So I am now in South Africa, which is nothing short of amazing! But before I delve into my wonderful experiences here thus far, let me finish telling you all about the nightmare that is China. Okay, that was a little dramatic, but let's just say I am happy to leave.
I finished up my stay in Changsha, which involved sitting in class, watching power points and walking through empty hospitals, eager to get out of urban institutional China and get to what I though would be the heart of the nation, the countryside. Wrong. Our supposed "rural stay" was anything but rural. Let me preface this by saying that we were told before going on our "rural stay" that we would be seeing the most beautiful part of China, that we would be able to roam paddy fields and talk to farmers about their lives. Unless you consider a "town" of 1 million people rural and an office park "the most beautiful part of China," I think you would understand how we were sorely disappointed. We spent about 3 days in an enormous hotel that seemed to double as a whore a house. No joke. The only women who were there were dressed like skanks, even by Chinese standards. (Chinese women dress like a cross between a hooker and a 13 year old girl: Hello Kitty, rhinestones, short skirts and platform heels). The men were all creepy drunk businessman. Ho central. We spent most of each day sitting in boring lectures, watching power points and touring even more empty hospitals.
After our group and our teachers staged a revolt against our country coordinators for bringing us to something reminiscent of Big Brother, we were brought to a slightly more rural area-- a tourist hotel. After a day there we went back to Changsha and then flew out to Hong Kong en route to South Africa. Hong Kong was great! I rode the longest escalator in the world. It brings you up through the city, which is built on a hill. We explored some markets and I finally found places to buy cool souvenirs for people. Hong Kong's political situation is so interesting-- it is technically part of China, after the British handed it over a few years ago, and its culture seems pretty Chinese, but Hong Kong citizens need a visa to get to China and vice versa. Hong Kong has its own government set up, based on British common law. There were TONS of ex-pats too. It was kind of nice to be around people who spoke English and looked like us after a month of sticking out like a sore thumb.
We arrived in South Africa a week ago. I can't even describe how amazing it is here. First of all, the scenery is absolutely breathtaking-- steep, rocky peaks feed right into the Atlantic ocean; Table Mountain (google it) is the most beautiful backdrop to everyday life imaginable. Today, I went to Cape Point, which is the most "south-westerly" point of Africa. It is pretty famous, and many people think it is the southermost point of Africa, but that is actually a little farther east. Anyway, I don't think I have ever been anywhere so gorgeous. The water is a bright torquise blue and the waves crash onto both sandy beaches and rocky cliffs. Baboons are everywhere! One stole my friends salad--and picked out all the feta cheese, which I guess he didn't like. I also went to Kalk Bay today, which is a little harbor surrounded by more stunning mountains. When we got there, there were two or three humongous sea lions splashing around in the water. Therewas a guy there who was holding fish by their tails in his mouth and feeding them to the sea lions-- the sea lions would jump out of the water and snatch them from him. In other fauna news, I also saw a whale in the distance and a few geckos.
Another amazing experience I have had was seeing the (full) moon rise and the sun set at the same time on the top of Lion's Head mountain. If you stood facing towards the ocean, the moon would be rising on your left over the bright lights of the city and the sun would be setting into the horizon on your right. It was beautiful!
The neighborhood I live in here, the Bo Kaap, is picturesque. It is a predominantly Muslim community built on the foot of Signal Hill, with an amazing view of Table Mountain. All of the houses are painted in bright pastels--my house is bright yellow. Everyone is so friendly and they love me because of my name (which is very Muslim). My faux home-stay mom's little granddaughter even has the same name as my aunt--Nishat. My real home-stay mom is away for the weekend, so her daughter's sister in-law is taking care of us. It is really great how close knit the Bo Kaap-- everyone knows everyone and they are all willing to lend a hand. Plus it is nice that all of us IHP students live within walking distance of eachother.
I have also seen some not so picturesque neighborhoods during my stay here. Last week, we visited Khaleyche, an all black township a little bit outside of the city. The contrast between Khaleyche and Cape Town was startling. Cape Town is a very modern and sophisticated city, with beautiful homes, great restaurants and name brand stores. Khaleyche is basically a shanty-town. Its residents live in what are basically shacks. There is a huge problem with both HIV/AIDS and unemployment in the area. It was really disturbing to see the disparity between Khaleyche and Cape Town, but the man we went there to speak to, a Christian leader, was incredibly inspiring. He was arrested for his role in the resistance against Apartheid and was tortured, causing damage to his "private parts" and "killing his brain cells." He was exiled to the Soviet Union, where he received military training. When he returned to South Africa, he was understandably depressed due to his impotence and memory loss. He tried to commit suicide but luckily failed. At this point, he "found God." He became an Christian leader and now does amazing work to help people accept their life with HIV. He told some shocking but inspiring stories about how he saved people from their own suicide attempts.
One of the most impressive things about South Africa is how strong people have been through all of the hardships the country has gone through. The minister I just wrote about is only one example. While race relations are clearly still a huge problem in South Africa, I am really impressed with how much South Africa has acheived since the end of Apartheid. People of all colors speak to you as an equal. Blacks hold almost all important positions in government. Huge efforts have been made by the government to combat HIV/AIDS and to improve the lives of those who suffered the abuses of Apartheid. Granted, there is still a lot of corruption and racism, both of which are visible. But the resolve of South Africans, people who fought for decades to overthrow Apartheid without much foreign aid, makes me think that a truly equal society is not far in th future.
On Monday, I am heading to Zwelethemba, a more rural township, where I will spend ten days. I am excited but I wish we were spending more time in Cape Town and less there! We will be back here for ten days and then I am going to stay after the program ends for at least ten days, maybe all summer! I love this country!
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