Jolling in Johannesburg

I landed in the city of Johannesburg after a grueling 16-hour flight. We stayed in the city for only six days, but the purpose was to familiarize ourselves with South African culture, visit important landmarks, and start discussing the challenges faced in the country's recent past. We stayed at a place a little outside of the city called the Wilgespruit Fellowship Center. Wilgespruit played a crucial role in the anti-Apartheid struggle and it was a fascinating experience to meet some of the people who were involved. In fact, Nelson Mandela even hid in the caves on the property while in exile from the Apartheid government.

On our first day, we headed to the Apartheid Museum. The museum was enormous and I didn't even come close to getting through all of it. But, I did manage to learn a lot about what happened in South Africa during the Apartheid. We also got the chance to speak with four panelists who all came from different areas of the Apartheid struggle. One man was one of the original leaders of the Black Consciousness movement, another man was a preacher in a mixed race church, one woman was an activist for the cause, and one man was the Minister of Police in the Apartheid government. What is most interesting about the man who was Minister of Police (about equivalent to a Secretary of Agriculture or something like that in the US - people know who he is) is that he was the only government member to apply for amnesty at the Truth and Reconciliation Comission (TRC) while also expressing remorse. Each story was amazing to hear, yet everyone made it clear that South Africa still has a long way to go to reach true equality. Right now, there is still huge gaps in economic inequalities. In some areas, like Bushbuckridge, the unemployment rate is as high as 80%. I imagine that this is something we will be exploring as our classes start up again...

On a visit to Soweto, the largest township on the African continent, I was able to see the economic effects that the panelist spoke of. Soweto is known for it's riots during the anti-Apartheid struggle and for the famous people who emerged from this community, especially Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. In 1976, school children protested the Bantu Education Act and although it was intended to be peaceful, it escalated into an extremely violent situation when the police responded with gunfire. At the Hector Pietrson memorial, we learned all about that day in history because it marked a turning point in the fight against Apartheid. After seeing the museum, we ate lunch at a local restaurant (it took three whole hours - teaching us a lesson about South African time) and walked through the streets. We even played soccer with a group of children!
On Sunday, I woke up prepared to go to church nearby. Because of a turn of events (the bus drivers didn't wake up in time...) my plans changed and I ended up going to an open-air market. It ended up being an incredible experience! I bought a few souvenirs, but the stands sold a whole variety of things - scarves, wood carvings, jewelry, and musical instruments, just to name a few. I had the most incredibly delicious falafel (yes, I know it's not a traditional South African dish, but it was delicious none the less!) and cinnamon covered nuts (which I bought from one of the vendors outside). While I was shopping, I caught a video of a group of men doing traditional Zulu dancing!

We had thunderstorms nearly every day while we were in Johannesburg. Fortunately, it would only rain for only a short time and then turn back to the beautiful sunny weather that I had expected! Every morning, I wake up at 6am to jog up and down the enormous hill next to Wilgespruit. One morning the entire group went for a hike to the top of a nearby mountain and then we tried to reach Nelson Mandela's caves (unfortunately, trees had grown over the entrance and we couldn't get inside). I am really loving the nature here - every breath of air feels so fresh!

The first two things I noticed about Africa, immediately after I left the airport, were the sound of insects buzzing in the meadows (it was so loud, it even drowned out the sound of freeway traffic!) and the deep-red color of the soil. Johannesburg is currently preparing to host the Soccer World Cup in June, so there is a bunch of activity surrounding that. There are signs everywhere for it!
I am so happy to be here. We had no classes during our stay in Johannesburg, so it sort of felt like a vacation compared to the stressfully packed days in DC. It is a welcome change! The staff at Wilgespruit threw us a farewell braai (another word for barbeque) where we ate great food and danced and sang all night. It was a great conclusion to my stay in Johannesburg. We'll be back in Wilgespruit for our last night in South Africa, but that is a long ways away - I still have Bushbuckridge and spring break (wherever that will lead me...Durban? Cape Town?)...stay tuned!