Rav has missed much in her semester away . . . but has gained so much more

All beautiful things must end eventually. I'm back home and something seems off. Everything is the same back at home, but I have changed so much. My friends have grown in different ways, as have I. I am so grateful for the experience to be a guest in South Africa, to have met so many inspiring and passionate people. Individuals that are full of life and endless love to give to others. I miss that. I miss the weather. The sounds, the smells.

But I know I'll be back. I look forward to seeing again the relationships I have developed the past few months. I learned a lot about myself. I have learned a lot about others. I love having the chance to digress with the 16 other girls that have experienced Cape Town themselves, but in many different perspectives.

I think what challenges me a lot right now is trying to picture what I would be doing if I never left to South Africa this semester. Would things be different? Would I be happy, or challenged, or changed? I have missed out on a lot this semester because I left, but I have gained so much more. 

I cannot wait to see where I go, and I can only go up from here.

Rav leaving a place where time didn't exist but excited to be returning to family and friends

We have a week left in this beautiful city. It's weird to know that our time here is ending, where the moments I spent here felt infinite; a place where time didn't exist. 

I turned 21 last weekend. It was such a special weekend, filled with new friends and adventures. I definitely missed my family and friends back home, but they still managed to make my day special by sending flowers and cards.

For my activist project, I helped organize a soccer tournament in Khayelitsha for the FireFighters Soccer Club. It was their first tournament at Mandela Stadium, and we helped raise money for FireFighters shirts, jerseys, and for their lunch and tournament fees. It was a great weekend, and we played with the kids and I had the pleasure to meet many locals and talk about Xhosa traditions from the past and during Apartheid.

For my internship, Right2Know is sponsoring Freedom week, which starts on April 27th and lasts for five days until May 3rd. The week will highlight all the aspects of freedom, including press freedom, freedom of expression, the Freedom Charter, unfulfilled freedoms, freedom from fear, freedom from want, accountability, etc. Every day of Freedom Week is a different theme that is filled with workshops and activities. I contacted organizations throughout Cape Town if they would like to participate and hold a workshop or lecture during Freedom Week on the topic of freedom. I reached out to organize panel discussion, breakfast/lunch lectures, and information sessions. I'm excited to see on Thursday how the event goes, however unfortunately I won't be here next week to see how it ends.

Overall, we're wrapping up our time here in Cape Town. I have already said some goodbyes, and it sucks. However, I'm excited to know that in a week I'll be back at UConn and be in the arms of my best friends and favorite UConn faculty members. I've missed them all so much. 

This week we came back from our excursion in Johannesburg, and I was SO happy to see Cape Town again. Leaving the airport hit me though, the next time I'm going to be there is when we leave back for the states. Coming back from Jozi is the start of the countdown to go back home. I definitely feel hurt and sad to be leaving my home, but I can't wait to see the people I love back home in the states. This week I made my own bucket list for the last three weeks of my study abroad experience. On the top of the list is paragliding, which I will hopefully get to do on the 21st, and not to mention that my 21st birthday is also coming up this month. It's so exciting to turn 21 in a country that I have fell in love with, surrounded by the new friends I made here. 

Another thing on my bucket list is to live in the moment, which I have been trying to do for the past few months as well. However, I want to remind myself that even though I am sad that I am leaving, I must live in the present and cherish the last moments I have here. 

Coming back from Jozi, I had to get back into the groove of things. 

I went to Bo Kaap with Erica, Kat, and Shona and we had kind of a mini photo shoot which was so fun! I've been so stressed about finding a meaningful job or internship experience this summer, that I have forgotten to live in the moment for a few days. Today I forgot about my worries and had fun being and dressing up with my beautiful friends here. 

Rav, Erica, Shona, Kat

Rav's week in Jo'burg was an emotional and reflective time

The week we left for Johannesburg was, I think, the perfect time to leave Cape Town and experience a new city. I was getting almost restless in Cape Town; it was really weird that the giddy feeling of waking up was basically gone. It was almost normal to be living in Cape Town.

Joburg was really cool; the atmosphere was different but similar in ways. It still felt like a city, but everything was more spread out in Gauteng. The cities, like Sandton and Joburg and Pretoria were like 45-60 minute drive away from each other, with a lot of rural areas between. While in Cape Town, it seems like the entire 40 mile radius around table mountain is urban, with rural areas stemming away after that.

In Sandton, where we were staying, it was definitely apparent that it was the richer part around Joburg, where everyone was white and had business suits on. However, Sandton was also the only place I've really seen rich black people. And the shopping mall at Sandton were filled with people of all races that were dressed so nicely and were shopping in expensive stores.

The experiences we had in Soweto and Sharpeville were the most impactful that helped me better understand the history and politics of South Africa. The museums we went to were my favorite part, where I had a chance to walk around and see and read the photographs and personal accounts of what happened during the massacres. The Hector Pieterson museum and the Sharpeville Memorial Center hit me hard. To go to the cemetery where the victims of the Sharpeville massacre laid to rest was overwhelming. Sixty-nine headstones were in a long row. I said a prayer for each one.

The hardest day had to be going to Constitution Hill. I can't even imagine the pain and torture inflicted on political prisoners and even those prisoners that were held there for petty theft. It was interesting to find out that Mahatma Gandhi was held prisoner there. I would like to read more about his time in South African politics and his time spent as a prisoner. I wonder how he was treated.

Overall, the week spent in Joburg was an emotional, reflective time. It really put into perspective how much pain South Africa went through to achieve basic human rights(and still goes through). The week has definitely humbled me, and renewed my energy in many ways to keep pursing a career in social justice and human rights.

Rav's memorable moments while introducing her family to Cape Town

My parents just recently came to Cape Town to visit me! It was so great and wholesome to see them again after two months. I missed them so much, and it was so interesting to be their "tour guide" here in CPT. I planned their whole week here, and they were surprised at how much I know about the town. They told me that I've changed, and I find that intriguing. Change is always good in my eyes, it's how we grow into better versions of ourselves. 

I think a really memorable moment during my parent's visit was having a talk about race with them and identifying the colorism that is evident in conversations. Telling my parents that race is a social construct and them finally listening and understanding what I was saying was so refreshing. We are all brothers and sisters that should be fighting for each other, instead of using subtle racism and colorism as "small talk". Language is so very important in progressing away from hate. 

I also got the chance to show my parents some South African culture. We went to the annual Cape Town Parade, which was stunning. The floats and dancers and musicians were breathtaking. I am so glad they came to CPT to visit. My parents have gone through a lot to get me to a great school and to thrive in my future. For them to come to the continent, Africa, is such a huge accomplishment, and I can't wait for them to travel the rest of the world and learn more about different cultures and the meaning of love and life.