Final Presentations and Harry Potter

This whole week we have been planning and working on our final presentations which were yesterday. My group was the last to go. We worked really hard on it so I was excited to present everything. We made a movie and a slideshow of our work at Pebbles Project. We each get a copy so if anyone would like it see it when I get home just let me know! After our presentations they served us lunch which was delicious. It was a little bit everything so naturally I tried it all with the exception of the veggies. After lunch was over Dom, Erin, and I made our way to see Harry Potter!! It was a great movie; a few parts I didn't like but overall I really did enjoy it. My childhood is officially over since there will be no more books or movies :( After Harry Potter we met up with a few people at the bar/restaurant right down the street from our dorm we hung out there for a bit and then went to our supervisors a capella group's concert! They were so good. Once that was over as a group we went to Catwalk; Erin, myself, and a few others were only there for a about 20 minutes before we went home. Jimmy Mullins told me about this cool wine farm where you can play with some cheetahs so around noon time today a whole group of us are going to go do that!! Unfortunately, they're turning off the internet today so I won't be able to blog for the rest of my time here since tomorrow we're leaving for the Garden Route Tour. See everyone in a week!!! :) 

Cape Town Round Two and Day Off Number One

On Sunday morning Dom, Erin, and I took the train into Cape Town. It was a beautiful day so we were really excited! Our first stop was this cool looking castle. I cannot for the life of me remember the name but it was SO cool. I'll add the pictures to Snapfish either tonight or tomorrow. The castle was really old and had a torture chamber and all these other creepy rooms and passage ways. The view from the top was amazing! After walking around the castle for about an hour we made our way to Long Street but of course got distracted by the markets that were just opening up. I bought a really cool satchel and some decorative items for my room at school. By this time we were starving so we wanted to find a place for lunch. Erin's friend from back home recommended this restaurant called Mamma Africa but since life shuts down on Sundays it was closed. We did however find another great spot. I don't think I have ever consumed that much food in my life. After eating so much we were all just exhausted and wanted to head back to Stellenbosch but unfortunately for us we had just missed the train and had to wait two hours for the next one. We tried laying in the grass but got yelled at ..twice. When it was finally time to go we found some of our friends on the train. The train ride went a lot faster with more people on there to talk to. On the way to and from Cape Town we passed a whole bunch of zebras!! It was so cool. Zebras and baboons within the past two days?! AWESOME! It got me that much more excited for the Garden Route. After laying in bed for a few hours some of my friends and I went to Bohemia which is a bar right down the street from my dorm. It was a lot of fun to just sit and hang out in a non-classroom setting. This morning since class is over and done with I would have normally slept in but since we have our final presentation on Wednesday I was up nice and early to work on that. That and finishing up my final portfolio took up my entire day. I relaxed a bit and then went out to dinner at a place called Cognito. One of the South African guys from option one works there so we went to visit him. It was awesome food but by far the most expensive meal I've had here thus far. It was 140 rand which is equivalent to $20. That might not seem very expensive for a dinner but here it was. Tomorrow is another day that we have to work on presentations or sleep in. I was hoping to sleep in but me being the overachiever that I am is waking up at 8am so I can get my haircut ... bad move on my part. Hopefully, Thursday I'll be able to sleep in! Still counting down the hours until Harry Potter :) 

Last day of class and Ceres, South Africa

So Thursday was the closing function. I was probably there for an hour, maybe a little less because one of my friends didn't feel well so we decided to come back. That was fine by me because I was exhausted! Friday morning we didn't have class so four of us went out to breakfast, there I had the BEST chocolate shake of my life. Afterwards, Erin, Kristin, and I went shopping where I may or may not have spent a little too much money (sorry mom). We went to this really cool butcher shop and bought some really really tasty kudu biltong! The meat here is ten times better than back home. Then we had to make our way back so we wouldn't be late for class, even though I wouldn't have minded .. Almost everyday Grant had us do some ridiculous check in activity which was mostly drawing (not my strong suit ..) or write something down; he would then hang them up on the wall. Well, we spent about an hour taking them down and gluing them into this book he made us, which he then took back but I'm assuming he's going to give them back to us but then again it's Grant and he can be weird at times. After class Dom Erin and I started the journey to her house! Once we got there we hung out with her family and all her animals!! Her house was AWESOME! I loved it. Her parents made us nice homecooked meal; it was nice to not eat out for a change! It was a very relaxing night. I went to bed probably around 10:30! I was exhausted after this week. Today, we woke up around 9:45 and just layed around and watched Despicable Me. We also walked around her town for a bit where I saw SNOW in AFRICA!! It was cool. Her dad kept talking about this cool meat so naturally I bought some. It was one of the best things I have ever eaten. I have no idea how to spell or pronounce the name of it or else I would write it. We were supposed to go horseback riding but the lady was a total flake and bailed on us. Not cool. We got back to Stellenbosch around 8:30 and our dorm is EMPTY! Everyone went to Cape Town for the night so it's really quiet .. kind of scary actually. Tomorrow morning we're going to wake up around 7 and take the train to Cape Town for the day. I'm really excited! We have our whole week planned out so it's going to be fun :) Harry Potter tickets have been bought and guess what! They were only $3.15!! Back in the States they would be like $10! I can't wait :) 

Opposite Spectrums

The week before I came to South Africa I babysat for an extremely wealthy family that lived downtown. I had to wake up at the crack of dawn (literally..) so the mother could go work out and shop; I kid you not. She made sure I prepared a healthy breakfast and lunch for her daughter and had the entire day scheduled out. The little girl was just great but all I kept thinking was how awful it was for her not to be able to spend time with her parents. Now here I am in Africa working with a community that is deeply immersed in poverty. These kids were often not bathed and had worn the same clothes 3 or 4 days in a row; some were clearly underfed as well. These were two different worlds and I am a different, hopefully better, person because of my experiences in both situations. While babysitting for the family in Chicago I would constantly dread getting up in the morning to head over there even though I was getting paid but here working with these kids I was not getting a monetary form of payment yet I wanted to be there. I wanted to spend as much time as possible with these kids. I was not getting paid to be with them but I received something even better-- hope. I saw what it was like to have virtually nothing but to still be happy. These kids would wait outside for us everyday to drive us in our bus and when they saw us they all got the biggest smiles on their faces. I learned so much more in those seven days that I could have ever learned in a classroom. Our last day with the kids was yesterday. It was a really sad and heartbreaking experience. All throughout the week there was a boy named Jandre there. He was a quiet but extremely talented and intelligent 12 year old. I usually worked with the older kids so I was with him quite a bit and on the last day we were making friendship bracelets and he asked me to be his girlfriend. I said no but preceded to make him three more bracelets, I will never forget the big smile he had on his face or the huge hug he gave me as we were saying our goodbyes. There was also another girl Fiona who spoke impeccable English. She was there everyday translating for us when Jeanine was otherwise preoccupied. Fiona hugged me crying and said I will never forget you guys, please don't forget about us. I don't think she understood the impact she had on each and every one of us. I have high hopes for her. It's little things like that that make this trip worthwhile. 
Ok now on to other things! Today, we got out of class at 11:30! Erin and I went and had lunch and did a little shopping. It was a nice and relaxing afternoon. At four we had our final checkout because Option One students leave tomorrow for the Garden Route and we won't see them again. In a little bit is our closing function. I'm excited for that because it's a good way to say good bye to everyone. Tomorrow is my last day of class, we have to be there at 3 so I get to have a nice little sleep in! We have to turn in our final paper and then have our last and final check-out. After class Erin, Dom, and myself are going to Dom's house which is about two hours away! I'm really excited because she said she lives with a bunch of different animals!! We'll be there for the night and then on Sunday a whole group of us are going to Cape Town for the night! I'm really excited for that because I feel as if we didn't see much of Cape Town when we went those times. Then that brings me to my last week here! Monday and Tuesday are days that we have to work on our final presentations which we give on Wednesday! I'm SUPER excited for Wednesday because HARRY POTTER COMES OUT TWO DAYS EARLIER HERE! Best news I have ever received in my life.. okay not really but it may be top five. My time here is going by really fast so I need to make the most of my last two weeks! 


Opps! I forgot to talk about the awesome meal I had yesterday. About 7 of us went to this woman's apartment where her and one other woman made us the BEST meal I've had here. I don't even know what it all was but I loved every bit of it .. even the spinach! We were there for about three and a half hours just talking about the most random topics. It was a great time and I really enjoyed the food :) 


See everyone soon :)

End of last week & Swellendam

Sorry for not updating in a while; hanging out with these kids wear me out! Wednesday was another great day! We went to Durban where the kids were able to decorate elephants, have a picnic lunch on the beach, and got henna tattooed on them! They all seemed to really get into all of the make believe aspects of that day. Thursday was another good day with the kids! We went to three places, Johannesburg Pretoria, and Kimberley Hole, seeing as how Johannesburg and Pretoria are very similar we spent the majority of our time at Kimberley Hole. Here the kids were able to pretend to find diamonds which were actually candy wrapped in tin foil. They loved it, especially the candy part. Thursday night a group of us went to dinner at Apprentice. It's where culinary students come and practice cooking. I ordered the spiced chicken; it was delicious! The portions were a bit small for the price but it was very good! I even tried zucchini and I liked it! After dinner we went to Cubana for drinks. They had all of these fruity cocktails that were so goood! We're going back tonight :) Friday was another day with the kids. We went to Krueger National Park which was VERY hectic. We made binoculars and tie-dyed shirts, socks, and pillowcases. I don't know if the kids were happy about tie-dying or that it was Friday but they were extremely hyper and one was actually hungover. The hungover boy was not a happy camper to say the least. He swore at me quite a few times in Afrikaans and then once in English so I knew what he was saying. After we had "class" with Grant which is actually more like a group therapy session we left for Swellendam! Right when we got there we tried to find a cabin but unfortunately the cabin that was supposed to be our was locked and by that time every other cabin was filled so my friends and I had to split up. At first in my cabin it was myself, Erin, Dom, Bri, Mackenzie, and GEORGE THE BUS DRIVER. Thankfully, they realized how inappropriate it would have been to have a 40 something year old man staying in the next room over. After George moved out Morgan, Lindsey, Carrie Ann, and Lance moved in! It was definitely a fun cabin. The first night we all just hung out by the bon fire drinking and roashing marshmellows. Saturday we woke up bright and early and went zip-lining! Only seven of us did it but it would so much fun!! We went off this big mountain hill thing right into the water. It was about 40 degrees and raining so the water was even colder! I was freezing once I got out of the water but they had a fire going on the boat so we all warmed up there. Once we got back we had lunch, drank a few beers, and went on a hike. Swellendam is gorgeous!! I posted some pictures on Facebook but I will upload the rest on Snapfish either today or tomorrow. Where we stayed also had a bunch of cows we went and played with them! It was awesome. Saturday night I wasn't feeling too well so I ate dinner and then went back to my cabin and read my book for a bit. Sunday morning we woke up and took a 45 minute bus ride to these natural hot springs. We all put on our bathing suits and hopped right in! Then we went on another hike .. it was rough. Then we got back on the bus and headed back to Stellenbosch! It was a successful and relaxing weekend :) Today, all of option two gets off so this morning my small group for the essay worked together and got our section done! In a little bit we have to meet again as a whole to put the whole paper together and then it's time to celebrate the 4th of July!!! I really wish I could be at the lake hanging out with everyone but this will just have to do! We're going to have a bbq and pretend like we're back in the United States for the day. It'll be interesting to say the least. I'll post pictures soon! Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday!! 

First Two Days of Working with the Children

Monday was our first actual day with the kids, there were only about 11 of them there when we were supposed to get around 50! I think the youngest was about 5 and the oldest 12. They were so much fun and seemed to really enjoy themselves! We played a few games with them and then  did a few craft activities. Some understand and speak English very well and others not so much but that doesn't seem to matter to them. Today was even better.We got a few more kids to come, the oldest being 14! They learned all about Cape Town and did a few crafts that involved Table Mountain. One thing that I have learned is that these kids love to dance and listen to Justin Bieber. They know every single word!! I'm really excited to see what tomorrow will bring. Hopefully, we get even more kids to show up. The other group has over 200 kids and they all speak a way different language than Afrikaans but thankfully of them they get interpreters which I'm sure helps a lot. This week is going by so fast; this whole trip is actually! Three weeks from tomorrow I leave to start my journey back home. This trip has definitely been an experience for my stomach -- so many strange and interesting foods. Tonight three of us went to Simply Asia and I got a type of Thai Curry. It wasn't awful but definitely not the best thing I've ever eaten. After dinner we went to McDonald's and got the BEST McFlurries. I don't even know what it was called but I will definitely be returning sometime soon to get another one. Hopefully tomorrow and the rest of the week goes well and the kids continue having fun! Here's the link to see some pictures from this past weekend at Table Mountain. Enjoy! 

http://www5.snapfish.com/snapfish/fe/l=en_US/p/dasta/Main/AlbumID=3853573026/a=5151520026_5151520026/s_c=0/s_ru=FALSE/s_se=FDR#ss=%7B%22uc%22%3A1%7D

Hell Week

This past week just FLEW by! I dubbed it Hell Week seeing as we had so much homework to do. It actually didn't take as long as I thought it would thanks to my group coming together and working as a team to get everything done. Friday, we met with the organization again to go over our activities proposal with them and they loved it! That was a huge load off of our shoulders. Grant was feeling especially nice and let us out at 3 instead of 5 so a few of us went to the little market they have in town. I may have spent a little more than I had originally planned but everything was so cool! I even learned how to barter and wasn't as bad as I thought I would be. Afterwards, we went to the Braai (Braii?) I forget how to spell it but once again I had ostrich! It's so good!! Then onto the bars to celebrate Hell Week being officially over. Now that was A LOT of fun, maybe too much fun. I celebrated a little too hard and waking up at 8am to take a bus to Cape Town was not ideal. Once we got to Cape Town we went straight up to Table Mountain which is absolutely breathtaking. I will post the pictures on Snapfish after my meeting tonight. Then after that we got to walk around Cape Town. A few of us went to the Aquarium which was so cool! One minute we were petting starfish and then we turn around and there were penguins right behind us!! It was so cool to see that. Then it was time to get back on the bus and make our way back to Stellenbosch. A few of us went out to this seafood place, I was pretty darn nervous to say the least. I've been trying to expand my horizons as much as possible so I decided to try Hake which is some type of fish. It was wonderful! I was really excited and ate almost all of it. After dinner I was a cool kid and stayed in to read my book and relax. I slept in today until about 230ish -- definition of a lazy bum. Well I gotta go to my meeting so I will try to post tomorrow after my first day with the kids! Wish me luck :)