Today was what our guide, Alan, described as eye-opening. We experienced much today that most of us had not previously experienced. We encountered kids who get their only meals at school (mainly porridge/oatmeal for breakfast and soup for lunch). We also saw teachers who get paid R10000 (about $1500) per year. One teacher there teaches grades 4 & 5, which totals around 75 children. All of the teachers there teach one grade of children nine different subjects. Besides this struggle, they also have trouble with discipline. First they have to teach the children discipline and then they can get down to schoolwork. Since much of the time discipline does not start in the home, as we are used to, the school is where this initial instruction takes place. As one can tell quite easily, these teachers have many responsibilities and struggles we might not even think about. Eighty-five percent of the children at Lawrencia Primary School come from the township of Bloekombos, which is about 5 km away. These kids walk every day to and from school year-round. Some of them do not wear shoes and cannot afford the school uniform.
While observing a cricket game with Liv, a teacher was telling us that their school cannot participate in sports competitions with others schools because they do not have the equipment. He also told us about the talent the children have at sports such as cricket and rugby. He hopes the school will be able to participate in sports in the near future with the acquisition of equipment. The children seemed to be having an unbelievable amount of fun doing the simplest of activities such as Simon Says.
Alan told us this was a very special day for them. He said it was like Christmas for them. They won prizes, played sports, and ate a special meal which consisted of a hotdog and juice.
It amazed me that a common and simple meal of my childhood could be a feast for a child an ocean away. These children amazed me. I have quite a passion for children in general, but the children we interacted with today were remarkable. They smiled, laughed, and danced like I have never seen before. They were not concerned with what each other was wearing, but ecstatic that they had a stereo to dance and sing along to. At the end of the program on saying no to drugs, the principal brought a little boy up in front of the whole school. They called him Preacher John. He was eight years old. Without thinking twice, he began “preaching” to his entire school (250 kids, grades 1-8). Though we could not understand what he was saying, we could very much tell he was passionate about his topic. He waved his hands and stomped his feet. He even got a few “amen’s” at different points in his talk. At the end we all clapped as this little boy returned to his seat. We later found out he was telling his schoolmates to say no to drugs and alcohol and stay away from bad women. He also instructed them to give their lives to the Lord. At the end of his speech he led the children in praise songs. If an eight-year-old is telling his classmates this message, religion obviously plays an important and crucial roles in the lives of people in a similar state as those of Bloekombos. It also plays a key role in Cape Town and South Africa in general. Alan told us yesterday that the religion breakdown of Cape Town is something like this: 80% Christian, 1% Muslim, and the rest divided amongst various religions. This school had much Christian influence. Yesterday we went to Cape Malay, an almost exclusively Muslim enclave in Cape Town. It was interesting to see a mosque on almost every corner and buildings (homes) that survived Apartheid and now are part of a national museum.
So far we have seen the importance of religion in several instances and I hope to observe this common theme more as the trip goes on. That’s all for now!
–Laura S.
Hello Everyone!!
Today started off very early. We woke up around 6 a.m. and had breakfast in the hotel. At 7:30 we embarked upon our journey to Lawrencia Primary School to help lead the kids in their field-day like activities. This was the first day the kids were able to experience activities during school hours such as; soccer, cricket, netball, tug of war while being sprayed with a hose, dominoes, cards, obstacle courses, and many more. We also were able to play with the kids in their games and even sang and danced with them.
While this was a fun occasion, it made us realize not only how fortunate we are to have access to incredible educational resources, but also how dire circumstances make one spiritually stronger, as well as strengthen their relationships with their peers. Unexpectedly, activities such as gazing at Helen’s “grillz” (a.k.a. my braces!!!)
and taking pictures were a hit. After taking what seemed to be a thousand pictures, we were told we had to return to the bus. As we drove off we received many waves and blown kisses. One little boy even ran beside the bus as we left, eventually falling behind and waving our last goodbye.
Love ya,
Helen, Margaret, and Laura
Due to significant trouble with the hotel internet, several posts have been written but delayed in uploading – hopefully this will go up, with more to follow…
Chris H.
hello all! well, you obviously know we are here in Cape Town, South Africa. The plane ride from Washington was long, 15 hours to be exact. although all went well. We all enjoyed the food and service, not to mention we all had our own separate TV screens on the back of the seat. We had the selection of about 15 different movies, 15 audio channels, TV shows and games. We landed early at 3pm on monday march 5th and was greeted by the 80 degree weather and a beautiful sunny day. 4 hours later we were finally in Cape Town…where we met our guide Alan. He is a great man and knows A LOT about South Africa. On the ride from the airport to the hotel we saw the beautiful city of Cape Town at night, with the lights of the buildings and bright strobe like shon on Table Mountain. I’d have to admit it is a GORGOUS city. We arrived at the hotel, had a short meeting and then went off to bed.
Now for today, we got up earlier enough to have breakfast and then leave the hotel with Allen and our coach for around 10. We then drove up to Table Mountain, where we were supposed to go in a cable car to the top, but due to the windy gusts, the cable car was not running. Never the less! Alan was prepared and took us to the next highest point in Cape Town called Signal Hill. The view of the city was amazing, there are no words to describe it but gorgeous.
Laura and i with Lion head and table Mountin in the background.
After this, we travelled down to Camp Bay which is a beautiful beach.
After this, we then travelled to a Muslim town and walked a few blocks followed by an amazing lunch. Unfortunately the wind held us back from going to Robben Island today, so instead we split up, some went shopping, while I went to the Aquarium! there we saw all of the animals of the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean(the two oceans that border South Africa) This includes 2 sharks, a turtle, PENGUINS! and the most fierce animal of all of the world….LAURA SPENCER!
following the fun of the city, we came back to the hotel for a lecture with the guard of Nelson Mandela while his was in prison on Robben Island.
The rest of us ate dinner following the lecture and then headed off to our rooms to get a goodnight rest with an early start at 7.30 tomorrow morning!
keep reading the follow up on SPRING BREAK in SOUTH AFRICA 07!
thats all for now!!
-LIV
Welcome to the Blog for Chatham Hall’s South Africa project. This group of 24 students, faculty members, alumnae, and parents, will be spending ten days in and around Cape Town, South Africa. The project is focused on elements of service learning and building human connections that span continents, generations, and a broad range of experience. The group will be working with a series of local South African organizations, including Grace Fellowship Africa’s I-Care program, and environmentalists at De Hoop and Rondevlei nature reserves. Here’s the itinerary:chatham-hall-service-in-south-africa-version-2.doc
In preparation for the journey, the students and faculty members at Chatham Hall participated in a weekly class on history and social constructs in South Africa. This included a series of films and readings from books and articles. South African author Mark Mathabane (author of Kaffir Boy, among other books) spent two days on campus talking with the participants and the rest of the school community.
Gary and 3 senior travelers introduce Mark Mathabane
