I keep thinking about all of the wonderful things in this country that I love and would never want to change, but the more thinking I do about these things, the more I also start to think about how different things are here than at home. While these things in no way change my feelings toward my experience so far here, there are some differences that I feel are worth noting.
In America: We rarely worry about leaving the doors unlocked, and for the most part feel safe in an un-gated neighborhood.
In Africa: We must go through a gate to get into our apartment complex, then open two different doors in order to get into our flat, then may sometimes lock our bedroom doors, for a total of 4 different points of entry.
In America: We get internet, energy, airtime, etc. all in a packaged deal. We pay once a month and it’s usually unlimited.
In Africa: We pay for each megabyte used on the internet. We are allotted a certain amount of energy and if we go beyond that, we have no lights until we can go to a store and buy more. We pay for airtime by the minute. For each of these things, you buy them at certain stores. For example, I know that Pick ‘N’ Pay sells airtime, I can buy more internet online, and I can go to the hardware store for more energy.
In America: We go to a grocery store and wastefully use new plastic or paper bags each time.
In Africa: We get charged to use a plastic bag from the store. Each bag has its own cost.
In America: Our hot water heaters are conveniently kept out of sight so that we shower in peace, not thinking about how much we use.
In Africa: Our hot water heater is literally in the shower with us. We are thus forced to think about how much we use.
In America: Ketchup
In Africa: Tomato sauce, which is simply not the same.
In America: Cheetos, Cheez-its, etc.
In Africa: Nik Naks- that’s it.
In America: We register for classes electronically, and it takes a total of maybe 10 minutes.
In Africa: We must wait in about 5 different lines, each of which takes at least 15 minutes, then we end up just entering our classes online anyways.
In America: A snowboard rental with the boots is around $50, and the extra one hour less would cost another $50, rounding out to about $100 for the day.
In Africa: A surf lesson for an hour and a half, including the surfboard and wetsuit cost R220, which is about $30.
In America: When we set a lunch date for 12:30, it is rude to show up at 12:35.
In Africa: When we set a lunch date for 12:30, it is acceptable to show up anytime between 12:30-1:30.
In America: When it happens to still be winter, but the temperature is anywhere above 60˚F, we wear shorts (or just pretend its summer).
In Africa: If the season is winter, no matter how warm it is outside, girls wear layers. I mean winter coats, cotton tights, and Uggs.
In America: Taxis are cars that have insurance, pick you up for a certain price, and then get paid based on the distance you traveled.
In Africa: Taxis can mean one of two things. The normal cabs that we are used to- although the price is negotiable. There are also mini buses, that drive the main roads with one guy hanging out the window yelling out the final destination of his mini bus. If you step into one of these, you are probably one of about 15 other people, the price is usually less than $1 US no matter where you want to go, and there is no insurance ensuring your safety in case of an accident.
All of this is something I am becoming more and more accustomed to, the things I am slowly beginning to love about this country.
African Word of the Day: “Lekker”, which means tasty or delicious when referring to food, but can also be substituted into almost any sentence that would have used a word such as “good”, or “great”. Example: “The waves today were fully lekker, bru.”
Here are some new pictures that I definitely think give a good glimpse at all the new things to love about Africa...
Some graffiti I thought was really beautiful in the cute little town of Obs. (Observatory).
HUGE pots of paella at the Old Biscuit Mill on Saturday mornings. So delicious! As was the sangria that I had along with my paella... I was missing my Mexican food.
A typical ride in my new version of a 'taxi'. They're mini buses with usually about 15 people stuffed inside. There's a whole row of people behind us that aren't really visible in this picture!
Greenmarket Square. A great place to find traditional African souvenirs, and a great place to simply walk around and spend the day.
A view of Long Street- one of the main streets that young adults go out on. This is the view from a bar called The Waiting Room.
Muizenberg Beach! I think thats me out there somewhere showing off my rad new surfer skills.
