It has been over a week since my last post, and I am sure you all missed me...right? Sorry for the wait! I can not believe that the first weekend I was here, I was afraid I of being bored and having too much free time during this internship; now I am wishing I could spend an additional few months here to fit in all the adventures and cultural experiences I want to have in my internship and personal life while here in Cape Town!
I have been having an absolute ball here the past couple of weeks--so many exciting activities and events have been going on both in my internship and through personal adventures on the evenings and weekends. I could spend hours and hours writing a novel about my experiences...but, for the sake of time, and my attempt not to bore you all to death with overkill of details, I will use this post to write the Long Story Short of the happenings in my life! :)
Visiting The Ark
The week before we left for Port Elizabeth, I went on a service-trip with Sashley and about 26 students to a shelter called The Ark. The Ark City of Refuge is a shelter in the town of Mfuleni
that houses a variety of people who are homeless, have addictions, or
are orphans. The Ark started as a rehabilitation center for those
addicted to drugs, alcohol, gambling, etc, but now has over 800
residents who were in need of shelter for many reasons. The Ark is a
large, open campus that is partly funded by government, but mostly runs
on donations. As indicated by the name of the shelter, The Ark operates based upon a Christian ministry and philosophy.
My office has begun a partnership with The Ark, by which student volunteers will taken monthly trips to The Ark to play with the children who live there. Of the 800 residents of The Ark, there are over 250 children; some of these children are staying at The Ark with their parent(s), but some are orphans. The children who live at The Ark go to primary school at the facility, so they are not exposed to a lot of outside opportunities, experiences, or people. Therefore, by visiting these children on a monthly basis, the UWC student volunteers can build positive relationships with these children and become mentors, role models, and friends.
This is LAMBS, the Loving Arms Ministry Baby Sitting facility. The babysitting services offered at The Ark are open to children who live at the shelter, but is also a free service for families in the surrounding community.
The UWC students listening to one of the workers at The Ark explain the mission of this shelter.
A view of the bedroom in the residence for young girls.
At The Ark, residents are able to take classes and workshops to learn life skills. The goal is to educate people so that they can eventually live on their own and find employment. This is the sewing shop on site, in which people can learn and practice skills of sewing.
A very large washing machine, which is used to wash 800+ people's clothing and bedding.
Huge pot of stew. The residents of The Ark each have different jobs to maintain and support themselves; some cook; some clean; some do the wash. There is one main kitchen at the shelter, so the food is made in mass quantities and then distributed to each residence. The residents are expected to do their own dishes and cleaning.
The playground for the children!
Playing with the children. :) They were so happy we were there because they aren't allowed to use the playground without supervision.
Hehe, being shy with the hula hoop...
...but not so shy when it came to jump roping!
Playing traffic jam on the slide :)
The group of UWC student volunteers and the children! :)
Adventure to the Eastern Cape
During my previous post documenting the beautiful sights along our drive to Port Elizabeth, I mentioned that I would blog separately about the different adventures and stops we had during the road trip. So, here is the long story short of those adventures!Cape Agulhas
The first major stop along our road trip was at Cape Agulhas, the southern-most tip of the African continent. This is also the point at which the Indian Ocean and Atlantic Ocean meet. While at Cape Agulhas, we climbed up the lighthouse, walked along the rocky shore, and then walked down a lovely pier. It was beautiful and breathtaking!
The Indian Ocean.
Beautiful rocks along the shoreline.
This monument marks Cape Agulhas, the southern-most tip of Africa.
The Cape Agulhas Lighthouse. We climbed up wooden ladders to get to the top!
Beautiful boats that remind me of Poppa and his tug-boating days.
I think this should be a postcard.
This photo is amazing. It reminds me of my mom! :)
Sea View Game & Lion Park
On the second day of our road trip, we went to Sea View Game & Lion Park in just outside of Port Elizabeth. When we entered the park, we got to drive along dirt roads up and down winding hills through the bush. Driving so close to the giraffes, zebra, and other animals was amazing. When we got to the sanctuary of the park, we were able to handle different cubs and pups! Tim and I got to handle 4 lion cubs, 3 tiger cubs, 2 hyena pups, 1 black leopard cub, and 2 young servals. It. Was. AMAZING.
I am obsessed with giraffes.
You weren't supposed to get out of the car...but I wanted to get closer...
This is a kudu, a South African antelope.
Zebras are so majestic.
Mommy lion.
This lion cub was about 8 months old--see his mane starting to grow in?
The tiger cubs were either fast asleep or super playful and feisty!
We played with the hyenas just after they had a warm milk bottle, so they suckled on our fingers and cuddles with us!
My mom LOVES meerkats...
The black leopard cub liked to sneak and pounce around.
This serval was so beautiful and super soft. A big bigger than my housecat, Cali, but maybe they could be friends?
Addo Elephant Park Safari
On the third day of our road trip, we went on an 8-hour full day safari through the third largest national park in South Africa: Addo Elephant Park.
As you can see by the above map of Addo Elephant Park, it covers a very large area. Currently, Addo is about 180,000 hectares (444,700 acres) of land, but it took quite some time for the park to expand to cover this much area. Originally, Addo Elephant Park was founded in 1931 to provide sanctuary to the 11 remaining elephants in the area. Much of the land within the park was previously farmland, and all but 11 of the native elephants were poached because they destroyed the crops.
Because the herd was so small, there was a lot of inbreeding amongst the elephants in the park. Unlike other types of elephants, the African elephant--regardless of gender--should naturally have tusks, which are an important tool for feeding. However, because of the inbreeding within the herd, many of the elephants in the park today do not have any tusks. Therefore, African bull elephants from other reserves have been introduced into the population to help sustain the elephant herd and prevent the defects caused by inbreeding.
In addition to the elephant population, Addo Elephant Park is home to a wide variety of animal and plant species. During our safari, we saw African elephants, the Bushnell's zebra, ostriches, meerkats, the yellow mongoose, kudus, elands, buffalo, warthogs, black-backed jackals, a blue-capped heron, a secretary bird, a variety of other birds, and most spectacularly--a black rhino! The whole time we were on the safari, I was like a little kid in a candy shop. I was so giddy and happy to see every animal we came across! Our safari was through a company called Criss-Cross Adventures, and our safari guide was a really awesome man named Chris. He does safari tours almost everyday through the park, so he was insanely knowledgeable of the park history, the biodiversity, the animals, and how to track them down. It was such a great day!
Hehe warthogs are so ugly they are cute!
The black-backed jackal looked cute.
Hehe. Chris parked our car right in the elephant's path, so he had to walk around us. Elephants remember and use the same paths through the park for years, which is pretty crazy seeing how big the park is and how dense the bush is in some areas!
The blue-capped heron.
This elephant is so majestic.
Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! So ugly he is cute! Right?
A fierce buffalo. Not as cute as Dani's Buffalo Bills pillow pet...but still a buffalo.
This photo represents everything that Americans think of when they think of Africa.
Hehehe. He is a baby!
The Bushnell's zebra is so beautiful because of it's unique grey stripes between the black ones.
The herd was on the move. Such a beautiful family!
Tsitsikamma Canopy Tour
On the fourth day of our road trip, we went on a canopy zip-sliding tour through the treetops of the Tsitsikamma forest. This was the only day on our road trip that rained, and it was a perfect day to rain! I think that zip-sliding in the rainforest in the rain added to the experience for sure. And, the rain brought out the beautiful and fresh scent of the forest! I was super scared to do the zip-sliding--I was expecting it to be super high above the ground and slides that spanned across valleys--but no worries, the zip-sliding was not nearly that terrifying!
The view from the canopy of the trees in Tsitsikamma. I love the moss!
Looking up the tree from the platform below.
Friends peeking through the tree This tree was massive and the bark was in a beautiful spiral pattern to strengthen its trunk.
Tim about to zip-slide!
Me about to zip-slide!
It was a beautiful day in the canopy of this rainforest. :)
Cango Caves
The final major stop along our road trip was at the Cango Caves, which are in the mountains outside of a town called Oudtshoorn (pronounced oats-horn). The caves have 6 large, open "rooms" or caverns
that are open to the public for tours. They also have an adventure tour, that takes you deeper into the caves past these 6 "rooms", but the adventure tour requires squeezing in tight spaces and crawling on your belly to get through (which is a bit intense for me!). So, we went on the one-hour standard tour and got to see the major "rooms" of the cave. These cavern rooms were HUGE Rochester HUGE.
In the cave there were so many beautiful stalactites and stalagmites, which were all so unique in shape, size, and age. On a sad note, there was some vandalism in which some people had broken off the stalactites for souvenirs. :( But, overall, the space is quite stunning and impressive! Before the Cango Caves were made into a reserve, concerts were held in the first main room. I can't even imaging how amazing a singer's voice or a choir would sound as their voices echo around the cave!
In the cave there were so many beautiful stalactites and stalagmites, which were all so unique in shape, size, and age. On a sad note, there was some vandalism in which some people had broken off the stalactites for souvenirs. :( But, overall, the space is quite stunning and impressive! Before the Cango Caves were made into a reserve, concerts were held in the first main room. I can't even imaging how amazing a singer's voice or a choir would sound as their voices echo around the cave!
This stalactite formation is known as the "organ pipes". It was huge and absolutely stunning!
A cool view of the folds in the stalactite formation.
Holy stalactite Batman!
One of the large "rooms" within the cave.
Another stalactite formation in the background, with a stalagmite formation in the foreground.
This unique formation, called the "Leaning Tower of Pisa" is a formation in which a stalactite (growing downward from the ceiling) merged with a stalagmite (growing upward from the floor). It is super cool, right? It reminds me of the big pillars that make up the castle in the Little Mermaid (don't judge me).
Baby stalactites growing on the cave ceiling!
Work and Fun at my Internship
Since returning from Port Elizabeth, I have been very productive in my internship, and many of the projects I had been working on have progressed well. I have also spent some great quality time with my co-workers on the evenings after work, as well as a bit on the weekend, which has been so wonderful. My colleagues here are becoming my South African family. :)
Re-Visioning Process
During the first few weeks of my internship I spent most of my time doing a comparative analysis of the Leadership and Social Responsibility units at other universities in the States and South Africa. My supervisor and colleagues feel that they have taken on too many projects, and as a result, they feel their efforts are diluted. Therefore, my supervisor wants us to do a complete analysis of our department and determine if we are being the most effective at developing student leaders in accordance with the department mission and vision. During the re-visioning process, we are trying to answer the following questions:
- Do the projects and programs we conduct have a significant impact on student leadership development? Are there different programs we could develop to better impact student development?
- Are the job responsibilities of each member of the unit organized in a way that allows for projects to be completed effectively and efficiently?
- Are the projects and programs that we conduct aligned to our vision, mission, and the institutional goals and graduate attributes?
- Are our projects and programs comparable to those of other institutions? What can be we improve on? Where are we excelling?
- Central Michigan University
- Rochester Institute of Technology
- University of Minnesota
- Bowling Green State University
- Morehouse College
- Spelman College
- Loyola Marymount University
- California State University, Fullerton
I then created a presentation outlining the portfolio areas, vision, mission, strengths & weaknesses of the Leadership units at the universities, and made recommendations for how our department should move forward in light of this analysis.
If we lived in a utopian world with unlimited resources, I think that a
top-notch Leadership and Social Responsibility unit should be able to
incorporate most, if not all, of these aspects:
But, since we don't have unlimited resources, the following slide depicts my recommendations for how the Leadership and Social Responsibility unit should move forward:
My presentation was very well-received by my supervisor and colleagues. They whole-heartedly agreed with my feedback and recommendations. I am very pleased because I wanted to express my suggestions for improvement without coming across offensively or as an outsider who feels she is superior, since that is not how I feel or want to be perceived. Overall, it was a great success.
I am hoping that by the time I leave my internship at UWC, my unit will have a solidified plan of action for how to move forward with their re-visioning process, so that they can create and successfully execute their short- and long-term goals.
Advanced Leaders Programme
My office coordinates two leadership programmes. The first is the Emerging Leaders Programme (ELP), which is held in the first semester with weekly class sessions for 8 weeks. To participate in ELP, there is an extensive application and selection process. After finishing the Emerging Leaders Programme, these students are invited to continue their leadership development journey by taking the Advanced Leaders Programme (ALP). The ALP course is split into three sessions throughout the academic year. Early in the first semester, the students come to the first session, which is two consecutive days long. Then, at the end of the first semester, there is a second session, which is three consecutive days long. The third and final session is in the second semester, and is two consecutive days long. Each of these three sessions focuses on a different topic(s) related to advancing their leadership.
On June 25th, 26th, and 27th, we conducted the second session of the Advanced Leaders Programme. The topics of the session were diversity and power in leadership. When I arrived to Cape Town, I was able to work with Tonia, Monique, and Arnold to create the curriculum and lesson plans for this ALP session. The first day of the session, we facilitated discussions around diversity. However, instead of calling it "diversity" we called it "intercultural bravery". Tonia, Arnold, Munya and I went to a staff training in early June that was focused on the topic of intercultural bravery. The topic was framed in this manner because when people hear the term diversity, it can often bring up tension, risk, anxiety, and fear of offending others or being offended yourself. Learning about the differences between others, and having positive discussions about these can be a risky venture; it can be sensitive and stressful. Therefore, we decided to utilize this concept of intercultural bravery to acknowledge the reality that you need to be brave, vulnerable, and open to get the most out of the conversation. On this day, I co-facilitated a session on intercultural bravery, and then facilitated my own session called "Crossing the Line". I had experienced the Crossing the Line session in my own training at BGSU, and adapted it for this student population. I was incredibly impressed by the students in this session because they were so introspective and open to sharing their thoughts, concerns, and feelings. I could tell each of the students in the ALP session wanted to get the absolute most out of their time there. :)
On the second day, we went to the Cape Town Holocaust Museum and the District 6 Museum (which showcases the history of segregation and forced removals in District 6 during apartheid). Viewing the displays in these museums was intended to demonstrate to the students how power in leadership can be misused. We also wanted students to reflect on how a lack of understanding and acceptance of the differences between diverse people can lead to extreme racism and disaster. We created reflection sheets for the students to complete while exploring the museums, and we had a reflective post-trip discussion about the experience.
On the third day, Monique and I facilitated various sessions about effective use of power in leadership. The students were able to discuss and role play the various types of power and analyze how they enhance and strengthen own their power, as well as how they give their power away. In relation to the museum visits from day two, we discussed corruption in power, our role as citizens, and the power of peer leaders to break the cycle and confront people who say or do racist and inappropriate things.
Overall, the Advanced Leaders Programme was a really great opportunity for me. I whole-heartedly believe that we are all life-long learners and can therefore learn from every experience we have; so being able to participate in ALP was just as much of a learning experience for me as it was for the students in the course. By hearing the students speak about their past and leadership from their individual lenses, I learned a lot about the culture of South Africa and the complexities of the world.
On June 25th, 26th, and 27th, we conducted the second session of the Advanced Leaders Programme. The topics of the session were diversity and power in leadership. When I arrived to Cape Town, I was able to work with Tonia, Monique, and Arnold to create the curriculum and lesson plans for this ALP session. The first day of the session, we facilitated discussions around diversity. However, instead of calling it "diversity" we called it "intercultural bravery". Tonia, Arnold, Munya and I went to a staff training in early June that was focused on the topic of intercultural bravery. The topic was framed in this manner because when people hear the term diversity, it can often bring up tension, risk, anxiety, and fear of offending others or being offended yourself. Learning about the differences between others, and having positive discussions about these can be a risky venture; it can be sensitive and stressful. Therefore, we decided to utilize this concept of intercultural bravery to acknowledge the reality that you need to be brave, vulnerable, and open to get the most out of the conversation. On this day, I co-facilitated a session on intercultural bravery, and then facilitated my own session called "Crossing the Line". I had experienced the Crossing the Line session in my own training at BGSU, and adapted it for this student population. I was incredibly impressed by the students in this session because they were so introspective and open to sharing their thoughts, concerns, and feelings. I could tell each of the students in the ALP session wanted to get the absolute most out of their time there. :)
On the second day, we went to the Cape Town Holocaust Museum and the District 6 Museum (which showcases the history of segregation and forced removals in District 6 during apartheid). Viewing the displays in these museums was intended to demonstrate to the students how power in leadership can be misused. We also wanted students to reflect on how a lack of understanding and acceptance of the differences between diverse people can lead to extreme racism and disaster. We created reflection sheets for the students to complete while exploring the museums, and we had a reflective post-trip discussion about the experience.
On the third day, Monique and I facilitated various sessions about effective use of power in leadership. The students were able to discuss and role play the various types of power and analyze how they enhance and strengthen own their power, as well as how they give their power away. In relation to the museum visits from day two, we discussed corruption in power, our role as citizens, and the power of peer leaders to break the cycle and confront people who say or do racist and inappropriate things.
Overall, the Advanced Leaders Programme was a really great opportunity for me. I whole-heartedly believe that we are all life-long learners and can therefore learn from every experience we have; so being able to participate in ALP was just as much of a learning experience for me as it was for the students in the course. By hearing the students speak about their past and leadership from their individual lenses, I learned a lot about the culture of South Africa and the complexities of the world.
It wouldn't be student affairs without an icebreaker activity.
Some of the students having a discussion about power.
This is Joe, who gave us a tour of the District 6 Museum. Joe was a child when his family was forcefully removed from District 6. The wall behind Joe is a collage of the events that occurred starting on February 11, 1966, when the forced removals and demolition of District 6 began.
The ALP class at the Holocaust Museum.
Co-Worker Bonding
Outside of the office, I have spent a few evenings having fun with my co-workers, who I have become close friends with and will miss dearly when I leave Cape Town. Of my co-workers, I spend the most time with Sashley, who is a phenomenal person. I tell her I am her favorite American (not sure if this is true, but I still love her tons nonetheless). Sashley is genuinely a kind person and has been so supportive and friendly toward me throughout this internship. I have gone to the movies with Sashley and two of her friends, Juanetil and Caryn, a few times; we have seen a few great chick flicks and had some fun and wonderful conversations! I really have appreciated getting to know them.
Also, Sashley has let me spend time with a variety of her family members on several occasions. A few weeks ago, Sashley brought Tim and I to her aunt's house to have a traditional Muslim dinner with her cousins, aunt, uncle, and grandmother. Although Sashley is Christian, her Dad's side of the family practices the Muslim faith. Two weekends ago, I had the amazing opportunity to spend the whole day with Sashley. In the morning, I went to church with Sashley in her hometown. It was a very interesting cultural experience, and since Sashley's faith is a very important part of her life, I appreciate being able to experience a service with her. After the service, I went to a family lunch at Andre's house (Sashley's fiancee). I got to spend the afternoon getting to know Andre's family, and his sister's even did a dance performance for me! :) Afterward, Sashley, Andre and I drove to the Sunset Beach area of the Cape Town peninsula near the town of Milnerton. I wanted to see the view of Table Mountain and Lion's Head from this beach, since I had heard it was a phenomenal view. And, it truly was! When we were done at the beach, we went to the movies. As usual, it was another great day with Sashley, and Andre too. I keep telling them that they need to come to the States and visit with me for a vacation--they definitely plan to! I sure can't wait!
Besides my awesome quality time with Sashley, I enjoy my time with Monique. Monique and I share an office, and we tend to have way too much fun in our office. We are too ridiculous, and our ridiculousness bounces off one another. I like to joke that Tonia put us in an office together since we are both too crazy to be exposed to the others...I will be spending lots of time with Monique in Johannesburg for the SIFE National Competition, which should be thoroughly AWESOME! Stay tuned for more on that :)
Adventures on Long Street
Long Street is a popular location in the heart of the city of Cape Town. Besides being long (as the name implies) Long Street hosts a variety of venues that are attractive to both locals and visiting tourists. During the day on weekends, there is a craft market on the corner of Long Street and Longmarket Street, where local people set up stands to sell their crafts, souvenirs, and African-inspired goods. There are also lots of shops on Long street, which include a few chain stores and many local shops for clothing, music, and souvenirs. Besides these shops, there are also a variety of restaurants, bars, and nightclubs on Long Street, which make this area a hotspot for nightlife.
Happy to report that most of my purchases were for friends or family and not myself. :) Success!
Self control: 1
Shopping addiction: 0
Shopping addiction: 0
After we walked around the shops, we went to a cute local cafe called Lola's. It was adorable and the food was amazing. To be honest, all of the food we have tried here, whether at restaurants or homes of my local friends,the food in South Africa is AMAZING. At Lola's, I had a french toasted croissant with bananas. Mmmmm. It was delightful. Raji and I also split a piece of cheese cake. So much for losing weight in South Africa...
After exploring the shops and having lunch, we went home for a few hours, and then in the evening Raji, Giselle, and I returned to Long Street for a night out on the town. My goal for the night was simply to drink a South African brewed beer and explore the wide variety of bars and pubs on Long Street. The night was a success. In fact, it might have been too much of a success...
If you can't read the bottle, this is a Bonecrusher Darling Brew, a beer made in South Africa. This beer is named in honor of the hyena, who is both a bonecrusher and a darling.
Some beer-sponsor-women brought us a round of free beers. Hooray! Giselle was obviously okay with this, haha.
Me and Raji enjoying the bar atmosphere. The drink in my hand is called a "Long Street Iced Tea" and was delicious, but potent.
Overall, the night was a heck of a good time! Typical shenanigans and fun. Oh, but there was one unexpected sight to see. At one of the bars we went to, called Dubliner's, there was a large group of people on the dance floor sporting an unexpected and humorous fashion.
"What were they dressed in?", you might ask.
Santa outfits.
Sexy Santa outfits.
Apparently, Dubliner's was hosting a "Christmas in July" theme night, and we missed the memo. So, needless to say, Dubliner's was a very fun and humorous hangout for evening. I got my groove on dancing amongst the Santa-wannabes, and later in the evening a band came on stage, which made the dance-party even more fun.
The End
Okay, so I guess that was false advertising a bit, hey? I tried to keep this long story short, but seem to have babbled on for far too long. Hope you can see why I am loving my time in South Africa! :)
With love,
Kaity
"What were they dressed in?", you might ask.
Santa outfits.
Sexy Santa outfits.
Apparently, Dubliner's was hosting a "Christmas in July" theme night, and we missed the memo. So, needless to say, Dubliner's was a very fun and humorous hangout for evening. I got my groove on dancing amongst the Santa-wannabes, and later in the evening a band came on stage, which made the dance-party even more fun.
The End
Okay, so I guess that was false advertising a bit, hey? I tried to keep this long story short, but seem to have babbled on for far too long. Hope you can see why I am loving my time in South Africa! :)
With love,
Kaity
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