Umlunku (The White Man)

1/29/11

It is so very hard to believe that I have been in Africa for a week now. It seems like I have been here forever. First off, I have travelled a great distance from Johannesburg (Jo-berg) to Durban. I have lived in 3 places: two hostels, and one family homestay, and I have already begun to get in the groove with classes at the SIT house. I am trying to enjoy this experience as much as possible, and so far I have been doing just that! As our classes started, I began to realize that I have been stuck in “tourist mode,” soaking up everything through the lens of a tourist. The purpose of this program, however, is for students not to be tourists but to integrate themselves into the Zulu culture. As an aspiring Anthropologist, or at least, someone who deals in the social sciences, I have realized I have not been adequately integrating in the sense that I am a participant-observer. I guess I am excused in a way, after all this is only my first week in South Africa. Next week, I want to get into anthropologist mode (I have to in order to begin working on my independent study project). This is good training, particularly when considering which path I want to take: the public health route or the anthropology one.

Speaking about anthropology, I always thought it was really interesting hearing my professors give their field anecdotes. As most of my anthro professors have been white, it came as no surprise to me when they referred to a term which meant “white man” in the indigenous cultures that they were studying. At the back of my head I could not help but wonder...what if you are of a different ethnicity? Are you still the “white man”? I got my answer today. My sisi told me that a few kids came by the house looking for me today to play. And they asked (in Zulu of course) where is umlumku? Where is the white man? My sisi responded: There is no umlunnku here! What are you talking about? But the children were adamant that there was an umlunku staying at the house. She later figured out they were talking about me, but I am not white! Speaking with other black students in the program, we figured it was a word that just meant foreigner as opposed to “white man.” So I guess my questions were answered, regardless, you are still the white man!

I think I have spent more time outside here, than I ever had when I was a kid. Children are everywhere in this neighborhood! I went out with some other students after school, and they swarmed us! A mob came, grabbed us all by the hand, walked through the streets to the park and back again. I was absolutely amazed by the number of them. It was like an Oprah moment (I don’t know how else to describe it). There is, in my mind at least, a generic image of someone going to a village in Africa, and kids swarm them, and the kids look poor, and dirty, and have no shoes on, but are still smiling and laughing and are very appreciative of the smallest things we take for granted in America. That’s what my experience was. Although I am not living in a rural village, I am living in a township, which means that the people here are close to the city, but am still living in extreme poverty. There were kids who had on torn and tattered clothes. There were many kids who did not even have shoes on. (Can you imagine walking on an asphalt street with no shoes on? Waiting to step on broken glass, or nails? Or walking in dirt? Or stepping in the droppings of chickens and dogs?) It was absolutely baffling and astonishing to me. The kids loved to be photographed (once you pulled out your camera, they would not stop posing!) I have a lot of pics, so I hope I can post them one day! (By the way, I have to pay for my internet here... BY THE MEGABYTE! That’s something I have to get used to. It is all prepaid, even the cell phones are prepaid. The positive is that I have a mobile internet key which can travel with me anywhere, but I have to be really frugal with the time that I spend on the net).

Speaking of frugality here, I feel that I have reduced by the power of ten. Where I have been, there are NO paper towels, and paper napkins are few and far between. The only hot water that I have encountered has been in my tea. Trash cans are not as frequent as they are in the US.

I know my family would like to know if I am eating well. Indeed I am! Mama Fakile is a good cook, and I haven’t had anything yet I thought was absolutely disgusting. The diet consists mainly of starches, meal and beans. But that’s okay! The large stove in my house broke the other ay though, so Mama can’t cook like she used to, so we are using the smaller stove for the moment. Hopefully it will get fixed soon. When it does, Mama Fikile wants me to make pizza! I guess I have to look up an easy recipe so we can make it, or at least get one of those frozen ones to just throw in the stove. We shall see (speaking of food, she is cooking dinner right now…some sort of pancake. I can’t wait to see what it tastes like!! It smells absolutely delicioso!)

Staying with my host family has been an absolute delight thus far. We get along wonderfully, and they are so open and willing to talk to me, especially my sisi Pumzile. We were talking about music last night and my mama is very fond of Ne-you. I was taken aback! She is maybe in her late 50’s/early 60’s. I didn’t know she kept up to date with the latest pop music! But she has a granddaughter (my sisi omcnani—the c is a click sound by the way, and means younger sister) who is a teen, and listens to all of the latest music. We bonded over Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey and Beyonce. My sisi keeps it real, and I like her for that. She’s a die-hard Christian who is willing to speak to me about anything. Most of the students in my program have yet to speak about the pink elephant in the room with their families (HIV- South Africa is the HIV capitol of the world). Pumzile speaks openly and freely with me about it. She has told me many stories... about her aunt (mother’s sister as she refered to her) died of “the sickness” because her partner was sleeping with other women. The partner is still alive today, spreading “the sickness,” but her aunt died a few years ago. She told me about a doctor (white) who was knowingly infecting patients with HIV. She also told me that no one really used the Public ARV clinics because there was such a large stigma attached to the disease.”So many problems” she told me. Family structure is so loose here, which is a problem contributing to the spread of the disease. Marriage is a costly affair, 20,000 rand is the figure I heard, just for the negotiation of cows (a necessary step for the families of the two parties to get to know each other). Some people barely have 500 rand in their pockets (that translates to about $70! (And here I am going to withdraw R1, 000 so I can live for the next few weeks comfortably). Talk about privilege!

In my experiences here, I have seen more wealth than I have ever seen in the US, but experienced more poverty also! The gulf between the rich and poor is so large here. I was speaking to my sisi, and she told me when she was pregnant, the first time she went to seek medical attention was when she was 8 months pregnant! She had her first sonogram at 9 months! The situation is dire. Although I am living pretty comfortably with my family, these situations are real. I’m appreciative that I am experiencing these things first hand. One gets a different perspective on these issues once you are in the midst of them.

I, of course, had more things to say, but they have conveniently left my mind at the moment. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this pretty long blog entry. Once I buy more time, I will upload some pics for you to look at! See ya

To Home I Go!

1/25/11

Sawubona!

Hello All! So I have been in Durban for several days now, and I seem to be getting a handle on things, but that doesn’t mean I am quite settled yet. Today was a very busy day, beginning very early with us moving out of our hostel (I apologize for misspelling it in the past few updates…thanks Prof. Zafar!). It seems that things get started very early in South Africa, I guess because the sun rises significantly earlier than it does in the states...around 4 am! That means early to bed, and early to rise (which has also been quite disappointing for my study abroad friends and I trying to find nightlife at11pm). Anyway, then we began our second day of Zulu lessons. I think I am picking up the language nicely, except the clicks still trip me up a bit. There is so much more mouth involvement with this language. More tongue is necessary, and coordination of the breath is super important when making sounds. I don’t want to brag, but I think I picked the clicks up faster than some of my companions in the program. One has to have a natural command of the mouth…which apparently I have.

But that isn’t even the most interesting part of it all. After Zulu, we went to the Megamall (shopping centers in SA are split into two groups Mega and Minimalls). Please believe when I say Mega, that this mall was HUGE. I have never seen anything like it before. For those back home in North Carolina…think of South Park (that’s how nice it was) and then multiply that by 3 or 4. The mall was very nice, obviously catering to the rich, but we only had time to eat lunch. We practiced some of our Zulu on some of the workers we met at the restaurant. Zulu People are so excited when they learn we are learning their language, and are so willing to help.

After that, we heard a lecture about Cato Manor, the township in which we were going to stay. But nothing could have prepared me for my initial trip into the place. Everything that this program does, it does for a reason. The Megamall (also called The Pavilion) sits on a hill overlooking the valley where Cato Manor is situated. The difference between the two places is incredible, surpassing the extreme differences of economic class that I have seen in the US on both sides. The Pavilion glows ironically green on the hillside at night, and is visible from the valley. Cato Manor is a township with much history (too much for me to delve into at the moment…that was an entire two hour lecture today!) But it is a neighborhood of working class people in Africa. The houses are small, but comfortable. They are really close together. I can’t really find words to describe the place…it’s just very different. I can only say that the impoverishment is obvious. There are no tin shacks, which you may see in movies, but the cinder block homes only took the place of the tin shack shantytowns…Anyway, I will post pictures later and you can definitely see for yourself.

The biggest part of the day was that I began my homestay in Cato Manor. I am actually sitting in my room right now. Boy was I nervous when I stepped foot off the minibus to look at my abode for the next month or so. A very small 3 bedroom house with a living room and a kitchen. I don’t come from a huge home, but even for me, this is the smallest living arrangement I have been in. My current room is about half the size of my single room last semester. But I am not complaining! My host family is really nice. My “mama” is very nice and very welcoming. She has two adult children both of whom live at home, and one grandchild who is 13 years old. We spent the rest of the evening talking about SA and the US, finding out more about each other, and watching television. South Africa has soap operas I might add. Maybe I will get more into them as time progresses (although the languages span from English to Zulu to Xhosa (the x is a click), to Sutu) which means I will have to get more used to reading subtitles.

Anyway, it has been raining here a lot which has cooled it down a bit My host family says it is too cold tonight, so they put a heavier blanket on my bed (although I have a feeling that took this one off of their bed to make me feel more comfortable) I, however, am still hot (it's about 75 right now). So, we shall see how that goes. I am absolutely not used to being treated like a guest; however Zulu people make sure that their guests come first. I noticed at dinner that I had the most of them all 9we had rice, beans and potatoes). I cleaned my plate, but did not decide to get seconds. The lack of money here is painfully obvious to me. I don’t want to be a burden to my family, and I don’t want them to surrender their comfort, even though it is their custom. That’s just something that I am working through at the moment. Anyway I think that is about all for now.

Salani Kahle! (Stay well!)

PS. I just wanted to add this morning that I woke up the the crowing of the rooster!

I am Zulu

1/23/11
Sawubona! (That means’ hello in Zulu!)
I’m actually writing this entry on MS word right now, because I don’t have internet access (I have to pay for it, and I am incredibly cheap so I don’t want to pay right now). I will have access tomorrow when we go to our lecture house, so I will upload this entry when I get there. So much has happened since the last time I have updated. I’ve been in SA for about 4 days now... All of us were complaining originally that we felt like we weren’t getting the real South African experience. We went to gas stations and rest stops that were nicer than most that I have been to in the US. The restaurants that we went to thus far were really nice, but fairly expensive for South Africa. It just didn’t really quite African (Whatever that means). Everything is just so Westernized and clean... in part because of the World Cup (which involves some politics that I will get to hopefully later, if I don’t forget)

The interesting thing, though, is that I am black, on a continent where the majority of people are black (Something that I have never experienced before). Even though there is that solidarity based on skin color, however, I still feel a bit disconnected. Even though we (meaning me and the Africans here) share the same skin color, and probably the same ancestry, we aren’t the same. This is due, in part, to my lack of Zulu Knowledge. Almost all of the black people here in SA speak Zulu. Since I am black, people assume that I speak the language as well. I think people are a little bit disappointed when I say I don’t understand, and continue to speak in English. I know they aren’t really...but I have realized I have an appetite to assimilate—which could make life so much better when the time comes for me to work on my indepent study project. I can be as South African as I want to be, until I open my mouth… but that will change soon, hopefully.

We started our first Zulu lesson today, and there is Soo much that I need to learn. Reading the language isn’t that bad… it’s just different from the Germanic/Latin based languages that I am used to. I have the clicks and sounds down, ON THE FIRST DAY! Not bad. I think I just have it in me really (or I would like to hold on to that romanticized notion that somewhere I will awaken my inner African). Anyway, my desire to learn Zulu has grown tremendously and I will do everything I can to make sure I am conversational in the language by the time I leave. My homestay will help me with that.

Speaking of Homestays, I meet my Mama and the rest of my family tomorrow. I am really excited. My mama lives with her two adult children and one 11 year old grandchild. I really have no idea what to expect. Cato Manor is definitely not the most affluent township in Durban, so it will definitely be an interesting experience. I heard from one of our drivers that we won’t even have showers, but will bathe out of a basin. At first I was shocked by this notion. But then I thought. It’s not that different from ‘taking a wash-up” as we did when we were younger to avoid taking a bath. That shouldn’t be too hard for me, but for the other kids on the program… I’m not so sure.

Today I feel like I have gotten my first true study abroad experience. After our Zulu lesson, we were driven to the city with a specific place to go. We were to find the place, find out information, explore the city a little bit, and find our way back to our current accommodations. Sounds crazy right? Especially when you have been in a city for only two days. I loved every bit of it though. I had a partner, and we were to find the tourist information center. We talked with a university student there who also lived in Cato Manor (he said he did not like it). We then spoke to other South Africans, rode public transportation, visited a few museums, and went to a few local shops. The experience was incredible. People were EVERYWHERE. And there are so many Indians, you would not believe. We actually had very good, very cheap Indian food for lunch. It was a good time, and I feel like I got a lot out of just exploring on my own.

Durban is such a nice city with a lovely beach front. It isn’t nice, as SA’s crown jewel, Cape Town is, designed particularly for tourists. Durban has its own unique qualities that remind me much of the more run-down parts of New York. But there is so much cool stuff to do here. I hope I get to do it all. This will, after all, be my home for the majority of my stay here in South Africa.

A few tidbits and interesting things I have observed here: Durban is REALLY hot! And if it is not hot and humid, it’s raining (it is going to rain really soon). The cars drive on the left side of the road, and are crazy at that. Pedestrians have no rights here. Hmm I had much more to comment on in this section, but it completely slipped my mind. OH, there is a famous Durban dish called Bunny Chow. Now, It is Not made from bunnies.but is a mobile-snack with curried meat stuffed into a loaf of bread. It has Indian roots, and is pretty darn good.

I think I have covered everything I wanted to say right now. I get to go to my homestay tomorrow! I will try to post pictures as soon as I can. Bandwidth is very limited right now, unless I go to a net café or something and pay for it… so, just look out.

-until next time!

And it begins!

Hello Everyone!

As many of you know, i have arrived safely in South Africa, and have just completed my first full day here. As described by our Academic Director, today was a 'get over jetlag day" so we spent most of the morning and afternoon being those stereotypical american tourists. My flight was pretty good. the 15 hours wasn't bad at all. I spent most of the time watching movies and eating. I thought there would be wifi, but there wasn't (which was a big bummer for me).

Anyway, we are staying in a bed and breakfast/hostile type of place with WiFi, so if you guys are up at odd hours of the night, get online! the time difference would mean i'm probably online. Actually though, we are leaving Johannesburg tomorrow for our residence in Durban. it will be a pretty long drive, but then we get to go to the beach! The Indian Ocean, (which i heard was warm all of the time) is said to be amazing!

i've had some pretty interesting experiences already. South Africa isn't too much different from the US (at least what i have seen thus far). it is REALLY diverse, and Durban has one of the highest Indian populations outside of Asia. We travelled to Soweto. If you have seen the movie Sarafina, you probably know what I am talking about. Soweto was the site of the 1976 School uprisings which played a part in ending apartheid. The museum was pretty striking, but walking around in Soweto was even more striking. There weren't that many shacks made of cardboard and tin (the way it is represented in the movie). Zed (our academic director) told us that they have done a lot of cleaning up for the world cup. We also visited the Mandela house. It is NOT a mansion. It was VERY small, but humble. Did you know it was an African tradition to bury the umbilical cords and placentae of children under a tree? There is one at the Mandela house. I think that was pretty cool.

Anyway, we also went to a mall, which really did not differ so much from the US. The shops were a tad bit different, in terms of their structure and name, but it all worked out. We then came back to the hostile to chill and hang out.

I was wondering what it would be like, to be a student of color participating on a study abroad trip in Africa, and believe me, it has been interesting. I have already been spoken too in native languages, which I haven't learned yet. I have been given a "deal" with a vendor because I was his "brother from another mother" (I highly doubt it was a deal though...just a marketing ploy so I would buy his products... but hey it worked). I have already had a race conversation with S'du, one of our drivers. He told me in apartheid days i would not be classified as black because if I put a pencil through my hair, it would not stay. That is definitely true now, when I don't have hair, but i do remember in middle school (when I grew my 'fro) that i lost many-a-pencil in my hair...

Anyway, I am sure I will have more experiences to come to share, but overall, it just has been so interesting to look around and see people interacting. The poverty here is tremendous, and because of that people will do anything to get money, which is something to really think about (Structural violence anyone?) Classes have not started yet, and everything here is just really... slow (except for the cars and taxis. you have to watch out, or you will definitely get hit1). I'm trying to adjust from fast-paced busy/intensive university life of previous semesters, but we shall see!

I think that is all for now. Please forgive my grammatical errors, as I did not spell check, and I wanted to get everything down before I go to bed. It's bedtime now! As many of you are probably retiring to your dorms/homes for the afternoon, i'm going to sleep (there is a 7 hour time difference). But if you want to schedule a talk, i have skype, im and facebook AND A CELL PHONE! If you call me, its free for me (and unfortunately costs for you), but just hit me up with an email if you want to schedule a time to catch up.

- Until next time!

Last Day in America

Well, it has been a long time coming, but the day is finally here. I will leave for South Africa tomorrow. I don’t know how I feel. At some points I am excited, at others I am apprehensive. I don’t know what this trip will bring for me. I was told that it would change me, that I would have a good time, and that I should be very careful. I have had so much advice, but it doesn’t seem that practical yet, because I won’t really know where I am going until I am there. My bags are packed though; as I try to make sure everything is in order before I leave. I think I am getting there. I hope to keep this blog updated as much as possible with my adventures. I hope you enjoy!