Back in the States
Well we have finally arrived back in the states.
On the last few days of the trip we went to the harbor and then to Robben's Island. Robben's Island is primarily famous for the fact that Nelson Mandela was imprisoned there for 11 years. He was imprisoned with many other political activists who spoke against the apartheid. First we took a bus tour of the island, getting a feel for where everything was located as well as the history of the island before it was the prison that it is famous for. Then we got off the bus and were able to take a tour. What was crazy about this tour versus really any other was that some of the people on the tour (all the ones from the area) had lived through apartheid and could correct tour guides based on their experience. What was even crazier is that all the tour guides at the prison itself, were prisoners there. It was amazing in a very chilling way to hear the stories of the actual prisoners, in real life, and get to ask them questions about their experiences and know that it is the actual answer. The man who gave our tour is still supposed to be a prisoner there, he would have another two years to serve if apartheid had not ended. After the tour some people went shopping, some went home and some went to the beach, but we met up soon afterwards to eat a wonderful homecooked dinner by Joanne where we ate the traditional pap (cornmeal type substance) and the sauces with our hands!
The next day we said goodbye to Joanne and Fiona and got on a bus to tour. We went to a beach, we also went to Cape Point and climbed to the lighthouse for a spectacular view. The day was somewhat long, but after dropping Ashley off and saying goodbye to him we went to find our homestay mothers. We were split into a few houses in a local township, where the effects of apartheid were really felt. When we met our "mamas" we went home for traditional cooking, which varied depending on the house.
The next day we met up and we went to a new bed and breakfast, friends of Mikes. It was a beautiful and very old home, but it was so well designed and peaceful, and it was on a beautiful countryside. They served a wonderful lunch for us and then they allowed us to swim in their new pool. We left there and a few people went on a tour of the township where we stayed while other people when to the local town and walked around, ate, and some even went shopping. Again we returned to the township where we got drum lessons and some of us even learned how to keep a beat. Dinner soon followed at the local restauraunt where we said goodbye to our "mamas" and Mike and Heather. After dinner we returned to our homestays for one last night, and we woke up early in the morning to start the travel back.
At the airport we said a hard goodbye to Mike and Heather who were both extremely wonderful and Ryan and then we were on our way for 34 hours and 20 minutes of traveling before we hit Nova.
Some of us are having hard times adjusting back to life in the states as usual. What we saw, and because we learned to love those kids we are having a hard time coming back and knowing we are so far from the kids we learned to love. But we have decided to fight together as a group of 19 towards the end of AIDs. We haven't figured out just where that fight will start or where it will end, but we do know that we are going to tell everyone our stories, we are going to try to relay the love for the kids that we had, and we're going to hope that by telling others they can tell even more people. If anyone has any suggestions about how we can work together as a group please let us know, and if you are reading this please relay our experience to those that you know...or those that you don't. We have challenged ourselves to tell as many as possible.
We would like to extend several thank yous to the wonderful people who made our journey spectacular.
First to Nancy for arranging everything and working so hard to make this opportunity possible for so many.
Second to Mike and Heather who organized and ran this trip in South Africa. They did a wonderful job picking historic sites, and also worked so well to establish a wonderful relationship with Baphumelele and coordinate the weeks activities so well.
Fionna and Ryan and Kristi and the many other friends of Heather and Mike, thank you for making us feel so welcome and for allowing us into your homes, churches and hearts.
Joanne thank you for making us feel so happy and part of a family every morning, you are wonderful.
Ashley, we loved having you around and we loved your photos!
Last, but certainly not least, to Chris and Dom, thank you so much for working so hard to make this trip go smoothly, and thank you for being stellar leaders, you made the trip wonderful.
On the last few days of the trip we went to the harbor and then to Robben's Island. Robben's Island is primarily famous for the fact that Nelson Mandela was imprisoned there for 11 years. He was imprisoned with many other political activists who spoke against the apartheid. First we took a bus tour of the island, getting a feel for where everything was located as well as the history of the island before it was the prison that it is famous for. Then we got off the bus and were able to take a tour. What was crazy about this tour versus really any other was that some of the people on the tour (all the ones from the area) had lived through apartheid and could correct tour guides based on their experience. What was even crazier is that all the tour guides at the prison itself, were prisoners there. It was amazing in a very chilling way to hear the stories of the actual prisoners, in real life, and get to ask them questions about their experiences and know that it is the actual answer. The man who gave our tour is still supposed to be a prisoner there, he would have another two years to serve if apartheid had not ended. After the tour some people went shopping, some went home and some went to the beach, but we met up soon afterwards to eat a wonderful homecooked dinner by Joanne where we ate the traditional pap (cornmeal type substance) and the sauces with our hands!
The next day we said goodbye to Joanne and Fiona and got on a bus to tour. We went to a beach, we also went to Cape Point and climbed to the lighthouse for a spectacular view. The day was somewhat long, but after dropping Ashley off and saying goodbye to him we went to find our homestay mothers. We were split into a few houses in a local township, where the effects of apartheid were really felt. When we met our "mamas" we went home for traditional cooking, which varied depending on the house.
The next day we met up and we went to a new bed and breakfast, friends of Mikes. It was a beautiful and very old home, but it was so well designed and peaceful, and it was on a beautiful countryside. They served a wonderful lunch for us and then they allowed us to swim in their new pool. We left there and a few people went on a tour of the township where we stayed while other people when to the local town and walked around, ate, and some even went shopping. Again we returned to the township where we got drum lessons and some of us even learned how to keep a beat. Dinner soon followed at the local restauraunt where we said goodbye to our "mamas" and Mike and Heather. After dinner we returned to our homestays for one last night, and we woke up early in the morning to start the travel back.
At the airport we said a hard goodbye to Mike and Heather who were both extremely wonderful and Ryan and then we were on our way for 34 hours and 20 minutes of traveling before we hit Nova.
Some of us are having hard times adjusting back to life in the states as usual. What we saw, and because we learned to love those kids we are having a hard time coming back and knowing we are so far from the kids we learned to love. But we have decided to fight together as a group of 19 towards the end of AIDs. We haven't figured out just where that fight will start or where it will end, but we do know that we are going to tell everyone our stories, we are going to try to relay the love for the kids that we had, and we're going to hope that by telling others they can tell even more people. If anyone has any suggestions about how we can work together as a group please let us know, and if you are reading this please relay our experience to those that you know...or those that you don't. We have challenged ourselves to tell as many as possible.
We would like to extend several thank yous to the wonderful people who made our journey spectacular.
First to Nancy for arranging everything and working so hard to make this opportunity possible for so many.
Second to Mike and Heather who organized and ran this trip in South Africa. They did a wonderful job picking historic sites, and also worked so well to establish a wonderful relationship with Baphumelele and coordinate the weeks activities so well.
Fionna and Ryan and Kristi and the many other friends of Heather and Mike, thank you for making us feel so welcome and for allowing us into your homes, churches and hearts.
Joanne thank you for making us feel so happy and part of a family every morning, you are wonderful.
Ashley, we loved having you around and we loved your photos!
Last, but certainly not least, to Chris and Dom, thank you so much for working so hard to make this trip go smoothly, and thank you for being stellar leaders, you made the trip wonderful.
posted by VillanovaInSouthAfrica @ 9:38 AM
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