Hamba Kakuhle

Well I'm really not too sure where to start. Most my blogs
seem to have started that way, they have also mostly been long overdue...just like this one.

The last month in South Africa was absolutely amazing. Spending precious time with our children was wonderful. Their beautiful smiley faces continued to brighten every day at Bethany Home. We have been lucky enough to have several farewells. Firstly, the trainee's from the rehab and the nuns from the convent organised all of the volunteers a big braai. It was a lovely opportunity to spent time together and mingle with one another. As our little family of volunteers slowly become smaller and smaller it was so sad to say goodbye. We've all had our highs and our lows but after living with these wonderful people for 6months they really have become family. We've shared some brilliant times together during our time in Mthatha and I wish them all the luck for the future. CRAZY IN IKWEZI!!!!!

Our host and the staff at Bethany home held us the most amazing leaving party ever. It was so hush hush all day and we weren't allowed out of our flat. When all was ready we were escorted to the social workers office where we were presented with our Bethany Home t-shirts, traditional skirts, head bands, bracelets and face paint. They made such an effort to make sure we all felt special and looked the part. They then covered us in white sheets (a tradition before a woman gets married) and walked us to our party. We were unraveled in front of all the staff and children. Their was some lovely speeches and beautiful singing from all of the mama's. They made us feel so loved and it was so humbling to have such a brilliant send off. When I was asked to say a few words the tears wouldn't stop. However, I just want to say that I will forever be grateful for my time at Bethany home, the lovely staff and most importantly the absolutely wonderful children. I've learnt so much about so many things I can't even list them all. But one very valuable thing I have learnt is that language should form no barriers. We tried our best to learn as much Xhosa as we could but we're definitely still far from fluent however this didn't stop us from teaching or forming bonds with our children.

On Sunday 9th August, Linsey, Olivia and I said our final goodbyes to Ikwezi Lokusa and Bethany home. It was so tough leaving and saying goodbye to my baby boy Buhle. It's bad to have favourites I know. I loved every single child but I will never stop thinking about Buhle and hoping that he is doing well in life. We then flew from Mthatha to Johannesburg in a tiny little plane, having a glass of wine with two very special girls, flying over the beautiful South African landscape and feeling very proud of my year and what I've achieved.

The following day myself and Linsey went to visit St Mary's children's home (our previous project). We hadn't told the kids that we were coming and they were so surprised. Luckily it was a national holiday so all the children were off school. Our welcome back was overwhelming with nearly 50 kids running to hug us and screaming our names. I'd really missed all the amazing young people at St Mary's but being back and seeing how well they are all doing was brilliant. We danced, we sang, we chatted and we took loads of photos.

On Tuesday 11th August, the day before we departed from South Africa we made our way to home affairs for the last time. After 15months of stress and potential threat of deportation WE GOT OUR VISA'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! with literally hours to spare. It was such a huge relief to go through OR Tambo airport knowing that they would let us home.

Wednesday 12th August 2015 my journey came to and end :'(
My time in South Africa has been beyond anything I could have ever wished for. Obviously there has been highs are lows but learning from those experiences and keeping a positive mind set has been very valuable. The weather, the food, the travelling, the singing, the dancing, the playing, the cuddling, the teaching, the staff and of course the children will all be missed soooooooooo much!

BUT

There is one person that it would simply be wrong for me not to mention. MISS LINSEY WILSON, my absolute rock! I don't know how she has coped for an entire year living with me. I'm sure everyone that is reading this blog will agree, she must be a superhuman. In 12 months we haven't spent more than 10hours apart. If that's not true love then I don't know what is. It was been a pleasure to share my year with her and to also have a new best friend/life partner. I miss her already and find it so weird waking up and her not being around. Possibly the weirdest thing since being home is not saying or writing 'we'. In all my of my diaries that I wrote in religiously every night, each event would start with 'we' every blog post would be 'we'. LOVE YOU LINS.

Being home has been amazing, thank you to everyone who came to the airport to welcome me back. Seeing family and friends after a year has been wonderful. I seriously cannot begin to thank you all for everything. Especially with all my fundraising, there is no chance I would of got there myself.

ENKOSI everyone.

HAMBA KAKUHLE



South Africa... I WILL BE BACK!!!

Last travels

Well after 1 bus, 20 kombi's and a few friendly lifts our last travels in South Africa have come to an end. 

We've spent the last two weeks traveling around via kombi's taxis. We started off in Durban where we met up with our Erin who volunteered very close to us in Johannesburg. It was so great to see her again and catch up about the last few months. We headed to St Lucia (unfortunaely not the caribbean one) where we ticked off one of the last things on our bucket list; SAFARI!!! We had planned to go to Kruger national park in the north of South Africa but due to our budget we decided to go somewhere a bit closer. It was a good choice as the place we visited is the oldest nature reserve on the contingent and has all the same animals as Kruger but it's smaller so you tend to see more things. On safari we managed to see:

Rhinos

Buffalo 

Lions 

Zebra 

Hippos

Giraffe 

Wildebeest

Antelope 

Water buck 

Monkeys 

Impala

and many more! 

There is something really special about seeing animals like these in their natural environment. It is an experience that I will really treasure and won't forget any time soon. We met two very kind guys from London who drove us to the wetlands to see hippos, crocs and sharks (we only saw hippos...luckily) then they drove us around another nature reserve, we didn't think there were any other animals other than antelope however it was just like a second safari, and we managed to see the rarest animal of all which is the leopard. We were feet away from a mummy and baby rhino and followed a group of zebra as they took over the path. The guys were also kind enough to drive us to Tongaat the following morning. 

In Tongaat we stayed with Sean and George at their project called Boystown. We went with them to a local very underprivileged school and helped to scrape, sand and paint the buildings, stairs and flower pots. We also went to one of big shopping centers in Durban and got to watch pitch perfect two!!! Definitely one of the highlights of the holiday! 

Next we headed to Howick, myself, Linsey and Erin stayed with June my Grandma's friend. We had such a lovely stay and she really treated us. We even had hot baths and electric blankets, such a dream! She took us to a Mandela museum which is where he was captured many years ago when he was on the run. Finding out more about Nelson Mandela's struggle is always so interesting especially after living in South Africa for nearly 11months I now know all the places he speaks about and everything makes much more sense. There was also a really clever monument of Mandela's face. June took us to see Howick falls and midmar dam and we browsed the local market. She treated us to lunch and dinner (all in one day) as a volunteer this really is a big deal, we were very grateful. She stays in a lovely complex where zebra, buck, impala and antelope wonder freely. Having a TV and watching BBC news and other English channels for the first time in over 10 months felt a bit weird but just made our stay even more homely. 

After howick Erin took the bus back to her project in Joburg and myself and the lovely Linsey headed back down towards Durban to stay with Lisa, our favourite Austrian who used to teach with us in pre school at Bethany. she lives in a small village called Marianhill and works mainly in the local secondary school. However she also volunteers at an amazing project which we were lucky enough to visit. It's a self help centre for ladies who are HIV positive or have AIDS. They're given jobs and free food. Sister Marco who set up the project is incredible, she relies on funding from overseas and pays for over 100 children's school uniform and school fees. The ladies come to her when they have problems e.g they have no food or no home. She then organises food for their families and even builds them houses. There is also a pre school where the young children go when their mothers are working. It is such an amazing project which gives these ladies the chance to have a job and give their families better opportunities. Although I only met sister Marco briefly she is such an inspirational woman who has dedicated her life to make these ladies life's better. Whilst with Lisa we went to big market in Durban and met up a fellow Project Trust volunteer Erica. We had a great day. I'll really miss these beautiful markets I think I've definitely become a professional haggler. We spent the afternoon in the botanic gardens. The following day myself and Linsey spent the day at the beach, tanning and drinking, what are holidays for after all! It was so great to Lisa again and really interesting to see her new project. We already planned many trips around the world to make sure that we keep in touch. 

Our last stop of the travels was Port St Johns. It was a lot longer journey in a kombi than we had expected. Towards the end the roads got extremely windy. There was a sign that said 'don't worry only 68 bends to go' we'd already been round about 50. It's safe to say I didn't feel so well after that drive. All was good when we finally arrived at our backpackers. Another really cool place, we went on a little hike to find a natural blow hole. The walk included some pretty dodgey ladders and climbs. When we reached the blowhole we discovered the water wasn't wavey enough for it to work. We'd risked our life's for nothing, oh well! The next day we walked along the beach, clamber along some rocks to find a secret little pool. It's been a chilly milly few days, lots of reading and catching up with a bit of wifi. We also met a returned Project Trust volunteer who was in South Africa in 2009/2010 at a medical project not too far from umtata. It was so cool to talk to her about her year and tell her all about ours. It's such a small world!! 

It's been a fantastic couple of weeks doing our last travels. We've seem some awesome things, meet up with great friends and traveled the whole way in true SA style in kombi taxis (which can often by rather challenging) Its been a great way to round up all of our travels throughout the year. We'd had such a blast and had the opportunity to visit some of the most amazing places I've ever seen and done some crazy stuff. 

Today we arrived back at project. I'm really excited to be back at Bethany. I now have exactly one month till I land back in England. After being in South Africa for nearly 11months it's really hard to comprehend that in just 4 weeks I'll be reunited with my family and friends again. I honestly cannot wait and the excitement is building inside me. Thoughts of Heathrow airport and seeing my parents faces are always on my mind however, for now I'm going to make the most of being here with my wonderful children and my incredible partner. I'm going to keep of social media for the last 3 weeks as sometimes it's nice to be without it. As always thank you so much for keeping up to date with my year. Not long now till I can actually tell you guys all my stories face to face.

April-June

Wow! I really am bad at this whole blog writing thing. There is literally no excuse now I have Internet access. I guess I'm just living the experience too much ... or I'm just lazy. 

Anyway, first I guess I should briefly talk about my last travels (which was Easter) it feels so long ago. Myself, Linsey, Phil and Lisa hired a car and road tripped to some beautiful places in the eastern cape of South Africa. The famous coffee bay was our first stop, we had a great time surfing and relaxing on the beach (I got horrificly sunburnt). Then on to Wild Lubanzi which is one of the most amazing backpackers in the middle of nowhere. Met up with two fellow PT volunteers who live nearby. We then drove to Chintsa where we stayed on our travels after New Years. It's a lovely place and we got the chance to meet some very beautiful elephants. Our next stop was a place just outside East London (the SA version) the place we stayed was really cool and we could see zebra, wildebeest and antelope from the swimming pool. Hogsback was our last stop where we stayed in two backpackers. Away with the fairies was amazing, we hiked, saw some beautiful waterfalls, went wild swimming, relaxed by the fire, watched the sunrise and had a bath on the edge of the cliff looking out over the hogsback mountains. The second place was very secluded, it was absolutely stunning. Definitely bought out my inner scout. Everything was completely back to basics with no proper toilets and wild showers which also had an amazing view. I could go into more detail about the trip but it was so long ago now and there's so much more to say. But we definitely had the most amazing 10 days traveling around some incredible places and meeting some wonderful people.

 Since being back at Bethany we have celebrated Linsey's 20th birthday. Lisa who taught with us in pre-school has moved to a different project in Durban so myself and Linsey now share the teaching of maths. I have taught the children days of the week, months of the year, seasons and types of transport. Olivia has moved to Mthatha (anther fellow project trust volunteer) she is working at another children's home for older kids. We love having her here with us and we're never short of a laugh when she's around!

We've had a few outings with the children to the farm, the nature reserve and the fair. Myself and Linsey have also started taking out a few of the pre-school kids for ice cream. They absolutely love it and so do we.

 The two German volunteers organised an Ikhwezi Lokusa festival (that's where I live) it was an opportunity for all of the us to meet our neighbours, the sisters from the convent came and so did the brothers, along with over 40 kids from Bethany and many of the residents from Ikhwezi Lokusa. It was such a lovely day getting to know everyone, we braaied, played games and did face painting for the kids. One of our neighbours invited us to dirt track that he built for his motor bike, we had a lovely day but I proved that saying 'yes' to everything isn't always the best plan. I also proved I'm not very good at riding motor bikes. Luckily I wasn't too badly injured and after a quick visit to the doctor who also sorted out my ear infection I was fine.

Teaching is still great and the children are amazing. Extremely cheeky and at times pretty naughty but amazing none the less. I still teach life skills but as I mentioned before I'm sharing maths with Linsey. We've managed to get pre-school kids to add (only a few but still) we were so proud!! I wouldn't say our Xhosa is fluent yet but we're definitely learning and getting better.

The babies in nursery are as adorable as ever as I'm sure lots of you will have seen in my recent photos. We call it baby therapy as its impossible to leave the room upset because they're just too cute.

A few weeks ago myself Linsey and Olivia completed our Global Citzenship Day which is something we do as part of project trust. We were slightly refrained as the children are 6 at the oldest. We decided on 'World Day Of Cultural Diversity' and it was a huge success. We made lots of different food from around the world which they all enjoyed trying, they coloured in lots of flags and learnt how to say hello in various languages. 

Our two friends Sean and George came to stay with us at our project this week. They helped us out in pre-school and loved getting to know the children. It was so nice to see them again and we all had a great week catching up.

I could go on for hours about how brilliant it is here and how happy I am every day but then I'll have nothing to talk about when I'm home. I can't believe it's now less than 2 months till I'm back in the UK. We have less than 4 weeks of teaching left and 3 weeks of holiday. We have a few plans for our last travels but due to lack of visa and lack money we won't be going out of South Africa. No doubt it will still be amazing just like all our other travels so far. I really can't get my head around the fact that I'll be home so soon. As much as I'm looking forward to being back to see all my wonderful friends and family I don't want to begin to think about leaving SA.

As always thank you to everyone who is still reading my blog. I apologise that its so late but better late than never I guess.

Bethany Begins!!

So last week marked 7 months since arriving in South Africa and today is four weeks since myself and Linsey moved to Umtata. On Friday 6th March we left St Mary's children's home. Saying goodbye was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. But we had a lovely send off with presents from our host and beautiful cards and letters from all the kids. Saying goodbye really was tough but I know that one day I will be back to visit and see how they are all getting on, just like I promised them. That night we stayed at the Ritz backpackers in Johannesburg (our home away from home) and prepared for our move the next day. After paying for extremely heavy bags and running to the plane we finally set off. The plane was tiny and we only had a very short flight. We arrived at what seemed to be a building a lot smaller than my house. Umtata airport is so small, they don't even check your passports and they carry your bags from the plane to the building. We were met by Felix (an ex volunteer who was visiting) Lisa (his sister) and Teresa (a current volunteer from Germany). Our flat is perfect, pretty small but it's fine. We each have a bedroom then share a tiny kitchen and bathroom. We don't have a kettle so have to boil water in the pan every time we want a cup of tea (which for Linsey is a lot) we also don't have hot water so in order to have a luke warm bath I boil the two big pans and put then in the bath. We were welcomed by lots of creepy crawlies especially big cockroaches, we had a massive spring clean and hopefully they've all gone now. Since arriving we've also had a frog, lizard and massive millipede in the bathroom. What can I say, they just love their new neighbours!! Ikewzi lokusa (where we live) is a very nice area. It consists of Bethany home, the convent, a farm, a special school for disabled children, a rehabilitation centre and many workshops where disabled adults can work in either craft, sewing, pottery or leather. It's very different to Rosettenville and pretty safe inside. I can even go running ... well I attempt to. There are now 6 volunteers at Bethany home including myself and Linsey. There is Lisa from Austria, Lia from South Korea, and Teresa and Miri from Germany who it turns out have also been working in a children's home south of Johannesburg (10minutes away from us) for the past 6 months. Toni and Jeffrey are also volunteers from Germany but Toni works for the rehab centre and Jeffrey works as a teacher in a local children's home for older kids. It is so nice to have other company the same age as ourselves and lovely to meet people from around the world all here to do the same thing! Working at Bethany is a dream! We are now officially pre-school teachers. Myself and Linsey work there alongside Lisa, she teaches maths, Linsey English and myself life skills. I absolutely love it. My first topic has been 'the body' which I've really enjoyed and so have the children. In the afternoons we do different activities sometimes music or art and we also put on special lessons for the younger ones. We are also able to help out in the nursery with the babies. They are beyond cute. 

Although Bethany home is very different from St Mary's I'm embracing the challenge. I still feel so honored to be able to split my year and spent 6months in two incredible homes with some amazing children. We've been here for 4 weeks now and settled in so well.

We are now on Easter holidays on a road trip with Lisa and our project trust friend Phil (teachers on tour) we've hired a car and are traveling around some stunning places in the Eastern Cape. But more about that in my next blog post. Thank you to you all for your on-going support towards this wonderful adventure and for taking your time to read my blog and keep on track with what I've been up to.

Lots of love from South Africa!!!

MOVING....

So yesterday marked exactly 6months since I arrived in South Africa. What a crazy time it has been. I've had my highs and my lows but overall it has been absolutely incredible. I found being back at project after our travels has been quite hard. After spending so much time with the other volunteers home had never felt so far away and although I've never once felt like coming home I was suddenly missing my friends and family more than ever and the thought of still not seeing everyone for another 7months was really tough. I was also moved cottages the day I arrived back so I was with a completely different group of children. In the end we found our feet again and were back into routine and I love my new cottage and never thought I'd enjoy working with teenagers as much as I have. I have been helping Karabo (one the the youngest boys) learn the alphabet. It's has been a challenge but its definitely proven that my patience has improved over the last 6months. Myself and Linsey have also been running daily homework sessions with 5 of the boys that go to a special needs school it can also be very challenging at times and even getting them to turn up is half the struggle but it has been extremely rewarding too. We've taught a few of the children to swim which has been one of the highlights for me. As well as obviously doing all our hospital visits and homework sessions. Quite a lot of our time over the past 6 weeks has been spent visiting our friend Alex in hospital. On the way back to his project in Botswana after Cape Town he was involved in a horrific car accident. We are extremely luckily that he is alive and is recovering quickly. He was airlifted to Johannesburg to a lovely private hospital where he was looked after very well. He flew back to the Uk on Monday and is starting his rehabilitation there in the hope to be back at his project in Botswana before long. Here is his blog post about the crash if you have time I really recommend you give it a read:  

http://www.alexhdobson.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-last-ten-weeks.html?m=1

Clearly the last 6 weeks have been a complete mixture of emotions. I have  also celebrated my 19th birthday and spent a lovely weekend in Magaliesburg for Erin's 18th (unfortunately she only joined us for an hour of the holiday as her partner Melissa was sick in hospital - she is fine now) 

So now we are into the second half of our year and with that comes a whole new bunch of challenges especially as WE ARE MOVING!!! 

Myself and Linsey will be moving to Umtata (now known as Mthatha) in the Eastern cape. We will be working at Bethany home which is the project we were originally selected for but for various reasons couldn't go to in August. We have given this decision hours and hours of thought and along with Project Trust we think it is the best way forward. Although I always thought I'd be spending the full 12 months here at st Mary's in Johannesburg this opportunity is too good to give up. We are so luckily to be able to spend 6months in urban Joburg and 6months in the more rural part of South Africa in Umtata. We will be working with very young children. In the mornings we will be teaching in a pre school and in the afternoons will be taking care of the babies. We will also have our own tiny flat where we can cook for ourselves which is one thing we've really missed. Life at our new project is going to be very different and no doubt it will take a while to adjust to and will come with all its different challenges. We are both very excited about the move and extremely grateful for Peter Wilson and the rest of Project Trust for making this happen. 

We plan to travel to the eastern cape next Saturday which means leaving here next Friday. This morning we had tell the children the news which definitely wasn't easy. I know it is going to break my heart on Friday having to say goodbye to the kids. We've become so close to them and they really do feel like family, some of them even call me 'mummy'. However St Mary's and these wonderful children will always have a special place in my heart and I hope to come back to visit them as soon as I'm back in South Africa after this year. 

MOVING...

So yesterday marked exactly 6months since I arrived in South Africa. What a crazy time it has been. I've had my highs and my lows but overall it has been absolutely incredible. I found being back at project after our travels has been quite hard. After spending so much time with the other volunteers home had never felt so far away and although I've never once felt like coming home I was suddenly missing my friends and family more than ever and the thought of still not seeing everyone for another 7months was really tough. I was also moved cottages the day I arrived back so I was with a completely different group of children. In the end we found our feet again and were back into routine and I love my new cottage and never thought I'd enjoy working with teenagers as much as I have. I have been helping Karabo (one the the youngest boys) learn the alphabet. It's has been a challenge but its definitely proven that my patience has improved over the last 6months. Myself and Linsey have also been running daily homework sessions with 5 of the boys that go to a special needs school it can also be very challenging at times and even getting them to turn up is half the struggle but it has been extremely rewarding too. We've taught a few of the children to swim which has been one of the highlights for me. As well as obviously doing all our hospital visits and homework sessions. Quite a lot of our time over the past 6 weeks has been spent visiting our friend Alex in hospital. On the way back to his project in Botswana after Cape Town he was involved in a horrific car accident. We are extremely luckily that he is alive and is recovering quickly. He was airlifted to Johannesburg to a lovely private hospital where he was looked after very well. He flew back to the Uk on Monday and is starting his rehabilitation there in the hope to be back at his project in Botswana before long. Here is his blog post about the crash if you have time I really recommend you give it a read:  

http://www.alexhdobson.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-last-ten-weeks.html?m=1

Clearly the last 6 weeks have been a complete mixture of emotions. I have  also celebrated my 19th birthday and spent a lovely weekend in Magaliesburg for Erin's 18th (unfortunately she only joined us for an hour of the holiday as her partner Melissa was sick in hospital - she is fine now) 

So now we are into the second half of our year and with that comes a whole new bunch of challenges especially as WE ARE MOVING!!! 

Myself and Linsey will be moving to Umtata (now known as Mthatha) in the Eastern cape. We will be working at Bethany home which is the project we were originally selected for but for various reasons couldn't go to in August. We have given this decision hours and hours of thought and along with Project Trust we think it is the best way forward. Although I always thought I'd be spending the full 12 months here at st Mary's in Johannesburg this opportunity is too good to give up. We are so luckily to be able to spend 6months in urban Joburg and 6months in the more rural part of South Africa in Umtata. We will be working with very young children. In the mornings we will be teaching in a pre school and in the afternoons will be taking care of the babies. We will also have our own tiny flat where we can cook for ourselves which is one thing we've really missed. Life at our new project is going to be very different and no doubt it will take a while to adjust to and will come with all its different challenges. We are both very excited about the move and extremely grateful for Peter Wilson and the rest of Project Trust for making this happen. 

We plan to travel to the eastern cape next Saturday which means leaving here next Friday. This morning we had tell the children the news which definitely wasn't easy. I know it is going to break my heart on Friday having to say goodbye to the kids. We've become so close to them and they really do feel like family, some of them even call me 'mummy'. However St Mary's and these wonderful children will always have a special place in my heart and I hope to come back to visit them as soon as I'm back in South Africa after this year. 

December, Christmas and Travels

Christmas (1st-25th December) 

So I realise that it has been a very long time since I last posted on here. I've most probably forgotten the majority of things that have happened but I'll try my best to write about the important bits. Here goes... 

December was a really crazy few weeks with an exciting lead up to Christmas and the children having exams. There were lots of lovely functions and outings for the children. We celebrated Christmas weekend on 6th and 7th of December as St Mary's family. Some of the children go away to hosts or family during the holiday so we had our Christmas weekend whilst everyone was still at the home. Myself and Linsey were responsible for writing, casting directing and sorting out all the costumes for the Christmas play. Rehearsals were often challenging but in the end they finally got it right.  Myself and Linsey were so proud and the children did a fantastic job. 

Peter Wilson our DESK officer from Project Trust came to visit on Sunday 7th. He joined us and the children for brunch and then took us out for a milkshake. It was so lovely to see him and tell him all about our project and how we're getting on. In the evening the kids performed the show for their Sunday school, Peter watched and also bought along Melissa and Erin (our friends who volunteer near by) they all thoroughly enjoyed it.  

It was a very busy month which resulted in us working 28days straight some of which were 17 hour days. Crazy times!! 

The children finished school on the 10th December and myself and Linsey were in charge of keeping the kids busy during the holidays. We took them swimming...A LOT, make Christmas decorations and made the most of the holidays. 

We spent Christmas Day at the children's home. In the morning we went with the kids to Active Church, the service was very upbeat and enjoyable. Once we got back some generous people had dropped off lots of presents. They got water guns, swimming noodles and inflatables. After they had all drenched us we took them all to the pool to play with their gifts. We had such a lovely time, everyone was so happy. It's was so bizarre having sun on Christmas Day let alone the temperature being 35oc and getting sunburnt. In the afternoon it started raining and there were hail stones the size of golf balls which made us feel a bit more at home. 

Traveling (26th dec - 10th Jan)

 

On Boxing Day morning myself and Linsey flew to Cape Town to meet all the other 40 Project Trust volunteers from South Africa, Swaziland ad Botswana. It was lovely to see all the people that we'd trained with on Coll back in July. We exchanged stories about our projects and experiences so far this year. Cape Town is stunning with the sun, sea, beaches and mountains such a lovey combination. During our week there we:

Climbed Table Mountains

Saw African penguins 

Relaxed at the beach 

Went to the cape of Good Hope 

Cycled around a reserve 

Went to Hout Bay 

Celebrated New Years at the V&A waterfront then sang karaoke for hours and hours 

Ate the most amazing Ethiopian food 

And caught up with all our fellow volunteers. 

On one of the days we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to visit Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was held for 18 of his 27 years in prisonment. Hearing about South African history is one thing but seeing first hand where these hero's were punished for fighting for their freedom was something else. It is hard to comprehend what these prisoners faced and yet they held no grudges and continued to strive for equality in their country. We were shown around the maximum security cells by an ex-political prisoner named Sparke it was such an honor. He explained that many of the old prisoners and guards now work and live on the island. It's unbelievable how the ex prisoners are now friends and neighbours with the people who used to be their guards. It was a very good day and I'm so glad I had the chance to visit Robben Island. 

On 2nd January me, Linsey Sean and George started our travels up the south east coast. We visited Mossel Bay where we stayed in an old train just 30metres from the beach. We went sandboarding which was great fun, I'm such a pro! We then went to Chintsa, it was one of the best backpackers I've ever stayed in, they give you fee wine if you play volleyball.. Who could say no! We relaxed in paradise and were then joined by Jake, Phil, Rachel, Olivia, Erica and Chelsea. We eventually got to Umzumbe after our bus broke down we had to get a combi taxi which are alot more cramps. Luckily it had a TV and the driver randomly played Westlife's first concert and we passed around a bottle of rosé... Living the classy life. Just when me and Linsey thought we'd visited all the coolest backpackers in South Africa we pulled up at mantis and moon. It was like a mini jungle with wooden walk ways, outdoor showers, wild moneys and the worlds deadliest snake in the kitchen! We celebrated Phil's 19th birthday with a Braai and night in the jacuzzi and bar. The following day I can definitely describe as one of the best days of my life, despite being slightly hung over! A few of us went to Oribi Gorge. We bare foot trekked down the gorge then swam and jumped into the waterfall. After clambering back to the top of the gorge I put on my big boy pants and did the worlds highest gorge swing (it's pretty much a bungee jump) it was one of the best experiences of my life, I've never felt so free. I jumped screaming 'YALDI' to honor my fellow Scottish companions. Once I realised I was still alive I was loving it, swinging at the bottom singing 'I Believe I Can Fly'!! 

Unfortunately that was the end of our adventures. We travelled to Durban to stay overnight before getting the bus back to Johannesburg the next day. We planned to stay at our favourite place in northern Drakensberg however my good friend Alex (a volunteer in Botswana) was in a car crash so we went back to Joburg to visit him in hospital - more about that on the best blog. 

I will try to write another post about after the travels. Sadly Linsey's laptop has broken so we are unable to upload any pictures or videos from our cameras. 

Missing friends and family a lot but thankful that I've had wifi to be able to catch up with a lot of them this weekend. 

Still loving life in South Africa 

Exploring South Africa

On 24th October - 2nd November myself, Linsey, Erin and Melissa did our first bit of traveling around South Africa. We took a 10hour baz bus journey to the coastal city of Durban in kwZulu-natal. For the majority of the journey it was just us four girls, the driver called us the spice girls due to our hours of impeccable singing. Traveling out of the busy city of Johannesburg we were soon driving past miles worth of townships (slums). The huge diversity of living conditions in South Africa is astonishing. I understand we also have this big divide in the UK but here it is just so obvious and clear. Looking at all the houses made from tin I had to keep reminding myself that people actually live in these places it just felt like I watching comic relief on tv. We then headed towards Free State and onto KZN (kwZulu-Natal). Driving through Drakensberg was amazing and was our first real insight into rural Africa.

When we arrived at our hostel in Durban we were told that there was a mix up and the dorms had been fully booked. They had to give us a room with two double bed, a big bath room, a balcony and a sea view - shame!! In the end we agreed with the owner to upgrade for the rest of the week for an extra R20 each per night, that's the equivalent of £1. Not bad! 

The first full day in Durban we went to Victoria market, it was in the not so touristy part of town to say the least. Lots of traditional Africa clothing, jewelry and little crafts, my kind of thing. We then went to the beach and had an extremely eventful 6mile walk back to the hostel. There may be a list of 10 ways we nearly died but i'll keep that one out for the sake of my mother. On Sunday Sean and George arrived and we went to a massive shopping centre, I treated myself to a pair of comfy flip flops as that's all I've worn since being in South Africa. On the Monday we chilled by the pool, tested out my water proof camera which is amazing (thanks Nana and Jane) and cooked our own Braai. On Tuesday we visited the boys projects in Tongaat. The boys work for a charity called boys town which cares for boys who either have behavior issues or like St Mary's have no family. The location of their project is beautiful as its situated just a few meters from the beach, their balcony looks over the Indian Ocean - just a tad jealous. On Wednesday the 4 of us girls went to the famous Ushaka a waterpark/marine world. We watched dolphin and seal shows, looked around the aquariums and went on the slides at the water park. The water proof camera was also a hit then and got some pretty funny videos. 

On Thursday we travelled from Durban to northern Drakensberg. We stayed at the most amazing backpackers surrounded by mountains. It was all we could of wished for, a pool, a bouldering cave, pool table, jacuzzi (in the bar), the bar itself and great people. Once we arrived we chilled by the pool with a nice cold Savanna. We'd been stuck in the boiling bus for 5 hours so it was a refreshing treat. On Friday myself, Linsey and Melissa ventured to the beautiful country of Lesotho. Unfortunately Erin hadn't packed her passport so was unable to join us. We took a mini bus from the backpackers with a group of other travelers it took around 2hours to drive to the boarder. Lesotho is the 3rd poorest country is the world and is also the highest country due to it having the highest low point. The scenery was astonishing it was just like something from a magazine. It felt like we'd been transported back in time with traditional mud houses and people traveling on donkeys. We first went to a local primary school which is supported by the ampitheatre backpackers. There were only 5 teachers who each had the responsibility of over 50 children each. It is extremely rare that a child will go onto secondary school and if they do they must walk 2miles to and from school through the mountains everyday. We then hiked upwards where we were shown cave drawings from 4000years ago. Adrian our guide then drove us to a traditional sengoma's house. A sengoma is a traditional healer who helps heal physical, emotional and spiritual illnesses, directing birth or death rituals, finding lost cattle, protecting warriors, counteracting witches, and narrating the history, cosmology, and myths of their tradition. She talked us through her work and her calling to become a healer, this was translated by a local who worked at the primary school. It was really interesting and unlike anything I'd ever seen before. We then went a tasted some homemade beer which was ... different but I give it a try. To indicate that the local people have beer or food for sale they fly a white or red flag from their house. We then went to try some cultural food consisting of pap and spinach which was really nice. The local kids we're so incredibly cute they came up and held my hand and starting walking with me. They were so smiley and happy I wanted to take them all home with me but apparently that's illegal. It was such an unforgettable day which showed me rural Africa at its finest. On the Saturday I released my inner scout and climbed a mountain. We went with the same guide Adrian who was utterly hilarious. The weather was fairly wet and cloudy but luckily every half an hour it would pass and we would get a lovely view. We ascended 600m, 300 of which were up a wet, rocky, vertical gully. It took some time but we eventually reached the and the view was amazing. We took the opportunity to whack out our project trust merchandise and take some photos. On the way down we had to climb two metal ladders which added together were 45meters long. There was no rope it was very wet and very steep but I really enjoyed it and got the adrenaline going! Our stay in northern Drakensberg was brilliant and we met some lovely people from South Africa, California, Germany, Israel, France, Denmark, Canada and last but not least the exotic town of Croydon. 

The holiday was perfect and just what we needed after a busy first 2months of volunteering. The kids were so happy to see us when we arrived back and baby Aaelyah even recognised us both. We cannot wait for new year to explorer even more of South Africa but for now we're very happy to he back at St Mary's.

 

Life at St Mary's

So as I was pretty busy before we went traveling I didn't manage to write a blog post before I went, so here is a brief over view of what was going on. 

Day to day life has been pretty much the same with hospital appointments and homework being our main focus. A slight break through with a few of the children who have been asking for my help for the first time. Which is really great! 

I haven't really said much about the food here. I was kind of thinking the food is pretty much what its like at home. However after waking up and being overjoyed by the fact we have weetabix for breakfast I've realised it's actually pretty different considering I'm not even a weetabix fan it was a nice change from the usual puto pap and jungle oats. Lunch is usually bread and peanut butter or as the kids are obsessed with the famous peanut butter and jam combo. For dinner usually some sort of stew with rice, pap or stamp. However we sometimes eat things like spag-bol or fish fingers and chips.
 

Myself and Linsey are now recognised by the hospital staff and also some patients. We are really getting to know the system at south rand hospital as we spend nearly every Tuesday mornings at the virology department. 

We had a brilliant weekend before we went off on our travels. A very kind old lady who was raised at St Mary's children's home many years ago comes to put on a function every term. She brings loads of food, clothes and toys for all the kids. She also arranged for a smooch (frozen yoghurt) van to come and everyone had free yoghurt topped with various sweets and sprinkles. It was such a great day and everyone was very full and had lots of new toys and clothes by the end of it. On the Sunday myself a Linsey took a group of the children out the back to swim. It was a really hot day so was lovely a refreshing. We played piggy in the middle and had a great laugh with the kids. 

When I arrived at St Mary's little baby Aaleyah could barely stand up. Now she is not only walking but running around the cottage. I quite often look after her when my house mother is busy and I love it. She is sooooo adorable. 

Myself and Linsey were invited to Andile's music performance in Johannesburg. There were schools participating from the whole area. It was such a lovely evening and was topped of by an amazing rendition of the circle of life performed by youth orchestra and 1000 school children...pure brilliance. I also took a group of the kids to a talent show at one of the schools. Brian was taking part and was absolutely incredible showing off his hip hop/break dancing skills! 

All in all was a good few weeks but we were definitely ready for our holiday by the time it came around. Sorry this is a pretty boring post, it's been a while so can't remember everything. About to write my blog from my travels so watch this space.

7 weeks in. . .

So it's been nearly 3 weeks since I posted my last blog and I'm going to have to look in my journal to remember everything that's been going on.

The two children with mumps are fine and have been back in their cottages for a while now. I didn't mention on my last 2 blogs but I'd had a pretty bad cough for the first month here. Luckily that seems to have completely gone now.

For the last 3 weeks there has been another volunteer here over from Germany. She volunteered in South Africa a few years ago for 5 months and comes back twice a year to see the children. We took some of the kids out for dinner with her which was a good laugh and they really enjoyed the treat. She left yesterday but hopefully we'll see her again in march.

On the 24th September we celebrated National Heritage Day. The children all had a day off school. We played in the sun all morning had a braai for lunch then swan after.

I've made a dance to 'he lives in you' with Andile, the oldest girl in my cottage. She is an extremely talented performer. She insisted we showed everyone so we had to go around the home showing all the staff, slightly embarrassing but it was good fun.

We tried to get tickets to see South Africa vs New Zealand for last weekend but unfortunately they were all sold out. Jake and Phil (volunteers in Limpopo) were traveling to Durban last Saturday and had a few hours stop off in Joburg. We met them, Erin and Melissa and went for dinner and watched the game. It was close but the SPRINGBOKS WON!!!! We had a really good catch up and chatted about our projects.

We've spent a few very long days in various hospitals during the last few weeks. One appointment we were finished by 9am but had to wait for the other two kids. We all finished relatively quickly. We had to wait for transport so we nipped to the marketing Soweto (right next to the hospital) I got a lovely skirt for the equivalent of £3.50 we were the only white people and got a few funny looks as if we were lost. We then had to wait 4 hours to get transport back home. Then straight away started to help with homework, choir practice then assisted in the office. (17hour day... Killed me)

Another visit to south rand, our local hospital. It's pretty confusing how all the different hospitals work let alone all the different types of appointments. Waiting around for cards and numbers and files and then different rooms and many different doctors. However we think we've finally sussed the system and we're pretty proud of ourselves. Although if there is a little confusion it can make the whole process even more complicated and add an extra few hours to the waiting time.

On Wednesday 1st October St Mary's hosted their AGM, usually these are pretty darn boring but nope not here. We spent the day cleaning the cottages and in the kitchen preparing the food. The food was incredible as the receptionists son is a chef. Myself and Linsey were in charge of fruit skewers and chocolate covered strawberries. We are now total pro's at garnishing. The children performed throughout the meeting and each time they were amazing. The chairman of the executive committee was really funny which made the evening more informal ad entertaining. Sonja the director (and our boss) of St Mary's children's home gave a little speech, it was so nicely presented and so humbling it made me feel pretty emotional.I feel honored to be a part of such an incredible home that provide such great care for the wonderful children. After the meeting the visitors went into each cottage to meet the kids. Each cottage performed an item for their guests. St Margaret's (my cottage) sang a song and then myself and 3 of the children performed the 'he lives in you' dance .... Classic!!

Homework time is a huge part of what I do here at the home. At the beginning i thought it would become quite boring and tedious however I actually thoroughly enjoy it. It's a complete mix of ability, sometimes I'm helping with simple times tables or teaching the youngest girl how to tell the time ( a lot of patients required for that) and other times I'm actually learning stuff myself, admittedly it is things I should if learnt in year 7 and 8 but oh well.


Last week the children were on holiday. Some of them are away with their hosts but most stayed here at the home. We've been playing outside with them and Judy trying to keep them busy. I did a south rand visit by myself the other day with 3 people, it took a while but all went smoothly. What a relief! On Thursday and Friday we have been working in the office as the receptionist is off ill, taking all the calls and being Sonja's PA it wasactually pretty fun.

We now only have a week and a half into our first holiday to Durban. We cannot wait and if time carries on going this quickly we'll be there before we know it.
For those of you that care I'm now 44% the way through my second book (Gone Girl). Done 5 loads of washing, perfectedmy scottish accent, sewn up mine and Linsey's broken clothes, learnt to cut my own toe nails and only washed my hair 7 times. All in all life here is going really really well and extremely quickly.

SHOUT OUT to Hannah Clarke and my dad who celebrated their birthdays this week. Hope you guys had a great time.