I
am writing from onboard my new home on the Africa Mercy! Woo-hoo! I’m
exhausted, but happy to be home! On Wednesday we pulled into the port of
Durban, South Africa and I got to see the white hull of the Africa Mercy for
the first time and let me tell you, it was a surreal experience after seeing
her in so many videos and photos over the past five months to actually see her
in real life! I must admit that while I’ve known for a while I would get here,
I was thinking, “She’s real?!? There really is such a ship?!?!!!” I am also
officially reunited with my Mommy, who got here before I did and found me as I
was bringing my luggage to my cabin! She’ll be working housekeeping for the
sail to Benin!
Before we get to that though, I’ve
spent the past two-ish weeks among the Zulu people in the Drakensberg Mountains
of South Africa by Dragon Peak (I didn’t get to see a single dragon though ;0)
and it was…COLD!!! We stayed at a former air force base and it was one of the
most gorgeous places I’ve ever seen, but there was a lot of dashing to the
fireplace in the early morning and burrowing as deep as I could go into my
sleeping bag at night. Lots of hot tea was in order as well!
I had the privilege of helping in a Zulu kindergarten class (they call it
grade R) and there was so much that I found similar and a few things that I had
to giggle at because they were just different. Though their classroom was bare
and the ceiling was dripping and the electricity was flickering and although we
were able to see our breath while doing math because there was no heater and
although a goat was poking his head into the kindergarten classroom, they were
just going about their day being kindergartners. They did stations and practiced
counting and recited the months of the year. They pushed while getting into
line and sometimes some got in trouble (although when they got in trouble the
teacher twisted their ears! Yikes!). They played with blocks and played pretend
and had snack (although it was rice and beans, which some of the littles who
forgot a spoon ate with their hands or even a hand that was covered by a mitten
and then proceeded to lick the mitten clean). They laughed and played and loved.
Just like me and my littles! It made me feel here in South Africa a little bit
like I was home.
 |
| Kindergarten teachers unite! |
Something that the upper
school grades were working on while we were there was practicing for a big
“cultural competition” that was being held at the end of the week for all the
surrounding schools. We had the privilege of watching their rehearsals and then
we got the HUGE honor of actually going with them to the competition at the end
of the week! Our leader dropped us off at the highschool where the competition
was supposed to be held and we traipsed inside only to find out that we had apparently
been dropped off at the wrong school. So, we bundled into a stranger’s car who
was supposedly going the same place and we made it! The competition was held
out in a large open field with a big area roped off for the competing schools
to perform. The judges sat at a table at one end of the roped off area. We
found our group (it felt so good to be “part” of their school even after only
being there a few days…like we belonged there and were helping to represent
Zuzimfundo School) and played games with the kids until we got the all call
over the speaker phone that it was time to get costumes on. And that’s when it
turned into a true cultural experience. All the groups of ten to sixteen year
olds started stripping down right out there in the open field. We were put in
charge of helping the girls get their “costumes” on which consisted of tying
together their strings of beads. They had little bloomers on and we tied skirts
made from strings of beads around their waists and beaded collars around their
necks. They also had beaded armbands and ankle “bells” made from the top of
aluminum cans that made a pretty tinkling sound as they walked. And that’s it!
All the girls were completely topless and no one was concerned. Maybe that’s
what it felt like in the garden of Eden. The boys had on little animal skin
loin clothes and crisscrossing “suspenders” made from sheep wool. The
competition began and one group after another performed traditional Zulu dances
and songs, some completely acapella and some to the beat of drums. We got
treated with such honor and got the best seats, right up front (where we could
see everything…and I mean everything! :0). They kicked high into the air and
every time their bare feet would hit the ground, little puffs of dust would explode around them. It may not have
been my preferred style of dance or costuming, but oh was it beautiful and
unique and such an incredible experience to be a part of!
Today was our first day of teacher
orientation, which consisted mostly of how to secure and tie down everything in
our classrooms so it won’t fly everywhere on the sail! It’s going to be a
little tricky once classes start on the sail, but I’ve told one of my
soon-to-be-kindergartners that if I get seasick and have to lay on the floor of
the classroom during kindergarten, she’s in charge of taking over, so we’ll be
in capable hands! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to head out to “ stowaway watch”
soon…not even joking!
