. It's totally happening with or without the camera crew) it has been quite lovely being surrounded by people again. This weekend a lot of us hiked to Camps Bay--a relatively easy 2 hour hike up into the mountains surrounding Cape Town and ending at one of the most gorgeous beaches in the city. Picnic on the rocks overlooking the crashing waves, watching the surfers in the frigidly cold ocean waters, laying on the beach, reading our books for class (needed to slip in that academic stuff somewhere in this post...) and getting ridiculous looking tan lines--yeah, I'll happily trade half my senior year for this.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
