Spring in September

Where did September go? If I were at home, I could easily say that it was lost between the pages of new books for new classes in the new year. It would have been lost in the process of moving and settling into an apartment, going to keggers in Golden Gate Park and squeezing the crap out of newly bronzed friends that I hadn't seen in months. It would have been lost in the Indian Summer of San Francisco. But this September was different. The leaves were turning green instead of golden, and the promise of Summer is just around the corner instead of seasons away. The only thing that remained the same was that crazy SF weather - Cape Town shares the mercurial temperament.

It is interesting, I feel like going abroad in SA must be SUCH a completely different experience than studying in Italy or Spain. There's so much pain here, so much sadness that you can't help but feel it. So it's not that I'm not having the time of my life - I think it's evident that I am - but it's just that the fun is definitely mixed in with a heavy, heavy cultural and historical element, and I would be an idiot to close my eyes to it. This month, PASSOP started working with a woman named Susan who was randomly attacked with acid by two men on her bus. We are raising money for her reconstructive surgeries, and all the while she's cheerful and positive and becoming more and more confident by the day. She's amazing, but her situation just shows you how gnarly the exchange between genders can be here. I also just watched a documentary called Zimbabwe's Forgotten Children. It showcased only a few of the countless stories of children left hopeless and desolate because they cannot afford the 10 US dollars that their school charges per term. These are children that, unlike those at home, would give anything to be able to go to class. We take it for granted every day, and it's such a luxury here. It makes me feel foolish for the days I faked fevers. It's all about perspective, I suppose. But since all things in South Africa are not sad and horrible news, let's cheer this post up:

I started the month off by going to a gnarly trance festival called Sprung with David and his brother and some friends. Trance isn't really my thing, but it was quite the experience. The music didn't stop the entire weekend (literally.. it didn't stop at all) and we danced ourselves to sleep sometime in the early morning. It was hectic, but I was stoked we got to camp and get weird with the weirdest. But as our German friends abandoned us for the Eastern Cape, and school picked up ten fold, things have slowed down for us in terms of adventures. But the weather has been picking up here and there and we have been braaing our pants off when it's nice with a little water polo in the pool and some beach time thrown in their for sanity's sake. But as blurry as September was, it was all thumbs up. Here's some evidence:

out with some biddies on Long street

the day I got lost on Noordhoek Beach

If you grow up in Tustin with nothing to do but drive around the hills at night, you acquire quite a few great look out spots. If you live in San Francisco with hills and tall buildings for days, you acquire quite a few great look out spots. I've done both, and this is still the best spot I've ever been to. Cheers!

Live eagerly,

KG

Life on the Hoek

First thing’s first: I would not be truly updating any of you on my life if I didn’t write about my time spent in a beautiful little pocket of Cape Town called Noordhoek, a small countryside suburb known best for it’s outstretching, white sand beach and miles and miles of hills dotted with Dutch style houses. As some of you might know, I spend a lot of my time there now because that is where my boyfriend, David, lives with his brother and the whirlwind of friends that come and go as they travel the world. With a constant stream of twenty-somethings running in and out, you can guarantee that there’s always something going on, whether it’s a collaborative family dinner, super intense Mario Kart tournaments, surf safaris or hectic nights out... describing it as a “fun” experience would be an understatement. It’s a place that has eased the pain of missing my home and family and friends and made me realize that I can have a home extremely far away from Tustin. It doesn’t hurt that I’ve managed to get myself tangled up with the most amazing guy in the world. Really, I had to go to Africa to find him AND import him from Germany. But I won’t bore you with the mushy stuff, just know that this life that I’m living is the epitome of happiness.

The whole crew (Left to Right: Elena, Simon, Jara, ["the Germans"] Yanis [Davids' brother], Skye, Simon [Davids' friends], myself and David) watching the sunset in our cave.

Mission to Chapman's Peak with Yanis and David

Our mascot, the neighbors dog Marty, who thinks he lives at the boys' house. Marty is king.

And now, another month has come and gone and my experiences in Africa continue to change the way I perceive nearly every facet of life. It’s funny though, the changes seem subtle enough to pass without notice until someone from home asks me how I’m doing. Then I begin to reflect on what I’ve seen, what I’ve done, who I’ve met and I see the differences between who I was when I came here, and the person I’ve become since then. Waves rush over me, waves of gratitude, waves of inspiration, of anger, or confusion - so many mixed emotions it’s hard to keep track. And I’m drowning. But not in the way that might frighten you or overwhelm you. I’m just completely immersed. I'm trying to override all of my old schemas and assumptions, stereotypes and the general hard wiring of my mind. I really understand now what people mean when they tell you that traveling like this is a life changing experience. It is. It changes your life and your brain and the way you think about things.

I find myself heavily critiquing the States more than I have ever even thought to in the past. Not because I don’t love my country but because I do. Because I know we can do better than what we’ve been doing in the past and obviously how we’re currently doing. My eyes have been opened up to the point of my eyelids straight ripping off. Other countries do things better than us. But we have heart and I believe we have a true passion for providing a truly top-notch life experience for our citizens so we really need to listen up, take notes and be unafraid of change. Welcome it. We need to become more globalized and stop isolating ourselves. Seriously teach other languages from the earliest stages of development and help our youngest generations and those on the way that the other countries in the world are just as important as us. We are not an island, and I mean that metaphorically. Do you know how many Europeans I have met that not only know the ins and outs of their own governments and cultures but those of the countries around them and, of course, ours? It’s impressive, and it goes to show that as a huge force in this world, we need to look outside our borders and learn about the countries we’re sharing the world with. How much do you know about France? We briefly hear about them in the news but always as the punch line of jokes... but how much do you really know about how their country works? My challenge to you is to learn about other countries. Start with France. And once you realize how much we could learn from their government alone, keep reading. Read about Norway and Holland and Belgium and all of these other places that are doing things better than us. Well, first... locate them on a map. Then read.

Live globally,

KG