Classes

How goes it?!?

As they say here in South Africa. I haven’t been on to blog in a while so here it goes. People have been asking about Zanethemba which is the babies’ home that we volunteer at, but it is a post in itself so I will save it for Alyssa to talk about since she is better with words. I can talk about classes though since we have finally figured them out and are settling into a routine. Scheduling classes was a bit of an ordeal to say the least haha! At NMMU their semester is divided into two terms. The first term goes from Feb. 14^th until April 1^st. Term two then runs from April 2^nd until May 31^st. The last month of the semester is the examination or “semester test” period for both term one and term two. Alyssa and I are taking the same classes for term one. We are taking Post Apartheid South Africa which looks at everything pertaining to the end of apartheid and the birth of a new nation from 1989-1994, as well as the release of Nelson Mandela from prison. It has been a really interesting class thus far and the professor is very knowledgeable on the topic. We have two papers we have to write for the class and then the final exam. Our first paper is due next Thursday so we have started working on that already. I will say that it was different hearing a professor say that it is due on March 3^rd but you can turn it in the next few days after if you would like. Somehow I don’t see the professors in the states being that accepting of that idea. As for the class as a whole I think it is going to be challenging but very interesting. One of the books he suggested we read is Mandela’s autobiography called A Long Walk to Freedom. We bought it, and I started reading it because Alyssa was reading another book. It’s 730 pages so for those of you who know me and my love of reading this one may be a struggle. However, I’m on page 100 after 2 days and it has been extremely fascinating. I’ll let you know when I finish, but from what I’ve read so far I would definitely recommend reading it if you have any interest in Nelson Mandela or how South Africa came to be what it is today.

The other class we are taking this term is Xhosa Culture. I didn’t get my schedule finalized until late so I missed one of the lectures, but from the one I went to on Monday morning it seems like it is going to be a great class as well. The Xhosa people are predominantly found in the Eastern Cape which is where we are. The professor is very knowledgeable on the culture and will be able to help us understand any questions we have. We have one test for this class, one paper, and then the exam in June. The paper can be about anything pertaining to the culture within certain boundaries. Right now I think I’m going to write mine about the Xhosa culture and their thoughts on health care and modern medicine. That’s only a rough idea so we will see how it goes. As for Alyssa she is planning on doing a paper that looks into the family life of the Xhosa people, particularly the children and their role in the family. This will tie in perfectly with her new major and I can’t wait to see what she finds out.

The last class that we have this term runs through both term one and term two. This is our service learning class and I think this is going to be the best part of coming to Africa. The class meets every other Monday morning from 9-12. Three of the classes will be workshops in which we learn about the people of South Africa, the poverty within the townships, how this occurred, and what we can do to help. We also talked about community service vs. community development. In the first class we discussed what poverty was like in all parts of the world. It was so interesting to hear people speak because the class was filled with all international students from all over the world. The workshop was extremely informative and the big thing that I walked away learning from the first class is to help people help themselves. It’s one thing to be this American who comes in and hands people a bunch of money or objects but those things run out and then they are left with nothing again. They told this story about how a group of students a few years back were working at a home and noticed that some of the kids didn’t have lunch. There immediate reaction was to give them their own lunch. Then they thought maybe they could raise money back home and send supplies over. After talking with their advisor from the service learning class they came to the conclusion that the best plan would be to raise money and then hire someone from the local township to run a garden at the home. They students raised money and were able to buy seeds to put in the garden. Then the orphanage hired a local woman to work in the garden, pick vegetables, and then make soup each day for the kids that don’t have anything to eat. This is where that whole help them help themselves comes in. The kids got a healthy sustainable lunch, the garden is something that would last, and it gave someone local a job. It was kind of an AhhHaa moment because it’s something so simple and I had never really thought of it that way before. Like I said before I will save talking about Zanethemba for Alyssa but the couple who runs the babies haven has the same philosophy and man are they doing some good work here. Anyway after going off on that long tangent the other part of the class is mentoring sessions and volunteering. We have two mentoring sessions throughout the semester in which we talk to the director and just discuss our thoughts on what’s happening in our home. We also volunteer every Thursday afternoon from 2-5, however, we might be able to go more often as the semester progresses.

As for classes in term two we are both taking a South African music class to satisfy our fine arts credits. We are also taking a world history class which will be interesting to learn through the perspective of a professor from another country as well as students who are from all around the world. Alyssa is also taking a Youth Studies class which will go towards her major back home.

Well this was a long post and I’m sure you are rather bored by now but this is our classes in a nutshell. I hope all is well back home and you all start to warm up soon. Not to rub it in or anything but it was 75 degrees and sunny today here in PE. This weekend we might be going to Seaview Lion Park where we would get to hold baby lion cubs and pet an adult lion or tiger. I’ll keep you posted as to whether we go or not but if we do that should be lots of fun. We also might go to a national rugby game in the new FIFA stadium on Friday night which would be lots of fun. I have only been to one rugby game since we have been here but let me tell you they are very lively and lots of fun. Hope all is well back home and we will talk to you soon. Cheers.