Reports from Cape Town, South Africa
The excitement and array of things to do in Cape Town has kept the 27 of us busy exploring and enjoying every minute of these past few weeks in South Africa. We’ve ventured out into open air markets, traveled along the coastal peninsula to beaches and a penguin colony, hiked the overlooking Table Mountain, met....
The jump, free travel, and Cape Town
Moving into our final homestay in Cape Town has been quite an experience. We have now gone from having no electricity, running water and connection to the rest of the world to having absolutely all of that and more than we possibly need. It has without a doubt been a cultural shock for us. We....
Reports from South Africa
Our first church experience in Lesotho was probably the most memorable. We were to be sitting through 1.5 hours of a four hour service. We all met together and walked through town to the outskirts of the village to a small rectangular hut on the side of the mountain. All 24 students and 3 leaders....
Reflections after visiting the Apartheid Museum
Learning about South Africa’s devastating history while living in Soweto, a township where blacks were forced to move into during the apartheid, has been an enriching and powerful experience. A few days ago, we visited the apartheid museum in Johannesburg. While the museum experience was a painful one, it was necessary in order to understand....
The morning of the marimba
Wednesday morning our group took a relaxing trip to a local community center and was given marimba lessons. For some of the group, like myself, this was the first time we had ever seen a marimba. The marimba is a musical instrument made of smooth wooden pieces and pipes. The wood is struck with drumstick-type....
Soweto – wonderful hosts and hospitality
On Tuesday, September 8, I finally arrived in Soweto, South Africa, just outside the capital city of Johannesburg. I entered Soweto filled with apprehension as well as excitement. It was time to meet my new seSotho host family. Many different thoughts were shooting through my head. Would we get along? Would my new family like....
South Africa – first impressions
As our plane taxied down the runway at the Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, my first thoughts on South Africa were “This is really…brown.” Although our first impressions might have been a little off considering our 18 hour flight, the last few days in South Africa have been eye-opening, inspiring, and filled with wonderful people....