Victoria Falls, Zambia 
Zanzibar, Tanzania :o)Tuesday, August 5, 2008
And the venture begins!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!
I will be spending her birthday on a plane... for the whole day.
It is out last day in Cape Town today. We flew in from Zanzibar last night and leave again this evening for Dakar, NY, then BOSTON arriving on the 7th.
We have met some verrry nice people along the way. Mostly locals who have really helped up out. For example, after our plane landed in Dar es Salaam and we missed the last ferry, we met a piolet who fley us to Zanzibar-- and then back-- with no ticket! Another time in Jo'burg, the Nando's (local chain rest.) drove us in his delivery car to the movie theater... and walked us inside because it was vert dangerous after dark.
So yes, I'm going to miss Africa and the people I've met a lot. Although at time it was very dangerous, we managed to pull out of life or death situations alive :o)
I'm uploading a few pics from our post trip on the pic site, so check them out!!
I will be spending her birthday on a plane... for the whole day.
It is out last day in Cape Town today. We flew in from Zanzibar last night and leave again this evening for Dakar, NY, then BOSTON arriving on the 7th.
We have met some verrry nice people along the way. Mostly locals who have really helped up out. For example, after our plane landed in Dar es Salaam and we missed the last ferry, we met a piolet who fley us to Zanzibar-- and then back-- with no ticket! Another time in Jo'burg, the Nando's (local chain rest.) drove us in his delivery car to the movie theater... and walked us inside because it was vert dangerous after dark.
So yes, I'm going to miss Africa and the people I've met a lot. Although at time it was very dangerous, we managed to pull out of life or death situations alive :o)
I'm uploading a few pics from our post trip on the pic site, so check them out!!
Monday, August 4, 2008
Going out with a bang
Last night and tonight we have been at the Ocean Paradise Resort on the eastern side of Zanzibar. We decided to treat ourselves for our last 2 nights traveling in Africa... and a treat it is :o) We deserve it after the townships, hostels, and many near death experiences.
The beaches are awesome and they have the biggest swimming pool on the island. When we checked into our room yesterday, we had flowers all over our bed and a huge wrap around deck.
Tomorrow we fly back to Dar, then fly to Jo'berg, then to Cape Town. I'm probably going to upload some pictures tomorrow when I get to Cape Town.
Well, I'm alive and finally found some nice weather to lay on the beach.
I'll be back in Boston Aug 7th, so start planning my return party.
The beaches are awesome and they have the biggest swimming pool on the island. When we checked into our room yesterday, we had flowers all over our bed and a huge wrap around deck.
Tomorrow we fly back to Dar, then fly to Jo'berg, then to Cape Town. I'm probably going to upload some pictures tomorrow when I get to Cape Town.
Well, I'm alive and finally found some nice weather to lay on the beach.
I'll be back in Boston Aug 7th, so start planning my return party.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
northern tip of zanzibar
Hellofrom Nungwi! We are at the very norhtern tip of Zanzibar. We spent last night andare staying tonight then we are going to the eastern side to spend 2 nights. We spent all day today on the beach :o) The water is turquoise and white sand.
The other 4 members joined us today. They have been a day behind us because of flights. They got off the plane in Dar es Salaam and none of their credit cards works and they just had enough money to pay for the visa. After the visa, the ended up getting on a flight to Zanzibar (promising they would pay for the ticket price later). They spent the night in stone town town and then came to meet up with us around lunch time today.
OK, just a quick update... more later
The other 4 members joined us today. They have been a day behind us because of flights. They got off the plane in Dar es Salaam and none of their credit cards works and they just had enough money to pay for the visa. After the visa, the ended up getting on a flight to Zanzibar (promising they would pay for the ticket price later). They spent the night in stone town town and then came to meet up with us around lunch time today.
OK, just a quick update... more later
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Greetings from Zanzibar!!!
Yesterday we flew from Zambia to Jo'burg. We stayed at a really neat hostel that used to me a mafia mansion. We spent the night eating at Nando's and then going to the movies. The delivery guy frm Nando's gave us a ride to the movie theater.
This morning we flew from Jo'burg to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. We flew in too late to catch the last ferry to Zanzibar, so we hopped on a realllly small toy plane that brought us to Zanzibar. Our piolet on the small plane gave us a recommendation of a place to spend the night (because obviously we had absolutely no idea where we were going). Our 3 friends are flying in tomorrow then we are going to the eastern side of Zazibar to lay on the beach :o)
It is BEAUTIFUL here! We spent the evening having a huge meal and drinks right on the beach and are about to go and pass out in our room that is very Moroccan-Muslin looking... with a cool looking canopy mosquito net around the bed.
We are doing quite the amazing race. Ever since we have left the orphanage in Durban, we haven't all been together (all 7 of us traveling) and tomorrow is going o\to be the first time!
This morning we flew from Jo'burg to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. We flew in too late to catch the last ferry to Zanzibar, so we hopped on a realllly small toy plane that brought us to Zanzibar. Our piolet on the small plane gave us a recommendation of a place to spend the night (because obviously we had absolutely no idea where we were going). Our 3 friends are flying in tomorrow then we are going to the eastern side of Zazibar to lay on the beach :o)
It is BEAUTIFUL here! We spent the evening having a huge meal and drinks right on the beach and are about to go and pass out in our room that is very Moroccan-Muslin looking... with a cool looking canopy mosquito net around the bed.
We are doing quite the amazing race. Ever since we have left the orphanage in Durban, we haven't all been together (all 7 of us traveling) and tomorrow is going o\to be the first time!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
greetings from zambia!!!
I am traveling with Emma, Danielle, Johanna, Olivia, Esther, and Tim (only boy to protect us! 1 boy 6 girls… lucky guy)
Day 1 of travel: Flew from Cape Town to Durban. Rented a car in Durban (yes, we weren’t of age, the steering wheel is on the right, and they drive on the wrong side of the road). Being able to navigate the roads of Africa is quite an adventure. After we rented the car, we headed to the orphanage (about an hr out of the city). One of the girls we were traveling with lived and worked there for a year. It was in the middle of nowhere. It got dark out an we got very lost. We ended up in a township after dark… which we were warned as the one thing NOT to do. The roads were terrible and there were people on the side of the road and in bushed waving us down to give them a ride. It was probably one of the scariest moments of my life. If we had hit someone that night, we unanimously said that we would keep driving. I think most of us were almost in tears. If our car had either broken down, we got in a crash, got a flat tire, etc during the time we were lost in the back roads of a township, we would have undoubtedly been robbed and probably killed. We eventually found our way to the orphanage and finally got to sleep.
Day 2: We woke up and went to play and have breakfast with the orphans. We then got on a bus because the orphanage was going to the beach in Durban for the day :o) During the day at the beach, the orphanage bus got stolen. Apparently Durban is a very dangerous city.
Day 3: Woke up very early to fly to Jo’berg then catch a flight to Livingstone, Zambia. We landed at the smallest airport that I have ever seen… there wasn’t even a gate or baggage claim! We are staying at the Zambezi Sun (google it) which is a VERY nice resort and is directly next to Victoria Falls. We can only afford this because we are squeezing 5 people in the room! We spent the day the pool with margaritas.. dodging the baboons that came by trying to steal our food. There is this guy here and his main job is to walk around with a slingshot scaring off the baboons. How awesome is that job?! We walked down to Victoria Falls, which is a short walk from our back door, for the sunset.
Day 4: We went white water rafting down the Zambezi River. Zambia was on one side and Zimbabwe was on the other. It was SO scary! The first rapid we did was a class 5!! We flipped the boat and I got a glimpse of how it feels like to drown! It was a great day… we had a lot of fun and yelled a lot. On the drive home from the bottom of the river, we went through some villages. They were very village-like… not like the townships we experienced in South Africa. These were in the middle of no-where sand and they had one pump for water and one main garden, goats, chickens, etc.
I don’t have a cell phone or internet here (very expensive internet), so I’ll be uncontactable for the next few days.
Tomorrow we are heading to Jo’berg for the night and then to Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar until the 5th when we fly back to Cape Town and fly back to the states on the 6th.
Day 1 of travel: Flew from Cape Town to Durban. Rented a car in Durban (yes, we weren’t of age, the steering wheel is on the right, and they drive on the wrong side of the road). Being able to navigate the roads of Africa is quite an adventure. After we rented the car, we headed to the orphanage (about an hr out of the city). One of the girls we were traveling with lived and worked there for a year. It was in the middle of nowhere. It got dark out an we got very lost. We ended up in a township after dark… which we were warned as the one thing NOT to do. The roads were terrible and there were people on the side of the road and in bushed waving us down to give them a ride. It was probably one of the scariest moments of my life. If we had hit someone that night, we unanimously said that we would keep driving. I think most of us were almost in tears. If our car had either broken down, we got in a crash, got a flat tire, etc during the time we were lost in the back roads of a township, we would have undoubtedly been robbed and probably killed. We eventually found our way to the orphanage and finally got to sleep.
Day 2: We woke up and went to play and have breakfast with the orphans. We then got on a bus because the orphanage was going to the beach in Durban for the day :o) During the day at the beach, the orphanage bus got stolen. Apparently Durban is a very dangerous city.
Day 3: Woke up very early to fly to Jo’berg then catch a flight to Livingstone, Zambia. We landed at the smallest airport that I have ever seen… there wasn’t even a gate or baggage claim! We are staying at the Zambezi Sun (google it) which is a VERY nice resort and is directly next to Victoria Falls. We can only afford this because we are squeezing 5 people in the room! We spent the day the pool with margaritas.. dodging the baboons that came by trying to steal our food. There is this guy here and his main job is to walk around with a slingshot scaring off the baboons. How awesome is that job?! We walked down to Victoria Falls, which is a short walk from our back door, for the sunset.
Day 4: We went white water rafting down the Zambezi River. Zambia was on one side and Zimbabwe was on the other. It was SO scary! The first rapid we did was a class 5!! We flipped the boat and I got a glimpse of how it feels like to drown! It was a great day… we had a lot of fun and yelled a lot. On the drive home from the bottom of the river, we went through some villages. They were very village-like… not like the townships we experienced in South Africa. These were in the middle of no-where sand and they had one pump for water and one main garden, goats, chickens, etc.
I don’t have a cell phone or internet here (very expensive internet), so I’ll be uncontactable for the next few days.
Tomorrow we are heading to Jo’berg for the night and then to Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar until the 5th when we fly back to Cape Town and fly back to the states on the 6th.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Good Bye for now Cape Town
We are checking out of our hotel today. We're spending a night in a hostel around here the tomorrow we head to Durban, South Africa for 2 days. We are staying in an orphanage there and then on the 28th flying to Livingston, Zambia. Weare staying here for the 28 and 29 then flying to Jo'burg, South Africa for a night (the 30th) then heading to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania where we are going to land and then hop on a fboat/ferry to Zanzibar. We will be in Zanzibar for the next 3 days and then Dar es Salaam for day. We fly from Dar to Cape Town on Aug 5. We finally fly back to the US through Dakar, Senegal on the 6th arriving back in Boston on August 7th.
That was a mouthful!!
The easiest way to get in contact with me is through email. I may not be able to check it regulalry, but I'm sure I will be able to check it at points. There is now a total of 7 people traveling (some more added on!) including 1 boy to protect us :o)
Ciao for now!!
That was a mouthful!!
The easiest way to get in contact with me is through email. I may not be able to check it regulalry, but I'm sure I will be able to check it at points. There is now a total of 7 people traveling (some more added on!) including 1 boy to protect us :o)
Ciao for now!!
Shark diving!!!
Good, Better, and horrible news:
Good: I’m alive
Better: I got some great pics
Horrible: My camera broke
We went great white shark diving today! We left the hotel at 530 and took a 2 hour bus ride where we had breakfast then walked to the boat. We went out about 20 minutes and then got into our wetsuits. 3 others and myself volunteered to go first… I was so excited!! I got to bring my underwater camera into the cage with us and got some great pics. That was before a door on my camera came open and it got very wet. I’m now taking donations for a new camera. I really don’t want to be camera-less on my ventures to Zambia, Tanzania, and Zanzibar, but my other friends will have their cameras ass well.
Better: I got some great pics
Horrible: My camera broke
We went great white shark diving today! We left the hotel at 530 and took a 2 hour bus ride where we had breakfast then walked to the boat. We went out about 20 minutes and then got into our wetsuits. 3 others and myself volunteered to go first… I was so excited!! I got to bring my underwater camera into the cage with us and got some great pics. That was before a door on my camera came open and it got very wet. I’m now taking donations for a new camera. I really don’t want to be camera-less on my ventures to Zambia, Tanzania, and Zanzibar, but my other friends will have their cameras ass well.
Although the situation with the camera is really horrible, being able to be so close to sharks (great whites!) was amazing!!! As always, be sure to check out my pictures. Until I get enough donations for a new one, there is going to be the last pic update for a while!!
Nervous!
Danielle, Tim, and NilsWednesday, July 23, 2008
Wine Tour!
We went on a wine tour today to 3 different wine tastings at 3 different vineyards. The wine was unbelievable and I now have 6 bottles to somehow bring home. The scenery and the different vineyards were so beautiful and we even met some local students who were just there to enjoy the nice day (and load up on wine).
Tomorrow is SHARK DIVING! I’m so excited! We have to wake up and get on the bus to leave at 515 am. We also booked our smaller flights for our travel after when we got back to the hotel. We are going from Cape Town to Durban for three days where we are going to stay in an orphanage. We are them catching a flight to Jo’burg South Africa to then catch a flight to Zambia (Victoria Falls). From there (spending a day or 2) we are flying back to jo’berg to get on a flight to Dar Es Salaam then boating over to Zanzibar. After a few days there, we are going to go back to Dar and spend some time there. Seems very confusing, but I think we have it down pat! 3 more people joined our group of traveling afterwards as well.
OK, check my pictures for the latest and hopefully I’ll make it back alive tomorrow to update more :o)
Tomorrow is SHARK DIVING! I’m so excited! We have to wake up and get on the bus to leave at 515 am. We also booked our smaller flights for our travel after when we got back to the hotel. We are going from Cape Town to Durban for three days where we are going to stay in an orphanage. We are them catching a flight to Jo’burg South Africa to then catch a flight to Zambia (Victoria Falls). From there (spending a day or 2) we are flying back to jo’berg to get on a flight to Dar Es Salaam then boating over to Zanzibar. After a few days there, we are going to go back to Dar and spend some time there. Seems very confusing, but I think we have it down pat! 3 more people joined our group of traveling afterwards as well.
OK, check my pictures for the latest and hopefully I’ll make it back alive tomorrow to update more :o)
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Safari @ Aquila Game Reserve
Today and yesterday we went on an overnight safari at Aquila Game Reserve. We went on a game drive at night and them early in the morning. Aquila was SO nice! We stayed in these huts with wood burning fire places and an outdoor shower.. they were actually veryyy nice. This morning we went out and got chased by a tiger. We were in an open jeep, and as we tried to drive away the tiger came running and then tried to get in front of the car. See my pictures and my youtube.
I’ve decided I was to take home a giraffe :o)
In the process of being chased
The group
Giraffe :o)
I’ve decided I was to take home a giraffe :o)
In the process of being chased
The group 
Giraffe :o)Sunday, July 20, 2008
Updates!!!
Friday: We went to Izoko to visit a paper making business and a township (see pictures). We then had a final group dinner on the water.
Saturday: We went to Greenmarket Square which is a craft market… if was really fun to barter the price! I realized how bad I am at negotiating haha
Sunday: We went on a day-long tour down to the peninsula to Cape Point… this is the south-western most point of the African continent. We rode bikes down to the final point and hiked around. It was so beautiful! You have to check out my pictures to see it to believe it.
Friday, July 18, 2008
***Link to my YouTube video
Here is the link to a video I just uploaded. My user name is katiejerdee... I'll be uploading more when I get time. If you search that name on www.youtube.com you should be able to see all the results
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRSAtozbCgk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRSAtozbCgk
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Wed & Thurs
Yesterday we went to visit University of Cape Town (its beautiful!) and on a tour of a colored township and got to view a school. We saw one of their primary (elementary school). They only have a budget for the year of about $30 per student and that doesn’t include teachers salaries.
Today we went to visit the Kheyalitsha township. We walked around and then went to visit Africa Jams. This is a township, kids group that is based around drama, singing, etc. They were awesome and visiting them was really fun.
Tomorrow is our last day of the “official school trip”. During the week next week we are going to Aquila Game Reserve, a wine tour, and shark diving. Can’t wait :o)
Pictures will be coming….
Today we went to visit the Kheyalitsha township. We walked around and then went to visit Africa Jams. This is a township, kids group that is based around drama, singing, etc. They were awesome and visiting them was really fun.
Tomorrow is our last day of the “official school trip”. During the week next week we are going to Aquila Game Reserve, a wine tour, and shark diving. Can’t wait :o)
Pictures will be coming….
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Mon & Tues
Yesterday we had a heated class discussion then headed to the Guguletu township to have lunch at Mzoli’s Meat…. Which is an up-and-coming restaurant located in the township. The food was all meat, and the sauce was really good. They didn’t have napkins… instead they had a giant communal pot of water to wash your hands (there was also no silverwear)!
Of my time I have spent in South Africa so far, it is safe to say that I have eaten more meat than I have eaten in the last 4 years of my life. I have also eaten more puff pastry/break than I have ever eaten. EVERY meal consists of meat and bread somehow. I have never seen so many creative ways to combine the two?! I am in desperate need of a salad.
Anyway, today we had another interactive class, then we headed over to District 6 to drive through and go to the museum. District 6 (where our bus driver we have had since we’ve been here originally comes from) is a mainly Muslin/colored area where in the 70’s, the residents got completely displaced to colored townships outside of the city. Their whole community was torn down and now just vacant fields are in their spot. There are still traces of where roads used to be. It was really sad to hear about. It kind of reminded me of the holocaust minus all the lives lost. The whites that kicked them out did nothing with the space… not even plant any trees. Its just long grass and weeds that grow there now. We went to the District 6 museum that was really interesting to hear about. District 6 happened to be next to Bo-Kaap which is an area of Cape Town that is also very Muslim that is known for the brightly colored houses. If you have seen pictures of Cape Town, you have probably seen pictures of Bo-Kaap.
We visited Streetwires which is a South African art company that focuses of using wire and beads. It’s hard to explain, but go to my site to see pictures. There were dozens of people using pliers and beading in the basement. The arts that they made were awesome!
Of my time I have spent in South Africa so far, it is safe to say that I have eaten more meat than I have eaten in the last 4 years of my life. I have also eaten more puff pastry/break than I have ever eaten. EVERY meal consists of meat and bread somehow. I have never seen so many creative ways to combine the two?! I am in desperate need of a salad.
Anyway, today we had another interactive class, then we headed over to District 6 to drive through and go to the museum. District 6 (where our bus driver we have had since we’ve been here originally comes from) is a mainly Muslin/colored area where in the 70’s, the residents got completely displaced to colored townships outside of the city. Their whole community was torn down and now just vacant fields are in their spot. There are still traces of where roads used to be. It was really sad to hear about. It kind of reminded me of the holocaust minus all the lives lost. The whites that kicked them out did nothing with the space… not even plant any trees. Its just long grass and weeds that grow there now. We went to the District 6 museum that was really interesting to hear about. District 6 happened to be next to Bo-Kaap which is an area of Cape Town that is also very Muslim that is known for the brightly colored houses. If you have seen pictures of Cape Town, you have probably seen pictures of Bo-Kaap.
We visited Streetwires which is a South African art company that focuses of using wire and beads. It’s hard to explain, but go to my site to see pictures. There were dozens of people using pliers and beading in the basement. The arts that they made were awesome!
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Orphanage in Guguletu
Today we went to make lunch and play with the kids at an orphanage in the township of Guguletu. There turned out to be over 150 kids there everywhere from 6-21 years old. We got to make lunch for them which was MUCH more craziness than I expected!! The kids were SO cute! We brought soccer balls, Frisbees, and other games to play with them, but they just enjoyed playing anything with us…. Especially having us give them piggy-back rides. One little girl asked me to be her mother and asked when I would be back to visit again. It was really kind of sad!
Here are some pictures from today, but be sure to check my Picasa pictures to see them all!
Here are some pictures from today, but be sure to check my Picasa pictures to see them all!
Short Update
So you don’t think I’m dead, I’ll give you a short update. On Friday, the presentation went very well, and I went out to eat with some of the group to a Thai Seafood place down by the water. On Saturday, we went to Robben Island. This is where Mandela was kept and we got to see his cell. Next we went to Table Mountain and took a cable car up and down. The view was AMAZING and I got some great pictures. I’m about to go out for my friends birthday, so look forward to seeing the pictures tomorrow. Also during the day tomorrow we’re going to an Orphanage in Gugulatho (township). We just finished going grocery shopping to make all the kids lunch and got SO much food!
I’ll update more with pics tomorrow.
I’ll update more with pics tomorrow.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Procrastinating work...
These are my friend, Ben's, photos (hes a much better photographer than I am). The internet here is very slow, so you can imagine how long its taking me to psot all of these... which is why I'm taking the time to upload them and its already past 11pm and I still have work to do!!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Just another Tuesday
No big update today. Cold and rainy again. I still love Cape Town though :o)
I have pretty much spent my week so far at TSiBA working on my project and having a class in the morning. My project now has changed to putting together a ‘documentary’ type video of the program that will eventually lead to gaining support from donors for this program. It is actually pretty cool and will probably require a lot of follow up work when I get back home.
Today we heard about Banco Comportamos which is a bank that operates in Mexico and gives loans to the very poor people that can’t get loans from any other bank. Banco gives them HUGE interest rates (about 100%), so we had a discussion about those and if they are ethically correct to do that. We also talked about Freeplay Energy that created the wind-up radios to give people in very poverty communities and also (to make a profit) sell to campers, rescue people, emergency crew.
This week we have no big plans besides working on our projects. This weekend we have plans to go work in an orphanage right outside of Cape Town.
I have pretty much spent my week so far at TSiBA working on my project and having a class in the morning. My project now has changed to putting together a ‘documentary’ type video of the program that will eventually lead to gaining support from donors for this program. It is actually pretty cool and will probably require a lot of follow up work when I get back home.
Today we heard about Banco Comportamos which is a bank that operates in Mexico and gives loans to the very poor people that can’t get loans from any other bank. Banco gives them HUGE interest rates (about 100%), so we had a discussion about those and if they are ethically correct to do that. We also talked about Freeplay Energy that created the wind-up radios to give people in very poverty communities and also (to make a profit) sell to campers, rescue people, emergency crew.
This week we have no big plans besides working on our projects. This weekend we have plans to go work in an orphanage right outside of Cape Town.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Kirstenboch & National Gallery
Today we took a group outing to the National Gallery and then to the Kirstenboch Botanical Gardens. The weather was horrible out, but we were champions and stuck through it. Kirstenboch was awesome and would have been even better if the weather had cooperated. We were supposed to go to either Table Mnt or Robbin Island, but the weather was bad so we postponed those. Check out my pictures for today. A warning that it’s a lot of (probably boring to you) scenery shots, that you might have had to be there to understand. By the way, I love Cape Town and I’m not sure I’ll be returning.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Tedy's Team Shout Out
Although I'm busy saving the world down here, my fundraising has not dissapeared! A few days after I return in August, I'll be running the Falmouth Road Race on Cape Cod for Tedy's Team (the team I ran the marathon for). I could really appreciate any donation!!
The website is below to visit and make any online donation.
THANK YOU!!
http://tedysteam2008.kintera.org/falmouth/jerdee
This is after I finished Boston with some friends from school
The website is below to visit and make any online donation.
THANK YOU!!
http://tedysteam2008.kintera.org/falmouth/jerdee
This is after I finished Boston with some friends from schoolJuly 4th clebration & Waterfront
Last night we went out to an American Bar to celebrate the 4th of July. We met some other Americans there and had a really fun night of “Dancing Queen” and the YMCA. There was another TSiBA student who came with us and I think we managed to scare him with our typical American ways! Kidding… he had fun! After a very late evening (things don’t close by 2am like in the states!), I slept in until about 1030 and then went down with Emma and Camille to the Waterfront. We found an awesome mall and ended up buying a lot. We all didn’t pack for the cold, rainy weather of winter in Cape Town!
That’s been our day off so far! About to go grab some dinner at the hotel and head out tonight!
That’s been our day off so far! About to go grab some dinner at the hotel and head out tonight!
Friday, July 4, 2008
Happy 4th!
Today we went to visit Khayalitsha Cookies which was located inside the township, then relocated to a bigger factory outside. They employ only poor women from Kheyalitsha to bake the cookies (make the dought, cut, bake, package, label…) We got to see their factory and meet the women.
We them went back to the class room and learned about the Dancing Deer Baking Co located in Roxbury, MA. They pretty much mirror how K. Cookies operates (even though they didn’t know about eachother!). You can find Dancing Deer cookies in Whole Food, William Sonoma, etc. They only hire people that either need the money and live in Roxbury, mentally ill, or poor immigrants. There are a lot of perks of working there including $500 tuition for any sort of class they want to take.
After the short class, we went to a braai (barbeque) to celebrate the 4th. We did a lot of games including musical chairs… I even made it pretty far in it haha. Check my pictures to see some more of it. The braai was a lot of fun! It was great to let loose with the students. Looking forward to the weekend and our day off tomorrow! We have plans to climb Table Mnt on Sunday, but that might change due to rainy weather.
We them went back to the class room and learned about the Dancing Deer Baking Co located in Roxbury, MA. They pretty much mirror how K. Cookies operates (even though they didn’t know about eachother!). You can find Dancing Deer cookies in Whole Food, William Sonoma, etc. They only hire people that either need the money and live in Roxbury, mentally ill, or poor immigrants. There are a lot of perks of working there including $500 tuition for any sort of class they want to take.
After the short class, we went to a braai (barbeque) to celebrate the 4th. We did a lot of games including musical chairs… I even made it pretty far in it haha. Check my pictures to see some more of it. The braai was a lot of fun! It was great to let loose with the students. Looking forward to the weekend and our day off tomorrow! We have plans to climb Table Mnt on Sunday, but that might change due to rainy weather.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Random Thought: Minority
I've never been in a place before where I am the minority. In South Africa, about 10% of the people are white. After traveling within the states and all around Europe, until now I have never been in a place where I went through that. Besides being the minority around Cape Town, when I am in the township, besides the people I’m with, I’m the ONLY white person there. It’s very fascinating to be the one of the other side this time… and relate to everything you have heard about being a minority.
Quick Update
Today we had another interesting day. The beginning of our lecture was focused around my professors business’s he started. One of them had to do with vaccines and eggs. Long story short, many vaccines are made through eggs. One vaccine factors got their eggs from the Amish (about 6 million eggs per day). They cultivate the vaccines through eggs and then put them all together in larger quantinties. 1 out of ever 3 vile had to be thrown away because of using bad eggs. What he did was create a sterile environment for the eggs that now eliminated this waste. These eggs were more expensive, but totally eliminated the money they wasted on unusable vaccines. There are factories open in us, china, etc.
We talked about LifeStraw (which is really cool! www.lifestraw.com) and Kickstart. They are both social entrepreneur ventures and we discussed the different business models they use.
To work on our projects, we went back into the township to meet and talk to the attorney. We got some good information and are going to work on putting it together tomorrow. I am cutting this off because we are going out for a group dinner at a traditional African restaurant then I’m coming back to work on a presentation I’m giving tomorrow on Institute for OneWorld Health. I’ll explain more tomorrow.
We talked about LifeStraw (which is really cool! www.lifestraw.com) and Kickstart. They are both social entrepreneur ventures and we discussed the different business models they use.
To work on our projects, we went back into the township to meet and talk to the attorney. We got some good information and are going to work on putting it together tomorrow. I am cutting this off because we are going out for a group dinner at a traditional African restaurant then I’m coming back to work on a presentation I’m giving tomorrow on Institute for OneWorld Health. I’ll explain more tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Khayelitsha township and classes
Today we met at TSiBA for the morning for a lecture by our professor from NU. The lecture was so great and very interactive. The main question to start the day was, “Who was more of an entrepreneur: Nelson Mandela or Bill Gates?” A very long and in depth controversy arose from that. Some of the topics even included race, gender, and politics… three things you would never think of bringing up in a class at home.
At lunch, when talking with some TSiBA students, they told us how shocked they were to learn that we never bring up race or politics in class. They are extremely open about everything in class and brought up in discussion. I tried to explain how race is a very sensitive subject and some people get really offended. Another NU students said that if you bring up race in a class, you could possibly be labeled as racist or people could get the wrong impression. During our class time it was unbelievable the things we were talking about… that I would never think to talk about in a class setting. Everything from the lack of women entrepreneurs and why to Obama representing blacks in the upcoming election. The TSiBA students are VERY knowledgable. Not that I expected them not to be, but I was very shocked at their level of education.
All of the students from TSiBA are there on a full scholarship (the school brings in donors) and most if not all of them live in a township themselves. I can tell they all really want to be there and just soak up the knowledge. I can sense they try harder than most of the students from home.
Our project got changed from the dance school to the M Njozela Attornies right in the middle of the Kheylitsha township- the third largest township in South Africa with over 2 million people squished into too small of an area. I was taken back when I arrived in the Langa township, but Kheylitsha was even more of a shock. It was double if not more poverty struck than Langa. I drove about 30 minutes into the township and the whole time there were shacks on both sides as far as I could see. These shacks reminded me of bird nests. It looks like that has just gathered any sort of scrap metal, wood, or cardboard they could find and nailed them together. Each of them were no larger than 2 persons wide and one across. They were somehow each for a whole family.
The Law Office we met with comprised of 3 people, 1 computer, and no filing cabinet. We are going back tomorrow to meet with them about the plan more, so I’ll write more about it tomorrow.
At lunch, when talking with some TSiBA students, they told us how shocked they were to learn that we never bring up race or politics in class. They are extremely open about everything in class and brought up in discussion. I tried to explain how race is a very sensitive subject and some people get really offended. Another NU students said that if you bring up race in a class, you could possibly be labeled as racist or people could get the wrong impression. During our class time it was unbelievable the things we were talking about… that I would never think to talk about in a class setting. Everything from the lack of women entrepreneurs and why to Obama representing blacks in the upcoming election. The TSiBA students are VERY knowledgable. Not that I expected them not to be, but I was very shocked at their level of education.
All of the students from TSiBA are there on a full scholarship (the school brings in donors) and most if not all of them live in a township themselves. I can tell they all really want to be there and just soak up the knowledge. I can sense they try harder than most of the students from home.
Our project got changed from the dance school to the M Njozela Attornies right in the middle of the Kheylitsha township- the third largest township in South Africa with over 2 million people squished into too small of an area. I was taken back when I arrived in the Langa township, but Kheylitsha was even more of a shock. It was double if not more poverty struck than Langa. I drove about 30 minutes into the township and the whole time there were shacks on both sides as far as I could see. These shacks reminded me of bird nests. It looks like that has just gathered any sort of scrap metal, wood, or cardboard they could find and nailed them together. Each of them were no larger than 2 persons wide and one across. They were somehow each for a whole family.
The Law Office we met with comprised of 3 people, 1 computer, and no filing cabinet. We are going back tomorrow to meet with them about the plan more, so I’ll write more about it tomorrow.
**Turn your head to the side to see the pic: it's a pic I took from the bus of the Khayelitsha township. Trying not to take pics outside in respect to the people that live there.
Monday, June 30, 2008
First day at TSiBA
Today was our first day of “classroom” sessions with the TSiBA students. In the morning we are going to spend a few hours learning then the rest of the afternoon out in the field working on our projects with the local entrepreneurs.
A little about TSiBA- all the students of TSiBA are on full scholarship. They passed a test called “matric” that all SA students have to take in 12th grade. Because of their financial problems (many live in the townships), they weren’t able to afford to go to a big university. TSiBA is a 4 yr newly accredited school where you graduated with a bachelors degree in BA.
Overall, the TSiBA students were shocked at the fact that we don’t live with our parents. They are all very close knit and could never fathom moving out at their age. Although they were the same age as us, they told us we seemed very mature. They were in awe at the price of eduation that we pay. To put it in perspective, at a local art market in the township, there was this one wire/statue that costs 250 rand. I then asked him how long it took to make it and he said one week. Again, if 1 usd = 7 rand, his weekly wage is about $35. Also, after asking the students if it was normal to see cockroaches in your room, they were horrified and I realized its not a normal thing to see in a 4 star hotel! (phew!)
They speak 3 major languages in Africa and at TSiBA. One is English, the other is Afrikan, and the last is called Kosa (sp?). Kosa has clicks in their words. I never knew how you would spell some of the sounds and it is very interesting to see. We tried a beer in the township that was called (click) uma. Some of the letters represent different types of clicks. One of the students is going to give us a lesson later.
Next, the projects that we are going to be working on- the entrepreneurs came in to present to us about their businesses or their ideas. Below are who presented:
Siseko: Wants to start a gym in the Langa township that has boxing, tredmills, etc.
Diane: (an optometrist) Want to bring Retinal Screening to treat blindess due to diabetes into townships
Karen: Started Izikoll which is a paper/art+crafts/stationary business and a literacy program (www.izikoll.co.za)
Annalisa Creations: Started a sewing business that makes custom products. Works out of a garage in the back of the building
Gugu S’Thebe: A center in the Langa township where local arts work & sell (pottery, arts, beads, etc. Microsoft even donated 15 computers for the center.
Londolozani Orchids: Working to sell the orchids overseas or to the wealthy SA’s
ProTeam SA: Operates tours for the ‘township experience’- focused around being fun. Marketing to wealthy, white schools and tourists.
A little about TSiBA- all the students of TSiBA are on full scholarship. They passed a test called “matric” that all SA students have to take in 12th grade. Because of their financial problems (many live in the townships), they weren’t able to afford to go to a big university. TSiBA is a 4 yr newly accredited school where you graduated with a bachelors degree in BA.
Overall, the TSiBA students were shocked at the fact that we don’t live with our parents. They are all very close knit and could never fathom moving out at their age. Although they were the same age as us, they told us we seemed very mature. They were in awe at the price of eduation that we pay. To put it in perspective, at a local art market in the township, there was this one wire/statue that costs 250 rand. I then asked him how long it took to make it and he said one week. Again, if 1 usd = 7 rand, his weekly wage is about $35. Also, after asking the students if it was normal to see cockroaches in your room, they were horrified and I realized its not a normal thing to see in a 4 star hotel! (phew!)
They speak 3 major languages in Africa and at TSiBA. One is English, the other is Afrikan, and the last is called Kosa (sp?). Kosa has clicks in their words. I never knew how you would spell some of the sounds and it is very interesting to see. We tried a beer in the township that was called (click) uma. Some of the letters represent different types of clicks. One of the students is going to give us a lesson later.
Next, the projects that we are going to be working on- the entrepreneurs came in to present to us about their businesses or their ideas. Below are who presented:
Siseko: Wants to start a gym in the Langa township that has boxing, tredmills, etc.
Diane: (an optometrist) Want to bring Retinal Screening to treat blindess due to diabetes into townships
Karen: Started Izikoll which is a paper/art+crafts/stationary business and a literacy program (www.izikoll.co.za)
Annalisa Creations: Started a sewing business that makes custom products. Works out of a garage in the back of the building
Gugu S’Thebe: A center in the Langa township where local arts work & sell (pottery, arts, beads, etc. Microsoft even donated 15 computers for the center.
Londolozani Orchids: Working to sell the orchids overseas or to the wealthy SA’s
ProTeam SA: Operates tours for the ‘township experience’- focused around being fun. Marketing to wealthy, white schools and tourists.
Scary moment
This morning, when I was getting dressed in the bathroom, my roommate started yelling… I ran out to see an African cockroach on our mirror. I yelled as well, jumped on the bed, threw my shoes on, then ran down the hall and knocked on a boys room to come capture it for us. It was a successful capture. This African roach was unlike any bug I had encountered back home. Even my roommate (my bug catcher) would have been freaked out.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Township Tour: Langa
Today started out by missing my alarm clock and waking up 4 minutes before breakfast ended. I ran to get something to eat and then got ready in 35 seconds. When we met outside to get on the bus to go one of the townships, our driver called and found out we were going to a township. He then refused to being us there. We were stuck without a ride for the next 2 hours where we went on a little walking tour around our hotel (see pictures).
We then caught our bus to go to Langa. Langa is one of the largest townships in Cape Town. There are only two entrances into this township. The only thing I can compare a township to is an Army Base. It is a community inside of Cape Town… a very poor community with high HIV rates. We weren’t allowed to take pictures in there, so a lot of mine are pretty unclear because I took them in the bus or without a flash. The pictures I posted are the “wealthy” side of the townships if you can believe. I didn’t take pictures of the poorest pasts. There were actually some points on the tour I was scared. Our tour guide lived in the township and we even got to view his house. His house was about 3 small rooms that he shared with 13 brothers and sisters.
We went to a little community center/market within the township and got to visit a traditionally pottery maker. I bought a plate from him as well as some other small things from the local artists. We then went to a “traditional healer”. He was located in a little shack in Langa that smelt like millions of dead animals. This might have been because there were millions of dead animals hanging from the ceiling and laying around the room. There are some pictures from inside the hut that I posted (sorry if there are no descriptions under the pics… I don’t get very long internet access).
Next, we took a walking tour of some of the poorest parts of Langa. I wasn’t able to take many pictures of this. We got to go into one “house”. To explain what it was like, this of a suite dorm room. Each family has there own small room with one bed. This is for the whole family. The walls are cement and the floor in cement. There is one sink, broken windows, and a small picnic bench. There is a stove with 2 burners (that im not sure even worked?), is a side room a woman was boiling water over a flame. Since it was Saturday, there were a lot of children outside. One boy even came up and grabbed my hand as well as another girl I am with and started doing flips.. he then insisted on hitting us in the head with his empty water bottle! In the walking tour we went down a little side alley and went to an African Beer House. This is where you pay a small fee and can sit in that house all day, in a circle with the others, and pass around a large metal bucket of beer. We got to join in a circle and try some of their traditional beer. It tasted like yeast and I’m not sure how many germs I got from drinking from that bucket!
After the beer house, we walked past a lady who was roasting lamb heads on a fire. She cuts them in half and then sells them as a snack. As hungry as I was at that time, I couldn’t pull myself to buy one.
Overall, the day was AWESOME. The township is unlike anything I have ever experienced before. It was also, at times, one of the scariest things I have ever done. The people of Langa are the nicest, most welcoming people I have ever met. I tried to relate them to the poor people we see in Boston and it makes those people in the states more rude and disrespectful that you can think of. Not one time in the townships did people try to beg us for money. Not one time did anyone yell out any inappropriate comments to us. Here we were a dozen American’s in their expensive jeans walking past these people who can’t even afford meals.. and they were all welcoming and even smiling at us.
It sounds cliché, but it really makes you take for granted what we all have in the states! Again, the pictures are really great to look at, but forgive me for not giving explanation for any of them. If I find myself with enough internet time, I’ll come around to the explanation. The internet is even so slow, I don’t know if im going to be able to upload them. It’ll be a surprise.
We then caught our bus to go to Langa. Langa is one of the largest townships in Cape Town. There are only two entrances into this township. The only thing I can compare a township to is an Army Base. It is a community inside of Cape Town… a very poor community with high HIV rates. We weren’t allowed to take pictures in there, so a lot of mine are pretty unclear because I took them in the bus or without a flash. The pictures I posted are the “wealthy” side of the townships if you can believe. I didn’t take pictures of the poorest pasts. There were actually some points on the tour I was scared. Our tour guide lived in the township and we even got to view his house. His house was about 3 small rooms that he shared with 13 brothers and sisters.
We went to a little community center/market within the township and got to visit a traditionally pottery maker. I bought a plate from him as well as some other small things from the local artists. We then went to a “traditional healer”. He was located in a little shack in Langa that smelt like millions of dead animals. This might have been because there were millions of dead animals hanging from the ceiling and laying around the room. There are some pictures from inside the hut that I posted (sorry if there are no descriptions under the pics… I don’t get very long internet access).
Next, we took a walking tour of some of the poorest parts of Langa. I wasn’t able to take many pictures of this. We got to go into one “house”. To explain what it was like, this of a suite dorm room. Each family has there own small room with one bed. This is for the whole family. The walls are cement and the floor in cement. There is one sink, broken windows, and a small picnic bench. There is a stove with 2 burners (that im not sure even worked?), is a side room a woman was boiling water over a flame. Since it was Saturday, there were a lot of children outside. One boy even came up and grabbed my hand as well as another girl I am with and started doing flips.. he then insisted on hitting us in the head with his empty water bottle! In the walking tour we went down a little side alley and went to an African Beer House. This is where you pay a small fee and can sit in that house all day, in a circle with the others, and pass around a large metal bucket of beer. We got to join in a circle and try some of their traditional beer. It tasted like yeast and I’m not sure how many germs I got from drinking from that bucket!
After the beer house, we walked past a lady who was roasting lamb heads on a fire. She cuts them in half and then sells them as a snack. As hungry as I was at that time, I couldn’t pull myself to buy one.
Overall, the day was AWESOME. The township is unlike anything I have ever experienced before. It was also, at times, one of the scariest things I have ever done. The people of Langa are the nicest, most welcoming people I have ever met. I tried to relate them to the poor people we see in Boston and it makes those people in the states more rude and disrespectful that you can think of. Not one time in the townships did people try to beg us for money. Not one time did anyone yell out any inappropriate comments to us. Here we were a dozen American’s in their expensive jeans walking past these people who can’t even afford meals.. and they were all welcoming and even smiling at us.
It sounds cliché, but it really makes you take for granted what we all have in the states! Again, the pictures are really great to look at, but forgive me for not giving explanation for any of them. If I find myself with enough internet time, I’ll come around to the explanation. The internet is even so slow, I don’t know if im going to be able to upload them. It’ll be a surprise.
first night
Mostly to explain some of the pictures I took… we went out to the main street to get some dinner later on the first night. For a party of about 10 people, our bill only came to about $80 american dollars. It’s about $1.50-$2 a beer here. One of the bars even has a special of 1Rand Shots. (to put it in perspective… $1 = about 8 rand). Anyways, some of the pictures you see are of that night and the next morning when we took a little walking tour around our hotel)
Saturday, June 28, 2008
We made it!
The 9 hr portion of the flight goes by much faster when you can lay down flat and get champagne constantly served to you!
We got to our hotel and its very nice. Its too bark outside to really see around, but it seems pretty centrally located. It’s called the Townhouse Hotel if you feel like googling it. Some of the TSiBA students were at the airport to meet us when we arrived. They were all VERY nice and seemed excited to work with us.
I sat next to a girl on the plane who grew up in Cape Town and now works in NYC and her BF lives in Cambridge. She told me about all the things I have to do in while I’m here and pointed out some things while we were landing. Landing in Cape Town was BEAUTIFUL. We could see Table Mnt and the ocean. The girl explained to me how Cape Town is either very wealthy or very poor… there isn’t really an in between. The airport was right in between the wall where the poverty starts the well-off Cape Town. The poor section was basically just shacks made out of aluminum. It was nothing like I have ever seen before. The few hours we were in Dakar (we stayed on the plane the whole time) next to the airport and around the city from what I could see through my window was quite a sight. It was all cement homes without glass windows.
Right now its about 9pm here in Cape Town and I’m about to go venture out to find dinner. I’m going to attempt to upload a few pics, so we’ll see if that work. Tomorrow we have planned to go on a walking tour with some TSiBA students around the township that we will mainly be working in. My roommate, Emma, and I are going to try to attempt to fix the internet in our room. Right now we cant get it working and we have to run down to the lobby to send emails.
We got to our hotel and its very nice. Its too bark outside to really see around, but it seems pretty centrally located. It’s called the Townhouse Hotel if you feel like googling it. Some of the TSiBA students were at the airport to meet us when we arrived. They were all VERY nice and seemed excited to work with us.
I sat next to a girl on the plane who grew up in Cape Town and now works in NYC and her BF lives in Cambridge. She told me about all the things I have to do in while I’m here and pointed out some things while we were landing. Landing in Cape Town was BEAUTIFUL. We could see Table Mnt and the ocean. The girl explained to me how Cape Town is either very wealthy or very poor… there isn’t really an in between. The airport was right in between the wall where the poverty starts the well-off Cape Town. The poor section was basically just shacks made out of aluminum. It was nothing like I have ever seen before. The few hours we were in Dakar (we stayed on the plane the whole time) next to the airport and around the city from what I could see through my window was quite a sight. It was all cement homes without glass windows.
Right now its about 9pm here in Cape Town and I’m about to go venture out to find dinner. I’m going to attempt to upload a few pics, so we’ll see if that work. Tomorrow we have planned to go on a walking tour with some TSiBA students around the township that we will mainly be working in. My roommate, Emma, and I are going to try to attempt to fix the internet in our room. Right now we cant get it working and we have to run down to the lobby to send emails.
Half way there
We flew from Boston to NY this morning, and then had mass chaos before the flight to Dakar then on to Cape Town. They had over booked the flights by about 50 people. One of the girls in our group didn’t get on, and now has to spend an extra night in NY. This boy from my group and I were assigned the same seat and when we went to fix it, they upgraded me to first class.. row 1! :o) He ended up sitting up there from NY to Dakar and I am sitting there from Dakar to Cape Town. Free drinks the whole time and reclining chairs. Awesome.
Right now I’m sitting in Dakar on the plane as we stop and get gas as well as pick up some other people. It’s another 8 hour 20 min flight from here. I watched Fool’s Gold so far and then took some sleeping pills and passed out the rest of the way to Dakar.
Right now I’m sitting in Dakar on the plane as we stop and get gas as well as pick up some other people. It’s another 8 hour 20 min flight from here. I watched Fool’s Gold so far and then took some sleeping pills and passed out the rest of the way to Dakar.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Almost time!
Welcome! 5 more days until we depart from Boston to New York to Dakar, Senegal to Cape Town, South Africa arriving there on July 28.
Incase you don't know about the trip.... "The program consists of both field work, and academic study. The field work consists of team consulting projects, in which you will work with students from our partner institution, to support entrepreneurs in the disadvantaged townships surrounding Cape Town. The academic components consists of two courses that prepare you for, and build upon, your field work." NU is giving us a little over $15,000 to invest in these businesses and leave with our partner school in Cape Town. (info on the school go to www.tsiba.org.za)
We were assigned our projects we will be working on while we are there. Myself, some of the TSiBA students (the school we're working with), and another girl from NU are going to be working on starting/organizing/funding the iKapa Dance School. I don't know much about this besides the fact that they are trying to start a ballet school, the first one you would find in a township, and they are looking for us to help them with everything from a writing a formal business plan to helping with their investor presentation. There is an article about it at this website- http://tonight.co.za/index.php?fArticleid=4232280&fsectionld=377&fsetid=251
While I'm there, I'll be updating this blog, uploading pictures, and have access to my email (katiejerdee@gmail.com)
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