Friday Feb. 4, 2011
Today has been so fun! :) it’s days like today that make me want to stay in South Africa :) After dropping Jess off at the Airport and then running some errands, Franklyn took me Morgan and Jamie out to KFC and got us some chicken and ice cream. Then we came home, went to the internet for a bit and then the whole family went to the beach! :) it was me, Jamie, Morgan, Jean, Franklyn, and then their other son’s son Kingston and their daughter’s daughter Mika. It was way fun, we just relaxed and swam and tried to body surf. After getting home and eating dinner Jamie and I went to the mall and bought a movie ticket, we still had an hour before the movie started so we went to Pick n’ pay and we got some “fizzers” they are one of my favorite candies here so far. Then we went back to the mall/theater and we watched “The Tourist”. It was pretty good :) I probably wouldn’t buy it but it was good :) It was so so hot and humid today, it was the perfect day to go to the beach that’s for sure :) so much fun :)
Thursday Feb. 3, 2011
The project was crazy again... I hope I get transferred soon... It’s just really hard and I’m starting to wake up in the mornings dreading getting up... And I don’t want to do that.
After the project we went to go catch the train and waited for about an hour for just one train to show up. But when it got there we didn’t make it on because it was so full that people were literally overflowing from the doors. There were even people standing on the “string” of metal holding the cars together. So I called Franklyn and he was able to come pick us up. He said that he thinks that the train conductors are on strike for more pay. After getting home Jess, Jamie, Nathanial and I walked to the store and got wine and juice to throw Jess a going away party and say farewell. Then we stayed at home and just talked and had fun :) later that night we all got into bed and were falling asleep and then Nathanial called and said that him Morgan and Celeste were almost there haha so we got out of bed and let them in and then we all stayed up talking for a couple more hours. Fun stuff :) they are really great people.
Wednesday Feb 2, 2011
Today was sure more exciting than yesterday. It was a really good day. :) we started the day off at the project and fed them breakfast and then did the morning circle and then got them started on the class with Alliouse. Jamie got covered in diarrhea by one of the kids haha. Luckily it was just her arms and she was able to wash up. But it was kinda funny. Around 10:30 in the morning Olive took us to a school in Lavender Hill they have kindergarten-7th grade. Turns out that this area is one of the worst areas. The school Is surrounded by 5 different gangs who like to have “wars” they have shootings pretty constantly... And they shoot right though the school grounds. Turns out, this happened just an hour before we had gotten there. Luckily we were held up trying to tour another school. But when the principal was telling us about this she said that the building is so old that it has rotted wood, so when there are shootings it is dangerous because the building could collapse. Make note she was worried about the building, not about the fact that there were gangs having shootings through their elementary school’s campus. Shootings aside, it was really good for us to see these students. Jamie and I know now that if the surf project doesn’t work out and get started then we want to work with the older kids because we feel like we would be able to make a bigger difference in their lives. This school has the same problems that our place does. Olive said something that suck out to me. She said that these parents teach their kids things but they teach all the wrong things. They know where babies are conceived but they don’t know that milk comes from a cow. And it is so so true. I thought that that pretty much nailed it.
After we visited the school we had Olive drop us off at the station and we took a train to Simon’s Town where we talked all the way down to the end of the boardwalk, paid 40 rand and were able to swim with Penguins!!! :) it was so much fun :) the water was really cold but we got in. :) and of course we took a bunch of pictures and then layed on the beach for a while but then we came back home, ate, and watched tv. Tomorrow is Jess’s last day! :( so sad
Tuesday Feb. 1, 2011
Today was kind of boring but the project was really crazy. One of the days that I was kind of frustrated again. Allouise had me write an evaluation of the class and I basically said that nothing is being or will be learned by these children until they learn how to respect. Other than that it is just a waste of time. It’s so hard because there is no parent that actually really cares enough to teach their kid how to listen or how to show respect. Its so frustrating. After the project we got on the internet for like 5 minutes and then came home, ate, watched the news and got ready for bed. Nothing to exciting haha
Monday Jan 31, 2011
Today was a good day :) this morning at the project we helped wrote out the names of the kids in dots and tried to teach them how to connect the dots so they can write their name. Probably the first educationally productive thing we’ve done since we got there. We left at lunch and walked to Morgan’s house and he showed us his recording studio :) he made each of us go in and basically talk about nothing for a song and he put the song together with our words and made a song haha it was fun. When we got back to the project we purt the kid’s shoes back on and we fed them and then they went crazy. At one point we made them all sit up against the wall and Me, Jamie, Jess, and Mrs Olive put on a little play of goldie locks and the three bears. Haha I think maybe more than half of them were watching so that was really good haha. But then they went crazy again.
When we got home we ate and then had a mini history lesson form franklyn I guess up intil 1994 EVERYTHING was segregated and they had white only, colored only, and blacks only. I can’t even imagine living like that. I was 5 years old and things like this were still going on. So crazy.
After dinner Morgan and his wife Celest and Nathanial came over it was so much fun :) we all just relaxed and Celest was trying to teach me Afrikans and then we all tried to do the splits. Pretty random night, it was great :)
Sunday Jan. 30, 2011
I got to church today! :) Jean and Franklyn took me :) it was so exciting. Everything was exactly the same as church at home, which I was expecting. But it was so awesome to just have that testimony builder to know that all over the world we have the same doctrine. Anyway, I saw a missionary there, his name is Elder Barker and he is from pocatello and went to BYU-I while I was there. The whole time I was looking at him I knew he looked familiar but I have no idea where I know him from. I think I might have thought he was someone else but then he just happened to be from Idaho as well. It was crazy though. Went to all the classes, they don’t have enough YSA’s for a singles ward so they just had their own class, so I went there instead of gospel doctrine or what not. There were 8 YSA’s I met them all and a couple stuck out and were really really nice :) one of them is a girl named Zingy, she was the one that gave the lesson, I think she has a kid, she was always inviting me to sit by her and was showing me around and what not. Then I got some people’s numbers. They are starting up institute this Thursday and that should be exciting :) after church I started to walk home and walked for about 15-20 minutes because I couldn’t hail a minibus... But then I looked around and saw a minibus so I waved him down and then people started honking at me right when I was about to get in! So I was like oh crap did I do something wrong? But then I realized that it was two cars full of the people I had just met in class at church! So I told the minibus never mind and got in with Zingy and another friend named Sharon and they took me home :) so nice :) after getting home, eating and talking with Jean for a bit I hand washed all my laundry. Then Jamie and I went to the second session of church with Jean and Franklyn. They are the pastors for their own church so we got to watch Jean do a sermon. Also Morgan and Nathanial are in the band and did a really really really good job. It was fun. It was cool to see so much Afrikans being spoken. And they were able to go back and forth from English to Afrikans so easily it was amazing. :)
Yesterday I was on the train and I got to listen to two ladies speaking Xhosa (cosa) and they click while they are talking. It was pretty neat. One of those moments where I realized I am in South Africa :)
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