Robots

Hiya from the Cape!

One of the first South African slang terms I've picked up is "robots". This is what South Africans call traffic lights. The robots. I love this!! On Monday, Emma and I saw a man hit a robot with his Beamer. Slammed right into it as we were crossing a busy road and took it out completely. Then he attempted to drive away with the bumper dragging along and a flat left tire. Everyone just stood around and laughed. In North America, we would rush over and see if the driver was OK, but not here. Yesterday, we went by that same road and the traffic light was still on the ground. Guess it's not that important!

Another slang word I'm becoming fond of is "pleasure" - the common response if you say "thank you" to anyone, even the grocery store clerk.

I've had a good week. Besides the rubbish weather, we've enjoyed a nice, calm pace to life. It hit me today: I am nearing the end of my non-working days. I have not worked full-time since August of 2009, before my Masters' begun. This should be an interesting transition - not only will I be back to a 40 hour work week, but in South Africa no less.

I have started to absorb what is around me day-to-day. It's hard here not to get caught up in the glitz and beauty that is Cape Town; admittedly, I have forgotten at times that I am in Africa. In certain moments I feel like I am in India. The horns, the aggressive driving, the smells of the sewage on the streets, the men lurking on street corners. At other moments, I feel like I am back in the UK. The street signs, the toilets, the large housing estates, the produce. This city is an interesting blend of old and new, Euro and Asia, rich and poor.  The birds are ridiculously loud when they squawk, as is the rain when it comes down and hits the roof.

Monday we attempted to go to Robben Island (where Mandela was held prisoner for 28 years) but the weather was too poor so the boats were not running. Instead we explored the Waterfront area, which is full of shops and restaurants. Not very African, more like West Edmonton Mall. I got a glimpse of the World Cup Green Point Stadium nearby, pretty swank.   The clouds finally lifted a bit and we saw some of Table Mountain from the balcony of the restaurant we ate lunch at.  Gorgeous.

Tuesday we got on a tour bus with 6 others (2 Germans, 1 Danish, 2 Canadians and a Brit) and took a drive out to Stellenbosch, the wine region located about 45 minutes out of Cape Town. We spent the day out there visiting the following four wineries: Fairview, Solms Delta, Tokara and Villiera. They each had their own unique atmosphere and stories. I loved every minute of it - our driver, Bruce, was full of laughs and had some great corny jokes. Such as: "Cape Town is like a baby...always wet or windy". Hee hee. He also had the best music to go along with the drive - very important to me as many of you know. I wrote down quite a few local artists names as a result.

Yesterday was action-packed as the forecast was predicting there would be some sun. (It was right.) We got on a bus early and drove around the entire Cape Town area, stopping for a coffee and walk at Camps Bay. Wow. Stunning place to live.  I have a new life ambition to settle in Camps Bay (sorry, Mom).  We then ascended Table Mountain - it took about 1.5 hours. There were 5 of us - poor Bernie who just had knee surgery...she was struggling. I will remember a lot of water spraying off the waterfalls and high winds on the climb up.  Also, it was quite steep at times. TOTALLY WORTH IT THOUGH!!! The views of the both sides of the mountain (one towards the Camps Bay/12 Apostles side, the other the Cape Town side) were spectacular. I couldn't quite wrap my head around where I was. It's like being on top of the world. Sigh.



Last night we headed out for a truly 'African' meal and to a place called "Mama Africa's". I ate crocodile! It was actually quite nice. The music and vibe in there was sweet....I was grinning a lot and happy to be in the chair I was in.

Big hugs from the girl with poofy, wavy hair and not-so-dry skin,
Brianna

The Long Journey to Africa

Calgary-Amsterdam

After departing Calgary at 6 pm and saying good-bye to my teary family, we (my friend Emma and I) arrived in Amsterdam at 11 am local time. It was rainy but still felt warmer than snowy Calgary.   After a quick bite at the hotel, we took an afternoon nap which helped us prepare for a fun night out on the town. I quickly remembered why I love Europe and Amsterdam so much. Everything was green, quaint and lots of people were on their cool-looking bikes. So civilized.
  
We took the 'silent' carriage in a large train to Central Station to be warmly greeted by two friends. We had a great dinner in a little Italian diner near the red light district which was followed by a drinks in a corner pub where we sat outside and soaked in the glittering lights and canals. We somehow didn't get back to the hotel until 4 am (which felt quite normal...8 pm in Calgary!) and got up again at 7 am for our flight to South Africa.

Amsterdam-Johannesburg

Schipol Airport was a zoo on Saturday. It was like the world had descended upon Amsterdam to fly somewhere. We made through the madness to happily find a coffee and a charger for Emma's cell phone which she conveniently forgot (mine doesn't even work, mind you, so I need to sort that out soon). We got on board the gigantic plane that was KL591 to be told that we could not take off (as we were poised on the runway) due to a technical malfunctioning of the fire alarm system on board.  This definitely needed to be rectified, so we turned back for the gate.

We were then told that it would be quicker to all disembark the plane and use a different one instead of fixing the technical problem. This was met by a large groan! Instead of departing at 1030 am, we were to leave at 2 pm. This changed things arriving into Jo'Burg so late at night (like 1 am) and caused me concern for my baggage collection plan in which my landlady's friend was going to pick up half of my luggage to take to my new home in Pretoria. I doubt he would be up for doing this now.....I called and left him a message saying we were about 4 hours late.

Arriving in Jo'Burg was quite ordinary despite things I've heard. It was really late and I think being the only flight to arrive helped. Customs was a breeze as was collecting our bags. Allan, the baggage 'driver', was there after all! He had come late, bless him. He took my one bag back to Pretoria with him to drop off at Carol's (where I will be living). We then hopped into a cab and got to our hotel. I couldn't see much of Jo'Burg at this point, only the highway. I don't remember falling asleep....but zzzzzzzzzz was easy to take at this point.

Johannesburg-Cape Town

We woke up at 730 am to sunny and warm South Africa!!!! We were back at O.R. Tambo International before you could say 'Cape Town' and back on another plane. Flying into Cape Town was a joy! You could easily see the long coastline and beautiful Table Mountain, the clouds hugging it closely. We were picked up by Emma's friend Andrew, and he took us to our hostel located in the "Gardens" district of central Cape Town. It for sure helps having someone to shuttle us around and I'm looking forward to seeing more of the city tomorrow. We just got back from a nice dinner out. The rain is supposed to clear up by Wednesday thankfully!

I'm afraid my first impressions have been fairly limited to airports and cars. However, we did drive by some townships on the way into town and I could see first hand how segregated they are from the rest of the 'haves'. The city itself appears much more developed. Something I took note of quickly was how women carry their children, like on their backs, piggy-back style, and wrapped in cloth. I also have took note of how society seems be pre-occupied with gates and locks and keys. We have 3 separate doors to open before we even get to our private room. World Cup advertisements are also everywhere!!!

The rain has started up again...it sounds so loud out there! Torrential! Here's hoping it's less obnoxious tomorrow. Bye for now!

Feet on the ground in Africa (wow),
Brianna :)

The Concept

(No, I don't mean in between bars as in drinking holes....) ;)

Hello! Or Hallo! as they say in Afrikaans.

On the journey throughout my Masters of Social Work program, there have been numerous times where I have been holding on for dear life to my bar-of-the-moment, swinging along, too afraid to let go. There have been other times where I could feel myself grab onto a new bar, when I released my grip of the present, because the next step, my growth was calling out to me.

This blog is about what happens in the middle, in between bars, where trnansition and change occurs. This is a rich and rewarding place to be, a place people often fear. My intention is to articulate that in this space "In Between Bars" I have learned to FLY. The inspiration for this metaphor comes from a wonderful book called Warriors of the Heart by Danaan Parry: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0965380823


In 5 sleeps I will be taking off for South Africa. I will spend about 3 months there, 12 weeks working for the Government in the Department of Social Development. Here is a synopisis of what I will be doing (as described for the Dr. Irma Parhad strudentship Programmes):


Brianna will travel to the South African capital Pretoria, located in the Gauteng Province to complete her advanced Masters’ of Social Work practicum.  She will be working within the South African National Department of Social Development (DSD), within the Chief Directorate of Children. The DSD recognizes that lifelong learning and professional development of social workers is important, and that social workers are key resources in addressing the needs and challenges of society. Specifically, her role will be undertaking research work in the area of child protection. A National Surveillance Study on child abuse, neglect and exploitation commenced in 2008 and is the umbrella study she will be contributing to. An immediate outcome of this particular study is to develop policies and strategies for child care protection, hence, her responsibilities will include will include participatory stakeholder liaison in provinces, research data management and analysis, report writing, amongst others.


I have completed my core course requirements as of April 15, 2010 so the practicum in South Africa is the final step in completing my Masters'. Not only does this trip signify an educational milestone, but it represents the manifestation of a dream I have had for many, many years. Ever since I returned from India (2001), I have stated quite blatantly that I wanted to go and work in Africa. I spent four years in Europe since then (2004-2008), still holding on tightly to this vision. Now, nine years later....I'M actually GOING!


This blog will likely be a mixture of reflection of my time in Africa in both a professional and personal capacity and I hope you do enjoy following along.

With a big smile and an open heart,
Brianna