Oh hey Durban!

So last week the monkeys really started acting up. They are very comfortable around us and think they can do whatever they want, including getting into our rooms and taking our food. They are not afraid of girls at all (which is so wonderful), but they are afraid of boys. Some girls have even been chased by monkeys. We have a paint ball gun that we use sometimes, but the boys have it most of the time. Were supposed to be getting pepper spray too. Sorry if any of this sounds harsh but if you were here you would understand! The monkeys always hang out outside my window and will often try to get in while were in there! They are cute to look at, but they are scary when they come at you!

Saturday we went to Durban for the day! We did some shopping at Victoria's Market. It was so fun to be with the people. I found some really cool stuff but cant tell you what it is because you may be getting some of the things I bought :) I was kind of reminded of India once again, just shopping in small confined spaces with large groups of people again haha I am reminded of India so much here! After shopping we went to the beach!! It was so nice! Its funny because at the beach you are only allowed to swim in one small area because the shark nets are only in a few places (or a least that's what I heard). Its safe, but its just super crowded. We were in the water bumping into each other and the locals as well haha I ended up playing volleyball in the water with a few of the girls from the trip and some of the local boys and kids. It was fun to hang out with them!

So on Valentines Day we went to the New Life church again. It was so fun to be welcomed and recognized and catch up with a few of the people we have met already. After church some of us were craving McDonalds so we stopped and grabbed some before we got back to campus. I couldn't believe that I was excited to have McDonalds!! But anyways, we all got out except Eli because he said he didn't want any. When we came back out with our food ready to go, the bus was gone. So we were like well, TIA and sat down to eat our food. (TIA 'this is Africa' is the phrase we say when things take forever or when we don't know whats going on, which is often) When the bus finally showed up, I asked them where they went. Reagen (one of our Campus Life Coordinators) said that Liezel (his fiance) needed something at the store, but I didn't believe him. When we got back to campus, Eli and I went on a walk in the game reserve and I asked him what Liezel needed at the store. His response was "Oh, um, ya, she needed some....she wanted to get....ok, you got me" I knew it! I told him that I didn't need or want anything at all, he's to good to me!! So when I got back to my room there was a box of chocolates and flowers! It was so sweet! We have an activities comity and they planned a Valentines Day dinner. So we all got dressed up, had dinner together, and had a small gift exchange. Eli had the idea to get a chicken alfredo recipe for the kitchen staff! It turned out really good! It was a great Valentines Day to be surrounded by wonderful friends and Eli :)

A Weekend Away

So I'm realizing that this whole blog this is kinda difficult to keep up with so Ill probably only be writing once a week. Sorry if that disappoints anyone. This past week went pretty fast. Eli and I had two days to prepare a presentation for our Human Growth and Development class on two chapters of the book. It was fine, but the professor was in a motorcycle accident a few weeks ago and has been struggling with the pain so he was unable to make to class, but he wanted us to present anyways. I don't know how we will receive a grade because it is worth a large portion of our final grade but we will see. So the real story behind this is while we were waiting for him to arrive, a huge spider with fangs came out of nowhere!! It was a rain spider, but of course all the girls were freaking out (including me) while the boys trapped it under a bowl. After a quick photo shoot they let it go outside. Great way to start a class off!! haha

Anyways, this weekend, we had a field trip for Intercultural Communications. We drove to an Indian township called Umzinto, near Durban, and stayed at the Sun Louis Resort. The purpose of this field trip was to be introduced to a new culture and be able to interact with the people of that community. We had some car troubles along the way so it took us about five and a half hours to get there instead of one and a half hours. We finally arrived and moved into our new chalets. I went to close the curtains and this flesh-colored thing falls on my foot and scurries across the room! It was just a gecko but it scared me so bad!

The next morning we drove out into the community and were able to walk around the in the hustle and bustle. It was very crowded because the people had just received their pensions (about R1000 or $100) and were buying food for the next month. While we were walking around, a lot of people were looking at us, but I was just thinking that it was because we were white. But Lauren pointed out to me that everyone was looking at our legs because we were wearing shorts. In the South African culture women do not show their thighs. All the women have skirts and shorts that go to at least their knees. I had noticed this a church last week, but I was thinking it was just a church thing. We felt kind of uncomfortable, but it made us aware of the difference of our cultures. It was good to learn it this way instead of being told not to wear shorts because we would not have really understood why. This experience allowed us to see why instead of simply being told. While we were waiting for our ride back to camp, it was extremely hot and I just wanted to get on the bus and feel the wind in my hair. Since being to India this summer I really try not to complain about heat because I have experienced worse, but I was thinking about how most of the people we came in contact with that day did not even have the luxury of getting in a car to cool down. They had to sit there and run their shops, buy their food for the next month and carry it home. It made me very grateful for the simple ride on the bus to cool me down!

After we got back, we put on our swimming costumes (swim suits) and headed for the beach!!! We were so excited because most of us have never been to the Indian Ocean. I have, but it was still so great to go to the beach! We got there and stuck out like a sore thumb, like we do everywhere! haha It was incredible! The water was warm, the sun was perfect, and the sand between my toes was incredible!!

So Sunday morning I got up to watch the sunrise over the Indian ocean with Eli, Tanya, and Lauren S. It was sooooooooooo beautiful!! God has just been blowing me away with the beauty of his creation ever since we got here! For church we were divided into groups and went out to different Indian churches in the community. I was in a small group of eight and we were told the night before that we all were going to share with the church some scripture or something about our experience in SA. The church was not very large, so that made it easier to share but still a little nerve racking. I shared that I came on this trip obviously for school but I was very drawn to the community service part of the trip. I read Philippians 2:3-5 that talks about humility and sometimes that it is hard to be humble when serving and that humility is my desire this semester as we serve. I also talked about how incredibly beautiful SA is and how humbled I am by that. Everyone in the group shared great things that all tied together somehow. It was great to see the unity among us because we did not discuss our topics before hand!

After church we went to pastor Les's house for lunch. The Indian food was amazing and the hospitality was wonderful as always! The women served us first and then ate after we were done. It was great to be in the comfort of some one's home and have conversations about what it was like for them to grow up in their community. It was a great weekend full of learning and relaxation!!

Lions, Vultures, and Waterfalls Oh My!

Our first week of classes has come to a close. It went well, I really enjoy my professors and a lot. But I know I'm also going to be stressed in the next few weeks. So yesterday was crazy! We saw all different kinds of raptures at Birds of Prey. They were so beautiful and each rapture had its own distinct way of flying and catching it's prey. Right before we left, we watched the vultures eat. They are such crazy and evil-looking birds! They were fighting before the food even came but as soon as the food was tossed into their cage they went nuts! They were fighting for the food like they haven't eaten in weeks nor were they going to get any food in weeks!

After the Birds of Prey, we went to see some lions!! These were not tame lions but we were completely safe being on the other side of the fence. We had the opportunity to drive through the lion enclosure but our group was too large so we just stayed on the outside and looked in. We walked up to the fence to take pictures of the lions in the distance, but they saw us so they walked over to us. The fence was the only thing separating us from these huge lions!! It was crazy to be basically face to face with a lion! After the lions, we drove to the top of a mountain that over looked Pietermaritzburgso we were able to see the entire city! It was so crazy to see all ofPietermaritzburg from one location!

When we got back to campus, Eli and I went and talked on a bridge over the waterfall. As we were talking, I was watching the current, the rocks, the plants, and how they all flowed together. It was so incredible to see all the twists and turns of the water and the way it hits the rocks in certain areas. I was so blown away by how God's hand carved every rock that made the water flow in different directions forming an incredibly beautiful scene! I was once again in awe of God's creation and the way he has a specific design for every little thing! After dinner a bunch of us went on a walk in the game reserve next door looking for the zebra. We saw a group of Impalas and then we found some zebras! There are only four in the whole game reserve but they stay together. There are three zebras and one baby zebra! They were so cool and we were so close to them! My pictures weren't very good because it was night, but hopefully Ill see them again during the day.

Today a small group of us went to an Indian church called New Life. South Africa has the largest population of Indians outside of India. As we were getting close to the church, I took a deep breath and it smelt like India for a split second!! I was so amazed and caught off guard. It made my heart jump and also miss India so much! But I loved it!! Church was great! The people were so friendly and welcoming. Most everybody came up to shake our hands or give us a hug! It was so cool to see their passion for God and how focused they were on him! It was so refreshing and encouraging! We have the option of going to three different churches so I will visit the other two, and then maybe go back to New Life. After church we went over to our Professor's house for a swim and just to hang out for a little. Tonight there was a quick thunderstorm. After the rain stopped there was so much lightning! I have never seen anything like it! The lightning was nonstop and kept lighting up everything for a split second. It was another reminder of God's crazy imagination and creativity!!

finally!!

So after a 5 hour plane ride to DC, a 4 hour layover in DC, an 8 hour plane ride to Sengal, a 1 hour layover in Sengal, and an 8 hour plane ride to Johannesberg we checked into a nice hotel and slept!! The plane rides werent that bad, just long. But I did get to meet some cool people along the way. I sat next to this old man on the 16 hour flight. He had lots of stories to tell, was very loud, and very oppinionated. haha I also met this couple, Tom and Cindy, that moved to SA 4 years ago! It was really cool to talk to them and hear some things from the locals but also hear their perspective on what it was like picking up and leaving everything they knew behind!

After we had a full nights rest (which was amazing!) we went and saw some of Joberg (Johannesberg) and alot of Soweto. Soweto is a township just ourside Joberg. The name Soweto came from the question "So where to?" that the people asked when they were getting forced out of their homes in Joberg. We made many stops in Soweto. We were exposed to both the more developed parts and also the underdeveloped parts. We visited a Catholic church where some town meetings were held during the apartheid in their efforts to protest. We also visited a memorial of the apartheid, we drove by Nelson Mandella's house that was attacked, and also his wifes current house. We stopped at our tour guide's home/restaurant and had lunch. It was so fun so be in the neighborhood, watch some dancing put on by a group of teenagers, and play with the local kids!! I got to hold the cutest little boy that was trying to tell me something, but I couldn't figure out what he was trying to say. But it was still fun to just hold him and make him laugh! Then we went to the apartheid museum. It was really interesting to read about it bucause I did't know that much information going into this trip. We didnt get alot of time at the museum, but I still learned some intense things about that time and the way people were treated. I'm interested to learn more this semester about the apartheid and what it was like for the people who lived through it like my proffesor!

This morning, we hoped on a plane to Durban and then drove to Pietermaritzberg. With the flight and the drive, it only took us about 2 1/2 hours to get there! I was so excited to finally get to the campus! It is so gorgeous!!! I cant even begin to describe it!! There are waterfalls, a swimming whole, trails. We're right next to a game reserve. There's also a prayer chapel in the middle of a pond with the biggest coy fish I have ever seen!! They could litterally bite my hand off!! All the different colors and shades of green are incredible! I am just so blown away by God's creation! And also humbled by all this beauty around me! Just to be emersed in this new world is so incredible! I am so truly blessed to have this experience!!

See Ya Later America!

So today is my last day in the states. We fly out of LAX tomorrow morning at 6am! Its been weird saying bye to friends and family. Mostly just because it doesnt feel real to me yet. I'm excited to go, but it just does not feel like Ill be gone for three months. Im getting excited for the thrill of traveling and experiencing a new culture, but it just hasnt clicked that this is for a whole semester! Im so excited that Im going with Eli (the bf), Lauren (my roommate) and some other good friends! It will be so great to share this experience with them! I cant wait to see what God has in store for me! I know Im going to be stretched and challenged beyond belief! But Im ready! :)