The first big adventure- It has taken 6 weeks!

I love getting post especially when I know that my mum has sent me tea bags. It was like giving me a new pair of shoes!! Yes tea bags get me excited. It’s a small reminder of home. In the Bantry I have teapot so I can drink as much tea as I want. I still try to have my three o’clock tea. My mum will know exactly what this is about. I also loved the letter as I heard all about the gossip. Mum you defiantly know me inside out.
So now I have written a small paragraph on tea I should and focus on me in South Africa.

Oh also I want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM…hope everyone is spoiling you, you deserve it!

This weekend seen the first adventure out of Port Elizabeth, it has taken 6 weeks but we were happy to explore PE. So the adventure was a 45 minute drive to a seaside resort called Jeffery’s Bay. We packed out bags and waited on the boys. They take forever to get ready. Guys your beautiful and don’t need to take an hour getting ready every time we want to go out. We hired a car from the airport with Marco driving. Of course Marco forgot his passport so the first stop was back to the airport. We got all the correct documents sorted and headed of to J Bay but we had our first indecent. Macro reversed into a the road used as a entrance, blocked the car park with maybe five cars waiting to get out and maybe 4 waiting to come in and in the middle was a police car! He just gave us dirty looks. I thought to myself this is going to be a long drive……

Then we out drove into a township and past the same building twice. We were still in view of the airport and had been driving 15 minutes. We finally found The N2 and set off. The hostel which we were staying in was beautiful and we had a room to ourselves. The only problem was the owners dog took a liking to Stine and I. We were the only two who didn’t like the dog!
The weekend was jam packed with cycling through a township, shopping the surf shops, eating hot Mexican food (too hot for me), shell collecting and sand boarding which is like snow boarding only on sand. We only had one injury which is surprisingly good. We also had another who got a face full of sand. The area in which we sand boarded was beautiful, South Africa is a beautiful country. We also stopped off at a waterfall which is located in the country, it is a beautiful. People were chilling, jumping into the pool and of course having fun. This weekend was chilled and prepared us for a busy week ahead with tests for some, assignments and group work. The work is starting to come thick and fast!

We had a conversation about if we think we are in Africa. I have to admit I don’t. I forget that I’m in Africa. The sight of townships are becoming normal, I starting to get used to beggars and my personal safety being at risk. There are very poor people here and if you show your nice camera or flash your money people who can’t afford food will steal. They don’t have any other choice. I worry about tourists coming to SA for the world cup. There are also been the issue of safety in SA but people need to understand that people are poor. I hope people who are coming here to the world cup respect the way in which people live and understand that although this is seen as rich Africa there are people who are still poor.

When cycling through the township, I asked Stine if she believed that the people who grew up in a township will they ever have the opportunity to leave. As I said in my last blog, it’s not about what you have but your family and friends. Although I’m sure people are happy but how happy can they be living in some of the areas of a township. For people who haven’t seen a township, they are build on dirt paths, with rubbish everywhere. I don’t know if there is a service available here but I would think that there isn’t. I have to admit the townships here is hard for me to accept. I find it difficult that people are living in these conditions!! Africa has two sides, the rich and the poor. Some areas are just like home and others are definitely not!

I have another busy week ahead so I probably will write my blog later than normal. Exciting times are too come! ..:)..

Written with love, Jayne xxxxx