Impressions of the trip

This is another look at St. George's Cathedral.

Here are some more impressions of this journey.

It was often the small things that were so disconcerting, too. I don't think I ever fully adjusted to driving on the "wrong" side of the road. I got used to it, but driving took effort. The Rand goes in our favor when we travel from the US but I am just starting to get a sense of what some of the coins are. I never stopped staring at the townships next to the highways. The extent of the housing needs here is staggering. I never got used to the people who walk beside the highway everywhere. Even more dangerous are the frequent occasions when people cross the major highways running in between traffic. I don't blame the folks who do this but it seems part of the housing problem and the challenges of the poverty that townships have been built on either side of the highways and this custom, though dangerous, is widespread. And as this is my first trip to the southern hemisphere, it seemed there was something wrong with the sun - like it was inthe wrong place, or came up too late in the day and left too early. It is odd how much our experiences are shaped by the simple rhythms of the sky.

Often the best moments also took me by surprise.
The elephants playing in the road at the big game reserve seemed unaware that some humans were sitting nearby in small vehicles, rapt by their exuberant play.
The sound of singing. This African singing is so joyous, and so often spontaneous. The rhythm is so wonderful and it gets into your body. So many people sang easily and well: AIDS volunteers formed a choir; Sunday school children used their hymnals for percussion; School girls gathering for chapel in Inanda were singing at 7:30 a.m. It made me see that singing is such a natural and life-giving thing to do. It was never a performance, but a part of life - like breathing.

Susan

Wednesday, May 30

Just one day left on this amazing odyssey. Yesterday Sarah and I toured downtown Capetown. We visited St. George's Cathedral, made famous as the church of Bishop Desmond Tutu. It was the place where he called South Africa a rainbow nation, and led the march of 30,000. I found it to be a stunning sanctuary, quite apart from its historic significance.

Sarah and I enjoyed some good time together. She has only a few weeks left here, before she returns to the US in mid-June. This has been quite a significant journey for her, as well.

For my part, I have found that so many of the treasured moments of this trip have been more subtle and affecting than I imagined at first. South Africa is noit a sublte place, at first glance. It has such a melding of races and issues all writ large when you arrive here. The scenery is vast, diverse and beautiful. The wildlife is strange to my eyes, and really wild. These are not zoos we visit. The people blend language and cultures in a new mix that re-defines diversity. My own exposure to so many ministers, professors, and different characters has made this trip rich in many ways.

Even though it would seem there is nothing about South Africa which is subtle, I found the small moments carried the larger significance.

Even for all my planning in advance, it was the chance meetings that brought some of the greatest pleasures. From this vantage - here are a few highlights -

The chance meeting with the school girls in Kwa Mashu. The look on Sarah's face when I greeted her for the first time outside a coffee shop near the University of Cape Town campus. The little girls and boys who studied me in the first church we visited. I realized later that they may not have seen a woman in a collar before, or perhaps they had not seen a white woman in a collar, in their church. The fact that Flo Mandlala wore the cross I gave her to the launch of the AIDS center.

Meeting with Rev. Tim Attwell, Tuesday May 29

Rev. Tim Attwell was the Methodist minister whom I met when I arrived here and went to worship on Sunday May 13. He was quoted in the Cape Times as the spokeman for a group of 19 clergy who raised the issue among the Methodist clergy that pastors should be able to bless same sex unions. The pastors who raised this issue were dismissed temporarily from the conference until the church could determine what to do about this issue. They were promptly re-instated, but the action made the paper. And it seemed quite a coincidence to be there the Sunday after it happened and hear about it from him.

So, I asked if he would meet me to talk. He saw me today in his study at the parsonage of the Rosebank United Methodist Church in Rondebosch. It is an active church and while I waited to see him the church caretaker showed me the soup kitchen where they were preparing to serve 50 homeless people at noon, which they do every Tuesday. Other churches take other days. He arrives at 5:30 to prepare the soup in the morning.

Rev. Attwell met me in his study and we chatted for over an hour. I regret that it seemed rude to ask if I could take a picture for my blog so I cannot show you this pastor who has a great heart for people which has turned him into a prophetic voice.We sat on comfortable brown cordoroy couches surrounded by his theology books, and talked about the progress and challenge of the gospel in our time.

The Cape Times today was full of stories on this topic. 500 clergy and prominent leaders have signed a petition aimed at the South African Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church asking the synod to instate or re-instate gay clergy who have been dismissed because of their sexual orientation. The effort is led by a minister whose son was asked to leave the Dutch Reformed Church because he is openly gay. It looks like that Synod will have to deal with this.

The Progressive Reformed Jewish community in South Africa just decided to allow rabbis to bless same sex unions. So the topic is in the South African news.

Rev. Attwell said that the Methodist churches have not been united in a discussion about justice since the 1980's when concerns about apartheid rocked the church. It is very clear to me that the people who serve these churches have a keen sense of justice which was honed in those days, and which stays clear as they minister in this place.
Susan

Inanda Seminary for Girls Monday, May 28

On Monday we arrived for chapel service at Inanda Seminary for Girls. The story at Inanda is a real story of hope in South Africa. In the 1830's one of the leading missionaries to South Africa was Danial Lindley. He started a seminary for African Boys and then after a number of years his wife, Sarah, insisted on founding a seminary for girls. It was new to insit that African girls needed a high school education. Heri initial concern may have been that young women be suitably educated to serve as minister's wives, but the school has continued to offer educational opportunities to African girls.

Today it has 330 girls and they poured into the chapel and started singing in Zulu on Monday morning. Spontaneously they filled that hall with this glorious sound. The chaplain of the school is a UCC minister names Rev. Susan Valcourt Cuper. She is a missionary appointed by Global Ministries and supported by the church contributions to OCWM (Our Church's Wider Mission). She and her husband, Rev. Scott Cuper, another minister who serves a local church, live with their children on the campus. Susan leads chapel services at the beginning of each day.

Inanda Seminary was almost closed five years ago. The buildings were in disrepair and the UCC could no longer afford to support it. But the alums, called "old girls" are African women who have risen to prominence in their churches and communities. Flo Mandlala, the woman I visited who started the AIDS Care Center in Lamontville, is an active alum of Inanda. She and others were determined to keep the school open. So they took the case to Nelson Mandela, who prevailed upon the major paper industry executives at SAPY. This industry has poured 6 million Rands into the school to begin renovating the buildings. That initial contribution was followed by twice as much again to bring the campus back.

Now it is a great example of a school that is giving African girls a chance to transform their lives through education. I met the headmistress and had breakfast at the home of the chaplain. When it was time for the picture the girls were literally jumping into the photo when I explained that it would go on a website and people in the US would see it. (I thought one girl was really going to hurt herself in her enthusiasm.)

I am experiencing some technical difficulting on this posting, and cannot eliminate the duplicat picture. But if you want to see more and better pictures of this school go to their website - www.inanda.org

Susan

Sunday, May 27 East Woods Church

On Sunday I visited the East Woods church near Pietermaritzburg. This is a church known for its active outreach program in the community.

The church has two ministers. I sat with the Senior Pastor Rev. Awi Boyssen. His associate, an Indian pastor Rev. Vasu preached and led worship.

The people in this church were very gracious and invited me to speak and bring greetings from Needham, which I was happy to do. After the service they also asked me to stand at the door and greet everyone. People greet each other after service saying, "God bless you."

Before the communion took place, the minister invited the children to the altar for a blessing. I took one picture but I doubt that the photo does justice to the tender exchange that took place in this moment. Each child went forward and the minister placed his hands on his or her head and said a blessing. People all over the church were touched by this ritual.

They have an active program to feed the homeless twice a week. It is called a feeding station. They also have a building where they provide child care to AIDS orphans - children living with grandparents or extended family because they have lost both parents to AIDS. They serve 156 children who are AIDS orphans. Awi showed me the expansion that they are trying to build to serve food to more people. He is tireless in his efforts, though it is constant work to raise the money to increase the kitchen. He walked me through the construction site.

Following the service I was invited to the Boyssen home for a chat and Mrs. Boyssen prepared Sunday dinner for all of us, which included a grown daughter and son-in-law.

Awi has his own worries. He and Marie have grown children, but one daughter is HIV+ and her sister, whom I met, is a singer and is trying to raise money to produce a CD to raise money for AIDS treatment. Awi himself, lives with constant back pain after a car accident, but he has a big heart and is tireless in his efforts to help others. It was inspiring to be there.

Susan

Thandalethu Care Center - Launch May 25

On Friday I attended the launch of the Care Center. Thankdalethu means "Our hope." It is the culmination of a dream of ten years on the part of Flo Mandlala. Many town officials - councillors, and representatives of the Mayor of Lamontville Town Ship attended. The local priest gave the opening prayer, and a UCC minister who works for Global Ministries gave the benediction. Scott is supported by UCC church dollars when we contribute to OCWM through out church Outreach budget.

The Care Center is based on the model of the Living Center in Boston. It is a place where people can get medicine for HIV and for TB. It also provides meals so that people will take their medicine with food, and are more likely to keep taking it. At the launch we heard 2 hours of speeches interspersed with singing by the care-givers who have formed a choir. There are 20 caregivers - who are people who go to visit people with AIDS in their homes. Their voices were strong and their message was very uplifting. One of them is HIV+ himself and he spoke. His talk was in Zulu but I could tell that people were very moved. I felt fortunate to have been here for this occasion.

The speakers included a businessman from Durban who contributed to the center, 3 city counsellors, a local doctor who spoke about the deadly combination of TB and HIV. He stressed that TB is preventable but when you have both and fail to take the medicine, it is a lethal combination. Mrs. Hall who has been one of my hosts, also spoke at the launch, as a representative of the Trinitarian Church in Concord, which has supported this AIDS Care Center with their Christmas Offerings.

Following the program we all toured the facility. I have two pictures of it. The garden provides patients with fresh food, and the beds give sicker patients a quiet place to stay, and a hot meal when they are sick all day and no one is at home. The whole event finished with a hot luncheon for all 150 of us. I had visited the center earlier in the week and given the director a small cross. I was so touched that she wore it yesterday.

I continue to be impressed by the great need here and the ways that a little of our support can do a great deal and make a real difference.

Susan

School Children Lamontville Town Ship May 25

When I toured Lamontville Town Ship I visited a Roman Catholic Church and took a picture of one of the paintings on the wall. They had pictures of the life of Christ with Jesus and his disciples as Africans. The whole sanctuary was painted in turquise and black with these brightly painted pictures of the life of Christ on the walls. It was a very joyful presentation of the gospel.

Then I met some school girls who were outside their school. They were not in class because a teacher's strike had shortened the day. So I had the opportunity to talk to them for about 20 minutes. In many ways, this chance meeting was one of the highlights of the trip for me. We really talked.

These 7th graders were fascinated when they realized that I was from the U.S. They told me that they were studying other countries in school. The first thing they asked was about the life expectancy in the US and then they asked if we have HIV. Then we got into this frank conversation about how it is possible to stop HIV but people have to talk about it. They were so eager to talk about it.

They asked about my bracelet which I got from Beads for Life to support women in Uganda who have HIV. We talked about how the ladies made these bracelets out of magazine paper. They asked me how much the bracelet cost and when I told them what it would be in Rands they were amazed at the price. And then I told them the big truth of this whoel trip - the difference in the value of currency and standard of living is what separates us. And I tried to explain that the bracelet which was affordable to me had changed the lives of these ladies who could now pay for their food and buy their own homes. But that was not because I was so rich but because the transfer of income was so much in my favor. It was a big lesson for such a short encounter, but I did not want them to feel so overwhelmed.

But really that has been the lesson of this trip for me. Everywhere you go people are selling African crafts that are made out of our trash. Colored telephone wire is turned into baskets. A man on the beach does sand sculture which is real art and he begs for coins. He is not homeless just an average man with a gift for art. Stones are carved into sculpture. Wood is carved into trinkets. It is all cheap for us.

I bought a few things at the grocery store yesterday and the bill was 35 Rands. Rands run 7 to a dollar so it cost me $5. The great disparity in economic realities is stunning and affects everything.

Then the girls asked if I knew Byonce and I laughed. They asked if I knew Will Smith. They asked if I had met Oprah. Oprah is huge in Africa. There are only a few channels on the television unless you spend a lot on a major dish package. Oprah is on every night at 10 p.m. which must a live feed because she is on at 4 at home. They so wanted me to know someone important and kept asking me about African Americnas they admired. Then I told them that I had gone to hear Desmund Tutu when he spoke at a church in Boston, and I told them he was a great hero to me. They seemed pleased.

When I waved goodbye, one girl told me to say hello to Will Smith.

They also took the time to write their names out because I told them I would put their picture on my website so that people in the US could see them -

Alizwa Mjungula, Lerato Maloyi (She wanted to be remembered as "Princess" because she told me that Americans could never remember her name.) Mitchell Mtombela, Sthembile Nyuswa, Phindile Sicongwane, Snenulanula Mzwilini, Sizakele Nkosi, Zanele Dladla.

Something about this encounter really touched me.

Susan

The Indian Ocean

Today I walked along the Indian Ocean. It was suprisingly warm when the waves came up over my ankles. But the undertow was clear and somewhat alarming to me. The small wave that covered my lower legs shook me considerably, and I almost toppled over. It was strange, and I realized that is what a real riptide feels like. I have been going to beaches all over New England for years, and never felt anything quite like this. I have a real respect for this beach. No one swims, even though it is not really cold.

There is a lovely promenade along the beach that stretches for several miles. I spoke to one of the many people strolling along, and she told me that this beach has really been treacherous since a small tsunami passed through last month. It did real damage to the beach and took out part of the walkway, which I could see. But ever since then the tides have been ferocious. This is winter and people are complaining about the cold, but I have shorts and a tee-shirt on today and feel quite comfortable. But there is no heating in the houses and in the townships the homes get cold at night. So I guess winter is quite a relative thing.

It has been a real treat to stay in this condo on the Indian Ocean. On the horizon there are always major freighters heading into Durban - which is the biggest and busiest port on the continent of Africa. These ships are so far away and yet so substantial, in size that I can only imagine how large they are up close. In my week here I have seen a 12-20 boats on the horizon every day at every hour of the day. So there is a lot of shipping going on here.

Don't worry. I have had my taste of the Indian Ocean. I used to pride myself on swimming anywhere I could. But I won't be swimming here.

Susan

Prayer Group in Kwa Mashu

Kwa Mashu is the biggest township near Durban with 1 million people living there. Today we visited one of five congregational churches connected to the UCC in South Africa in Kwa Mashu. On Thursdays the women go out in groups to pray for the sick. We went to the main church and met the leader of that group and she told us that 30 women go out from there.

Then we went over to one of the smaller churches where we met these ladies to the left. They had a service at 10 a.m. and then went to the home of someone who had a heart condition and had been suffering from the flu for a month. She was a young woman with three children in school. The ladies all wear this uniform to the group. We passed women in red and black and they told us that these were Methodist. Apparently they have a different colored uniform.

It was a great morning. Ruthann delivered prayer shawls from the Trinitarian Church in Concord, and these were in big demand as it is starting to get cold here. Some of the prayer leaders are themselves sick and have been feeling the cold. After a service with a Bible study in Zulu people discussed their faith, and then they called on us to give a greeting from the churches in Massachsuetts. Following the worship we all made a home visit together. Usually there are 2 visits a day. in the homes they all arrive and crowd into the living room where we started and ended with a hymn. The tunes were familiar to me but the hymns were all in Zulu. Often I just hummed along because the singing was so wonderful!

The women were very good to us. Mrs. Mhlongo told me "God must be loving us today, for sending you." Really I felt quite honored to accompany them in their work. They seemed very comfortable praying and they did not need me, but they were so grateful for our presence, which was touching.

Wherever the Halls go they say, Ibandla lami linge lakho - In Zulu, it means, "My church is your church." That is the message of this program.

I only hope that the blessings of this journey will continue to nurture us all as we each reflect on these experiences.

Susan

Game Reserve Tour - Wednesday May 23

On Wednesday the Halls took a trip to a large game reserve called Hluhluwe (pronounced shush louie)Imflozi. It was the hunting land of the king of the Zulu people. I have never seen so many large wild animals so close, in my life. These pictures were taken with my Canon Sure shot and virtually no zoom. These animals were just feet from the car.

In the course of the day we saw a family of elephants, 2 herds of buffalo, many giraffe in groups, zebra by the dozen, Nyala - an unusual animal I was not familiar with- and this male Kudu above. All day we searched for rhino which are hard supposed to be around in this reserve. Finally at dusk, we found 4 white rhino in a ditch trying to get some mud. They were right next to the car. It was an incredible site.

I really never thought that this was a priority - going to this game reserve, but I am glad that the Halls insisted, because I will never forget it. At one point we stopped with about 5 other cars because two male elephants were playing in the road. What huge beasts! They were spraying each other with dust and when then backed up you can bet four drivers put their cars in reverse fast, just to give them plenty of room. They were unaware of us and apparently, they think of cars as just another piece of landscape. But we gave them a wide berth.

Susan

Tuesday, May 22 Lamottville Township

On Tuesday we visited the Lamottville Thumbalethu Care Center. It is a project started by Flo Madlala, the woman in the first picture who is standing there with RuthAnn Hall. This center is based on the model of the Boston Living Center. It is intended as a place for people who are living with HIV.

The nurse in the picture to the left dispenses medicine and a meal to people who come to the care center to take medicine for AIDS. I met one of her patients and talked to him.

The women above are all home visitors who were meeting together to work. They go out from the center to see patients in their homes.

Most people who are HIV+ stay at home while the rest of the family goes to work each day. That means that they stay in smalldark houses all day alone, many too sick to take care of themselves, too sick to cook a meal and too sick to get the proper medicine. So the care center has been a dream of Flo's for over 10 years. She has been very persistent in pursuing this dream, as she had to struggle to get funding and get a lease and raise awareness of the problem.

But the center opened in January and it is a place of great hope for the people who live here. That is what the nameThumbalethu means- "We are full of hope." Certainly the feeling there was hopeful. The care givers were singing as they worked together. Their music was infectious and I found myself singing too.

I had brought a cross from Bethlehem to give to someone here and I gave it to Flo.

Vernon Crooks Game Reserve - Monday May 21

A sabbatical is supposed to be a time when you combine study and new experiences with some recreation. So, on Monday we took a hike in the Vernon Crooks Game Reserve. It is a very large place where animals roam free. It has some hiking trails and and we spent 3 hours there without seeing another person anywhere. Throughout the hike, view from the hillsides were vast and impressive. You could see the Indian Ocean in the distance, and Zulu villages on the hills.

I am staying in Kwa Zulu Natal, this province in South Africa, with the Halls, a couple who attend the Trinitarian UCC Church in Concord for half the year when they live in Massachusetts. For the other half of the year they live here and organize this loose collection of Zulu congregations in the UCC in South Africa that have partnerships with UCC congregations in the Massachusetts Conference. They have been my guides in Durban and have taken me to churches and introduced me to people in the congregations. The Halls explained that the Zulu villages are still run by the traditional system and chiefs assign homes and the land that goes with them.

We hiked for a couple of hours through grasslands and some woods. It was a distance of about 4 miles but seemed much longer to me, for some reason. But the views in every direction were incredible. On this journey I realized for the first time that the sun is in the north, not the southern part of the sky. I have yet to check out the water in the drain in the bathroom, to see which way it circles when it empties. There are simple things like this that dis-orient me from time to time. The sun, for instance, seemed suddenly all wrong. But the hike was wonderful.

Still treking...

Visiting A Zulu Church

Today I worshipped at the Zulu church in Emphusheni a town south and west of Durban. The service very spirited with wonderful music. The African worship music is provided by the singers in the church as they break into parts on familiar hymns like Holy Holy and others. At the end of the service the deacon asked me to offer the prayer and benediction. So I gave them the same blessing that I give each Sunday at home.

Following the service we were taken to the pastor's house for a lovely dinner of lamb and potatoes and vegetables. It was a real Sunday dinner with the deacon there as our host. After service some people initiated a phone call to the Massachusetts congregation in Rockport. They have a partnership with that church and try to call and talk on the phone. The people I am staying with also brought the church a copy of a CD showing them the Rockport church and a photo directory and letter from the pastor. These relationships are only as strong as the connections people make and the time they invest on both sides. But it was wonderful to be here and worship with them today.

After the luncheon we had to wait because the dirt rad at the church was full of people. There was a funeral passing by. They used to have funerals on Saturdays but so many people are dying of AIDS that they have them on Sundays now as well.

Durban is quite different from Cape Town. it is a much more African place with a large Indian population as well as a burgeoning Zulu population. We are staying in a condo on the Iindian ocean which is quite lovely. The sea is beautiful and has a big surf. in the distance there are always majoy tankers and ocean liners, as Durban is the busiest port on the continent.

In many ways I do now really fell that I am a world away. But in the service we talked about how we are all one through Jesus Christ and the powerful concept of his body which incorporates us all.

May the Living Christ be with you all.

Susan

Our Improptu safari

Here is the type of wildlife you can see from the road in this part of the world. Apparently the baboons are a real nuisance. We saw one from the road. It was sitting next to a garbage can trying to get some food. The snack chop operator at the top of Cape Point, near the light house told us that she has to shut the doors carefully at dusk as the baboons try to get into the shop to get food. They are much more agile than racoons and quite bright, so there are signs everywhere warning you about them. Though we looked everywhere we never saw one except from our car. This is quite an adventure.

Cape Point

Thursday's trip to Cape Point may have been my favorite of the week. I have never seen such incredible shoreline driving, anywhere. The little towns along the coast on the way to the point are all quite charming and the point is stunning. There is good hiking there too all along the cliffs. The surf is exhilerating.

On the way back we experienced our own little impromtu safari. We saw ostritch by the road - a family of these mammouth birds was feeding at dusk, and we found a beach where the penquins nest. There were hundreds of them, and we walked along the boardwalk. They seem to honk when they lay eggs or something. Ths sound is quite distinctive and deafening at times. It was fun. We ended the day at a restuarant in Cape Town - Mama Africa. Most people were eating cariboo stew and sprinbok steak, quite exotic. After viewing ostritch on the road I could not quite imagine having one for dinner, even if it does taste like chicken.

Table Mountain Pictures

Safari

On Tuesday we went to a Game Reserve which runs a tour business. It is based on the safari fantasy really. You arrive early in the morning and they have a breakfast buffet served on linen tablecloths. Following breakfast they take you out into the 45,000 acre reserve. We were quite fortunate and saw a lot of animals. Unfortunately, without a powerful zoom lens I cannot really show you what we saw. I think that there are animals under the rainbow on the right but it will be difficult to distinguish until I play with the pictures a bit.

And you can see that I got friendly with the cougar that they have there. We each had a turn with her. She was turning toward me to snuggle alittle when Sarah snapped this picture. I was a little nervous. out on the range we saw elephants, springboks, hippos, white rhinos, all in families. In a separate enclosuse they are introducing a lion family. The big discover of the day for me was that male lions are every bit as beautiful and compelling as people say. The one I saw moved with such a dancer's elegance, and seemed more at ease with himself than almost any creature. He was oddly compelling, though living in a large fenced area.

Classes at the University of Cape Town

On Monday I attended class with Sarah. I had wanted to go to one class, but found them to be so interesting that I went to all three classes. on one I heard a lecture about the Truth and reconciliation Commission; in another I heard about a healing ritual in the indigenous San religion; and in the final class I heard the best description of the colonial roots of the genocide in Rwanda that I have ever heard. In fact the last lecture was so good that I returned on Wednesday to hear its conclousion. I feel quite sure I took more notes than most of the students there. It is funny what you do when you are not required. To say that the campus is beautiful hardly does it justice. And the class discussions are expecially fascinating because they bring together opinions of many students from Africa, Europe and the US. There are about 20,o000 students and 500 American exchange students.

Sunday

On Sunday, quite by chance I found a Methodist church down the road from the guest house. The pastor was not scheduled to preach that day but wasthere because he was in the middle of a Methodist conference all week, in which he had led a walk-out of clergy who questioned the bishops decison to refuse to allow the clergy to bless same-sax marriages. After judicial hearing it was determined that he and the other clergy (19 in all) would be re-instated and there would be more discussions of this issue in the Methodist church in SA. His explanation of the synod procedings came after a good sermon and several nice prayers. I was already a fan ,but when he told us his story at the end of the service I was so amamzed that somehow I had been drawn to this very church, on this particular day. It seemed beyond odd. Of course I gave him my card. and introduced myself at the door. It seems Massachusetts is known the world round on this issue, if nothing else. It was amazing to have the opportunity to appreciate how this issue pulls people apart and draws us together on many continents.

After church we went to Kistenbosch Gardens. Mother's Day was celebrated here too and the gardens were full of families with picnics. Aparently this is winter weather here. No winter I have ever experienced has been like this. It is balmly breezy and lovely most days.

After the garden we went to Camps Bay to watch the sunset. The water was cold ( ala Maine) but the beach was beautiful.

Pictures of Table Mountain

Here are some pictures from Table Mountain

Arrival and Viewing Table Mountain

Our plane landed on Saturday morning. I had a wonderful weekend here. The weather is quite beautiful and the scenery here is lovely. My guest house in Rondebosch is within walking distance of the University of Cape TOwn. I met Sarah in the little town and she showed me her house and I met some of her housemates, girls from several American universities. They are a lovely group and quite compatible. in some ways the peopel who select such a destination have already determined that they will have something in common and they seem to get along very well.

We toured the university which was built by Cecil Rhoades. It crowns the hill overlooking Cape Town. Sarah wanted me to see everything on Saturday, so we went up Table Mountain, the splendid flat-topped mountain which is an important landmark in Cape Town. It is a steep climb even in a car and then took a cable car to the summit. When Sarah came here in High School her group hikes up - an all day journey. But the cable car is beautiful and it rotates during the ascent, and features glass on all sides. Actually, the cable car has a website and you can see the view from the homepage if you google Table Mountain Cable car.

From the top of Table Mountain you can see the water around the city and the whole city at your feet. It is a spectacular view. We spent an hour hiking around on the top and then went down again. That night Sarah invited some friends to dinner with us on the waterfront. It was a great way to meet her friends and have several hours together to get acquainted.

They were quite happy to pile into the back of the rented car. People all have small cars here and think nothing of sqeezing in. The biggest challenge so far has been the driving. I had no idea how disorienting it might be to have to learn to re-think the driving, and spend so much conscious energy on something which has been done somewhat unconsciously for close to 40 years. I still need prompts when I make a turn so that I don't make the mistake of entering on the wrong side of the road into a line of on-coming traffic. But the people here have been very helpful and I have only dinged the hubcaps a few times so far. It is sort of comical, when I get past the anxiety.
Labels: Table Mountain draft by Susan 1:45:00 AM Delete

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May 10th

The plane leaves tonight, and I expect to spend two nights in transit with one day in London on Friday. I hope to reach Cape Town on Saturday morning. This spring weather is so lovely and long-awaited in New England that it is hard to concentrate on all the details of this trip. But now I am down to the minutiae of re-considering the bites in the camera chip.

Soon enough, this adventure will begin. Certainly, there will be some relief in knowing that there is nothing left but to go.