Cape Town and Beyond

After being the organizer of the first three days I was happy to relinquish all control on the fourth day in Cape Town. We picked up our rented car Ryan and I made our way to pick up one of his friends who had been living in Cape Town working in a program called Africa Jam which provides a safe interactive space for teens living in the townships to be creative through dance, art, music, theatre, etc. The three of us headed off to Stellenbosch and then Parrl to meet up with other friends of Ryan's (he's been here a number of times) and go wine tasting. i have never been wine tasting but it Boschendall seemed like the idyllic place for a first timer. As we sat under the huge oak tree sipping our varieties of wine the mountains rose in the distance beyond the rows of leafy green grape vines. It truly was picturesque.
For dinner we had a Gatsby, and if you ever go to Cape Town you must try it! This sandwich was the largest thing I have ever seen. It looks like a large sub-sandwich however it is filled with pulled chicken, lettuce, tomato, some sauce they call Portuguese sauce, french fries and who knows what else. It was absolutely glorious and I am drooling now just thinking of it! From the sophistication of wine tasting to yummy greasy food I enjoyed every second.

Sunday morning was a lazy one, hanging around the waterfront enjoying the day. However, that afternoon I, along with Brooke and Michelle, trekked up Table Mountain. If you Google image search "Cape Town" I am sure one of the first views you will see is that of this beautifully plateaued mountain in the center of the city. We couldn't have picked a more perfect day. Most days the clouds come pouring over the mountain appearing to be its tablecloth; however, on Sunday, none were in site. We wanted to make it in time for sunset but we had to time it just right because sunset is around 7:20pm and the last cable car down is at 7:30pm. The hike was aw-inspiring and both the view and difficulty took my breath away. In all honesty, it wasn't too difficult but something you certainly don't want to rush. We reached the top just in time to hear the announcement that the ticket office would be closing in 5 minuets, watched the sun go down, and were down the mountain by 7:35pm.

Monday and most of Tuesday were spent on SAFARI! We gathered on the bus and drove the 2 1/2 hours to Aquila Game Reserve. I, not getting must sleep the night before, slept the entire way! You come to find, after traveling around for bit, that when you sit down on the bus or in a car, you take the time to doze because you don't know when you will get another chance. The reserve consisted of a number of large gates, thatch covered small buildings, and a breath-taking view. We had lunch, settled into our rooms, and reclined by the pool waiting for our 5pm game drive. Between the Monday night ride and the 6am ride the next morning we saw everything: giraffe, lions, springbuck, buffalo, zebra, wildebeast, hippos, rhinos, and even elephants - along with a number of animals I could not identify. Aquila is a small reserve that just made its start 7 years ago. They are working to get more and more animals and hoping they will mate in the reserve. Because of a lot of the settlement in Cape Town many of the animals were forced north and have not returned so the reserve is trying to bring back animals that were once native to the area. In fact, while on the reserve I saw a rhino that the guide referred to as a baby, which I didn't entirely understand because he was so large! However, apparently he is the first white rhino to be born in the Western Cape in nearly 300 years!!!

We return to Cape Town with a couple of hours to grab the necessities and jump on the ship. Due to high winds we were advised to stay docked until the port authority determined it safe to leave the harbor. I must admit, I was quite sad to leave Cape Town. It was a beautiful city and one I hope to return to. I met the friendlies people and fell in love with everything that i did.

Getting back on the ship has been a new experience. We are more than halfway now and officially only have a month left of school. Everything is just flying by. Most of the time, when you talk to people who have studied abroad they feel obligated to say it is the most amazing time of their lives, which is true in my case as well, but that doesn't discount the fact that it can be difficult. Day in and day out on the ship can be monotonous and I miss the simply pleasure of taking a walk, or going out to lunch, or even sitting in a park with my book. This will be the longest stretch we are onboard and know by the time we hit Spain everyone will be ready for a break. However, they are keeping up quite busy. Things have really started to pick up in school and we are getting down to the wire with papers, tests, and projects. In two days there will actually be a wedding on the ship! One of my professors is marrying her longtime partner. It's pretty cute and we are all pitching in to help out with the big day. Then we will have a 12 hour stint in Cape Verde, where I hope to try surfing again and then back to the classroom and off to Spain.

We pass the time by studying, or pretending to study, and religiously checking our emails. So if you get bored and have a few tid-bits to share, I would love to hear how everyone is doing. To whomever reads this and wherever it reaches you I hope this finds to healthy and happy.

Falling in Love

I have fallen in love and I don't care who knows it. Cape Town is amazing! My days here have been packed full and each event has been worth while. We arrived on Wednesday, February 27 and although there was a bit of fog that delayed are docking (seems like that damn fog follows us everywhere) we were able to get off the ship by 10am. My first day was spent wandering around the V&A Waterfront and planning the rest of the week. My dad set me up with Anton, the son of a man he knows through business, who couldn't have been lovelier. He helped us plan the rest of our week and has been a wonderful asset hooking us up with guides and places to go. Following our meeting with Anton we head to the Slave Lodge, which is the oldest building in Cape Town. It has since been turned into a museum, however, in its day the building housed and sold all the slaves that were brought through the cape. After which we scurried back to the ship, changed for hiking and were off to Lion's Head for sunset. The hike is only about 40 minutes to an hour and we reached the top just in time to see the sun go down. Luckily we brought flashlights or else we would have never made it all the way to the bottom.

Day two we hooked up with Gavin from Xtreme Adventure who organized for us to go surfing! Being from the Midwest there isn't a huge opportunity to learn to surf so I was pretty amazed when I got up on my second wave. Of course the waves were not very large and we were learning on an 8 foot foam board but still I'm pretty pumped about it and could have continued all day. The rest of our day consisted of driving around the beautiful Cape Peninsula where we visited Cape Point, a nature reserve, ostrich farm, and saw the penguins at Boulder Beach. A few things to remember when dealing with wild animals... never get too close. Apparently ostriches will eat anything and everything, in fact one lunged at my camera as I tried to take its picture.

My third day was spent wandering through the townships with a local guide, Thabang. For those unfamiliar, the townships in Cape Town were established during Apartheid as undeveloped areas designated as "non-white" communities. Today the neighborhoods of Cape Town are still divided predominantly based on color but more specifically on social class. There is of course the white areas then in the townships are the colored and black. Being from the US the term "colored" has been one I have had to get used to, however, here it refers to people of mix origins or those who are not black and not white. During segregation, if a white person were to married a non-white they would be "demoted" to colored status.

Our visit began in Khayelistsha at a pre-school and kindergarten and a co-op started by the neighborhood. The children were beautiful and so excited to see us. They sang us songs, posed for pictures and played games with us. I am convinced that no matter what you do you will generally reflect that attitude of the children you meet. After relishing in the grinning faces of children ages 4 to 7 we walked across the street to a co-op where local goods and art projects were on display. Khayelistsha is one of the black townships and one of the better off of the tin-housed neighborhoods. We later visited Vikki's B&B, which boasts to be the smallest hotel in South Africa. Here we met the owner and manager Vikki. She has turned her home into a two bedroom bed and breakfast that brings tourists into the neighborhood. She has had visitors from all over the world each contributing to the area in their own way. Anyone is welcome to come stay with Vikki as she encourages foreigners to live daily life in the townships. She explained to us that in the beginning her neighbors did not understand what she was trying to accomplish and were angry that she wanted to bring "outsiders" into their lives. However, after speaking with her I have understood that because of these travelers the community has been able to finance a number of small businesses, a preschool, and a skills school that teaches things such as sewing to the girls in the neighborhood so they might have a marketable trade in order to get a job.

Following Khayelistsha we visited Langa, the oldest and most populated of the townships. Here we met with locals and visited a local medicine man. His dark, musty garage of a storefront housed plants, dried fruits and vegetables, roots, animals and lord knows what else. A man standing only a few inches taller than myself wearing the pelt of some animal on his head the a belt of wood and bones to ward off illness enlightened us on the many ways to cure aliments ranging from a headache to making someone fall in love with you.

After the township visit, as I walked through the renowned District Six Museum, I realized how peaceful the entire day had been. Not that I expected violence by any means however, my guide and the museum didn't touch on it at all. The displacement of the non-whites during the late 1950s and early 60s was not exactly peaceful nor was the way in which the government kept order during the Apartheid movement. However, when asking Thabang he said that Nelson Mandela taught them to forgive and move on from the hatred. Although I believe that to be their hope, to one day evolve past the pain of Apartheid, it is not yet a reality. But there is certainly reason for hope.

The Channel of Mozambique

Our break in the beautiful Seychelles was wonderful but far too short. We spent the two days wandering the small main island of Mahe traveling from one white sandy beach to another. Now, back on the boat, school has hit me full force. Traveling to Cape Town has been an adventure in itself. Originally the ship was supposed to cruise around the western coast of Madagascar, however, due to cyclones in the area we took a turn toward more protected waters, passing between Madagascar and the coast of eastern Africa. However, we still caught a decent amount of backlash from the storms. Last night we all stood out on the back deck watching an electrical storm light up the sky. Shortly there after it began to downpour and the back deck became a slip n' slide! Watching a storm at sea is beautiful, however, seasickness is certainly one of the drawbacks to studying on a ship. Although I haven't been sick it certainly isn't a natural feeling to constantly pitch and roll with the waves, not to mention trying to read, pay attention in class, and take tests while it is going on.

There is no word to describe the experience in India. I've tried to attach some sort of definition but I cannot. As we arrived at the Taj Mahal at sunrise I was overwhelmed and quietly took it all in. Surveying the lands I found myself in awe of how many people had made pilgrimages to this beautiful temple of love. After a week on the ship I am still comprehending the expanse of sensory information I acquired simply by walking down the street. I'm not sure if I will ever exactly digest this experience to make much sense because simply it cannot.

However, the battles of travel in India as certainly bonded us and although I am one who has never taken great stock in the meaning of Valentine's Day I must admit ship board life got pretty cute the other day! I awoke to find candy grams, sent by a number of friends around the boat, sitting outside my door. Upon opening my door my first interaction was a salute to cupid and a big hug. The day went off rather smoothly, laying out in the sun on the aft deck while doing homework, attending class and meals. However, dinner was the greatest. The crew prepared for us a fabulous dessert buffet, that I regretfully admit looked better than it tasted. It was still a lovely gesture. Then everyone went back to their cabins and gussied up for the evenings dance. Being our first excuse to dress up, everyone was pretty excited. They served cookies and milk as we danced the night away! It seemed to be exactly what we needed after feel defeated in India.

Yesterday we crossed the equator and were initiated into the Shellbacks society. If you are on a ship that crosses the equator there is a sort of hazing ritual. Although entirely optional I jumped to participate. For seaman aboard Naval ships this initiation is much more harsh generally consisting of a fish and tomato bath. For us, flower and water was poured over us followed by kissing a giant fish and then Neptune (our Port Programs director dressed up). The entire community got involved and it was a great celebration. The staff and crew dressed up as pirates and everyone played their part.

Today we land in the Seychelles. Outside my porthole window I can see beautiful beaches and jungle peaks. It is our two-day mid-semester break so all we have to do is relax and have fun!

Inner Chaos

I was told a story yesterday about a famous horse, owned by Lord Gilpin, which had the ability to gallop off in many different directions simultaneously. As I listened to the story of Lord Gilpin's horse I realized that my experience here in India is not so dissimilar. Of all the ports we have visited, this one I felt least prepared. Ironically, it reminded me of tubing behind the boat right when you fall off, just before hitting the water. Arms and legs are sprawling, flying through the air, having no idea which way is up, crashing into the wake is almost a relief because at least you stop spinning.

My third day in Chennai is one I will never forget. It began as many of the AFPs do; everyone rushing around, making head counts, checking to bring toilet paper, eventually loading onto a bus and striking out for the day. We began at a beautiful restaurant and the first place I have found in India to actually be cold (with air conditioning). Here, Mr. B.S. Raghavan joined the 14 members of my learning circle AFP. The list credentials for this 81-year-old man reach longer than my arm and yet I was still not sure what to expect. Having served in the Indian Administrative Service, in the American Political Science Department in the US, and as Chairman of three UN Commissions as a policy advisor, Raggy, as he asked us to call him, knows a thing or to about the world, and in particular India.

Being in India we have heard a lot about the caste system, however, many of us still felt confused by some of it's basic principles. Raggy was able to better clarify how the system works. He claims that although it was originally intended to aid the growing social complexities and functionality of society it has grown into a monster. The divisions of labor are as follows: the Brahmans are the keepers of the flames of knowledge; Kshatriya, serve to protect the society and keep everyone safe; Viashya, are responsible for trade and commerce; and Shudras perform the daily manual tasks. Nearly 10,000 years ago, in the beginning of the Hindu religion, these positions were chosen based on aptitude and personal preference. The elders saw that a young boy had an affinity for reading and he was assigned to be part of the Brahmans, whereas his friend might be very big and strong and was classified as part of Kshatriya. Around 2,000 years after the development of the different divisions of labor the system became objectionable because the decisive criteria for caste was made according to birth instead of ability.

This system has been so engrained into the culture of the people that many of the groups and sub-groups rarely interact. Although the 20th and 21st centuries has allowed some flexibility Indian cannot purge itself of this legacy. The number one goal for equality in India is education. Through education there is a blending of cultures and status. Due to the lack of education afforded to the lower social classes throughout history, nearly 657 sub-groups are putting in claims to receive Affirmative Action. In Raggy's opinion, the development of self-confidence is of the upmost importance. Without self-confidence no one will try to disrupt the status quo. However, the results of such efforts are moving very slowly.

It was truly an honor to sit across from such an inspirational man discussing not only the issues of Indian society but also that of the world. He challenged all of us to take charge! Take charge of our lives, our education, and our futures. Glancing around the room I saw his electrifying words reach inside everyone. The energy was nearly tangible and the experience quite personal. In fact, I received a personal challenge, one I hope to complete with great excellence. Raggy asked me to write an article for him. By the end of this month I must submit an article to him via email. It will be an honor to write for such an esteemed social scholar, however, I must admit I am quite nervous. But as he challenged me to do, I will not let fear hold me back.

Later that afternoon we visited the Sisters of Charity (Mother Teresa's group). Walking in I knew this would be an experience so overwhelming that even now I do not have a grasp on it. The orphanage holds 81 children, however we were only privy to what appeared to be the disabilities building. In the dim light of a small sparse room I was handed a small child who looked up at me in utter amazement. As I looked around each of my peers held another in their own arms, each child with a paralyzing disability, either physical or mental. I watched as young girl, without legs and an arm, played with a truck on the floor. As I walked through the rows of beds I saw child after child who will never even sit up let alone stand or speak. Some had a light behind their eyes, telling you that they could see you and understood a smile yet many others did not. Upstairs was a room of about 15 girls, with clear mental disabilities most of who could not speak. We played hand-clapping games and made faces at one another. And I was continued to be amazed how power a smile can be. I'm glad we were able to visit, even just for a moment; we might have made their lives a little more exciting. But it wrenches my heart to think of them still, trapped by their own bodies and abandoned by their parents. They are the children we hear about but rarely see. I leave you now with the prayer on the stone outside the orphanage:

Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord make me an instrument of peace
Where there is hatred, let me sow love
Where there is injury, let me sow pardon
Where there is friction, let me sow union
Where there is error, let me sow truth
Where there is doubt, let me sow faith
Where there is darkness let me sow light
Where there is sadness let me sow joy
O Divine Master,
Grant that I many not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood, as to understand,
to be loved, as to love
For it is in giving that we receive
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned
It is in dying that we are born to eternal life
--Amen.

Kop kun ka

Throughout my experience in Thailand I quickly became familiar with the word Kop kun ka meaning thank you. The graciousness of the people and the wonderful holistic atmosphere of both Bangkok and Railay was very tangible throughout my visit. Railay is a small peninsular town in southern Thailand near Krabi. To get there I met Ryan, a TSS student from San Diego, and took a 12 hour bus over night to Krabi. To my surprise the bus ride, except for the strange game show tv program being played during the first 5 hours, was rather pleasant. We woke up in Krabi around 9 am and began to plan how to get to Railay. Stepping off the bus we realized we were not in a well trekked area. However, a tiny woman approached us about a taxi to a boat. The cheapest way to travel in Thailand is by motorbike taxi. However, she refused to allow us to take such transportation telling me that I was far too beautiful and delicate to climb aboard such a dangerous contraption. Instead she gave us a deal on a taxi. There are no docks, so have walking a hundred yards in the low tide water we climbed into a long tail boat with an open motor that looked of little improvement to a dug-out canoe.

After a 15 minute ride we had arrived to Railay East Beach. Our hotel resembled that of the Swiss Family Robinson tree-house. Simplicity was certainly the name of the game. Only the necessities were present: bed, fan, small table, bathroom. The bathroom consisted of a toilet that did not flush (very few actually flushed), a mirror, a shower head over the toilet (we had to remember to close the toilet when showering or it will fill with water), a small garden hose in the corner and a hole in the corner of the room. Like I said, the basics were present. But in all honesty it was all was needed. Our days were spent dreamily on the beach. However I did learn a very important lesson. Never buy sun screen that is not an American brand. I bought Thai sun screen and used it the first day and I must admit, I was a lobster. In fact it was quite painful for a bit but I have suffered through and my face as now almost stopped pealing. After that first day mistake I promptly bought SPF 45 Hawaiian Tropic lotion and a bottle of Aloe.

Each morning while in Railay we woke and spent the first 10 minutes lathering in sun screen, trust me the sun is quite different here. We then headed to one of the small food vendors just of the beach (pretty much everything there was just off the beach). The man made the most delicious pancake type crepes with my choice of bananas and peanut butter. Delicious! Most of our days were spent hanging out on West Railay Beach or Phannam but seeing that it took less than five minutes to walk to the three beaches we were able to move around quite freely. The second day I stayed out of the sun as much as possible fearing that I would only burn more. Luckily, by the third day I was ready to get out of the shade again and we rented kayaks. Our eyes were a little bigger than our abilities as we set our sights on what looked to be a close island. Yea, it wasn't that close and after paddling for what seemed like forever we settled on one much closer. Each night we would sit on West Beach and watch the sun go down casting glowing shadows on the rock faced peaks surrounding us and watched the locals play soccer during low tide.

Returning to Bangkok was uneventful, accept that our flight was delayed and they threw out my aloe in security! The shuttle took us back to Khao San and we found a cheap but clean hostel for the night. After wandering around the next morning and grabbing our last glorious Thai meal we got on the TSS shuttle bus and drove two hours back to the ship. Returning "home" felt so surreal, like we had been away from each other for weeks. The energy is certainly high and everyone is sad to say goodbye to Thailand. Classes begin again tomorrow, which no one is looking forward to, as do the soccer and basketball leagues I have joined. I'm looking forward to India but I am happy to have a bit of time to rest, I'm exhausted!

Sawadeeka

The beauty of Thailand echos in my thoughts as I fall asleep floating away from this magical place. My week spent in Thailand was far too short and as we leave I promise myself to return one day. My activities while in the Buddhist country were varied and gave great perspective, however I wish I could have done more. The ship arrived into the Laemchabang port on January 23. Unfortunately, due to the very deep hull of the ship we were unable to dock in Bangkok. So, TSS made arrangements for a shuttle service to take us to and from the boat into the city. Luckily I didn't have to make the 2 hour trip very often. I attended an AFP for the first three days. The first day the entire AFP group visited the Chulalongkorn University, which was our host university for Thailand. We also ate at the world's largest restaurant, whereas we were eating a flying server flew on wires past out window delivering a tray of hot food across the small man made lagoon in the middle of the restaurant. We also were able to take a long boat tour through the river and saw everything from beautifully ornate temples to floating homes made from trash. That night we had to take the two hour bus ride back to the boat.

The next morning my smaller AFP group of 15 loaded the bus and set off for a number of culturally enriching experiences. We visited a small local fishing market, where tourists rarely frequent, and a mortal and pestle making factory (if you can call it that). As we use the term "factory" you would expect a building with machines and a production line of some sort. What we found were a gathering of lean-to's in a gravel lot with men and women sprinkled among them hammering out these necessary items of Thai daily life. With no shoes, protective eyewear, or gloves these workers, who also lived there, chiseled blocks of stone in to smooth works of art. From there we went to Mahachai, a small fishing town, in the Samut Sakhun Province outside of Bangkok. Here we visited a shrimp processing factory that exports nearly 300 kilos of shrimp a day to Japan and the United States. Dressed in blue smocks and boots nearly 100 workers surrounding galvanized steel tables shelled and gutted shrimp. These employees work from 6am to 6pm and are predominately migrants particularly from Burma. Like in the US there are major issues with the border controls and because of the political and civil unrest in Burma many try to flee their home and come to Thailand in hopes of employment. This was one of the good factories, that pays its workers between 160 and 300 baht a day (minimum wage is 150 baht a day).

From here we were invited to the LPN organization. The Labor Rights Promotion Network is an NGO working for equality for migrant workers. For the estimated 200,000 Burmese, Cambodian, and Laotian workers in Thailand few to none will ever become legal citizens. Even their children, born in Thailand, who attend Thai schools, and many times cannot even write their native language, will never be citizen either, nor will they be able to attend higher education. Many of the major problems in Thailand surrounding migrant workers are so similar to those in the US. Because it is illegal for immigrants to go to the hospital many of them do not report the dangers of their work environments, which the LPN has tried to combat by setting up local clinics to which locals can go. Migrants are severely mistreated, many times be abused by the police and locate authorities.

The LPN workers were so giving and wanted us to see everything. And after a very informative presentation we jumped in the back of two load ridder pick up trucks and toured the area. The majority of people living in the area were Burmese and Laotian immigrants. Experiencing a country from the back of a pick-up truck was most definitely the best way to see everything. Visiting a local market we found many people pointing at us and laughing. I have become accustomed to people staring at our group but I had yet to experience laughing, however, upon further questioning I found that most of the people had never seen foreigners before. Elephants were led through the same streets that our trucks and a number of motor bikes whizzed down. Although they invited us to stay for a BBQ and more discussion we had to head back to Bangkok and find a place to sleep.

That night we stayed in a beautiful hostel, which I was not expecting in the least. If you ever come to Thailand stay at the Church of Christ in Thailand. Later a group of us visited Khao San Road which is the major touristy "backpackers paradise" in Bangalamphu. I was surrounded by people from every country I could have imagined, especially Europeans and Australians. It was a new culture unto itself.

The final day of the AFP was spent at Chula University where we had a number of informational academic lectures about the migrant workers we had visited the day before. This information pulled all the experiences together. They were incredibly informative and helped clarify many of our questions.

From the moment I step onto dry land I found the Thai people to be incredibly giving and wonderful. My AFP experience was a delight and one I have grown from exponentially.