Blogs from Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa, Africa - page 8

We woke up and had a great all you-can-eat breakfast at the Town Lodge. We slept in a bit which was a god-sent because of what happened. We were at the front desk asking about options to see things in Pretoria. As we went over the map - a call came into the front desk (while we were standing there) for us... It was our safari company - they were going to be late picking us up. Since we thought our safari started on June 6th, we were baffled. Turns out we made an American mistake. The pickup confirmation for the trip said that pickup was on 05/06/10. Not realizing first that it said May 6, 2010 - I was still confused. Then I realized that in SA, as with Europe, they write their dates day ... read more

Driving up the M511 from Fourways to Pretoria, you come upon one of the harsh realities of South Africa, the squatter camp. Now called an 'informal settlement', Diepsloot is one of the largest of them in the Gauteng province with an estimated population of 150,000. Approaching the area, you notice the number of people walking along the side of the road, the makeshift shacks and tables with basic wares for sale, and the feeling of entering into another Africa, one of destitution and poverty. “This is where the government has let them down. All the promises of '94 and this is what they get?” my host points out. We drive past the camp, being sure to avoid the often reckless maneuvers of the many taxi buses turning into the camp. Carrying up to dozen passengers or ... read more

Thursday was the third time that I have gone to the prison ministry. These three visits have really been amazing, especially listening in during the bible study and life skill sessions. The prisoners are beginning to become much more open and vulnerable. Even though there are some language barriers as most of them speak Zulu or other African languages, its unbelievable how much scripture the guys have memorized. They will have long elaborate prayers with scripture quoted throughout. The experience has really made me consider how much scripture I would know without having to consistently look up verses. It is a challenge to myself to spend more time in the Word. Please be in prayer for the prison ministry because 6 or 7 guys will be leaving within the next 3 or 4 months and the ... read more

Well my week of orientation is now complete. I need to make one correction from my last post because I have learned that my host family is definitely not Afrikaans, as I have now had my first real encounter with true Afrikaans, which have an extremely unique accent. My host family, however sound much more European as Dave comes from Switzerland or somewhere near that part of Europe. Now that we have that cleared up I am going to give you a rundown of everything that happened in just one short week. On Monday I arrived at the office and met all of the staff and went over how run a coaching clinic, tournament, and perform sideline ministry. On Tuesday we went to a coaching clinic to assist the Grove City College girls soccer team, which ... read more

So I have successfully arrived in Pretoria, South Africa and have somewhat settled in. I am staying at a host family. They are Dave (father) Justin 22 (son) and Simon 20 (son). They are Afrikaans, white South Africans. Crazy enough, the mother is working in San Francisco, where my girlfriend lives, for the next two years so Dave goes and visits every 3 months. Today was my first day of orientation in the AIS Pretoria office. We basically met everyone in the office and a few other interns, which I am sure I will mention in the future. The exciting news of the day was that I learned that I will be able to participate in a playing tour from June 9th-30th. The tour is basically a team from the US that comes and plays games ... read more