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Published: March 5th 2010
Two more weeks have past and now just over a week until im off to Thailand. Heres whats been going on...
Volunteering
Im loving working at the school and have become attached to many of the kids. I'm not really supposed to have favorites but I cant really help myself! In my classroom there are eight kids. Two of them, Candy and Leo have Down Syndrome and they are SO CUTE. Candy has a freckle on her hand and just stares at it all day, then looks at her other hand which doesn't have one and goes back and forth. She has such a big personality and I wish I spoke her 'language' because I know she would be hilarious. Leo is the biggest sweetheart. Everyday when I enter the classroom I kneel down and hold my arms out and he gets up with the biggest smile and runs to give me a hug and yells "YAY YAY YAY YAY". I have also taught him a game my uncle played with me when I was young where you press your nose and that makes your tongue stick out, then pull your ear and your tongue moves to that side, then your other ear and it moves to the other side, then touch your chin and your tongue sucks back in. We play this game about a hundred times a day but it never gets old for him, every time my tongue sucks back in he starts to giggle. Another student I have become attached to is Unati. When first entering the school I never would have thought I would grow to care about her as much as I have because she is much more difficult. She is 17 and have a very advanced form of Cerebral Palsy which means she pretty much sits in her chair all day, or lays on the table drooling. She is incredibly difficult and messy to feed and has little to no communication. At first I was scared to play with her and I didn't know what to talk to her about, but after seeing the teachers speak to her and treat her like a baby I decided to talk to her as if she was my own age and one of my friends. I honestly believe that this has made a difference with her because when I speak to her she moves her head and looks at me and when I hold her hand she squeezes it. These are things that even the physical therapist couldn't believe she could do!
So all in all I'm LOVING my placement at the disabled school. It has definitely been a challenge and one that I didn't think I would get much out of.. but man, was I wrong.
Masi
Many volunteer companies have stopped sending people to the township where I work called Masi because many so many are getting robbed at knife or gun point and some have even gotten stabbed. For me it doesn't feel unsafe but last week two of the other girls on my project were robbed at knife point on the main road in the middle of the day. Other people even saw it happening but did nothing about it. I haven't felt unsafe in Africa much at all but things like that remind me where I am and to be cautious.
Table Mountain
So on Tuesday I climbed Table Mountain with my friend Izzy. It is 1,086 meters high. It didn't look very high before climbing it, so Izzy and I both thought we could do it in half the suggested time. But it is much higher and much steeper then it looks. About 1/2 of the way up I was more exhausted then I have ever been in my life. While climbing there is barely any shade so we were climbing in the hot summer African sun. But as I've said in a previous blog entry, the journey makes the destination so much more enjoyable. The views on top were amazing and made me feel incredibly small. On top I rewarded myself with a big juicy burger and a beer which was the perfect end to the climb!
Cape Town Nights
We have gone out clubbing in Cape Town a couple of nights now and I'm becoming familiar with the hot spots. My favorite places are Baghdad Cafe where its lack of character gives it character, and The Waiting Room with its many bars and balcony's. Each time we have gone out we have met up with "team surf" who are four guys who work on the surfing project teaching township kids how to surf. They are from NYC, Norway and Malawi-- an interesting mix! Cape Town nights are always late nights which end with some of us trying to watch the sun rise but falling asleep just before.
Boulders Beach
One thing that most people don't know about Africa is that there are penguins. They are called Jack Ass penguins and live on a beach one town over from Fish Hoek. I went to Boulders Beach with three other girls this week. I was SOOOO excited! For those of you who don't know, penguins are my favorite animal followed closely by flamingos. I loved seeing them but I loved swimming with them even more! We were in their natural environment and I felt like I was just hanging out with them. At one point we were sitting on a rock just chilling with them and the man next to me was sticking out his foot saying "bite me bite me bite me" Suddenly the penguin lunged forward and bit the mans big toe! He was in pain but my friends and I couldn't help but laugh in his face... it served him right!!
Things I've learned while living with the English
1. They really do LOVE their tea. Especially with biscuits and they get very excited about it.
2. They are very polite and even if someone is rude to them, they still use please and thank you. (ex. Cape to Cuba)
3. There is no English accent. Some are beautiful but others are impossible to understand.
4. They don't speak perfect English and are rarely grammatically correct.
5. They really do believe that England is the best country.
6.When something is wrong or has upset them they don't like to talk about it.
7. Tea is much more then a drink. For example, "What are you having for tea?" can translates to "What are you having for dinner?"
8. A "brew and buttie" is a staple daily ritual that one cannot go without.
9. Sayings like bloody hell, oi, blimey, oh my life and man alive are used daily.
10. They don't all have short hair and bad teeth.
The time is going by so quickly and I'm going to be really sad to leave all my friends again. I am looking forward to begin over landing again and the sites it will bring.
And heres a special shout out to Zoe for her 19th birthday!!! I hope you have an amazing day and it will be great to go out with everyone when were all 19 and LEGAL back home!
I will update again before I leave Africa.. only 10 days left in the most amazing continent!!! xoxo
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julianne Villella
non-member comment
i loooooooooved this update! the volunteering sounds great liney i am so happy you are enjoying yourself there and learning about physio therapy and things you may want to do. 10 days left in africa? but then u go to asia n australia? i CANNOT believe theres 10 days left in africa, when before you left you were telling me about your little laser water cleaner and the suringe you packed incasse u needed one there! and good thing u havent needed it yet. keeeep staying safe! your on the best adventure linnney i love you CANT WAIT to party with the newww caroline. p.s. u small thang on the top of that mountain!