Lots Of First Times!

Part V

Good evening ladies and gents,

quite some time has passed since my last post. Strange is, though, that I don’t have the feeling much has happened. I have pretty much gotten used to everything. It’s incredible how fast people can get used to an environment or a certain situation. Men are not called for nothing ‘creature of habit’. Some of the memories I still have in mind are:

About four weeks ago (due to your little notebook, I still know! - Thanks, Leo!), BIA organized a camp for little second-and third graders. In other words, 60 children between the ages of 7 and 10 years were picked up from their township-schools and allowed to spend one night with the BIA-team at ‘Starling Backpackers’. A backpacker is a form of accommodation similar to a hostel. Literally it is a place where people travelling with a backpack get to spend their nights. Anyway, the theme of this camp was ‘fairytales’ in order to let the children forget about their difficult and sad situations at home. So when the children arrived, they were welcomed by a number of whimsical figures…! The children were divided into different groups, each dealing with another fairytale. About three adults - be it either volunteers or mentors - were responsible for about 15 children. Our group was concerned with the fairytale of ‘Peter Pan’. Thus, I was running around as a dangerous pirate….grrrr. The children loved it! When they found out that pirate Anika wasn’t that dangerous after all, I had to play ‘horse’ or ‘train’ ending up carrying around the children….one on my back, one on my belly and eventually even one on my side…haha. Nice workout ;-). Within those 48 hours, they were given the opportunity to perform a little play, do a scavenger hunt and have fun at the night’s ‘Fairytale Ball’. Some of the little boys and girls were dancing hand in hand…and being completely shy. Sooo cute to observe. A few boys and even one girl showed off their break dance moves: Imagine having a seven-old-kid who looks like a four or five year-old do some break dancing in such a way that I have only seen adults or teenagers doing it. Absolutely amazing! I was standing there with my mouth wide open. When it was time to go to bed, you could once again imagine and experience what kind of background the children must be coming from: Half of the girls - I haven’t been in the boys’ dorm - didn’t even own a pyjama or toothbrush. Very sad. We live in abundance and have more than enough clothes to wear and a few of those children don’t even have the basics either because the family doesn’t have enough money or because the parents don’t care! On the whole, I really enjoyed the camp and spending time with the kids. And I was also grateful that I didn’t catch any flea or lice. A few of the volunteers - not this time though - caught some of that stuff due to the close contact with the children.

The following weekend, Saskia and I went on one of our ‘obligatory’ weekend trips, this time about three to four hours inland to Oudtshoorn. Oudtshoorn is a village that came to wealth in the past because of its big ostrich farms. On the Saturday, we went to see a waterfall which, however, rather resembled a shower. Our next stop, were the ‘Cango Caves’ where we had arranged a meeting with Mareike - who had spent the last four months in Mozambique - and her dad. The caves were very beautiful but I was so focused on our conversation that I didn’t see that much…at least it felt like it ;-). Seeing Mareike again and getting to know her dad was great. I enjoyed it so much! In the evening, when Saskia and I were on our ‘own’ again, the backpackers - we spent the night at - had organized a ‘braai’ giving us the opportunity to try an ostrich steak for the first time in our lives. I have to say - even though I’m not a big fan of meat -, it was delicious! Wouldn’t mind eating it again…hihi. On Sunday, we started off taking the ‘Swartbergpas’ a gravel road that is known for its beautiful scenic view. As it began getting steeper and steeper and higher and higher, we, eventually, had to turn around because of my fear of heights. Usually it is not that bad when I’m driving myself but this time, it just didn’t work. Having seen at least parts of the view, we decided to visit what Oudtshoorn stands for: An ostrich farm. A guide explained all the important facts one should know about ostriches and then, the exciting part began. After having fed the animals - they don’t have any teeth but it advisable to let them eat from your flat hand, otherwise they might pinch you - we got to stand on their eggs. Yes, you have read correctly! - One ostrich egg can carry a weight of about 200kg without breaking. Isn’t that amazing? Try that with a chicken egg…haha. And then…the real fun began. I got to ride on an ostrich: You really have to press your thighs together, lean back and hold on tight to the ostrich’s wings, otherwise you’ll fall off. I felt like a real rodeo-riding cowboy! Yiiipppieeehhh! It was great!
On our way back, we stopped at the waterfront in Knysna to eat at one of the restaurants. With thunderstorms and cold weather outside and a fireplace inside, we made a good choice. The food was excellent, one of the best ones I’ve had here in South Africa. Just to give you an idea what the African cuisine looks like: I ate a very spicy chicken curry, sweet potatoes and beans served with bananas and chutney. So, some of you guys already know what they have to expect once I’m back in Europe and start rattling the pots and pans. A little warning ;-)!

Oh, let me recall a funny memory: On a Monday, my lift to my ‘teaching project’ - she is another teacher at the school - forgot me. So I decided to take a taxi but far wrong. You should not imagine the African taxi system being in any way close to the ‘European’ one. A taxi deserves its name as long as it can still somehow drive. That’s the first lesson! The second lesson you should know: Taxis only leave to the destination of your choice when all the seats are taken. So, if you are unlucky and should not want to grab a taxi during the ‘rush hours’, you can wait for several hours. Long story short: I walked all the way - about 50 minutes - to the school in the direction of the townships. I met some cows blocking my way. The coloured and black people walking into town to go to work looked as me as if I was a ghost. They have probably never seen a white girl walking on the sidewalk and especially not walking into the direction of the townships. I greeted them friendly and when I arrived at the school, Nikki and the other teacher - who had forgot me - waited already. Telling them that I walked all the way, the looked at me…stunned and wouldn’t believe what I had done. Ok, ok…it might have not been the smartest thing to do but it was an interesting experience! I have learned my lesson (so, mum, dad, grandma, grandpa please don’t worry) and am never going to do that again!

XXX
Love, ani

PS: I have tried to upload pictures a couple of times now. The internet connection is just to slow. It doesn’t work. For those of you who are really interested I can offer you a slideshow with personal comments once I’m back! So for those of you who might be interested, just let me know ;-).