Africa!

Africa - (n)                         -> a word yet to be defined

I am in Africa! I have been here an entire day already. 

My travels were long, but easy. I left San Francisco Monday afternoon feeling incredibly excited. As soon as I passed through security, I thought “I’m really going!” and stopped being so nervous. There weren’t very many people on my flight, so I had an entire row to myself to stretch out. The flight attendants were SO British and so manicured. I wrote, I read, I watched a movie, I gazed out the windows. I didn’t sleep at all, despite my efforts, but I saw a lovely sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean.  I saw Ireland (!) from the plane, albeit through patches of clouds. We landed in London early, at 10:30 or so. I went through immigration and customs, did a little dance for officially being in the UK, and purchased a ticket on the Heathrow Express train which transports passengers to London central in fifteen minutes. I tried to use the train’s Wi-Fi, but my computer wouldn’t have it and I figured my family would have to just assume I was fine. It has been interesting, being entirely disconnected from long-distance communication. I feel at ease, but ultimately more responsible for myself and more reassured in the orderly happenings of the world. I don’t know anything otherwise. 

The train arrived at Paddington station, which felt enormous. I can only imagine what King’s Cross must be like. It was quite literally freezing, I mean 0⁰ C, in London, which I didn’t quite know until I left the train. I brought a heavy jacket with me, but it wasn’t enough, not nearly. From there, I took the Underground to High Street Kensington, where I walked to a bus stop associated with a touring group. I was amazed at all the old architecture amidst a modern city. Victorian-era houses all pushed together sat atop H&M stores, Starbucks, cafés, and fashion boutiques, bordered by cobblestone sidewalks and the Kensington gardens. I’m sure the gardens are lovely in the summertime, but then, they just looked dead.  After ten minutes or so of waiting, the bus arrived, an open-top double-decker tourist vehicle. I sat on top in the open, refusing to be deterred of a good experience by a little snow and too little clothing. A tour-guide told us stories of London whilst we drove around the city. I saw Kensington, Hyde Park, the Marble Arch, the Natural History Museum, Piccadilly Circus, the American Embassy, Mayfair (where Audrey Hepburn lived), Trafalgar Square, St. Paul’s, Dickens’ hangouts, the Beatles’ pad, so many beautiful churches, Harrods’s (which the tour guide called Horrid’s), Baker Street, Madame Tussaud’s, the London Eye, the Tower of London, the London Bridge, the Tower bridge, the houses of Parliament, and Westminster Abbey. Plus more that I either don’t know the name of, or can’t remember. The only place I wanted to see that I didn’t was Downing Street. If I had all the time in the world, I would have liked to stop and see the insides of all these places. Maybe someday in the future, I will. I disembarked from the bus at Buckingham Palace. I was really freezing; I got a chill that I couldn’t shake until I arrived in 23⁰ C Johannesburg. Cold, tired, and rather hungry, I walked to the Victoria station and rode back to Paddington, then back to Heathrow. 

In all my five hours in London, I saw nothing reminiscent of either Harry Potter or Doctor Who. I was sorely disappointed. 

South Africa from above

I had fun watching the people going to South Africa who were waiting at the gate. I heard Afrikaans being spoken and looked at South African passports, eager for clues about my destination. The plane ride to Jo’burg was more cramped and included many screaming small children. I was so tired I feel asleep before we even started to taxi. By the time morning came, I was ready to be off the plane, no matter where we landed. I saw my first views of Africa through the clouds and thought “wow,” although it didn’t look particularly different from the undercast of any other land I’ve seen.

The Jo’burg airport was huge and empty. I was so excited to finally be here! I was grinning like an idiot the whole way through the terminal, attracting weird looks and confused smiles back. The accents are lovely; there are posters for wildlife safaris and the COP 17 conference that happened last month. 

I rechecked my bags (there’s a story for another time), went through security, and found my gate in the domestic terminal. I saw birds flying about outside and was probably too excited about my first view of African wildlife. It is metropolitan Johannesburg, hardly wild.  I heard a lady sneeze with a South African accent! I ran into Danielle and Maggie, two girls from San Francisco who are also studying here this year. Danielle and I were on the same flight to PE, so we sat and talked for a while about changing money, cell phones, and the weird food we’d had so far.  The flight to PE was only an hour and a half and included lovely scenery. The clouds thickened, but when they cleared, we were over the Indian Ocean. Imagine dark grey water illuminated with bolts of lightning as the plane windows are streaked with rain and the drops thunder a rataplan on the metal frame: so beautiful. When we arrived, it was raining, hot, and humid. The PE airport is right next to the Walmer township, which was an interesting thing to see as a first glimpse of Africa on the ground. I’m looking forward to learning more about it later.

A man named William was waiting at the airport with a sign; he took us on a brief tour of the neighborhood and then to the NMMU accommodation offices. We dragged our suitcases upstairs, through lines of hot and tired looking students, to an office where we signed our respective leases. Then, another man took us to where we would be staying. I am off of Admiralty road, which is kind of a main drag through the neighborhood of Summerstrand, where the main campuses of the university are. 

I have a lovely room in a lovely apartment that is owned and operated by a nice, older Afrikaans couple. They used to run a B&B, but since the man, Stephen, retired, they rent the rooms out to students. June, the woman, told me a little about the place and some of the ground rules, and then I unpacked. Everyone who saw me with my bags teased me about being a heavy traveler, but I think I brought just about what I need. I only have a few items that are redundant. 

I took a walk to the beach yesterday evening. Everyone here is so concerned with security. Every house has these huge gates accented with barbed wire or spikes. I have to use four keys to get from the street outside to my room. Stephen said a lot of the security concerns are due to the unruly behavior of the University students.  I saw African trees, African garden snails (which look just like the American ones), and African surfers on African beaches. To be honest, nothing is exceptionally different from the States; it’s just that it’s exciting because it’s African. Britney Spears and Adele are playing on the radio; there is a Curves and a Subway down the road. 

As I headed back, it started to rain again, warm and wet. By the time I got back to my apartment (fifteen minutes or so), I was soaked and happy.  

I woke up early today, ate trail mix for breakfast, and was driven to the shops by Stephen. I had a snafu getting in the car because I entirely forgot which side the driver’s seat is on. I tried to sit in the driver’s seat, and then was embarrassingly confused when Stephen and his other passenger started giving me looks. At the shops, I went into the grocery store, just to look at things. Here is what I noticed: not an abundance of produce, but lots of squash and mangoes; SO MUCH MEAT; frozen chicken livers; a few vegetarian frozen items; aisle signs in both Afrikaans and English (Koffie, Tee, und Buiscuits?); maid uniforms aimed at African women; British candies; lots of liquors and wines. Again nothing radically different, but different all the same. They don’t have Siracha here, but they sell lots of sweet chili sauces. They call pinto beans ‘sugar speckled beans.’ They don’t sell ketchup, but they serve chips with a sweetened marinara sauce, at least according to Danielle. 

I walked back with my purchases, watched a SABC soap opera (what better way to learn about the culture?), and saw some interesting commercials for HIV/AIDS prevention. I read, made tea, watched Doctor Who (thanks to Conrad), walked to the University to look around, checked out the bookstore, and got caught in the rain again. 

Tomorrow morning, I will be picked up and taken to Tsitsikamma Falls for an adventure/orientation weekend. I know there will be ziplining, a braai (Afrikaner-style barbeque), and African drumming lessons. I’ll write all about it when I return on Sunday night. 

I apologize for the incredibly long post. Let me know in the comments if you want to know anything else. I'm safe, I'm well, and I'm having fun. For now, goodbye from Africa!