Four hula hoops, one jump rope, and a soccer ball

I don't know if I told everyone or not, but the World Cup completely disrupted my volunteer plans!  Not that I don't love soccer, but I was really looking forward to working in an educational setting here in South Africa.  Anyway, because of World Cup, all of the school children are on holiday from school.  Soooooooo, that threw a huge monkey wrench in my plans.  Today I worked with an organization called Safeline that was running a holiday camp for the township kids.  I, along with another CCS volunteer, had a group of about 15 3, 4, and 5 year olds from 9am until 1:00.  The title of my post is what we had to entertain them with.  It was hard work, let me tell you.  The kids were VERY active, but so sweet and practically starving for attention.  They would just grab onto me and refuse to let go.  The language barrier is a bit of a problem. Most of the little ones speak mostly Afrikaans, but they did understand some English.  I was glad that Payne used to sing the Justin Bieber song, "Baby," because we found a connection there - seriously!  We sang it together.  I will be seeing the kids again tomorrow, and I found bubbles and balloons in the CCS supply closet to take with me - woohoo!  We also have Afrikaans classes tomorrow afternoon, so I will fill you guys in on everything I learn - I'm sure I'll be amazing.  Kidding, but I'll do my best.

Etafeni

We also went to Etafeni yesterday.  It is an incredible community center that services township women, children, and teens.  There is a preschool, an after-school program, AIDS counselors, and craft skills for women - check out some of their products by going to the website:
http://www.etafenitrust.org/

The other side

So today we saw a completely different side of Cape Town.  Above is a picture of part of Langa, one of the oldest townships in Cape Town.  These two teeny shacks a just a small part of the hundreds of "houses" like this in Langa.  (Langa means sunrise in Xhosa, the native language).  Clearly, there is no running water or plumbing of any kind in these homes.  Sometimes they have to light fires in them to stay warm.

If you are a bit more fortunate, you might be able to stay in a place like this.  This is the kitchen of a hostel that is used by several families. They have running water and electricity.  It costs 20 rand a month to live here - about $2.60 in U.S. dollars.  Also, there are several bedrooms in the hostel that families share - at least two families per room.  However, it not just their room, it's really their entire home.

Here is a lady from the hostel that was so excited to share her home with me. 

Everything she owns is behind us.

The government is working to update and modernize these hostels, but it is a slow process.

Cape Town

Had a tour of Cape Town today.  Here are some pics:  the first is the Castle of Good Hope, the oldest surviving colonial building in South Africa.  The second is a view from Signal Hill - see the soccer stadium?  That's probably as close as I'm going to get to a game!  The last pic is of me at one of the beaches.  It is winter here, so it's really cold (hence my fleece) but there were people out surfing.  Tomorrow we have a township tour and a history lesson, and then volunteer placements start on Tuesday.  More pics tomorrow!

arrived!

After a 9 hour flight to London, a 12 hour layover in London, and an 11 hour flight to Cape Town, I am finally here.  Exhausted, but here.  None of the other volunteers have arrived yet, but everyone will get here today.  The driver, Kimie, picked me up from the airport and talked me through what we were seeing as we drove in.  Everything looked beautiful around the airport.  He said, "When we get over this bridge, everything will change.  Don't be shocked."  And over the bridge, there it was: a little township overflowing with patched together shanties.  Apartheid may be over, but a great number of the black population still lives in poverty. 

I think we are taking a township tour tomorrow - if so, I will take pictures for you guys.

a day in London

I got a chance to spend the day in London today. I was planning on going on a walking tour with a group, but I got on the wrong subway my first go -bummer- so I missed it and had to strike out on my own.  That's one of the things that stinks about traveling on your own - you have no one to blame but yourself when something goes wrong (English II - remember the Lopate essay?). Went to Westminster Abbey and the Victoria and Albert museum.  The museum had an exhibit on the evolution of fashion that was incredible.

Leaving Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is the big day!  I've got to get my packing done today--it's going to be strange packing for winter when it is a million degrees here.  I have a twelve hour layover in London, so if anyone has any opinions about something that is a "must see, " please let me know.  (I know there are tons of things to see - please help me narrow it down.)

I recieved my volunteer placement.  I am going to be working at Safeline Child Abuse Treatment and Prevention Centre.  Safeline is a non-profit organization that works in low income and under-resourced socio-economic areas. It delivers services to children between 2 and 18 years of age who have been sexually abused, raped or physically assaulted. Victims and their families are referred to Safeline from various government and local community organizations.