The Warm Heart of Africa

On the flight from Lilongwe, Malawi back to Johannesburg, the woman sitting in front of me was a self-appointed expert on America. Although her blatantly South African accent revealed that she was not in fact an American, she clearly felt that she knew everything there was to know about America. I sat there, laughing to myself, as I listened to her tell her neighbor in great detail which cities were safe, which were fun, where the weather was best, etc etc. Although she had a very positive view of America, it was also unquestionably that of a tourist. And so I sat there smiling, feeling blithely superior because no matter how much she thought she knew, I obviously knew more.

This got me thinking about these blog updates I write. Am I that know-it-all tourist who claims to be an expert on another country? Perhaps, although I like to believe that having now lived here for more than 2 years I am no longer classified as a tourist, or am at least classified as an expert-tourist. And I also like to believe that I don’t come off as a know-it-all. But now as I sit down to write a blog update about our visit to Malawi, I am going to try to keep in mind that spending seven days in a country by no means makes me an expert. With this warning, please feel free to take my thoughts with a grain of salt and recognize that it is, in the end, just the rambling observations of a young American exploring a different part of the world.

My dad came to visit me for three weeks; the first two spent in South Africa, the third in Malawi. While in South Africa, we spent a few days in Johannesburg, almost a week in Durban (where the above picture was taken), and then made short trips to a game park to the north and to the beautiful beaches of the Wild Coast to the south. All in all, I think dad got a good feel for South Africa in a short amount of time. On my side, it was really great to be able to show him a bit of my life here. And he was a great sport about trying everything and fitting in as much as possible.

And now, on to Malawi. Dad, Langa, and I spent a week in Malawi, where we visited two of my friends there (Kevin, who was finishing his Peace Corps service there, and his girlfriend Briana, who recently finished her Peace Corps service in Namibia). We also visited Andy and his brother Pete, family friends from good ole’ Rochester who are in Malawi doing research.

I don’t want to go on and on about our week there, although I certainly could, so I will just share some highlights.


1. Our arrival at Senga Bay

After arriving in Lilongwe (the capital), meeting up with Kevin and Briana, picking up our rental car (a ’99 Corolla with questionable brakes… and by questionable I mean they squealed loudly even when touched ever so lightly), we drove about 2 hours to Senga Bay, where we would spend our first night. Our first observation: it smells like chicken poop. Our second observation: it’s getting dark and I hope they have food. Our third observation: it is quite pretty here. Our fourth observation: there’s a bar in the lake at the end of a dock. Sweet.

Unfortunately when we went to check-in and get settled in our chalet that we reserved, we were told that they had lost the keys. Our fifth observation: apparently they don’t keep spare keys here. And so we instead settled into our tents, which thankfully had cots and linens because we didn’t bring sleeping bags with us. After eating arguably the best burger of my life and having a few drinks at the bar-on-the-lake, we all settled into our tents for a good nights sleep, disrupted only by a windstorm and dangerous flying branches. In the morning we were served a delicious breakfast on the lake, and then headed off for our next destination…


2. Cape McClear

After a beautiful drive we arrived at a bumpy dirt road which led us to Cape McClear. Fortunately our Corolla (with the help of Langa’s driving skills) made it safely along the 15 or so kilometers of ditches and bumps that made up the road. Cape McClear is absolutely beautiful. It’s interesting in that it seems to be a tourist hotspot plopped down in the middle of a typical rural village. The road is dotted by backpackers, lodges, restaurants, bars, and craft-sellers, as well as small local homes. Children run barefoot along the dirt road and local men ride beat-up bikes. And as tourists walk down the road, it isn’t uncommon for a small child to run up and hold their hands, often saying the only line of English they seem know: “Give me money.”

The backpackers we stayed at was lovely and was located right on the beach so that we literally rolled out of our tent (we again stayed in a tent with cots) and into the lake. Unfortunately it was a bit noisy because it was a holiday weekend so the place was PACKED. And it was located right next to a local bar. We were awoken in the wee hours of one morning by drunken men shouting “I love Malawi! I love Malawi!” which somehow quickly mutated into “F*** Malawi! F*** Malawi!”

While there we did some swimming, some lying in the sun, and some snorkeling. It was very nice and very relaxing. The service was a bit slow (one morning I waited two hours for a grilled cheese sandwich) but the laid-back atmosphere was intoxicating.


3. The market in Zomba

After spending two days on Cape McClear we drove a few hours to the city of Zomba, where Andy and Pete (from Rochester) are currently doing research. They’re staying in a beautiful house just outside of town and we were all pretty excited to have showers, beds, a kitchen where we could cook, and their kind hospitality.

One of the highlights of our stay in Zomba was the market in town. Briana and I went there the first day to do some shopping to make fajitas. In addition to the fruit and vegetable market where we did our shopping, there was a “stuff” market that sold pirated dvds, knock-off purses, and sarongs. My favorite sarong, by far, was the one with the face of our very own Barack Obama. It had a map of Africa and writing in Chichewa (the local language), and Barack Obama’s face. I wanted to buy it, but was too stingy, so took a picture instead. In retrospect, it might have been a good investment.


4. “Mzungu”

While in Zomba we went for a hike on the plateau there. During our walk we were passed by many men riding bikes, piled several feet high with logs, which would later be used for firewood or to turn into charcoal. Andy informed us that the word for white person in Chichewa, “mzungu” could also mean “one who wanders aimlessly.” It seemed pretty appropriate as we walked leisurely, stopping for pictures and jumping through streams, while these men huffed and puffed down the dirt road, directing bikes which probably weighed a couple hundred pounds.

This term took on even more meaning the next day when Dad, Andy, and I visited a mental hospital in Zomba where a British girl that Andy knows is working as an occupational therapist. It’s the only public mental hospital in Malawi, and also has people staying there from Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It was a pretty powerful experience visiting the place and seeing the conditions there, especially for my dad (who works in mental health). The most difficult part for me was seeing the children, who are often just dropped there with no contact details for their parents/families, meaning that they will be there for the rest of their lives, even for minor problems. Many families feel that a mental disability is a sign of witchcraft and a shame on the family.

The British woman who gave us our tour told us that the main reasons for admitting someone into the hospital were: 1) Talking too much and 2) Wandering aimlessly. I briefly considered admitting dad, who is guilty of both of these maladies, but decided mom might miss him too much.


5. Pit stop

After spending a couple of days in Zomba, we headed back to Lilongwe, about 5 hours north. Unfortunately, we failed to realize that gas stations are not on every corner in Malawi, but rather you can go a couple hundred kilometers without seeing one. About half way through our trip the gas light came on, with us still a good one hundred kilometers from the next town that might have a petrol station. And so we started the great petrol hunt.

A gentleman at a museum we visited told us that we would be able to get petrol in a village about 5 km away, and that we just had to turn off the main road onto a dirt road and follow it to the trading centre in the village. After finding the turn off we stopped at a high school to ask for further directions, where a student told us to follow the road and look for “happy happy,” which would have petrol. After the Corolla scraped bottom a few times on the bumpy dirt road, we eventually found our way to “happy hap”… close enough. But after a conversation with some guys who didn’t seem too familiar with English, we discovered that “happy hap” was all out of petrol. Then a truck driver told Langa that he could help out, but that Langa had to go with him. So Dad instructed Langa to park in the shade and leave the keys. We all had a good laugh when Langa asked if Dad intended to leave him in the village if things went awry. Then Briana went off in search of some chips to snack on, leaving me and Dad in the car. While dad was for the majority of the trip up for any adventure, this was a bit more than he had bargained for. He sat in the front seat, looking in all directions nervously, saying that we shouldn’t have let Langa and Briana go off on their own. He then said, “this is how those scary movies start out when a bunch of foreigners get abducted.” Now I’ve never heard of such a movie, but eventually Briana and Langa both returned. Unfortunately this village was out of petrol, so we continued our hunt.

We stopped at little markets on the side of the road for the next few kilometers, until eventually we found one with some promise. Langa got out to explain our predicament (dad again requested that we park in the shade and keep the keys) and soon a group of men gathered to hear our story, or just to stare at us. Eventually a teenage boy wearing a Diesel shirt (always a good sign when you’re looking for petrol) ran off, and then returned a few minutes later with a 5 litre jug of petrol. While we paid a pretty penny and risked our lives (according to Dad) for this petrol, all in all we made it safely to our destination and got to experience a lil’ bit of Malawi along the way.


6. The warm heart of Africa

Malawi is known as “The warm heart of Africa.” I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, we met some very friendly Malawians (such as the Diesel boy who found us petrol) but we also had some negative encounters, such as two gentlemen who yelled at us to “F*** off!” and then chased our car when we stopped to take a picture of a billboard. I think this negative encounter may be more indicative of a negative view towards tourists rather than a reflection of the attitude of the entire country. All in all, I loved Malawi. I loved the beautiful lake, the bustling markets, the plateau in Zomba, and the long drives through miles and miles of open land. More than that, though, I loved that Dad was able to share this adventure with me, Langa, and our friends. So until the next adventure, this know-it-all (expert) tourist is signing off from the country just south of the warm heart of Africa.

Ntando's birthday party

Pics from my homestay sister Ntando's 4th birthday.

waya waya

One lesson that I have learned over and over again (or in Zulu… waya waya…meaning over and over, or again and again) is cultural sensitivity. Although I consider myself a tolerant, open-minded, and sensitive person, I am continually reminded that despite all this, I am still ethnocentric. I still subconsciously, yet inherently, believe that the morals and truths that I grew up with, are correct.

For example, there is the time that I exclaimed “gross!!!” when a friend of mine talked about eating chicken feet. Perhaps the better response would be, “interesting, but I don’t think I would like that.” The same goes for other foods that are considered delicacies here, such as tripe (cow intestines) and pig ears. Just because this is not something that I grew up eating or that I would enjoy, does not mean that it is automatically “gross!!!” Lesson learned.

Similarly, everyday interactions are different here than in the US. Making a huge generalization, I would say that Americans tend to be more straight-forward and blunt, whereas South Africans are more subtle and have a tendency to beat around the bush before getting to the point. For example when you start a conversation with someone here you must ALWAYS begin by greeting them and asking them how they are, even if you are asking a stranger for the time or ordering fast food. So in comes the blunt American who gets right to the point, and this is considered very rude. After some reflection, I realize that it is actually quite rude to ask for something from someone else without even greeting them. Lesson learned.

Traditions here are also usually very different than in the US. For example: weddings. There is usually the “white wedding” in the church, followed by a reception similar to those back home. The major differences being that there is an emcee who basically narrates the whole ceremony and reception, and that the bride, the groom and the bridal party/groomsmen all dance, rather than walk, down the aisle. Then the next day is umabo (sp?) which is the traditional Zulu part where the bride’s family gives gifts to the groom’s family. My favorite part of it is when the bride makes the bed (it’s the couple’s marital bed, which has been brought out into the yard). The groom then gets into the bed, and all of the bride’s male relatives beat the groom with sticks as he jumps out of bed. All in good fun. As an observer, it is easy for me to compare this to American traditions and say “well we do this” or “at our receptions we have this kind of food,” or “it’s rude to beat your new family member with sticks” etc etc. But I have learned that Zulu culture has taken centuries to evolve. And for every tradition that seems new to me, there is a long history behind it and probably a very good reason that it came to be. Again, lesson learned.

I could go on and on (waya waya) about all of the lessons I have learned in cultural sensitivity and in recognizing that my way is not always the right way, and yet I still continually run into situations where I find myself acting like my way is in fact always right. One area where I seem to run into this ethnocentric attitude a lot is traditional medicine. Most Zulu people believe in traditional medicine (or what the Western world would call “witchcraft”) to a certain extent. I’ve heard several Zulu people say “I don’t want to believe in it, but it’s strong stuff and I wouldn’t want to mess with it!” indicating that they do in fact believe in it.

Traditional medicine can be used for several purposes, from keeping your partner faithful, to bringing harm to another person, to bringing yourself good fortune. I’m currently reading a book called Sizwe’s Test by Jonny Steinberg (in South Africa the same book is published under the name The Three Letter Plague). The book follows one young man’s interaction with HIV/AIDS in his rural community in SA and his attitude to antiretroviral treatment (the drug that treats HIV). The book talks a lot about traditional medicine and its relationship with attitudes towards HIV/AIDS. The young man in the book expresses the fear that a jealous neighbor will send a demon in the night to have sex with him while he sleeps, infecting him with the deadly virus. While I’ve never heard this belief before, I have no doubt that there are many people who believe this very strongly. While working on my dissertation, I found that the belief in traditional medicine was a major deterrent to seeking antiretroviral treatment (ART) and that people first turn to traditional medicine which claims to have the ability to cure someone of AIDS, and only go to a clinic for ART after it is too late for the medicine to save them.

There are many claims that traditional medicine can be used to cure all sorts of ills. And I’m sure some of these claims are true. Afterall, aren’t most of the Western medications that we have full faith in also derived from plants and natural substances? Who’s to say that a traditional healer cannot create a medicine that cures a headache or stomach pains?

I am, however, skeptical of the ability of traditional medicine in many aspects. I find it hard to believe that it can actually cause or cure AIDS. I also find it hard to believe that it can either bring one person good fortune, or cause harm to another. But this is where cultural sensitivity comes in. I have found that many Zulu people not only believe in traditional medicine, but are scared of it. Many would find my last statement about not believing that traditional medicine can cause harm absolutely absurd, just as many of my American friends would find the idea that it can cause harm absurd. Then there are those who could argue that just believing that something is going to bring you bad luck or good luck is enough to impact the outcome.

So how does someone compromise their own beliefs with those that are integral to another culture? I’ve learned that arguing it is useless. Likewise, it would be useless to argue with a Christian that it is impossible for Jesus to walk on water. Part of the reason that it is hard for me to wrap my mind around these traditional beliefs is that I don’t have anything similar to compare it to. Americans, it seems to me, are rather rational people who don’t place much value in mythology or traditional beliefs. If anyone can think of an example similar to Zulu traditional beliefs I would be happy to hear it.

And so I have found that in a situation like this, it is best for me to recognize that a belief like this does not come naturally to me, but that at times it is necessary to suspend this disbelief and accept that perhaps I don’t know everything. Afterall, I do knock on wood and I do kiss the roof of the car when I run through a red light. And I have a lucky pink ribbon that I have tied onto my suitcase whenever I’ve traveled for the last 7 years. The one time I forgot it, I was certain the plane was going to crash. We all have different superstitions and different beliefs. And they have taken centuries to evolve, and will take more than two years for me to understand. But I will keep learning my lessons, waya waya.



An excerpt from Jonny Steinberg’s Sizwe’s Test:

“The most commonly spoken of demon in these parts is the tikoloshe. He is no more than a foot tall, has an old man’s face and a beard to his chest, and a penis so long he carries it over his shoulder. (He can, some say, turn himself into a woman in order to seduce a man.) He is visible to children and to the adults he sleeps with. His favorite habit is to befriend children. Some Ithanga [a village in Eastern Cape, SA] adults have told me that tikoloshe lived in their homes when they were young, invisible to their parents. They were pests, like monkeys, impish and naughty, forever knocking things over and stealing food.

A tikoloshe becomes dangerous when his child friends grow up and he proposes love to one of them. In combination with a human sexual partner he is a killer. He murders those his lover envies, and if she envies nobody, he demands that she present him a person to kill. He needs human blood; he is insatiable. The human being who makes a lover of him has entered a deadly pact; she must become a murderer.

It takes many months before it sinks into my head that those who speak of the shame of the HIV-positive are a hair’s breadth from speaking of the shame of witches. Like the witch, the HIV-positive woman has a sexual appetite, and, again like the witch, her sexual appetite is murderous. As much as people try to strip AIDS of evil by giving it a strictly biomedical explanation, it nonetheless remains lodged in an old and poisonous well of fear, of suspicion, and of misogyny.”

Steinberg, Jonny.2008. Sizwe’s Test. Simon and Shuster: New York. Pp. 132-133

My corner of the world

Today is a big day. Whether you are republican or democrat, male or female, white, black or somewhere in between, it is a big day. It’s the inauguration of a new president, and what promises to potentially be a new era in the US, and the world. I’m not saying that this guy is Superman or that he can solve all the world’s ills or even that I agree with him on all of his policies; I’m just saying that he’s stirring things up and bringing hope to the world. Hope is a big deal and is nothing to be taken lightly.

Hope can be dangerous too, like the kids in Kenya that I saw on a CNN report saying that now Obama will move everyone to America. I find it highly unlikely that Obama will be opening the US borders to all foreigners. I also find it highly unlikely that he could ever possibly live up to the high expectations that have been set for him, especially those expectations abroad. While I certainly expect foreign relations to improve during his presidency, I also think there is a lot for him to focus on in the home front. Unfortunately global poverty most likely will not be his first priority. I am keeping my fingers crossed, however, that he will somehow move issues of poverty and justice a little bit higher on the American list of priorities and consciousness. I suppose my hopes are pretty high as well.

Two days ago was also a very big day, but on a personal level. It marked my two year anniversary of moving to South Africa. When I look back at the person I was two years ago, I realize that I was a bit naïve, a big optimistic and a bit wide-eyed. I like to think, however, that I am still a bit naïve, optimistic, and wide-eyed. After all, these are characteristics that I hope to keep my whole life. But I have certainly learned a lot, seen a lot, experienced a lot, and perhaps changed and grew a bit along the way. While I know my family may not be thrilled with my decisions to continually extend my stay here in South Africa, (first to finish my studies, then to take on a job), I feel strongly that this is where I want to be at this point in my life. Have I made sacrifices by being here? Certainly. There are events that I’ve missed and friends who I haven’t been very good at staying in touch with. These are things that I will always regret. But I think that regardless of what paths we take, we will always have to make sacrifices to follow through with the decisions we make and the dreams we dream. The best you can hope for is a little bit of peace in your heart, as well as a little bit of restlessness that keeps you always excited and always challenged. This is what I’ve found during my grand adventure.

I recently returned to South Africa from a three week visit home for the holidays. This trip was also special because I brought my boyfriend, Langa, home with me to meet my family and friends. It was really wonderful to finally bridge the gap between my two worlds, and as always it was great catching up with friends and family. My trip included Christmas in Rochester, then visits to NYC, Philly, and NJ, including a family reunion at Aunt Maddie’s (there’s your shout-out, Auntie M!) where I was able to see family members, some of whom I hadn’t seen in five or more years. All in all, it was great not only to see some of the people I love most in the world, but also to see that despite the distances and despite the lack of constant and immediate communication, we can fall right back into place as though I had just run out to the grocery store for an hour instead of moved across the world.

It is very interesting to have one foot on one continent and the other foot on another. This is how my life has come to feel. It is like I have two different realities in two different countries. In each there are people who are very important to me and memories which I cherish. And each life has both its struggles and rewards. I guess the great challenge for me in the future will be somehow bridging the gaps between these two lives and finding a compromise that lets me not lose too much of either world. I’m not sure if that makes sense, but what I’m trying to say is that being a foreigner living in another country is quite a unique struggle because you come to love a new place as your home and you grow and change in that country, and then eventually once you return to your home country are forced to fit a square peg in a round hole, if you will. I’m sure some of my friends who have also lived abroad can understand what I’m trying to get at.

But I’ve fallen off track. I’m still here in SA, so don’t have to worry just yet about fitting any pegs into any misfit holes. I think one way that I have changed in the past two years is that I’ve become a bit… cynical? I’m not sure if that’s the word I’m going for but I’m a bit less optimistic and my life goals are a bit less grandiose. Maybe that’s the result of having poverty and injustice and crime and disease in your face every day, and then also seeing the remarkable individuals who everyday strive to make a difference in their own little part of the world. Nothing I can do will stop the AIDS epidemic (unless I magically discovered a vaccine... unlikely). Nothing I can do will end world poverty. Nothing I can do will end injustice. It’s been there since the beginning of time and will remain until the end. All I can do is my small part, and if that means helping a few kids in South Africa get the education they deserve, then I’m completely happy to play my part. It's kind of about fighting the daily battle, even if you'll never see the conclusion to the war. I could find a job where I fight poverty and work hard everyday for the rest of my life, but I know that in my lifetime I would never see the end of poverty.

But perhaps my cynicism is also due to the realization of how much I have in common with the people I've met here and that we are all just ordinary people, doing the best we can every day. In other words, my reality here has become less about sitting in a classroom learning about the economics of a developing country and having my thoughts of the world shifted or challenged, and more about sitting in a soccer stadium cheering on the local team with my friends, or sitting down to dinner with a group of people my age, talking about the movie we just watched.

Perhaps I’ve become a little more humbled by my experience here as well. I remember as a child there was one day where ancient prophecies predicted the world would end on that day. Being a worrier even as a young child, I remember raising my concerns with my mom, who was ironing at the time. She put the iron down and said, “Jaime do you really think I would be spending my last night on earth ironing?” And this put my worries to ease. This memory helps me put my life a bit into perspective. The world keeps changing. Wars begin and end. Laws are passed and repealed. Presidents are elected and retired. The world keeps spinning, and we keep waking up every day to face it all over again, and to get our ironing done. And hopefully, somehow during that day, we are able to do something that makes a difference in someone else’s life.

This is why the revival of hope that Obama’s election has generated is so important. His slogan of “yes we can” goes far beyond “yes we can” get him elected. It means “yes we can” make a difference, “yes we can” imagine a better world, and “yes we can” be part of that change. Change does not begin with political revolutions or wars or even with grassroots protests. It begins, as Gandhi taught us, within each of us. It's about changing our own individual mindsets and doing our own little parts, while still watching soccer games and getting the ironing done everyday. So as millions of people flood the nation’s capital to witness this historic inauguration, I will be sitting on my couch on the other side of the world watching it live on TV. And someday when my children ask me where I was when Obama became president, I will say that I was on the other side of the world, living my own dream, making my own little difference in one corner of the world, and being the change that I wanted to see.

A brief update

I am overdue for a blog update but I’m not feeling particularly inspired to write something interesting or exciting, so this will be an update in it’s most basic form.

First of all, I will be home for Christmas this year! I’m arriving in Rochester December 21 and then flying back to South Africa January 9. I’m planning on traveling to NYC, New Jersey, and Philly, so if you’re in these areas let me know and we can try to meet up.

Work is going well. It continues to be challenging and a constant learning experience, both through the research I do and through the constant cultural interactions and new experiences. I’ve recently started doing more HIV/AIDS related research, which has proved to be both very interesting, and incredibly frustrating. At times, the battles that we face seem insurmountable. And yet we fight on. I was going to share lots of shocking stats and figures with you in honor of World AIDS Day, but decided against it because it was just a list of figures that probably would mean nothing to most people. Let me just say that it is a heavy weight on my heart and on the hearts of most South African to witness the suffering of an entire nation. Everyone here is either infected or affected by the disease and the impacts will be felt and magnified for generations to come.

But it’s not all doom and gloom here on this side. There is always hope, and one of the aspects of this country that continually impresses and humbles me is the ability of the people to hold on to hope and to truly believe that things are getting better. The spirit of growth and community that exists in South Africa, despite all of the crime, poverty, corruption and disease that the media likes to talk about, is truly inspiring.

My life here in SA continues to feel more comfortable and more routine as I settle into this life and this city that has now been my home for almost two years. There are always new challenges and new adventures, but there is also the comfort of familiar faces and constant routines to counteract the never-ending newness of living in a country other than the one that I grew up in. It is still the rainy season here, which means that it rains every day without fail. There are sometimes sunny mornings, but they always end in rainy afternoons. I’m looking forward to the return of the summer sun, and thus the return to the beaches and barbeques. But for now, the rain continues. November and December showers bring January and February flowers I suppose.

So I think this is all I have to update you on for now. I’m sorry there aren’t any exciting stories or inspiring anecdotes to share. Perhaps those are better told in person anyway.

Wishing you all a wonderful and peaceful holiday season!

A political one

I wrote this update a couple of weeks ago and have been indecisive about whether or not I wanted to post it. But today I mailed in my absentee ballot, so in honor of that occasion, here's "a political one..."


In my blog updates, I tend to steer clear of politics. On occasion I will make a lefty comment about social justice or inequality, but for the most part I keep my opinions to myself and rather just tell my stories. But what with the political upheaval in South Africa and the exciting American election, in addition to the apparent collapse of global economies, I feel the need to have my say. Usually I avoid political issues because, well to be completely honest, I don’t feel like I am up-to-date enough on current events, nor do I think I’m smart enough to really understand what’s going on or to share my analysis. So let that be a disclaimer that what follows is the opinion of a layperson and the observations of a young American living abroad. And if necessary, I stand to be corrected.

Let me first talk about Barack Obama. I have supported him from day one, but this is not about how I feel about Obama, because my personal opinion is not very important in the grand scheme of things. Instead I want to talk about how he is viewed from South Africa.

You would probably be shocked to know how closely South Africa (and most likely the rest of the world) is following this election. In fact, it’s a pretty safe bet that none of you can name the current president of South Africa, yet every South African can not only name the current US president, but also the presidential AND vice presidential candidates. One of the most poignant observations that I’ve made over the past year and a half or so is that Americans, for the most part, are very ignorant of what is going on in the rest of the world, whereas the rest of the world watches very closely the happenings of other countries, including America. The first thing that I am usually asked when someone finds out I’m American is “so who do you think will win the elections?” Many South Africans, in fact, know more about the elections than I do. Both the Democratic and the Republican conventions were covered daily on the evening news here. In fact, South African news reports have followed the progression of the elections from the very beginning of the primaries when Obama and Clinton were fighting it out.

One of my favorite billboards in Durban is one for satellite TV. On the bottom it says “be inspired.” Above that there are three people pictured, one of whom is our own Barack Obama. Here in South Africa, he has become the face of hope, of success, of inspiration. It’s a pretty safe bet that there is no billboard in the world that includes both the face of George Bush and the word “inspired." I think that perhaps Americans don’t realize what Barack Obama signifies to the rest of the world. Most countries do not have very favorable opinions of the US, but Obama offers the world hope for change and for a new order. He is particularly loved here, I believe, because of his own African heritage. Although he did not grow up in Kenya, his connections to Kenya and his awareness of the struggles of this part of the world are very important. Foreign policy is, after all, more than the war in Iraq.

I think my true appreciation for Barack Obama came when I saw a video clip of him and his wife Michelle visiting Kenya and publicly taking HIV tests together. While in an American context this may seem like a minor event, in an African context it is monumental. Here in South Africa, for example, there is little political leadership in responding to HIV/AIDS. What action there has been has been marked by denial and suspicion over the past two decades. This includes a South African president who publicly questioned whether or not HIV caused AIDS; a Minister of Health who rejected the use of life-saving antiretroviral drugs, promoting instead traditional vegetables; and the president of the majority political party who was accused of raping a woman with HIV without using a condom, but said he took a shower afterwards so he wouldn’t get AIDS (just so there’s no confusion… taking a shower after having sex will NOT protect you from contracting HIV).

With political leadership such as this, it is little wonder that AIDS is the leading killer in SA. So the fact that Barack Obama, an African son in his own right, would recognize the importance of getting publicly tested for HIV in Kenya, is something to be commended and taken note of. Perhaps this signifies a new type of leadership and global awareness for the American presidency and the American people.

Now onto South African politics. Things here have been a bit rocky, but certainly interesting over the last month. Jacob Zuma, the above mentioned president of the majority party (the ANC) was recently on trial for something like 170 accusations of racketeering, bribery, corruption, and money laundering. He got off on a technicality. Free, for now, from the charges, it looks as though in the April 2009 elections he will become the next president of South Africa. But first, there was a bit of a coup as he and his cronies in the ANC dethroned the current president, Thabo Mbeki. Mbeki was accused of abusing his political power and apparently had something to do with the charges brought against Zuma. I don’t understand it all, but there appears to be a growing division in the party between Zuma and the more socialist ANC members, and Mbeki and the more conservative ANC members. So in one weekend the president was removed from office and a new one was voted in shortly thereafter. This was followed by the resignation of half of the ministers, as well as the premiers of three of the nine provinces.

This has all been very interesting to observe. I’m sure this has been brewing behind the scenes for months, but publicly it took about two days. And then it was less than a week before Kgalema Motlanthe, the new president, was put into office. In addition, I am disappointed by the low standards that politicians here are held to. In my opinion, it is terrifying that Jacob Zuma, a man who was accused of rape (although he was acquitted) and who is now accused of corruption, bribery, racketeering, and money laundering, in all likelihood will become the next president of one of the most powerful and influential African countries.

The current American and South African political transitions provide an interesting juxtaposition, particularly in the context of the failing world economies. It is certainly a very exciting time for America in particular and I wait anxiously to see how the November elections unfold and then in the coming months and years to see the impacts of the election both nationally and internationally. Whether we recognize it or not, the eyes of the world will be on us as we take to the voting booths on November 4. And most of the world will be holding thumbs (a South African phrase meaning “crossing fingers”) that January 20, 2009 will bring a new order and change that we can all believe in.


Some statistics, as a reminder that we are not only American citizens, but also global citizens:

September BBC poll of 22,000 people from 22 countries across the globe

49% have negative view of American influence on the world

Obama is preferred by a 4 to 1 margin

46% think that US relations with the world would get better with Obama, 22% that relations would stay the same, and 7% that they would get worse.

20% think relations would get better under McCain, 37% that relations would stay the same, and 16% they would get worse.

When asked whether the election as US president of Barack Obama would "fundamentally change" their perception of the United States, 46% said it would while 27% said that it would not.

The US public was polled separately and the results suggest Americans also believe an Obama presidency would improve US relations with the world more than a McCain presidency, with 46% of Americans expecting relations to be improved with Obama's election and 30% with McCain's.

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2008/09_september/10/poll.shtml

(Un-) Acclimation Proclamation

And so I have returned to South Africa yet again. I’m going to refer to this as Phase III of my South African adventure. Phase I was the four months that I spent here in 2005 studying abroad as an undergraduate. Phase II was January 2007 to May 2008, during which time I was getting my masters degree and working part time. And now Phase III, I am working full time here from August 2008 to August 2009. I’m working for an organization called the Media in Education Trust Africa (MiETA). The mission of the organization is to improve the lives of children through improving access to education, particularly in rural areas. Basically development through education. If you want to learn more about it, visit http://www.miet.co.za/. I’m working here as a researcher. I monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the education centres programme. While I’m not sure that research is my calling in life, it has been a phenomenally eye-opening experience thus far. As I’ve said before, I think I’ve learned more by working for this organization than I did in my year of classes at UKZN.

Speaking of class work, my dissertation is completed! I finished up the 100+glorious pages in May before I went home. I heard in July that it had passed and am currently completing a couple of revisions and will bind it and be done with it. I am also in the process of discussing turning it into an article for an academic journal. This will probably be a two year process, but it’ll be cool to be able to say I’m published!

From June to July I spent some much-needed quality time at home, which included a trip to the Bahamas for my sister Corey’s wedding. During this time I also went through the process of applying for a work permit. I was finally successful after jumping through some hoops and now have a one-year work visa. It was really great to be able to spend such an extended period of time at home and to get to see so many of my friends and family. As much as I love South Africa, there is no place like home.

Which brings me to the title of this update. Last week for work I spent a few days in a rural area called Mbazwana, about 4 hours north of Durban. Driving through the rolling hills of Zululand with my colleague, listening to Zulu gospel music, and eating some roasted corn that I bought from a lady who was cooking it over a fire on the side of the road; I thought “I am SO acclimated.” My Zulu language skills, while still lacking, have improved since I’ve been working because about 90% of the people I work with our first language Zulu speakers (they also speak English). Although I can’t really take part in Zulu conversations, I can usually pick up the gist of a conversation and every now and then impress people with a token phrase that I’ve picked up. To which they exclaim “hawu!” and slap me on the back with a friendly laugh.

And as shown by the street-corn that I enjoyed, I’ve also become much more adventurous in my eating. A couple weeks ago I tried my first sugar cane straight from the field (you suck on it and it tastes kinda like maple sugar candy). While I still avoid some of the more traditional meat dishes (such as chicken feet and cow intestines) I gladly take part in street-meat (I had some lovely chicken out of a paper bag purchased on the side of the road in a rural town last week) and have even learned how to cook pretty well, if I do say so myself. I’ve learned all sorts of Zulu music and pop culture. I’ve learned to walk slower and to talk slower and to somewhat alter my heavy American accent so people can understand me more easily. And even though I always stick out as a white oddity in the townships, I feel pretty comfortable there too. And I am now living with two white South Africans, so am gaining a better understanding of white South African culture as well. Yup, I’m pretty proud of my level of acclimation.

But hold on one minute. Does a more adventurous appetite and the ability to sing along to the latest Zulu pop song really indicate acclimation? Does the ability to take part in a South African political discussion or the ability to ask a question in Zulu really mean that I’ve acclimated to a culture? After all, there are still moments when it all sort of catches up with me and I feel tired of always being out of my comfort zone. There are times when Zulu customs get so confusing (well the customs aren’t confusing, but my understanding of my role/place in them is confusing) and I want to throw my arms up in the air and sing the American national anthem while I eat a hot dog and drink some lemonade.

I always wonder at what point someone can feel fully acclimated to a new country and a new culture. I used to believe that there was indeed a point when this happened, when someone could proudly say “I am a South African” (or whatever the country/culture they’re in). But I don’t really think that’s possible. I think that no matter how long I am in South Africa, I will always be an “ex-pat.” It will never really be mine in the way that America is. (As an aside, I’m not sure I can really group the whole of “America” as my home, but that’s a debate for another day.) I have, however, become much more comfortable here. It’s funny to think that after studying abroad here for 4 months in 2005 I felt like I understood South Africa, because my understanding now is much deeper and more diverse, but still not complete.

South Africa continues to fascinate me. I am fascinated by the clash of traditional Zulu culture and “western” culture and the exciting diversity that is the product of this clash. I’m fascinated by how traditional views about the place of women in society are being shaped by more liberal western ideas. And on the flip side, how western ideas adapt to traditional ideas such as respect for your ancestors and the strength of the extended family as a social unit. A friend of mine here recently told me that the essence of being human is the ability to adapt. The ability of traditional Zulus to adapt to a changing world, and the ability of an American girl to adapt to life in a new country. And yes, a year and a half after my “adventure” began, South Africa is still a new country. My life has fallen more into a regular pattern because of my newly acquired full-time job, but every day continues to throw new challenges and new adventures at me, even when I don’t recognize them as the challenges and adventures that they are. And so I continue to be “un-acclimated,” and to learn from all of the experiences, encounters, and detours along the way.