The Epic Catch-Up Post!

For the month of October we lived in a village called Malealea in Lesotho. I was roommates with my friend Joaquin. Our family consisted of our mother, Mme Theresia, her grown children Manapo, Nono, Pakela, and Pakela's wife MaKhotso. MaKhosto has a 5 month old baby boy Khotso, and Manapo also had two young children who lived with us. So there were about ten of us all together. Our family happened to be in the process of adding on to their house, but they fixed up one of the new rooms so that it was suitable for Joaquin and I to stay in. We each had our own double bed, and then the rest of the family was living in the main living room/kitchen area. We enjoyed our family life very much. My mother was very outgoing and made sure we knew how to do everything in the Lesotho ways. For example: It is unacceptable to drink water with your bread, you must have tea. She also insisted on boiling our water before we drank it even though we assured her that it was safe for us to drink and that we had filters on our water bottles. Our family was also very helpful and willing to help us learn Sesotho, and their Sotho was much easier for us to understand than in Soweto where it got mixed in with other languages. I got a new name, Lerato, which means love, and Joaquin's name was changed to Thabo (happiness).
A typical day in Lesotho: breakfast around 7 (usually 3 maquena, or "fat cakes" which are essentially doughnuts without any sugar on them.... on a good day we would just have bread), then meeting the group in the village for either a work/development project or going to help at the primary school. Then we would usually come home for lunch (usually papa, pasta or rice on Sundays, and some kind of canned fish or gravy) and have a free afternoon to either go hiking, read, visit with friends or family, or do laundry. In the evenings I would help cook dinner by lantern light and then we would have our dinner and tea. Our family liked to sing so we would often sit around before bed and teach each other songs. These were some of my favorite moments with my family. Then Joaquin and I would have our bedtime routine of brushing our teeth in the yard, then trekking to the outhouse and praying that we wouldn't have to use the bathroom again once we got in bed for the night.
The people of Lesotho have a different style of hospitality that takes awhile to get used to. They make you feel very welcome, but they also can be very critical of the way you do things. I have been corrected on tasks as simple as putting peanut butter on bread... but I just learned to always assume I didn't know how to do something =) There were many misunderstandings on both ends, but we still found a way to communicate.
We also spent one week working on a farm as a group, which was a very different experience than village life. It was hard work, but it was good group bonding time. The final week in the village was so relaxing and comfortable to return to. I wasn't quite ready to leave the beauty and the serenity of Lesotho.
The very next day we took a bus ride to the Orange Free State in South Africa and arrived at the Royal Hotel in Bethulie. This is probably were the most culture shock occurred for our group. The Hotel was such a beautiful and comfortable place to stay: A historical old building in the center of town, the walls were all lined floor to ceiling with books, encyclopedias, and a record collection. The dining room was the perfect atmosphere for the murder mystery that we did on Halloween night. Bethulie was the home stay where I stayed at the Ou Vellies coffee shop that I mentioned in my previous post. We had a great time with Peter and Annette going on game drives in the back of Peter's truck, getting baking lessons from Annette, and playing with their adorable dog with cerebral palsy. We also spent a day on a farm with Frankie & Audrey's host parents. We hiked to a cave in the side of a mountain, swam in a freezing cold irrigation dam, had target practice, and ended the day with a braai. We had a grand time in Bethulie, but the challenging part was reconciling the Afrikaners stories of South Africa with the stories we had heard from Soweto and Lesotho. It's amazing how after living with black families for two months how quickly you can be influenced by views of the "other side." So many times I heard "I'm not racist, but..." and honestly it was hard to listen to. Yet at the same time, I know there is some truth to what they think about the black people because I have experienced it first hand! There is a blatant lack of respect on both sides that I was finding myself caught in the middle of.
Following Bethulie we split into small groups and traveled down the Garden Route to Stellenbosch. We had much time just relaxing on the beach and going on mini-adventures.
Stellenbosch was a really awesome university town and it was nice to all be together again. However, I definitely felt myself feeling overwhelmed and overstimulated by too much shopping and too many restaurants. After being away from these things for so long it was a lot at once. Even now, life is just not as simple as it was a few weeks ago. When we arrived in Cape Town we stayed at a lodge for the first few days. We did a lot of shopping and haggling at outdoor markets and I always crashed of exhaustion at the end of those days.
Whew! If you are still reading this, thanks for hanging in there! I am currently in a Cape Town home stay with Heidi, as I mentioned before. A few days a week we take the train to the campus of the University of Cape Town and attend a lecture that is given especially for our EMU group. So far they have been very interesting. On our days off from lectures, we go on adventures in "town." Our family lives in Wynnberg, which is near (if not part of) the Cape Flats. Our family would have been considered "coloured" under the Apartheid government, so they do not like to say that they live in the Cape Flats, because it has a negative social connotation. It is sad that there are geographical areas that people are still trying to avoid because the stigmas developed under Apartheid still live on. Our family is adorable: They do everything they can to show us a good time. They have given us a cell phone so that we can get in touch with people in our group. They are always encouraging us to get together with people and to invite people over. Last night was Justin & Heidi's three year anniversary, and Justin & Mike's host mom prepared a beautiful dinner, and invited Heidi & I for a little dinner party for the four of us. They set everything up for us and then went out to attend a party of their own. It was such a nice gift.
It's hard to believe that the trip is winding down. Cape Town is so exciting and we are trying to see as much of it as we can. I am enjoying myself but of course am looking forward to being reunited with all of you. Love,

Laura

It's been too long!

Wow! It's hard to believe that the last serious post I have been able to make was at the end of our stay in Soweto... and here I am in Cape Town in the final leg of the trip. So much has happened and again I have very limited internet access so I will give a quick update on how life is going now.
I went on free travel with a group of five girls. We had a great and relaxing time going to the beach and exploring the towns of Plettenberg Bay and Mossel Bay. The whole group met up in Stellenbosch for a short time and we moved into our Cape Town homestays this past Sunday. My roommate is none other than the very lovely Heidi Bauman, how fun is that! We are very happy with our host parents, Charlotte and Oliver Young. They take great care of us and are a lot of fun. Ahh seriously I am running out of time again. I will try to do better next time. Love!

Ou Vellies

I just wanted to write a quick post to say that Madelyn, Jess, Eva, Heidi and I might have died and gone to heaven. We are in an amazing homestay with an Afrikaner couple. We have a house to ourselves, and our hosts live in a COFFEE SHOP. What other explanation is needed? I can't spend more time because the other girls are waiting to use the computer, but I am living the good life for sure. Love you & miss you,
Laura

I have emerged from the village...

Hello everyone!I am in a library in Bethulie, South Africa. Facebook is blocked which means I can't read my messages from you all :( Ethan, I got one update from you :) Also, the receptionist won't stop talking to us because she is so fascinated by our presence... Joaquin is helping distract her so I can send a quick message. We arrived in Bethulie yesterday and are staying at the Royal Hotel for a few days before we enter a quick home stay with Afrikaner families here. The hotel is lovely and has so much character. I took my first proper shower in three weeks, amazing. Coming here has been almost more culture shock than entering Soweto or the village. I am not far removed enough from this transition to have coherent thoughts to share here. I am very tired and I think most of the group is as well. Life is full and busy again, I am safe and sound and happy.  I can't wait to hear from you all, I miss you very much!

Last Soweto Post

Dumelang! It is Wednesday morning. We will be leaving Soweto on Sunday for Lesotho, so I wanted to do one last post before I will have no contact for about a month. Here are some things that I have experienced in the past week. I was sick... a cold-ish type sickness which was not fun, but I am thankful that I have been healthy other than that. Some of our group members have been quite sick with a fever/flu type thing for several days at a time. We are all currently heathly though, so hopefully we have passed through that. We went to see a play in Joburg a few days ago. It was exciting because it was starring a local soap opera celebrity. The play had awesome themes in it and was also really funny. We all had a good time. We have been visiting several schools... I usually enjoy those a lot. We talk to the students about a certain topic and it is usually very shocking to hear their opinions. The school we visited most recently was called Thaba- Jabula, which means Happy-Happy. We discussed teen pregnancy. They have very high rates. The boy at our table who was discussing with us had really great ideas about what could be done to solve the problem.He believes teen pregnancy is an issue because parents do not talk to their children about sex, there is no sex education in schools, and poverty. I will elaborate a little on the poverty issue. Apparently, it is VERY common for older men to solicit sex from young girls in exchange for money. The girls agree because they are afraid, but also because they actually want the money- some girls even initiate this kind of thing. They want the money for their families, or just to have some extra spending money to buy some brand name shoes.... this disgusts me, but they say its true. The government also gives a grant to girls who are pregnant during their schooling, R250 a month, which is NOT ENOUGH, but some girls will actually try to get pregnant to receive this money. So sad. We also spent time singing and dancing with the students, which is really fun for everyone. Later today we are going back to the same school for a choir competition, I am really excited for that!
One night this week I had a really terrible night when I was sick, and it was definitely my lowest point in Africa so far. I had a traumatic experience with a traditional healing at my next door neighbors house (I'll tell you about it later, its actually funny now), and then when I came home I just wanted to go to bed, but my family was hanging out in my bedroom... to top it all off when I pulled back my covers there was FOOD (like chicken and pop) in my bed, because apparently my little siblings had eaten their dinner on my bed. So there were definitely some Africa moments there..... :)
I have realized though that my main fear is that I wouldn't bond with my host family. I had really high expectations for how we would all get along, and I have learned to let those go and enjoy what we do have together. It was not easy for me, and has definitely caused me to grow. I will miss being able to read emails and comments from all of you when I am in Lesotho. I love you all and appreciate hearing from you. God Bless,
Laura

More about Soweto!

Dumelang, lelapa oa ka le metswoalle oa ka!
I have really enjoyed reading your comments on this blog even if they are brief, they make me smile and think of you =) We have been in Soweto for a week now. Eva and I have Sotho names that we go by here, mine is Bophelo (it means Life) and hers is Warona (Ours). Our family is very large. We live with our great grandparents, Nkhono, and Ntate-Moholo, our mother Mamokete, her two daughters, Naledi (7) and Thuto (almost 2), and about 6-7 other random cousin/sibling figures who come and go. Our days consist of meeting in the mornings as an entire group to do day trips, and then generally free afternoons. Somtimes we meet as a group in the evening as well. This week we visited the Apartheid Museum, the Hector Pietersen Museum, the Pecata Mundi church (where the students hid from the police during a shooting: you can still see the bullet holes in the ceiling). We went to a soccer game at the World Cup Stadium, Keizer Cheifs vs. Orlando Pirates. We are going to another game this Saturday. That experience was incredible, the fans were absolutely insane. We have made a lot f visits to schools. I really enjoy those because I often get to be in a classroom and once I even taught part of a math lesson. There were 56 students in one room. On Sunday we went to an African Independent church. There were a lot of things that made me uncomfortable, but many things I could appreciate. Today we went to a church service at the local hospice where they prayed over gallons of water for the Holy Spirit to enter it, and then we all drank a glass. There are many things like this that seem strange to us but I am learning to appreciate the sincerity of the church member here in how they understand Christ even if it is different than how I would think of it. There are so many more things that I have seen and it's frustrating because I feel like I am always writing such a shallow overview of the events here. Sometime hopefully I will be able to spent a bit of time talking about what I am learning and not so much about what I am doing. I am learning to appreciate my family here more each day, even though living with kids is extremely exhausting! Please continue to lift up our group in prayer. Love, Laura

At the Mall...

Dumelang, this will be a really short post because I have 5 minutes...

Yesterday we finally arrived in Soweto. I slept great last night because I was so exhausted from playing with my three little siblings/cousins. Eva and I are still adjusting to living in our house.There are a lot of challenges and things we don't understand about the dynamics of our family. We don't even know all of the people that are living in our house yet.. I will tell you more about that once Ifigure it out. Today we went to the local hospice as well as the Aparthied museum. It is strange to be at such a huge modern mall right now in contrast to the poverty in Soweto.
Also, I  havent been able to read my nTelos mail here, so please use facebook until further notice.

Khosto,
Laura