Rachel eager to begin applying the lessons learned while in Cape Town

I am writing this final blog post on my way back from JFK. I think during my time in Cape Town I got caught up in the hype of America, because I was so excited to return home. Being excited to return home however, didn’t mean that I was ready to leave Cape Town. Driving through New York I am realizing I missed how green everything looks but I also miss hearing the mini bus drivers shout out the windows, the streets look too empty without them.

 My last week in Cape Town I spent most of the time at the aquarium because it was my favorite place to be in Cape Town. I finally got to finish my scuba diving certification and I am now a certified open water scuba diver! The dinner for our internships was a great time for the girls I had spent my semester with to meet some of my favorite people! I only wish they had met each other sooner.

I am realizing how much I want to talk about racial and gender topics now. My friends have been asking me about the touristy things I did in Cape Town, but I am more eager no to be able to participate in talks about gender and race. I think now I am realizing that it has been one of the best things I have gotten out of this trip.

For my final paper in Marita’s class I had to address how I have become a global citizen and I wrote that my first step was looking at my own internalized racism. I think this is one of the things that allow me to be a better global citizen because I need to start with myself. How can I expect the world to change if I myself won’t? Another thing I have learned on this trip is how to be an activist, and that will make me a better global citizen. I think I understand now that a global citizen is someone who wants to make a positive change in the world as a whole, not just one country. After this trip I am more likely to stand up for what I believe in and to more importantly, do something about it. As I said in my goals, I want to write letters to my state representatives to rid Massachusetts of plastic bags. I want to see the whole world make this change but I will start small. After this class I will be more likely to participate in a march for something I stand for.

Overall my time in Cape Town is one I don’t think I will ever forget. Not only all the amazing people I met and places I saw but the change I saw in my own self. My next step is to constantly apply what I have learned so that I don’t slip into my old habits.

Karen believes to say she enjoyed this experience wouldn't do it justice

Where did time go!! Friday is our last full day here. I cannot believe that this trip is already almost over. I'm very happy with everything i've done, what i've learned and the friendships i've made. There are so many people in Cape Town who have made this experience wonderful. Not just my co-educators, but also the individuals that I have met and the people at my internship have taught me so much. I really appreciate everything about this trip. I don't even know how to put any of this into words, but overall I am so happy with everything. 

One aspect of this trip that I personally enjoyed was getting a lot of hands-on experience. I was able to actually walk some of the townships and become involved with the community within those townships. If it weren't for Vernon who placed me at a wonderful organization, and the team members from The Safety Lab who made these trips possible, I wouldn't know nearly as much as I do now. 

 I'm actually really happy because my internship at The Safety Lab has been nothing but rewarding. I am going to stay in contact with the team members and hopefully be able to continue helping from the US/ keeping updated with their projects. 

I hope one day I can come back and visit with my family. Until then, thank you to everybody who made this trip worthwhile. I loved spending time in this city... even if I got a little homesick here and there. 

I think Cape Town is the type of place that everybody should visit. 

If Cape Town has taught me anything, it's showed me who I want to be, and who I want to surround myself with in life. I want to live a more minimalistic lifestyle, I want to be optimistic and surround myself with people who make me laugh. I want to remember that racism and sexism still occurs at mass rates in this world. I want to remind myself that resources like water don't just come from nowhere.... I don't want to forget that instead of buying a $20 meal, I could purchase groceries and save that money to help others. 

The list could go on. There are so many little things that will constantly remind me of Cape Town. 

To say i've enjoyed this experience wouldn't do it justice. This trip was wonderful. 

Ethan, Kaitlyn, & Karen

Erica nervous that once home her Cape Town memories will fade

Two weeks from today, I will be back home in Connecticut, probably very jet-lagged from the 15-hour plane ride from Johannesburg to New York. I can’t wrap my head around the fact that we have so little time left here. I have very mixed emotions about leaving. On one hand, I’m very excited to be home again, see family and friends, and so on. At the same time, I know I’ll be very sad to leave Cape Town and I can only imagine how much I’ll miss it once I’m back home. I think the one thing I’m nervous about in regard to leaving South Africa is that I don’t want to forget all the wonderful things I’ve learned on this trip or the way that I feel here in Cape Town. That might sound a little sad or pessimistic, but I’m primarily nervous of my Cape Town memories fading. I know that there are lots of things I can to do prevent and/or remedy this, such as keeping a journal, staying in touch with friends, etc. I plan to do all of these things, and recently I’ve been thinking about making a list of all of the lessons I’ve learned from this trip so I don’t forget them.  I think the most important thing for me to do as this trip comes to an end is enjoy the moment as much as I can, and so some serious journaling.

Anyways, this week has been pretty busy for everyone. Since the semester is coming to a close, there are tests to take, essays to write, and of course many of us are trying to check off all of our Cape Town “bucket list” items in the meantime. Yesterday my fellow co-educators and I went to Bloubergstrand beach to watch the sunset. This is a pretty famous spot in Cape Town since there’s a gorgeous view of Devil’s Peak, Table Mountain, and Lion’s head right from the beach.

In other news, Kat and I have been trying to wrap up our work at Prevention in Action since we’re leaving soon; however, there’s still so much work to be done. Our goals for the end of the semester are setting up a bank account for PIA, registering the organization as an official non-profit, and creating a presentation that Mums can use to promote PIA in the future. I think the most important thing for us is to leave Prevention in Action in a spot where Mums is able to pick up where we left off, and to give her tools that can she can use to promote the organization in the hopes of obtaining funding. I’m not completely sure if we’ll be able to accomplish all of this within the five days left we have at our internships, but we’ll certainly try!

Sara W taking time to consider lessons learned

After Jo’burg, we went to Kruger National Park. After all of the heartache that was felt from the historical sites in Jo’burg, this was much needed. We saw so many animals and I went on a total of 3 safari rides; 1 sunrise and 2 sunsets. I saw 3 different types of monkeys, wilda beasts, zebras, lions, cheetahs!!!!, buffalos, impalla, wart hogs, giraffes, owls, eagles, other really neat birds, hippos, antelopes, hyenas, kudos, a crocodile, and baboons. It was awesome not having wifi for this weekend. It was a nice break from reality and it allowed me to think a lot more about things I might not have thought of if I had wifi to use.   

One idea that has become more and more prevalent to me through our time here is how wealth and opportunity go hand in hand. For example, I wouldn't be fortunate enough to be on this study abroad experience if I had grown up in a township in South Africa. Although that sounds obvious, it is truly what shapes our lives and what opportunities are available to us as we grow older. This is also the same as at home and all around the world. It seems that the biggest indicator of success between people who care more about changing the world (ie Berney Sanders) vs people who care more about themselves (Trump... Zumba) is money. People buy there way to the top so they can be superior to others. This is difficult because it is not just these big, famous figures where this is prevalent but I also see it with students at UConn. For instance, the people on this trip who want to change the world and have jobs that make an impact (i.e. at an NGO) will make far less money compared to say a wealthy boy who is in a fraternity, voted for trump and is studying business.

It is for these reasons that the wealth gap grows more and more. Although I am aware of these things I still do not know what to do about it. But I am confident that with all of the people who do care we can work together to figure it out to make the world a better place for everyone to live in. If we look up to people who were poor and still made a huge difference, it can help to motivate us. For example, obviously Nelson Mandela. While we were learning about him I tried to read about his upbringing and see how he was able to make such an impact. Although he wasn’t wealthy, he still influenced the world. These are the people we need to look to in order to stay motivated.

Sarah trying to balance the positive with the negative aspects of her time away

Although I was feeling down all week due to the busy schedule and lack of sleep, there were some positive experiences.  The Apartheid Museum was incredibly powerful; I was especially impacted by our tickets separating us as either “blankes” or “non-blankes,” indicating that we had to go into the museum through different entrances.  As stages as it was, it sent a message to those of us that were white, whom never felt or took notice to the ostracization people of color have endured for centuries.  I have to admit, however, that my favorite part was seeing the display for Olive Schreiner, author of The Story of an African Farm -- the book I chose for my fiction essay.  Schreiner was an ultra-feminist before it was trendy, exquisitely discussing race, gender, and sexuality in the 1800s.  Being wracked with white guilt, it was nice to learn and see that not all white people were ignorant a$$holes during that time.  That being said, the Apartheid Museum actually wasn’t the most emotional part for me -- the Hector Pietersen Museum was.  

Seeing Hector’s lifeless body being carried with his sister running alongside them, wailing and screaming of heartbreak, brought tears to my eyes.  It made me think how destroyed I would be if one of my siblings were killed -- the pain even being too much for me to think about now.  I realized then and there how similar she and I are in our love for our family, consequently uncovering some unconscious biases I didn’t even realize I had.  

I recognized that not only are there racial stereotypes, but ones associated with geographic location and class as well.  I was so taken aback by Hector’s sister’s grief because I believed that those who lived in impoverished areas, who don’t have the same status as me, couldn’t possibly feel the same love that I do -- couldn’t have the same pain with loss, the same compassion for others.  Ridiculous and sickening, I know.  Thus, the images and stories that the Hector Pietersen Museum displayed revealed to me a dark part of myself that I need to work to change.

As for the Boys and Girls Club in Soweto, I had a more pessimistic view.  It’s not that the kids aren’t wonderful little humans, I just don’t think it’s fair to spend a few hours with them, have them get attached to us, and then, realistically, say goodbye forever.  I had two little girls crying and hugging me saying they didn’t want me to leave – it broke my heart.  They have a hard enough time dealing with rejection, abandonment, and self-doubt as it is without us coming in there to play hand-games and basketball with them to make ourselves feel like humanitarians for a moment, always knowing that we were planning on likely never seeing them again.  I hate that.  I hate that we think our actions are bringing hope, but really we’re proving we don’t care enough to stick around.  We’re no better than the CEO of Tupperware who showed up in a suit that cost hundreds, only there to see what a “great guy” he is for funding the program without actually spending genuine, quality time with the children.  We’re just a bunch of white saviors who care more about washing the past than building a durable road for the future.

Kruger National Park was definitely the highlight of the excursion, but I felt I couldn’t relax and enjoy it as much as I hoped.  With little sleep and a tight schedule, I felt pressure to make the most of it while others were continually complaining about what animals they didn’t get to see.  Don’t get me wrong, I would’ve loved to see a leopard dragging a kudo up a tree, but we did have two male lions walking right beside our vehicle – I mean can I say AMAZING?!  I just wish the atmosphere was more positive about what we did get to see and not what we didn’t, but mostly I wish we could’ve spent more time there.  I am thankful to have had the incredible experience to shine a spotlight on animals in the dark, but I would love to go back one day to fully take in all of the beauty and wonder Kruger has to offer.