Alive in Durban

I struck myself as the type to really love blogging about this adventure, but it has been more than a week already and this is all I`ve got. I guess when you strike yourself, you`re always wrong (or insane, because that would really hurt).

In any case, here I am, alive and still pretty smiley in Durban, South Africa. It`s essentially LA with lots of Indian food and friendlier people and a much richer past. But I certainly can`t sum up the whole of my experiences so simply, so here`s an ultra-quick breakdown of Kate & co`s RSA adventures thus far:

Day 1: April 30 - 1, 2, 3 Takeoff

Left Ottawa, a bit teary-eyed but mostly wide-eyed, for Montreal, and then Montreal to Amsterdam. Met a very friendly Canadian-Dutch guy from the Hague who kept me fully entertained on this flight. Six hours of hilarity involving wine, Brad Pitt and sign language with a mildly creepy Italian ensued.

Day 2: May 1 - Give me Hope, Johann`a

11 hours of hiding behind an eye mask, followed by a very unceremonious border crossing into Johannesburg, South Africa. Made me think about ridiculous line of questioning at the US-Canada border and want to cry. No danger upon getting out of airport, but immediate culture jolt when baggage handler practically reached into everyone`s pockets looking for a tip. Drive to Soweto at 10pm. See burning tire. Must be in South Africa. Meet Oliver, hostel guru and reggae junkie. Sleep in a room with eight giggling Canadians. Feel great.

Day 3: May 2 - Amandla SOWETO!

Tasty breakfast. Mangwanya (spelling this wrong) is delicious fried bread which I must locate more of. Trekked to apartheid museum. Can`t explain the essence of this place in short points, but it was really stunning and well-done. Mandela, the man. Walked around Soweto (former major township area) and felt so safe. People almost all very friendly. Visited site of 1976 student uprising. Was amazed at their organizational capacity. Very sad also, seeing the differences between official accounts of police and those of students that were there and saw young people get shot. Saw Mandela`s house. Had a delicious Braai (BBQ) at the hostel, played soccer with the kids who kicked my butt, and then danced the night away with maybe 40 locals in a huge field in the heart of Soweto. Insanity.

Day 4: May 3 - Hot hot hot!

Arrived in Durban at 9:30am! It is HOT AND HUMID! So many trees. Awesome taxi driver, Zuneid, took us all to the beach. Looked crazy with 10 backpacks and sweatshirts in the sand. Water was great and got a bit burnt despite my warm clothes. Met director of our university and then headed to our hostel, the Hippo Hide. Looks like an African paradise. Room is less utopian, but it`s definitely a great spot. Walked to get groceries and nearly died going up the hills. Will have very sexy legs by the end of this trip. Finally got some Bunny Chow (cheap indian curry inside a hollowed-out piece of bread, a Durban original). Was a bit boney, but very satisfying, given the significance we placed on this local dish. Geckos are the only non-human creatures to be found inside, so I`m quite the happy, spider-free gal.

Day 5: May 4 - Back to School

Slept like a log, but woke like a lion before going to the University of KwaZulu Natal for the first time this morning. Gorgeous place. Seventeen times more trees and greenspace than Ottawa U, and this is just one of 5 campuses. Met all of the scholars we`d be working with - brilliant, pretty left leaning, but mostly just kind. Most of the day was a tour of the campus. Found out that preparations for the 2010 World Cup have been affecting informal workers (which I chose to be the the subject of my research), so I may refocus on these more recent changes. Return to oasis that is home, make some non-African pasta, laugh, and sleep.

...It`s now about 10pm and I can`t seem to get enough sleep here, so I will continue to document life in Durban before the end of the week. I hope I`ll be able to catch everything up so I can actually talk at length about my trip to a old Indian township tomorrow, and I`ll try to also talk more about yesterday`s bumpy trip to Lesotho!

One final note before I go to bed: Things are happening at an insane pace, but given the nature of this trip as a 6-credit course involving sitting in a classroom for at least 5 hours every weekday, I can`t say that every day has been full of dramatic occurences and weird adventures. I will try my best to keep doing odd things so that you don`t desert me before I really start moving in two weeks` time. I will also try to not write about boring things like how quickly my laundry was done or some lame jokes made by our taxi driver.

With Love,