I woke up, got dressed, and went down ready to leave for the first day of classes. I bus driver was very prompt and off to NMMU I went. As we rode along, I got a chance to see the beachfront and it was to-die-for. As we approached the University, I saw a gorgeous rainbow, and WOW… (that’s all to be said). I couldn’t get a picture but that memory in my mind is locked. When we got to our destination, the first thing I admired was the beauty of the campus. (Just like people view Ole Miss’s campus for the first time). We get to our room and I had delicious South African tea, and a muffin. It was perfect timing because I was stupid and didn’t buy groceries when we went to the grocery store. We began with our orientation, and Jadey put this on. She was awesome as always. Then for the second part we had our first lecture which was MIND BLOWING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was a history of South Africa.
The professor began to talk about apartheid and summed it up as a low-key civil war. The professor then started to say these starting statistics. He said that South Africa, besides Columbia, is the crime capital of the world. In addition, South Africa has a huge HIV/AIDS epidemic. He said it is a 75% chance for 15-year-olds to contract HIV/AIDS. 31% of pregnant women have HIV/AIDS. 1 in 3 women have HIV/AIDS, and with all of these different factors it has a bearing on the security, education, economic stability, welfare, and etc. on the people.
He told us when we went out on our everyday journeys that he hoped we found the TRUTH about: apartheid, Poverty, Crime Rates, and the Reality. He also said we strive for absolute truth, and it is difficult. Absolute truth is on true for the natural sciences. It is not true for the social sciences and humanities. Absolute truth cannot be truth with the social sciences because of lies, prejudice, propaganda, and etc. However, he says we end up with a working truth. And the only way to work toward that working truth is to ask difficult and uncomforting questions. He says we must “stretch the surface of the rainbow.” Never had I ever thought of things in this manner. This really stood out to me in different ways. However, I must ask the question “do we ever really get to the truth”? No matter how much darkness there is there is always some light somewhere. We sometimes have to look extra hard for it but it is there. Okay, a later blog will detail on that thought later.
Our professor then told us to be aware of the race relations polarizations. The first extreme is black people can’t govern, and the second extreme is people still feel the effects of Apartheid. Then he begun to tell us more startling statistics about South Africa and it really broke my heart. Then, he shared this quotation that really stood out to me. “God gave the United States a watch, but gave the Africans time”. WOW!!! In the US generally you will find the most riches, and along with that you find so much greed and unhappiness. In South Africa, and Africa generally you will find more people suffering and in poverty, yet they are so happy and humble. There are exceptions on both ends. There is more to come on that, too.
Later that day we went on a Safari. And yes it was so much fun. It was glory to see all of the beautiful animals. Pictures to be posted. Also check Facebook. Before the Safari the gang and I had a very heated discussion on gender issues and such. You know how I am about equality and gender roles. So let’s just say people were offended by things I said only because their minds were not challenged before then. Plus, many people took things personally, but I didn’t care. Anyway, back to the animals. So before our Safari ride, we got stuck in the mud, and that was not fun, but the rest of the adventure made up for it. On our adventure we found out that the horns of the rhinos had to be taken off because people were coming to kill them because of their horns. Their horns can sell for so much. Just to give you an example, about 10 kg is about $10,000. That’s a lot of money, but that is fucking sick. Yes a disgrace. Let nature be nature and let it be free. Other than that it was such a great experience. In addition, I got to pet a cheetah. It was just amazing.
Later that night we went out to a bar called Barney’s and it was fun…..
No comments:
Post a Comment