Safari

Too much to tell I suppose but I forgot to add that I went to another rugby game two weekends ago with the girl who worked at the backpackers I stayed at in Pietermaritzburg. It was the Durban Sharks versus the Auckland Blues or something like that from New Zealand. The sharks won that was fun.

Anywho all of last week I spent working on my ISP write up which ended up to be 38 pages and my presentation. Friday we gave the presentation and turned in our written reports. It went pretty well. This past weekend was fun. All the girls went out on Friday night in celebration of the end of our academic semester. Saturday night we all chilled. Sunday Julia and I took Emma to the hospital..she has bronchitis….TB was in our minds when we went in. Anywho shes getting better. Sunday night we did karaoke again.

Monday we left Durban to go to St. Lucia were we have been for the past two days. Monday we drove there and went on a boat safari on the river where we saw hippos and crocodiles and such. Then yesterday, Tuesday, we went on a safari safari. It was so awesome!!!!!! We left at 5am and returned like 4pm. Our guides were awesome. They were mainly really cool cause they were Afrikaans but they spoke Zulu as well…long story about how I feel about that but its pretty awesome! We saw wildebeests, warthogs, elephants, giraffes, zebras, impalas, a cheetah, monkeys – baboons, rhinos, I’m sure I’m forgetting something but ya. It was awesome. And we went around and around chasing seven lions that were sighted but we never did get to see them..boo hiss. Oh well. Anyway I have a billion pictures.

Now I am back in Johannesburg at the Shoestrings backpackers where we started out. It’s so surreal. We’re all like did we just really complete a semester. It was so fast and sooo different. Like we’ve been on a really awesome adventure for four months and oh by the way learned some really cool things.

Anyway my adventure isn’t over. Tomorrow I fly out of Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth with four other girls and we are renting a car there and making our way to Cape Town stopping to bungee jump on the tallest one in the world, ostrich ride, and wine tour. In Cape Town we are probably going to Robben Island, Cape of Good Hope, and visit the penguins at the beach, oh and Table Mountain. Then I fly out on the 13th home on the 14th. This could potentially be the last blog post while I’m in South Africa. Next one may be when I get home..maybe.

It's Cold

It’s cold now..bummer. By cold I mean mid-70s.

My independent study project (ISP) is winding down now. I left Friday. Thursday we got to go to a Men’s Support Group Meeting which was so different. They were more lively and interactive. Thought it was gonna be awkward with us there but not at all. Also at all these support group meetings we eat about half a loaf of bread and some fried chicken..its prime. I’m gonna miss the organization I’ve been working with, Siyaphila, and all the people who work there. They had a goodbye breakfast for us Friday morning. I got a lot done on my written report before I left Pietermaritzburg but I’ve been sitting here in Durban working on it as well. We present our research projects on Friday. Then were done! It’s weird. My project is on the Social Considerations of Implementing a Tuberculosis Treatment Support Program in KwaZulu-Natal: a look into the mobilization process of Siyaphila’s TB support program. It’s been interesting to write about. What I accomplished while I was there:
- Made a pamphlet
- Made a business card
- Made a flyer
- Made three different funding proposals
- Sent them out to about 25 businesses
- Still making a website but go to it siyaphila.org
- Made an email account

Anywho hopefully they will get some of that funding and can get money to pay some of their volunteers stipends and be able to afford food packets to those who can’t afford food to take their TB medication with.

Saturday we went to Victoria Street Market. Today I went grocery shopping and am currently cooking chicken and pasta. I’m nowhere near a legit cook yet…bummer. I’ve decided I don’t like to go grocery shopping nor cook for myself…there are too many ingredients. Perhaps if all the food was in my pantry I wouldn’t mind but I think I’m gonna have to marry a cook.

Tonight were going to karaoke..

A Little Update

So I am losing my steam with blog writing. I guess since I’m on the home stretch with this trip..I don’t know. Anywho so I’ve just been doing my ISP stuff. This week and last week we have followed around Nokuthula the program coordinator of Siyaphila on her rounds to support groups for HIV in semi-rural areas and also to home visits to the HIV + patients. We have been talking with all of them and interviewing them. They love having us around, especially the people we visit at home. They don’t often get people who want to visit them..sad…so some visits have gotten a little emotional.

Nokuthula brings us back to our backpackers round 4 everyday and then we get to work on the TB stuff. We have finalized a bigger and better funding proposal, halfway down with a website, creating an email address, made a flyer, pamphlet, and business cards for them. We have also sent out our proposal to about 25 businesses thus far. We have also organized a TB workshop for the staff members of Siyaphila to update their training on the signs and symptoms so they can be looking for those on their home visits and such.

So that’s been a lot. We have this next week to work with them but then we are back in Durban after that. Then we have to write up a whole report about this and such. Not really ending on an easy note.

As for fun, I think I said before we made some friends with University students here in PMB and they took us out a couple times. We watched some of the English Premiership soccer that they are all obsessed with. I’m getting into it though. Dad and I decided we are gonna follow the World Cup fo sho!

Hmm what else is new…oh for everyone that’s reading it out there that I don’t know about..haha..I’m going to Spain for a summer session this summer!!!!

Oh I know. Epic story today. So we walked to this place for lunch that sells Indian food. I got a bean Bunny Chow thingy which is a very popular South African dish. But anywho the guy who works there automatically was like so where are you from in the U.S. Keep in mind this is some random South African dude working in a random Indian place. I was like North Carolina, which no one has ever heard of NC or really knows where it is..it’s normally just a formality to answer the question. BUT this guy goes oh like Kitty Hawk..and I just stood there shocked! I was like actually yes exactly like Kitty Hawk how have you heard of it. He was like that’s where Orville and Wilbur flew…I was so impressed. Apparently international peeps no more about our history then the people in our own country cause really none of the girls on the program have heard of Kitty Hawk. It made my day really!

ISP Update

So to explain it again, for my independent research project, I am spending a total of 3 weeks in Pietermaritzburg. I am working with an NGO (non-governmental organization) called Siyaphila which means “We are living” in Zulu. This program currently works within the hospitals providing adherence classes to people who are about to go on ARV (anti retrivirals – HIV medication) teaching them about what kind of side effects they are going to expect etc. They also have support group meetings within the townships of Pietermartizburg twice a month that HIV + individuals attend to talk about what they are experiencing and anything really. They also do home visits depending on the severity of the patient where they visit the patients at their homes and check out how they are doing. Since TB is the main killer for HIV patients, it only makes sense that there is a TB program working alongside this HIV program. This is what I am trying to do for my ISP. I am implementing a TB program for Siyaphila. What this involves is writing a funding proposal which I have already done and getting lots and lots of funding from donors to start this. We are currently working on getting a TB expert to do a workshop educating the Siyaphila staff members on signs and symptoms of TB. Also making a pamphlet and getting the word out about Siyaphila. Another big thing is getting funding to coordinate food packets to be given to the patients who in severe poverty and have no food to take their TB medications with. Anyway that and some more stuff.

So that’s what I am doing. Today I went around with the coordinators of Siyaphila on their rounds. We went to one support group and two home visits. It was really eye opening hearing all of HIV + individuals stories.

Other than that we have just been getting to know Pietermaritzburg. We’ve walked into town and explored. There’s a mini mall in walking distance, so that’s been convenient. Also I’ve been going for some runs, hoping to lose the weight I gained in Cato.

Oh this past weekend we meet some of the locals who go to the University and went and saw a famous band here play. We also watched some of the soccer tournament that Hannah’s friends participated in. We had a couple braais (cookouts) here at the backpackers as well.

First Day of ISP

Like I said Saturday I moved out of Cato and into Happy Hippo with Julia and Emma. We enjoyed our weekend. Nothing too exciting went to Joe Cools again and to the beach. We have Ushaka just around the corner which is the largest marine park – aquarium thingy in South Africa so that’s cool. We made pasta for dinner Monday night and Tuesday we made chicken curry stir fry. Those days we just had more community health lectures. Wednesday we have one lecture but mainly we had ethics meetings for our ISPs.

Funny thing to note: Julia and I have developed a British accent that we do sometimes. And once when we were in the kitchen at Happy Hippo we were getting our accents on and what do you know..there were British people there. It was a little awkward. We decided we needed to be more aware of our surroundings from now on.

About my ISP it’s a little frustrating right now. The hospital we originally wanted to work out referred us to this one NGO and then they were like no this other NGO really needs your help. So we were all set with this last NGO and two days ago the hospital was like actually no we want you for a little bit too. So that’s frustrating and I’ve abandoned my interest and what I was originally going to do with the hospital so I don’t know what is going to happen.

We moved into our ISP accommodations today. They are great. We are staying in a dorm so it’s cheaper and we get other people coming in and out so we can meet lots of people.

Anyway we got here today and then went straight to the hospital to try and see what they want us to do. They set us up with contacts for our original interests. Hannah – pediatric TB and me – traditional healers and TB however my contact works at night so I don’t know if that’s going to work out. But today we actually followed around a doctor who is the head of medicine on his rounds which was super cool and sad. A lot of HIV. Anyway that’s about it. We took the mini-bus taxi to the stop that’s near the mall that we are staying by. We perused around the mall then walked back to our backpackers. Now we are just chillin. Gotta get some groceries and meet with our contact with Siyaphila, the NGO, to pick up some readings.

This weekend there’s not much going on. Tomorrow were gonna explore Pietermaritzburg and also Hannah has some friends who have a soccer tournament here so were going to go to that. There is also a flea market on Sunday we could go to. Nothing too much for Easter which is sad. Oh well.

Last Full Week of Lectures

This week we had lectures on HIV epidemiology, Traditional Medicine. Africanism, stuff like that. Different lecturers from different places..the usual. Nothing too exciting happened this week except for both Wednesday and Thursday night the electricity went out. I think it’s all a ploy to conserve electricity. Actually I’m almost positive it is. It cut out a 6:30 both nights. Apparently they like tell them when they are going to do this. Some of the mamas are all up in arms cause the white neighborhood never gets cut out. Also they can afford to light the big mall neon green at night..it’s hideous. So that was fun. I told mama I was use to it from hurricanes and stuff but that it was for weeks. She was like whooa. Thankfully mama had already made dinner and such so it was all good. During Generations there are always notices that come up on the screen saving electricity is low continue to use electricity wisely.

I got my CHS papers back..got an A on both! We went and saw Remember Me because American movies are like our security blanket. The movie was ehh…but that was expected. Twist at the end..beware those who might see it.

Other than that it was a pretty usual week in Cato. Things are winding down. Today I moved out of Cato. Mama left at 7am to work..we said goodbye – Mama is like me so it was pretty unemotional. Hugs goodbye and such. Gave them little gifts. Now I’m at the Happy Hippo again and were staying for 5 nights. April 1st I will be going to Pietermaritzburg.


Some interesting things to note, note sure if they are politically correct to write on a blog but here goes:
- A woman asks if there are only white people overseas.
- A boy asks if we speak English or Afrikaans in America.
- Also didn’t realize that to some people (which this makes sense) if you say your from America, that doesn’t necessarily mean the United States. Because there is South and North America. It makes sense, we should stop just assuming that everyone realizes were from the U.S. when we say America…because indeed saying America is vague.


So I have to redo my ISP ethics proposal since my topic has changed…bummer.

A haiku about South Africa:
Durban is super cool.
At our school I jump in pool.
Food may cause lose stool.

That was mildly inappropriate…here is a more educational one:
Rugby, cricket, match
It is the Rainbow Nation
Live by ubuntu

Health is big issue
Funding may not be of help
Caring is needed

You can call me Poe
I write haikus that’s fo sho
Money, yes I need more

About the meatballs..

1. I had to do them stovetop so I already have factors working against me
2. The meat I had to work with was subpar
3. The pans I had to use were limited and didn’t have appropriate lids
Having said that..the meatballs were gross. They fell apart so I made them mini hamburgers. It was fatty meat so it was greasy too. Andile loved them…I did not. I sat in my room embarrassed while they helped themselves when they finally got home.

The potatoes on the other hand I thought were very good. I boiled them and added my own butter garlic herby stuff on top that was pretty legit. But I don’t think they ever eat potatoes with skin on them so they like didn’t know what to do. I also made a salad they didn’t touch..but that’s usual. The salad is mainly for me.

Overall..it was a bust. But I plan on ordering pizza on Friday night..that should end the homestay on a good note. I can’t leave having this be the last meal I made. I really wanted to make brownies but our oven doesn’t work.

On another note..I got my third hep B shot today because I had to complete the series before I leave. Anywho it was very interesting. I went to a nice family practice nearby. I walked in and I was like I called about the shot and she was like ok come back. And she was going to just give me the shot and then was like wait have you been here before and I was like no. So she decided it was best I fill out some paperwork. The paperwork was a scrap sheet of paper. I filled in my name birthday (which the lady was like is this the 6th of july or the 7th of june cause they write it a different way) and the address here. That was it..very surprising. They didn’t even want to know that I had gotten the two before or anything..they didn’t care. So I walked back, wore a strategically easy shirt for shots and she was like I need to put it in your buttocks. So I began to allow her to do that and shes like no your shorts are low enough and sticks it in my love handle. Yup I got a shot in my love handle! I should probably take that as a hint..I have enough fat there to get a shot. So that’s a new one. They absolutely love injections here. You come in with a cold and they are like no worries and inject you, but never ever in the arm always in the butt or in my case love handle.

Just wanted to update everyone on that. This week we are having more lectures.

Academic Update:
Handed in my field study journal today. It is where you keep all your notes and analysis relating to your ISP. Next week we have to hand in our final CHS paper.

Grandpa – I played hearts on my computer and went for it all and I got it…I won!