This magical place
Every night
I went to bed in Cape Town, attempting to process how incredible the day was,
and in my mind I thought that it couldn’t get any better. Yet every day during
our adventures I was blessed to find that each day was better than I could have
ever dreamed.
We went to
the Scalabrini center two different days for full day meetings. We met several
different organizations that addressed different problems in South Africa.
There was one organization that worked to empower women, since women aren’t treated
equal in South Africa. They would work to get what they call a “stockveld”
going, where women all donate money to one woman to start her business and when
she makes profit pays back so another woman can start hers. They have a woman
get trained in a skill for a cheaper price than traditional school and then
when she is a “master” she will teach the classes and get a small compensation.
This worked well at giving these women steps to independence and not having to
rely on a man to completely support them. There were a lot of men who worked in
the “women’s empowerment” sector to help
break traditional stereotypes about women. They viewed this as a way to stop
the spread of HIV/AIDS and empower women to have a say in their protection.
Traditionally in a lot of Southern Africa countries, the woman is there to
clean, to cook, and to have children and the man supports the family
financially. Most women don’t report domestic violence, assaults or rapes,
because sometimes the system is corrupt and the police aren’t even a safe call.
In the past women weren’t taken seriously for their rights, especially if it
was accusing over a man. They said rights are more liberal in Cape Town, but
there are major issues in surrounding countries. I spoke to a woman that
believed if her husband didn’t beat her, he didn’t love her. …. I didn’t have
words to respond right away. What do you say to a woman that honestly believes
that is okay because of her culture? I just told her it pains me to hear that
because where I am from that is not acceptable and would not be tolerated. A
beating to here was a term of respect, that her husband wanted her to be
better, whereas where we are from in The States, that is a harsh form of
disrespect. It made me feel better to know that there are men in the program
that work with women to show them that they deserve respect, that they can be
independent, and that there are men that support women’s rights. At the Scalabrini
center we also talked about the “LGBTI” community support. They said Cape Town
fortunately is more liberal, but there is a large amount of refugees because
most of Africa is not tolerant. “Africa is not a gay country”. We watched a
video of some of the refugee’s stories and it was so difficult to watch. This
guy moved to South Africa and his family didn’t know why he did at first, and
eventually learned he was gay. His mother told him, she wishes she aborted him if
she knew he would be gay. He tried to have conversation with his family and
support his rights and his mom tried to convince him to drink gasoline and
called it “medicine”. When that failed is family all ganged up and beat him
unconscious, he thought he was going to die. He was very lucky to have
survived. I can’t imagine what that
would do to someone, when you loved your family and grew up supporting each
other and to come out and be yourself, and the same people that raised you turn
around as your enemy. I just feel like I take for granted so many little things
in life that I’m blessed to have. I don’t think about thanking my family for
accepting the way I am and respecting me as a person, let alone being thankful
they never stripped me of my humanity and beat me to death. Each day these
amazing people fight for their rights against a society with such negative
stigma around the “LGBTI” community. “Let’s face the facts” works to show
traditional people how historically there have been gay people throughout time
and it isn’t a new concept. They aim to share their story and discuss rights on
the streets. Sometimes it is scary, they said people often say “In my country,
they’d kill you, and they should.” How fortunate we are to be taking steps
forward and legalizing gay marriage. Even though there are unfortunate acts of
violence that still exist, at least we don’t live in a country where you could
be killed for being yourself. Desmond Tutu even shared “I’d rather go to hell
than to live in a homophobic heaven.” We also had an organization that focused
on sexual education and it was very hard for me to listen to. The explanation
of HIV/AIDS was very poor and it shocked me that not a single student from the
center new what it was. How could a place where it is the highest prevalence in
the world not be informed of even the basics of HIV/AIDS. It was hard to watch the students look
confused and not really follow even the basics of protection. While some
students didn’t know anything, one student was a doctor, way more educated than
the teacher, yet stood in the back and listened to what I considered elementary
and misinformed information. The Scalabrini center utilizes an internship where
you work actively in programs, help educating and hopefully by the end have a job.
I thought they did an awesome job at including multiple classes and resources
to help with so many aspects of life for refugees. It seems like a great
opportunity to start a project with them, considering they are trying to expand
their HIV/AIDS prevention sector.
We spent an
entire day on a Cape Peninsula tour. I thought the views from Table Mountain
were the most beautiful views, but this place was even more amazing. We started
of by Camps Bay Beach and the 12 Apostles, which we had visited at sunset a few
evenings. You have a view of the ocean and the beach in one!! . Next, we stopped at Hout Bay Harbor, Chapman's Peak
Drive, and visit the Penguin Colony in Simon's Town. It seemed so unusual to see tons of Penguin’s
in Africa of all places, especially when We then went to the Cape Point Nature
Reserve where we cycled through the reserve with the mountains in the
background. It was such a cool experience to be biking through such a beautiful
park. After lunch we hiked to the Cape of Good Hope where the Atlantic and
Indian Ocean meet. This has been my favorite view, I don’t think pictures could
ever do it justice, we all felt like we were in a dream. When we got back we
went out to Long Street, which is the South African Burbon Street and had a lot
of fun!! It was just sad to see women and children in the street begging.
Homelessness is a problem in a lot of major cities, that it was quite the
experience to explore John Philmon’s Youth Solutions Association (YSA)
organization. First of all, this man is always happy and positive. He told me
he grew up in one of those poor townships we visited and didn’t have any money
or support. What he did have was a positive attitude and a creative mind. He
said he has to keep positive and smiling because the people he works with
already lack hope and his optimism will carry on. He went with us to feed the
townships and play with the children there. He also has a soup kitchen for
homeless people to come and eat and he tries to convince them to stay at the
homeless shelter. He doesn’t like to turn away people, he said there is good in
everyone, sometimes you have to search for I, sometimes people are hidden in
their drug addiction, were raised in low income, don’t have support and simply
don’t see a way out. His mission is “people empowering people” he tries to give
homeless people a chance to get on their feet, start working for him eventually
and in turn inspire his community. Let people realize that they can make
something of nothing, if they are willing to try. Sometimes we all just need a
push, someone to believe in you, something to believe in, to envision a future
and that is what John does for many homeless people and what he did for
himself. When I went to the homeless shelter I met a man dependent on Tik
(similar to meth) he said his Mom keeps trying to get him to come home, but he
just wants Tik. He told me that his brother was brain dead from an accident and
his mother was looking for him, but he doesn’t want to in fear that his family
will interfere with his Tik dependence. He told me he would probably hike to
the mountains with some Tik and cry about his brother and try to cope. It just
is so heart breaking to see what drug dependence can do to someone. There were
children at the soup kitchen, which means they are living on the street as
well. I just cannot imagine what that must be like as a little girl to have to
live that kind of life. Watch your parents do drugs on a regular basis and have
no motivation to work or make a better life. It just is hard to see a kid set
up with such struggle. I cannot believe that a month ago I was stressed out
about finishing school, getting a job, finding an ideal apartment, etc. It’s
just hard at times when you get caught up in the small details of everyday life,
that I just often forget to be thankful for the bigger picture. I felt so
overwhelmed by my busy schedule I forgot to be thankful for all that I have. I
would have been embarrassed complaining or stressing out about planning a trip
and finishing my college degree to some people who don’t even have a place to
live. The unemployment is so high, nutrition is low, resources to homeless are
low, hope runs even shorter if they have HIV/AIDS. I can’t imagine how you can
wake up in the morning and try to strive for a better life with all of that
against you. John Philmon also opened a homeless shelter under an overpass,
there are 50 beds, but most sleep on cardboard boxes with blankets. This woman
volunteers each day from 7 in the morning till 8 at night to help cook meals
for the homeless. Just can’t begin to fathom how a person can be so giving and
be completely content. John Philmon keeps focusing of future plans and
expanding further and further. To see a man who started literally from nothing
to begin to build up these people and support them to a better future is just
beyond inspirational. It is my goal to find ways to help support YSA, because the
prevalence of homelessness encompasses several health issues in South Africa,
and as an extra incentive it is nice to know a strong positive man is the
leader.
On a lighter note, we had the weekend off
which was nice. On Saturday we went to hike Lion’s head (part of Table
Mountain) for sunrise. It was absolutely beautiful. The hike was a lot harder
than I anticipated, but adventurous. There were ladders to climb, chains to
help pull up rocks, staples to “rock climb” up, but in the end it was
absolutely worth it. The paragliding sight was also off of the same side of the
mountain. The views we got were so beautiful as usual. Got to see most of Cape
Town within a 15 minutes paraglide ride. We then spent the night at a very
authentic dinner. We learned how to play the drums traditionally and
participated in tribal circle. They gave us traditional dishes from almost
every country in Africa. Then they had performers come through with the drums,
dancers and singers. It was just so rustic to have that in the background of
dinner. They also did face paint for us, which was very traditional. The following day we went on a full day
wine tour in Stellenboush. We went to 5 different vineyards. Some of them
paired chocolate with the wine, while others paired biltong (similar to jerky).
We learned to see, swirl, smell, sip and swallow ;) By the end of the day we
were all doing karaoke on the bus. (Guess we all enjoyed the wine) On our
afternoon academic session we decided to meet up in Kirstenbousch botanical gardens.
There were tons of different species of plants. Dan and I decided to take the
road less traveled and kept hiking further and further away and then we saw a
sign that said to Table Mountain, so we just finished the hike and ended up on
the top of the mountain. On the way back down we saw this garden that was
designated for medicinal healing remedies. There were cures for headaches,
rashes, joint pain, cramps, digestive disturbances, etc. That was pretty cool
to see because we don’t have as many species of plants back in the states as
they do here.
On
our last 2 days we went to “Stepping Stones” in the sixth district. “Stepping
stones” is a children’s school. I noticed some familiar faces when we were
there, some from the “Crossroad” HIV/AIDS clinic and some from the “Smallville”
Township. You wouldn’t know anything different about these kids; they all
dressed well and were clean. It just made me realize how much you judge someone
by how they present themselves, but often times it isn’t representative of how
they actually are as a person. They seemed the same as children back in the
states, yet they lived in shacks, some lived with HIV/AIDS, didn’t have parents
and you’d have know idea by looking at them or talking to them. Similar to the
Township they liked “pleading” my hair. This one boy asked me how I got my hair
and just kept petting my hair like I was a dog ahah! It was so sweet though,
they made us all crafts to thank us for playing with them. It was an Africa
frame with their fingerprints in the center. I spoke with the principal of the
school to understand more about her mission there and she said all these
children can’t afford school and are in extreme poverty. She tries to lean them
away from traditional beliefs and tries to make them more modern. For example
she has men work in the kitchen to lean boy and girls away from the typical
belief that only women are in the kitchen. She tries to get different dolls
from different backgrounds so they see different races as beautiful. Not just
the traditional blonde hair and blue eyed Barbie doll, but the African doll as
well. If she noticed all boys playing with certain toys one day she makes sure
the next that they switch the activity to something the girls were playing
with. I think it is important especially at a young age to try and break
stereotypes and let people just live freely the way they want to. I feel pretty
blessed to live in a culture where I have the freedom to be an independent
educated woman with the ability to explore my curiosities and stand up for what
I believe in. The second day we were there we helped with medical checks. It
was nice to be able to help out because they all work very hard to try and keep
these children healthy. We checked their teeth for which ones would need to be
pulled and educated them on brushing and flossing. We also did more thorough
assessment and checked height/weight, temperature, lung sounds, head and neck,
eyes, ears, nose throat, limbs, skin and then wrote a patient report in their
journal. It was really busy all day, I can’t believe this woman checks all of
the kids herself once a month! They call the nurses “Sisters” in South Africa
so that took a bit getting used to since when I walk in the market they also
call me “Sister”. When we were about to leave after the second day they
provided us an unexpected traditional lunch that the children made similar to a
samosa with different flavoring, a malay wrap with chicken and the Malva
pudding cake. The children then joined together and sang us a few songs. It was
so adorable I wish I could’ve filmed it but they want their privacy protected
so no pictures were allowed.
I’m
going to miss the B.I.G backpackers, the staff was awesome and I consider my
friends now! We had so much fun around breakfast chatting about our past
evening! Sitting in the “Mosch” bed (pillow pile) drinking good wine and cheese
and sharing our cultures. Met a guy from Jordan who was travelling by himself
and tagging along through some of our excursions. Met a girl named Lily form
Amsterdam who was working on her internship. We also met a doctor form NY who
just decided to go on a whim for 2 weeks and purchased a ticket to Cape Town. I
met a couple people from Germany who were sure to give us good beer. There were
some nice Israelis who made us try their dinner each night as they were
cooking. So difficult to say goodbye to such nice and welcoming people, but
fortunately we kept each others emails and exchanged media profiles to be able
to keep in touch.
In
general this part of my travels has brought a lot of reflective thinking.
Through all of the lows and all of the highs, it has been the opportunity of a
lifetime at the perfect time. I’m trying to stay mindful of the struggles I’ve
seen especially when I slip out into unnecessary negativity. “Am I really
tired? Am I really thirsty/hungry? Is a lost item worth my stress? “Is the lack
of wifi really something to be frustrated about?” Trying to figure out what is
really important and what I want to do with my life has completely been turned
upside down. This place has made me redefine my happiness and what it really
means to be alive. I’m getting comfortable not knowing all of the logistics,
and finding comfort knowing that this trip has already brought me new purpose
and inspiration to follow through.
Later
in our academic session we discussed how intimidating and complex HIV/AIDS and
where we thought you would start. A lot of people said education is important,
but then we found contradictory information of what HIV/AIDS is. There was a
teacher who told me that she thought HIV/AIDS is made up from the government to
kill of poor people with ARVs because of overpopulation. A teacher!!! Someone
children are looking up to and basing information off of! It is just scary to
think of how problematic that is! There was another man who told me it was from
having sex to soon after an abortion is what causes HIV/AIDS. There definitely
needs ot be some work on having some standardized education on HIV/AIDS
especially with the issue of prevalence. Education in my opinion isn’t the most
important component but it definitely is a necessity. I think back in the
United States often times we know that we should exercise and not drink a lot
of alcohol and turn away from processed foods, yet we still do it. Why? We know
from nutrition classes what is healthy, why would we choose to not do what is
best then? Processed food in the United States is often cheaper than fresh
foods, so often the lower class doesn’t see the opportunity for healthier
options. Even as I consider myself as a middle class person, I wouldn’t think
about making sure I got sustainable nutrients, because I don’t worry not having
enough food. Sometimes I feed myself crap, other times I feed myself well. In
these poor populations, they feed themselves like they would a machine, with
efficient and good nutrients because that might be all they eat for the day. Another
important note that people made was the financial problem. It exists
everywhere! One side of the street there are people living in luxury throwing
out loads of leftovers or rejecting their dinner because it didn’t suit their
taste, yet on the other side of the street there are people of all ages
starving, scrapping a meal from a trashcan. So what do we do help change this?
You cannot force people to give away their money to decrease the disparity
between classes, but what you can do is change your own habits. There are
mansions right on the waterfront and a few blocks away there are thousands of
people living in shacks in townships. You would think that the people living in
a house, with educational opportunities, freedom for luxury would be happier,
but I’ve found the opposite. These people who have just what they need to
survive, living in simplicity were some of the happiest and most generous
people I’ve ever met. I remember sitting on a bench making observations of
street interactions. The beggers would approach people walking out of a market
asking for a piece of bread or food and people would walk fast or say no. The
people who did give food to the beggers were the other beggers. Rationing out
the last piece of bread so that their neighbors wouldn’t go starving. Not to
say that those who don’t give to the homeless are wrong I personally didn’t
give mine to beggers if they asked. John Philmon specifically told us not to
give to beggers because it is training them that is okay to get “handouts” and
there are resources out there that provide food, help you live safely, provide
food and a basic education. I took his advice and the next time I heard a
begger I walked them over to the soup kitchen. Showing someone a resource and
giving them some brief independence is worth more than a piece of bread.
Linking them to the positivity and motivation is more important in my opinion.
Even going to the clinics and seeing people educated, given transportation and
medication for their treatment still not adhering to medication just hit me
that we didn’t discover the root of the problem By definition they have
everything they need to be healthy, all of the essential resources are there. I
then began to reflect that if I had HIV/AIDS living in a shack, no job, barely
enough food, little education, would I travel hours to a clinic wait all day to
receive treatment and watch people judge me as I walk in and out. Every time I
take my mediation to watch someone judge me. Even back in the States would I
want to be friends with someone with HIV/AIDS? I think it is very hard to stay
hopeful and see a future with all that working against you, but as John says
you have to let people see that they are a part of the world and they are
important. I remember each night at dinner my mom asking “What did you learn in
school today” or “How was your day?” If I didn’t recognize anyone to care about
how I am doing, I think it would be difficult to care for myself. How do we get
the message across that HIV/AIDS doesn’t mean “I’m going to die”? How do we get
people who are living a dehumanized life to realize they are of value to this
world? Do we break stigma or do we work on building confidence first? By the
end of the discussion we realized where to start isn’t clear, what’s most
important to me may not be important to my peer, but as potential healthcare
providers, you must critically think about what you find important and run with
it. Find your passion, set yourself goals and achieve them. If John Philmon can
cross the road from being a begger in a township without a basic support system
and end up developing organization and opportunities to thousands, then I can
follow my passion and survive the unwritten road to success. I’m beyond blessed
to be able to have the support system that has enabled me to have a good
platform for success, but it is now up to me to follow through!
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the
journey that matters, in the end.”
“See yah boo-yah” Cape Town ! [See you later Cape Town!]
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