First Week!

Hey everyone! Sorry it’s been so long since my last post. It’s been just over a week since I left Boston, and I already have so many adventures to share!

Day 1: Paris 06/21/11

We had an 18 hour layover in Paris before flying to Johannesburg, and we enjoyed every bit of it!  We were pretty exhausted from the last flight, but still managed to hit all the highlights of the city. I got to know the group that was with me in Paris really well before even touching ground in South Africa! We marveled at the breath-taking Notre Dame, ate a fantastic cheese burger and crepe for lunch, took some pictures in fronte Eiffel Tower, raced passed the arc de triomphe, walked down avenue de champs elysees, and relaxed in front of the Louvre. One thing that I found really funny was the long line of people waiting to enter a palace-like building guarded by golden gates and attractive men…Abercrombie and Fitch. Returning to the airport was pretty chaotic due to an unforseen strike in the subway, but luckily we made it back with time to spare. 

Here’s a picture of my group in front of the Tour Eiffel 

Day 2: Touch-down in South Africa 06/22/2011

We are staying at a place called the Kilnerton Center (see the picture) , a very nice place in Silverton (the city between Pretoria and Mamelodi). We went to the Union Buildings and ate lunch in front of the buldings at the Conference Center,a beautiful park with an even more spectactular view of Pretoria.  We hung out, played some frisbee, and sun-bathed. After a great dinner (South African food is delicious!), Ron lead us in worship and we thanked the Lord as a group for bringing us here safely, and for providing us with so many great adventures and bonding experiences already!

Here’s a picture of the MIT crew!

Day 3:Life groups, HPC, meeting co-teachers 6/23/11

Today’s morning lifegroups were definitely the highlight of my day. It’s the first time we met as a life-group, and we were already so open and real with eachother. We are taking turns sharing our stories with eachother so we can begin to get to know eachother more personally. We also went to the University of Pretoria’s sports complex  and played basketball on their courts. They have such a nice complex! Later that night, we met the University of Pretoria students that will be co-teaching Mamelodi 8^th graders for the next three weeks with us. We played some get to know you games, and discussed our lesson plans over dinner. I am lucky enough to be able to meet all of the U. Pretoria students, but have the flexibility of discussing lesson plans with my partner anytime because my partner, Dan, is actually an American student on the trip with me! One of the goals of this project is long-term sustainability. We hope to see the University of Pretoria students take over this tutoring initiative in Mamelodi in the future, which is why it is so cool that the University of Pretoria students are so interested in the project already!

Day 4: trip to Mamelodi and Drum Circle! 06/24/2011

Today we took a trip to Mamelodi. Here’s a picture I took while driving by.

It was really nice how everyone would wave to us; they’re so friendly! We also visited the University of Pretoria Mamelodi Campus, where we will be tutoring next week. In their library I met a very clever (smart here refers to how you dress) worker named Sam. Sam revealed to me more about the perception of Americans in South Africa. He says that his dream is to one day visit the United States so he can tell people that it’s not what they think…and to meet famous people like Mike Tyson.

Tonight was probably the most amazing night so far. We went to a traditional African Drum Circle. 

The circle consists of people sitting around a fire and beating drums (which you can rent or buy) to a very addicting beat.  We got absorbed in the beat and left with very sore hands. What a night! As fun as the pre-tutoring week is, I really can’t wait to meet the kids and get started!

Day 5: Apartheid Museum and crafts market 06/25/2011

So the typical schedule of the week is work Monday-Friday, adventures Saturday, and rest Sunday. Today being a Saturday, we took a trip to the Apartheid Museum to learn a bit more about the history of South Africa that influences the racial tensions still prevalent in this society today. To really get the feel for how apartheid separated whites from non-whites, the museum randomly issued tickets to the museum that classified us as white or non-white, signifying which entrance we should use.  At the museum we learned a lot about Nelson Mandela, and as you could imagine, we loved learning as much as we could! We also visited a local crafts market, and bought some really neat hand-made crafts. After dinner we just relaxed because we started our sabbath at 7:30.

Day 6: Sabbath 06/26/2011

Today we went to Willows Methodist Church, the church that Richard and Dana, our good friends, attend. 

The church was very nice, and to be honest, very similar to the American churches I’m used to attending. We had tea and South-African cake bites as we met super sweet members of the church. The rest of the day was fabulous! We took the day to rest, praise the Lord, admire God’s beauty in nature, and hang out with our friends. After a nice run in the neighborhood, we found a little chapel on top of a hill inside the Kilnerton Center (where we’re staying). And with quite a view, huh? 

Not a bad place for worship. :P

Week 2: Tutoring begins

Looking ahead, we are starting our tutoring program. Our first day was on Monday, and it was really really great meeting all of the kids. They have such a desire to learn, and it just amazes me. For example, today Dan and I wanted to play a game with the kids for the last 20 minutes of class. The kids insisted that we don’t play games because they really want to learn more. That was so touching to see that the kids care so much about their education. We also read the story of creation to them today, and I was so happy to see how interested they were in learning more about God's work, and how engaged they were during the story. Most of these kids speak around 4 languages, which is amazing to me, and they all have big dreams for their future! They walk a few miles to come to class each day, and tell us stories about their homes. We have workshops in the afternoon of every sort. Kids play several sports, learn to dance, sing, act, and many more. I’m a part of the netball and  soccer workshops, and I love allowing the kids to teach me (they’re so much better than I am), and interacting with them. Please keep me in your prayers as we continue to pour out on the students, that we may show God’s love to them as we tutor them and as we interact with them inside and outside of the classroom. Love you guys and can’t wait to tell you about more adventures!

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27