Border Crosser: Five Countries, Five Months, One Big Adventure: Langa Lyfe

Currently I am sitting in one of the many coffee shops that I frequent downtown, trying to scavenge for wifi as I do ever Sunday. This time feels a bit different though, because I couldn't simply walk downtown from my old homestay on Signal Hill, but instead waited around the mini-bus rink for 45 minutes in Langa, take a 20 minute trip around the mountain, and then walk 15 minutes for a comfortable place to sit and do work. Life in Langa has been really tough. I feel awful saying this, but I am not the happiest of campers. I lucked out in Sao Paulo and Bo-Kaap with amazing families who made me feel like I was actually living in a home. This isn't the case here. My family here is a big 'ol estrogen party consisting of Mama (a 60-something woman), her 19 year old daughter Shikleh, her 40-something daughter Luleke, and Luleke's 12 year old daughter Prudy. The fact that Libbe (my great IHP homestay sister) and I take cold bucket baths, combat rodents in the roof, wash dishes that have been stagnating in dirty water for two days, or sleep in beds that are broken/smell of urine are all things that blow but are survivable. It's mostly that we have yet to make a real connection with any of them that goes above watching Beyonce's “Life Is But A Dream” documentary or hearing them talk about how much they dislike the neighborhood. Mama and Luleke do not work and from what I can gather spend all day watching soap opera's in Xhosa and cook, which is a far cry from my last two homestay mothers who were some of the hardest working women I have ever met. My Bo-Kaap family had also warned me about the food in Langa, but I am by no means a picky eater and was not worried. Unsurprisingly, they were right. My program pays each host family a stipend for food for us, but the real reason why most families take us on is because they genuinely want an extra guest, or to better understand American culture. The stipend isn't much, but should cover a substantial breakfast and dinner each day for us plus a little bit extra for the host family. Lo-and-behold, on the first morning we arrived in Langa we were woken up by the sound of a handyman painting the home and fixing the pipes. Libbe and I didn't think much of it, but once we started receiving meals that look as if spoiled food has been used, are ¼ the size of the plates they serve themselves, or not at all (like dinner last night) I kinda came to the conclusion as to where our food stipend is going to. I feel awful complaining and acknowledge that I am inherently coming from a place of privilege, but I can't shake the feeling that this home just does not feel like a home. My family in the Bo-Kaap were not particularly well off, but their warmness and engaging personalities more than made up for what was physically lacking. Here, Libbe and I are basically forced to sit by ourselves in our room and chat since we aren't allowed outside of the home by ourself (Mama's rules...) and since we aren't really acknowledged by them in the home. But, I leave on Friday for Vietnam and just keep reminding myself that this isn't permanent.

But now I'm going to take a break from the negativity and talk about all the great things that are happening here in Cape Town. Last week was amazing, mostly because weren't forced to sit in our classroom until Friday. Monday was our “Green Day” and took trips to the Rondelevi Nature Reserve and Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens as a class. This botanical gardens is quite honestly the most beautiful place I have ever been to before. Situated on the base of Table Mountain, it boasts drop-dead gorgeous view of the mountain as well as a seemingly uncountable amount of flora that are endemic to South Africa. They even have a Succulent Garden (yes, there is a God) and an Extinct Garden were they cultivate plants that have become extinct in the wild. We spent the day smelling herds in the aromatic garden, tromping through their Seed Bank, and chasing Guinea Fowl through the fields.

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were devoted to our case studies. For case studies we split into groups of five and traveled to organizations dealing with our individual topics so that we can formulate a comprehensive 40 minute presentation on the Friday. Millie, Jake, Zoe, Sophie, and I were the “Environment Group” (surprise, surprise) and had a ball. On Tuesday this amazing man named Nazeer took us around the Philippi Horticultural Area, which is a 3,000 hectare plot of land in the middle of the city deemed “Cape Town's Breadbasket”. It's currently being threatened by a housing development that would not even serve the families living in informal settlements on the land and the imminent expansion of the urban edge. We met with farmers, tried some kale, and marveled at the flamingos that mingle with cattle and carrots on the land. Traveling to the PHA was also amazing because I gained some invaluable insight into my Comparative Analysis Project on food security. Wednesday we trekked to SANCCOB (by my cousin David's recommendation) which is a grant-funded organization that works to protect and rehabilitate African Penguins. Spending a few hours laughing and playing with chubby penguins was not a rough way to spend the day. I never realized how big of a draw these penguins are for tourists, and learned that they bring in R$14.5 million a year from gate entry at Boulder's Beach alone. Insane. Thursday, we trekked by train to the winelands of Stellenbosch. Since our professor Ingrid came with us and managed to get us lost (meaning we didn't have time to drink wine...) we had to take a six person tuk-tuk through the town in order to make our appointment at the Sustainability Institute and adjacent Eco-Village. Our tour guide Katie took us through this “eco-oasis” that hosted a kresh (kindergarden), Montessori school for children who suffer fetal-alcohol syndrome (their way of giving back to a community that used to be paid for their farm labor in wine) and 46 homes that were all built using alternative and sustainable building materials. While I did enjoy seeing model informal homes that were built entirely of sandbags from Cape Flats sand, biodigesters implemented in a few homes that convert human waste to methane, and bricks stronger than cement made from clay and straw, I couldn't help but think critically about the Eco-Villages main goal. They spoke of how these building materials and biodigesters can change the way of life for those living in informal settlements but they have yet to implement any of these lofty plans into informal settlements and as of now do not have any plans to.

On Friday night 8 of us girls decided to rent out a room in a hostel downtown and go out for once since the insane amounts of work we have are really bringing us down. After taking a long, hot shower in the hostel (which I didn't feel too bad about considering their hot water is heated entirely by solar power) all of us swapped clothes, did each others make up, and blasted some Kendrick Lamar while getting ready. I finally felt like I was actually a college student and not a semi-functioning zombie! After having a ball at a 90's Hip Hop themed party and a few other bars we decided to call it a night and slept for eons in our comfy hostel beds. Saturday morning a few of us met up with my friend Griffin at his beautiful home which he is sharing with 15 other UNC students. We spent the afternoon braiing, hanging out on their porch, chatting, and comparing our respective study abroad experiences. While we did feel a little bit miffed about how much free time they seem to have and the vast amount of things that they have done while in Cape Town, I think my friends and I came to a common consensus afterwards that we probably are in the right program for our interests. It was so relaxing though to hang out with other students our age who we haven't spent the last 8 weeks in super close quarters with and Griffin's friends are all really really cool. In fact, a few of us made plans to come back downtown Tuesday night and climb Signal Hill to watch the sunset and then go to karaoke with them. But until then, I have 5 papers to write before my flight to Vietnam leaves on Friday!