Africa at its best

This weekend was fantastic! Starting Saturday morning at 9:00 we were on our way to a cheetah park! We were actually permitted to go inside the cage/living area of a full grown female cheetah and pet her! Then, we went and saw baby lions, one cub was playing between my feet! I was a little freaked out because it is a lion and I'm not the best with animals. We went to a look out near Unlambo (the place where I went to bush camp) and viewed Africa's beauty. We could see farmland and mountains off in the distance. Lunch was at a quaint bed and breakfast that I imagine would be the ideal place to stay during a honeymoon with fresh cut flowers on every table and peaceful scenery. Addo Elephant Park was our next stop. Interestingly, Addo is bigger then Krugar Park and claims to not only have the "big 5" but to be the only national park in SA to have the "big 7" since it extends to the coastal line including the great white sharks and dolphins. While driving we saw more then I can count of Kudu (Africa's version of a deer) and not too many elephants. Finally, we spotted some, a whole family! The baby elephant captured my attention and stayed under its mother. The female elephants are the leaders in the elephant world and it just seems natural that all animals should have this matriarch system. ;) We were driving through the park at sun set and the wildlife, mountains, and setting sun created a mood that no matter what was going on in your life you couldn't help but to be at peace. We were also fortunate enough to go on a night drive and view even more animals. We saw hyenas which are truly ugly creatures and it may just be the influence of Disney's Lion King, but I am not particularly fond of them. Sunday revealed itself to be wonderful as well. I think I should just train for a triathlon (not really) but Bridget and I wake up and run on Sunday, then bike through wind storms to get to the ocean. Then, I swim for hours because although the water is chilly I can never resist the tempting waves that even when you enter they physically pull you in deeper as if delighted to have a new friend to play with. While I was out deep enough to avoid the crashing of the waves and just smoothly float over top, dolphins swam by! Not close enough to touch but it was amazing none the less! For those of you who are concerned about the "study" part in my study abroad experience, don't you worry I have been doing a little bit of school work as well. In fact, my first term ends April 1st and I will have different classes for the remainder of the time. Hope all is well on the home front, only 3 and half months left in Africa!

Spiders, geckos, cockroaches, butterflies, and ants are all part of the experience of living in Annie's Cove. My family will be happy to know that I can now dispose of a spider all by myself with no screaming or fuss! Life is starting to settle down and while it is filled with some adversity I am enjoying the experience and would like to share a few facts that I find interesting! The population of South Africa is about 47.9 million people. Africans make up 79.6% coloured 8.9% (coloured is a term referred to as a mix) 2.5% Asian and 9.1% white. HIV is prevalent is 11% of citizens (5.3 million people). The life expectancy for men is age 49 and women 52! In the Eastern Cape, where I am staying, 55% are unemployed.. but this also includes those studying at university and not working. Rugby is a very popular sport here and is viewed primarily as a "white" sport. When it was time for the Rugby World Cup the stadium was built in a township (consisting of a black population). This forced the white spectators to see a different lifestyle and helped assimilate the cultures. Okay, take it or leave it.. just some facts I like! The place where I volunteer is called Simethemba meaning "we have hope." When we arrive there are five children all under school age who entertain themselves all day. They play with anything- garbage bags, bottle caps, sticks, and deflated soccer balls. Regardless of the lack of toys, they are happy and and content to toss the bottle cap in the air and catch it. They are resilient little things, jumping down from brick walls and bouncing right back up, even running around barefoot where there is broken glass. I adore this one boy in particular with big, brown, distrusting eyes that always seem to be capturing your every move. After a while the school age children come home and change out of their uniforms (it seems odd to me that they can barely afford to survive and have to spend money on impractical uniforms). The kids are then supposed to come bring their school work out for us to help them. Unfortunately, only a few do because many of the kids don't trust us yet and are a bit embarrassed too ask for help or even have no desire to do the school work. But you know I will have none of that and go in search for the children. I think I have started to gain trust because on my third visit I was working with four children and they were excited to learn more about me and my light coloured eyes. Multitasking is not one of my strengths but maybe one day I will be as skilled as my own mama. It was a challenge to keep the kids focused while my attention was constantly being demanded since all the kids were on different subjects. One boy was reading a story very fluently but occasionally I would stop and ask him what a word meant and he did not know.. so we worked on comprehension and using context clues to decipher and understand. After the school work is done, a lot of the kids enjoy colouring pictures and getting to know us. Each time shows improvement on them trusting us and I hope to reach the point where they come right out and ask for our help. But it's the weekend and the beach is waiting for me! oh i have a joke.... what did the eye say to the other eye? there is something between us and it sure does smell! 
                      love,
                        becca
 p.s. the easiest way to reach me is to email me at rebecca.serafini@yahoo.com