I have a lot to say ...

:)

I wish this blog sight had more smiley face icons.

This morning, I was looking back at some of my blog postings over the last six weeks.  When I initially set up this blog, I made the commitment to post something each day, and to try to convey my thoughts, feelings, emotions, and logistical tips in a way that would keep you all engaged.  I like to think that I have been somewhat successful in that venture.  I also realize how far I have come from the first day, back in mid-February, when Jim and I first (laughingly) discussed the idea of me coming here for two months.

Today, really for the first day since I have been here, I feel as if I have hit my stride.  Stopping at the office supply store yesterday helped.  I bought a new wireless mouse (to replace the one I had dropped one too many times), a ream of blank paper (I really don't like taking notes on lined paper, something I learned from Tom), a replacement stick eraser, and a portable three-hole punch.  I found, here at the lodge, an old binder they let me have, so I am now organized. 

My only regret is that I didn't make room in my suitcase for the portable printer that Jim gave me. In hindsight, THAT would have been a good thing to have here, but I just couldn't fit it into my suitcase.

But back to my original point, before I get off too far on a tangent, and that is that I seem to have quite a bit to say.  Each day, I have to decide, from a wide range of ideas, what to write about. I limit myself to one post.  And it occurs to me how much I have missed writing.  Since August 2003 (17 days after Allan died) when I first started back to school at Dominican, I have been writing, writing, writing.  Cranking out reams of papers and reports and homework.  Writing Employee Handbooks at work, writing Accounting Policy and Procedure manuals, writing, writing, writing. At least until April, when I finished my last MBA paper, and my writing stopped.

This blog is an effort to give myself a reason for writing again.  And I think it is working :)

Wave the Flag

Everywhere you go, you hear this song.  At every commercial on TV, in the grocery store, at the mall, from car radios.  I have even started to dream this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms2jeF0hViQ&feature=related

A shot of the vuvuzelas at the Fan Park last week.







But behind this energy, there is an entire nation waiting for the games to be over to see what will happen.  Yesterday, I had the opportunity to talk to a small business owner, a man who paints beautiful prints (I bought one I like them so much and I RARELY purchase art.)  We negotiated the price of the print,, then I told him that I would pay a bit more if he would sit with me and talk about his business.  That I had some really "tacky" questions to ask of him, and did he have the time to sit with me.

He laughed, and said that yes, he did have time and would ALWAYS have time to talk shop, especially with an American.

I didn't have my notebook with me so I don't remember his name, but we will call him Asgio.  Asgio's "shop" is in the basement of an Arts and Crafts center, where many merchants have tiny stalls to sell their wares.  His location is near the front of the basement, a spot he has moved up to over the years, he used to be near the back "where the air is bad."  He hand-paints all of his prints, using the townships as inspiration.  I asked what his average daily sales was, and he said on average, R500 per day (about $71 US - gross). We talked about the difference between gross sales and net sales (ooooo .... baby!!), he actually nets about R250 ($30 US) per day.  That comes out to $900 US per month, if he works seven days a week (which he said he often does.)

I asked about the World Cup and what sort of revenue increase he had seen from that.  He looked at me sadly and said that his store is not on the "tour" route (where the tour busses stop) so he has had almost no increase in sales due to the Cup.  He said that he had been to a number of meetings sponsored by the Cape Town Chamber of Commerce (that isn't their name, but the local tourism board) telling him that he could expect wild increases in his sales and to prepare stock to have on hand.

I asked if he had done this, and he smiled sheepishly and said no, he hadn't.  He hedged around, then quietly told me that he really nevetr believes what the government tells him, that he is a business man who knows his own business. I then asked where the World Cup money is going, that there is tourism coming into the country, that the planes are full and the hotels are full, and those people are spending money, and he again looked sad and said "They are spending it on food, alcohol, and World Cup FIFA jerseys, not on local arts."

He said people are worried about the economy when everyone goes home in a couple of weeks.  I asked him if HE was worried, and he got a big toothy grin on his face and said no, not him.  That he is a good business man and knows how to plan his expenses.

That made me smile.  Then he hit me up for another print.

That made me smile even more.

Catch up

Yesterday, Sunday, was a down day, and we were left to our own devices.

A group of Fellows went to church in the morning, with one of the Leapsa's.  Methodist, perhaps.  Maybe in Langa.  To be honest, I didn't pay close attention. After that, a few more joined the Church Goers and went to Mozoni's (I did a post on that restaurant back in May, the Meat Place.)

Me??  I was at the end of my group rope (anyone from the Fellows that is reading this, no offense, we just have had a LOT of group time.) Monica and I decided to head over to the Canal Walk Mall, listed as the biggest mall in South Africa.  We called a cab, only R170, which is about $8 US.  I spent an entire 5!!!! hours in the mall. My family will be shocked and amazed because 5 hours is more mall time than I have spent, combined, in the last year or so.

I haven't talked much about being in a large group yet.  People that know me know that I am a loner of sorts. My mother once made the comment that when I was very young, I was most happy just laying in my crib, looking around.  That is still the case - I am most happy just observing people from the outside of the group.  I like to watch the interactions between people, watch facial movements, body language, see what is really happening besides the verbal communications that one hears.  One can pick up an incredible amount of information if one just keeps their eyes and ears open.

But we have been in a group, really since I left San Francisco.  Very little alone time, which if any Teach with Africa management are reading this, it is worth thinking about - that some of us need a break in this first week of orientation.  We need to get away, to have time to reflect on our own.

So Monica and I headed to the mall.  I had a short list of things I needed to buy:

>  A clock for our room.  There isn't one, which means that during the night, you either need to go into the bathroom and turn on the light and check your wrist watch, or you need to turn on your cell phone to see the time.  Neither is an easy answer, and I needed to fix that.

>  A notebook.  For some reason, there is NO paper here.  Yesterday, I had to steal paper out of the printer in the office of the house we are living in (yes, really steal it) so I could make some notes. I have found that I can't keep track of the names of the LEAP school staff or the LEAPSA kids.  I need to have them write down their names, then at some future time, maybe connect a photo with that name.

>  A new wireless mini mouse.  Mine won't work and my hands are starting to hurt (carpal tunnel) from just using the netbook keyboard.

>  Chocolate.  I can't imagine that there is any question as to why this is on my list???

Fortunately, I was successful in all avenues of the day - my goal to be not Group Orientated, to get everything on my shopping list (which I did with the exception of the mouse).

And the best part of the day?? I got to spend exactly 18 minutes and 32 seconds on the phone with Jim.

Tomorrow (Monday) is my first real day of "work."  I have meetings planned all day to get my different projects going. I am very excited about that.

Deb or Debbie

Being in a new place requires that I introduce myself numerous times a day.  The conversation usually goes like this:

(new person and me)

Me:  Hi, I am Deb, what's your name?
Them:  Xiochel
Me:  What a nice name, can you spell that for me?
Them:  Yes,  xxxxx io xxxx l
Me:  thanks, can you write that in my notebook, please?
Them:  Ok  (write, write, write) And what is YOUR name?
Me:  Deb.
Them:  huh??
Me:  Deb.
Them:  huh????
Me:  or some people call me Debbie
Them:  Oh, Debbie.  What a nice name.  I am so pleased to meet you. This is nice.  I will remember that forever.  (and so on)

This conversation has happened enough times that I am just introducing myself as Debbie now, and I cut out all of that middle stuff.  And it made me wonder what the heck this is about?  Is the word "Deb" some sort of obscene word in the Xitsonga language?

Frances, who is one of the 2010 Fellows, hails from Zimbabwe, and is my big resource for South Africa information.  It was Frances that told me that sunglasses are not politically correct to be worn because it doesn't allow people to see your eyes (as in the police.)

So I asked Frances what was up. He wasn't sure, but he thinks that the name "Deb" is just considered too short to be a real name.  Most African names are long and complicated, and the idea that "deb" is a name is silly.  They can catch on to Debbie because it is more melodic and longer.

I am trying to think of who calls me Debbie anymore ..... Jimmy sometimes .... Tom used to until the wedding ... maybe my mother??  Beyond that, not so much any more. 

But here I am on a different continent going back to the name I grew up with.

Gugeleta

Off in a different direction today visiting the Township of Gugeleta.  I don't have a geographic areas down yet, and on the freeway I haven't seen any signs that say north, south, east or west, so I can't tell you which way Gugeleta was from Pinelands.  Maybe South/East?

But that is neither Here nor There.

First stop was the Etafeni Day Care Center and associated Income Generation (that is what they call revenue.)  The site is nice, with a couple of the buildings just being completed in the last two years.  This building houses the Sewing Center (one of the Income Generation functions of the site.

The site has some pretty specific criteria for being accepted into the program.

Every single one of the 72 children that are enrolled in the Day Care are HIV/Aids positive.  This photo was taken from the website, I didn't feel like photographing any of the babies that I was playing with.

Unless someone told you that these children were stricken with a terminal disease, you would probably never know.  They are happy and active and act like regular 3 year olds.  I sat and played Stack the Blocks with a little girl very much like this one.


From the Day Care, we moved on to look at the Sewing Center. The center produces clothing and bead work made by the women who attend the centers.  The same criteria of acceptance hold true for them to be in this program - they must be HIV/Aids positive.  There are currently about 35 women that are active workers.

And here is the best part!!!

They have a community garden!  Can you tell those vegetables are cabbages (a big staple here), onions, and there are almost ripe red tomatoes on the vines.  Keep in mind that this is the dead of winter, and they have ripe tomatoes!  Wish I could say that for my own garden ....

I talked at length to the Director of Marketing for the site, and he gave me a printed copy of their 2008/9 Annual Report (can this day get any better??  A garden AND financial reports??)

What we talked about, though, was how difficult it has been to get the gardens going.  The dirt that was here was toxic from decades of misuse.  The dirt was finally dug out and new dirt brought in, but it is almost completely sand.  I picked up some and amazed that they can get anything to grow in it, it is that sandy.

I asked about composting and being organic, and he said that yes, the entire site is organic, meaning no chemicals.  Then he grabbed my arm and said he wanted to show me something.

Just a couple of weeks ago, one of the volunteers decided that it was time to start a compost pile.

:)

This is what it looks like after two weeks.  I wasn't going to offer any advice, even though in looking at that pile I can say it is going to be pretty stinkty after a couple of weeks, but the Director did ask me, so I volunteered that maybe they want some browns on top of all of those greens.

Like so much of what I have seen in South Africa, it is a tiny little start.  But from tiny little starts come great things. Let's hope that happens here.

Brown rice, green salad, and a spin class

Yesterday in Langa - it was difficult.  I am a fighter for the underdog .... and wanted to pack up each and every person I saw and bring them home with me, especially the babies.  But I can't fit all of them into my checked baggage.

So I need to go to Plan B.

And that is, I need to take care of myself, which I really haven't been doing.  For dinner last night, I had leftover brown rice and a leafy green salad.  I joined the gym across the street and did an ab/core class.  This morning, I did the 6:45 am spin class.

Now, I feel MUCH more like myself and have re-established a routine of sorts.  From here, I can do the work I came to do.

Langa

You can goole Langa, but from the satellite view, you won't see what I saw.

Random thoughts ......

there is only one road into Langa.  This is so that if the police need to "contain" the area, they only have to contain one road to prevent anyone from coming in our out.

There are 13 different barriers to exit Langa and get into the other Townships where Langa people work. This means that if you live in Langa, and you work in Pinelands (where I am living), that you might have to navigate a major highway crossing, a double barbed wire fence, a ditch, an empty space where the power lines go, or 9 other obstacles to get in and out of Langa.

Random images of Langa:

Trash in the gutter
Trash behind shanty-town shacks
The smell of feces
A pair of purple boots on a 2 year old - boots that I would have paid top dollar to own
Sheeps heads cooking on an open grate by the street
Cows heads cooking on a different open grate across the street
Trash
One room hovels - no electric, no plumbing
People, sitting, standing, milling around .... people just having nothing to do.  Not today.  Not yesterday. Not tomorrow.  People just sanding around.

Kevin (one of the fellows) was talking about the sense of community that he saw, beyond the poverty. People joking around, being happy with where they are, a sense of family.

Many of the students that attend LEAP Schools live in Langa.  Each morning, the bus drives through Langa and picks up children.  Each evening, the bus returns them to Langa.  During the day, those children often get one meal at the school. Many days, that is their only meal of the day.

And yet, everyone I saw had on clean clothes.  Women wash the clothes in a big plastic bucket outside of their homes. Maybe kids in Langa are more careful with their clothes and don't get them dirty, or don't spill chocolate or ketchup on them, because I think I would be hard pressed to keep my kids clothes that clean and unstained.

And, everyone had cell phones.  Not cheap cell phones, such as the South African one I bought the other day for $70 Rand ($10 US).  No, these kids have iphones and Blackberries.

Why??  Because it is a status symbol, and their key to the world.  Through these smart phones, these kids can get the internet.  They have access to the world.  They don't know what to do with it, but they do have access.

I took no photos of Langa, it just didn't feel right.  The poverty felt sooo huge .... it would have been flaunting that I was there to have photographed it.  The White Woman goes to Langa ... sort of thing.

I am thinking now that, as the sun drops, that many of those people are going into their tin shacks.  They are sitting on the dirt floor, or the broken plastic chair they bartered for. They are eating the part of the sheeps head that they did not sell.  Or more likely, they are not eating at all.  Students from the LEAP Schools have been dropped off by the bus, earlier in the day, and maybe they were able to do homework.  But how much homework can be done in a one room shanty town shack that doens't have electricity??

Of all of the days I have been here, today was by far the most difficult.

And tomorrow is Guguleta. Which, according to others, is even worse.  And my big Med Clinic project is in Krafontaine.  Krafontaine makes Langa look like the luxury suites at the Marriott Hotel.

I know I can do this, I have been through worse emotional situations.

I  can do this.

Where are we????

This week has been a complete sensory overload. I don't know what day it is, I don't know what we will be doing on any given day, whatever plans were made a couple of hours ago have now changed, it is totally disconcerting.  The only given is that the sun will rise and set.

Let's see .... we did the Fan Fest ... we did the lunch at the resturant .... I can't upload videos of the kids singing ..... even the fact that I have posted three posts this evening .... that is a rare occurence and the inter net has only gone down a few times, meaning that two of these posts have been done at least twice if not three times.

:(

But here we are.

Back to the LEAP School.  Here are some random photos of the school to give you a visual image of where I am spending my time - this is the courtyard outside of the main building ...

A shot of the main building ...








Leap 1 is on the first floor.  Leap 2 is on the second floor. These are two completely different schools, both in the same building.  I asked why this was so, wouldn't it be much more effecient to combine the two schools into one, and the answer made sense. 

Leap 1 students are from Langa.  The class size is 20 or so.  All of the students know each other and they are friends.  The LEAP buss picks them up together and they go home together.

Leap 2 students are from Gutela (I think, and the spelling is wrong.)  Same theory of friends being together.  If they were to mix Leap 1 and Leap 2, students would miss out on the strength of having their friends in their classes, so it makes sense.

The school looks big and nice.  It is old.  It needs paint.  Things are falling apart.  That is the nature of Cape Town.

The Fan Fest

South Africa, or FIFA, I don't know, has made it so that everyone has the option of seeing games, in real time.  In downtown Cape Town, there is a Fan Fest site, with a mega-tron screen in the big plaza.  On Tuesday, we took the train (3rd class if you please) (there were no chickens on the train but it wasn't far from that) downtown to the plaza ....

getting ready to go downtown .....

on the way to the Fan Fest ....

the plaza where the Fan Fest was held ...









It ended up that South Africa beat France 3 - 1, not a bad score.  After the game, we all walked from the plaza to the Victoria Wharf and had dinner.  Dinner out of the Food Court of a tourist attraction would NEVER be my choice for food, being both expensive and usually not too good, and this held true.  I had a lamb falafal with tanziki sauce (sauce which I could have easily made better), and grilled onions.  The dinner came with chips (french fries) which I gave to the LeapSa kids that were with us on the adventure.

We returned back to Bealuah Lodge late in the evening, and while many of the Fellows stayed up late, I took the opportyunity to go to bed relatively early.

A Mixed Bag

This evening, most of the Fellows are either at the game (who is playing again??) or went downtown to buy tickets for a game later this week, leaving the internet wide open :)  Until it crashes, then I will reboot and continue on.

So much has happened in the last couple of days, so this is going to be a random group of photos from my camera.

Quite a bit different than our entry into Dubai -

The room we are living in  - it actually is quite nicer than it looks.

Can you see those jagged barbs??  Every house here is surrounded by a fence - most places have guard dogs.  Our house has the barbs, plus some sort of alarm system. The house next door has dogs that want to take my face off. They scare the crap out of me each time I walk by.

On Monday, we had lunch at a tiny place in Langa.  This is a Container Project that trains cooks and wait staff.  They cooked us a meal that you might find in any home in Langa.

Here is a photo of the Something and Beans that you see on the menu.  It was served cool, not cold, but cool.

What I had to eat - the spinich and carrots were REALLY tasty .... As plates go, this was a LOT to eat ....






That is enough for this post ....

Songs of Africa

The other day, I wrote about the LEAPsa's - the graduates of the LEAP schools.  These kids have been doing the orientation for us this week, and going along with us to events and the game yesterday.  They are a great group of kids, mostly 18 - 21, that have overcome adversity and gotten themselves into University.

I have also mentioned that the LEAP students frequently, for reasons that I don't understand, break into song.  Someone tones a note, then before you know it, they all are singing.  And we are talking beautiful voices.  Francis is one of the 2010 Fellows, and originates from Zimbabwe.  I asked Francis about the singing - are the group of kids that we see some sort of special "Show Choir" or something.  He said that no, that you could pick 20 random kids out of the school and have them sing and it would sound this good.

Now, I am not a video-grapher, nor a recording artist, nor any of those professions that does nice video work.  But I AM someone that can hold the "record" button on the camera, and record what I think is beautiful music.

These three videos sound awful on my netbook, but when you play them, I hope they sound as good as they did to me this morning.


AACK!!!! I can't upload the videos ... sorry folks .... bad internet tonight ......

EDITED TO ADD:  here is the link to my photobucket upload .... This is a VERY short clip, not at all what I want to post, but I can't upload a 100 meg file ....

Rusks - The South African Breakfast of Champions

Looks like Biscotti.

Comes in a big plastic bag – there are probably 36 of them in each bag. One just about breaks their teeth eating one. Somewhat sweet. People say they are great to dip into coffee, but that would make them soggy (blech!!!! Gag!!!! The idea of soggy anything makes me want to barf!) so I just sort of gnawed on mine. Crunchy enough that you can’t carry on a conversation with someone while you are chewing.

I should probably bring home a bag – Grant (who LOVES crunchy things) would go to town on these.

The Winter Solstice - in June

Yesterday was the Winter Solstice here. On a day on the calendar where I usually observe the longest day of the year, I instead celebrated the shortest day of the year. Being so far south, sunrise is late. This morning, it is 7:03 and still pitch dark outside, even though I can hear the commuter traffic outside on the big road a block away, so the world is starting its daily routine, even though it is still dark out.

I spotted a beautiful bougenvillia yesterday, thinking how odd that it is in full bloom in June, then remembered we are in the dead of winter.

It is also strange to not be preparing for Christmas, or just cleaning up from Christmas as we roll past the Winter Solstice, although I don’t think they celebrate Christmas here. Makes me think how many of our holiday traditions would translate here. Certainly not the wearing of big winter sweaters decked out with Snowmen and Santa scenes. The idea of bringing in a holiday tree into the house in June? Hot toddies in June?

When I get a chance (and the internet is working, HAHAHA!!!!!) I should research Kwanza as a summer holiday.

Getting down to Business

The day had to come when we, and the 2010 Teach with Africa Fellows, actually got down to doing what it is we will be doing, and that day was today.
I woke up early, having gone to bed early, what with jet lag and all. My eyes popped open at 4:17 am. Of course, it could have been that our room was sooo cold because we couldn’t get the heater to work, but it was most likely because I am still on San Francisco time. Took a shower, got ready for the day, found my Starbucks Viva Instant coffee, and found the coordinating microwave that makes the instant coffee “come to life.” (that is what it says on the label, so it has to be true.) Reminisced about my old routine of Jim getting up and feeding the cats, then bringing me, in bed, a hot cup of brewed coffee. But Toto, we aren’t in Kansas anymore, are we??

Because the San Francisco contingent arrived late on Sunday, we missed the South Africa Cell Phone purchase outing with all of the other fellows. Our team headed over to the cell phone store early to get our phones, the reason being that in previous years, some people don’t have phones, or have US phones, and communications is difficult, so this year, everyone bought a SA phone. I have to say, it has been a number of years since I had a Non-Qwerty phone, the kind where you have to hit the key three times to get a “C” – remember those?? I have no idea what my phone number is, but if you want to call and talk to me, email me and I can look on the piece of paper and tell you what it is.



From there, we walked to the Cape Town Leap School. I haven’t talked much about the schools, and am not going to do that here, you can read the website if you like. Basically, there are four schools across the Western Cape. (sound like a native, almost, don’t I?? Calling it the Western Cape )

We had a brief introductory meeting with all of the fellows and John Gillmore (founder of the LEAP Schools) about the days agenda. From there, we walked through the school to an open space, sort of a very small auditorium. Two of the school alumni (called Leap-SA’s)(not sure what that stands for, maybe LEAP Student Alumni), led the session. After the typical introductory speeches (short and sweet, thank you very much), a group of male students performed. The four young men were wearing tall muckrakers – those heavy, tall, plastic rubber boots. One played the conga (?) drum and they danced to the sound, clapping on their shoes. I wish I had had the presence of mind to record it. The performance was outstanding. Following that was more groups of 3 – 4 students, then the audience would spontaneously break into song. A few more speeches, and one student got up and recited a, probably self-authored, poem, first in his native African tongue, then in English. We ended up in small groups introducing ourselves to students, then a closing song.

My gosh how those kids can sing. It made me think of that new show on TV – Glee. Two part, four part harmony, just beautifully blending voices.

After a student-led tour of the school, we all climbed into the mini-bus to drive to Langa, a nearby township, for lunch.

Mind you, none of these places have heat of any sort. Maybe the bus did, but if they did it didn’t make it back to my seat. I hadn’t planned ahead well and had only brought my rain slicker, not my Pacific Northwest Columbia rain jacket. So I was cold.

The town of Langa is home to The Container Project – Restaurant and Training Center.

The center hires locals to work in the restaurant and trains them to cook and wait tables. The food was amazing, and somewhere I have a photo of the menu. The food was completely made from local foods in traditional ways. There was cooked carrots, some sort of spinach in a coucous thing, chicken, lamb, (when I find my camera I can post the photo with the complete menu), and tripe.

I don’t think I have ever seen Tripe served, and thought, oh what the heck it isn’t going to kill me to eat it and I should try new things, then I saw the honeycombed parts, and the tube parts, and thought oh, yes. If I eat that I will SURELY die. So I passed on that.

Dessert was a lemon cake surrounding by hot orange pudding and some sort of thick custard. I could have easily eaten three.

Once lunch was over (and an hour of chatting with our new friends) we wandered to the Craft Studio next door. Crafts, such as earrings, wooden bowls, African masks, and a couple of hand-carved walking stick (who was is that wanted me to bring back one of those??). I ended up buying a small jade elephant for my Non-Collection of Elephants.

Langa is a very small community, high on the poverty scale. Houses are tiny with a large number of people living in each one. We didn’t spend much time in Langa, walking around, because it was pouring rain, but Dana and I will be going back there frequently because a number of our Business Projects are headquartered there.

Pizza for dinner, some paperwork and connecting with family, and it’s time to call it a day.

A couple of notes:



1. It is cold here. My fingers are cold. My toes are cold. I guess I thought it was a big joke or something that there is almost no heat here.

There isn’t.


2. The Internet connection sucks. I rarely use that word to describe anything, so you know it is bad. There are two parts to this house, with a different internet router in each. They alternate going in and going out, more out than in. Almost never in. When it is on, we all jump on.

3.  I can't send emails.  I can receive them and read them and write a response, but they are all stuck in my outbox.

So there will be places where I might post three or four blog entries at once.

And I almost cannot do photos.

Random thoughts on the Middle East

Random images of the Middle East




Shrouded women

Robed men

Hard to keep my eyes open one minute more

Being in a muslim country

Arabic writing on street signs, billboards

How clean Dubai is – no graffiti, no trash

The men in the airport – their (surely they aren’t called hats, but I don’t know the term) hats - the long flowing Arabian head pieces – are held on to their heads with a lacy net piece.

Men wearing sandals under their long white robes

Some sort of bean (like pintos) dish for breakfast. People were putting chopped red onions, parsley, some chopped white thing on it, all in a bowl.

Women with only slits of eyes showing

The name Emirates EVERYWHERE.

No internet.

No free Wifi.

Not being able to get a text sent out from my Blackberry.

The incredibily long walk from the front of the airport (where the shuttle dropped us off) to Gate 206, then taking a shuttle to an entirely different part of the airport where we climbed up the old-fashioned stair ramp into the plane and thinking two thoughts:

1. That the handrail on the ramp was hot enough to burn my hands

2. That the Dubai Tourism Board doesn’t care what our opinion of the airport is on departure. There was such a dramatic difference between our entry gate (with the marble and Grecian columns) and the tacky shuttle where we stood like cattle) that it cannot possible have been unplanned.

The plane is FILLED with soccer fans. The man sitting in front of us said “Why would ANYONE want to go to Cape Town unless they were going to the World Cup?”



A grandpa and his 10 year old grandson, off on a big adventure to the game.

Hearing just about every imaginable language on the shuttle, the blending of people and smells.

All of the little pieces I wanted to remember to write here but are now gone from my tired brain.

Another 9 hour flight.

But, we are almost there.

Las Vegas on Steriods

Las Vegas on Steriods


Who was it that called Dubai this?

Descending into Dubai, we passed over dune upon dunes. Tan block houses built amid the shifting sands, driveways of sand, backyards of sand, sand, sand. While I knew it was desert, I thought, somehow, there would be some green, but no, tan and brown as far as you can see.

The landing was rough. Planes have, these days, cameras both showing you where you are going (I guess on the nose cone) and a camera below the plane, showing you the ground. As we landed, we could not only feel the plane rolling from side to side but you could see the ground moving as we made a rocky landing. Sometimes, too much information is not a good thing.

We debarked feeling fuzzy and worn. Walking up the jet ramp, my hips and knees were aching.

Now, I have already posted some photos of the Dubai airport, but nothing I have posted would do it justice. We are talking Full On, Non-Stop, Gaudiness. The airport is enormous. When we arrived, it felt as if we were the only ones there, in a place built to accommodate thousands. The floors are covered in marble, giving the place a feel of a mausoleum. Grecian columns parade (yes, parade) across the expanses. As in, I counted 30 columns in a row until I couldn’t see any farther. At one point I thought that surely, there must be big mirrors because why would the breezeways be that expansive?? To get to Customs, we walked and walked and walked. Past the Wall of Water, down the massive elevators, again, past hundreds of columns more. Some columns were plain stainless steel. In other parts of the airport, the columns were a white glitter, yet somewhere else, they were a mix of shiny stainless and brushed stainless.

Everything I saw dripped $$$$.

But this was nothing compared to the actual city of Dubai. Because we had a 12 hour layover, Emirates Airline put us up at their own hotel for the night. Included was a nice buffet dinner and breakfast. Monica suggested that we do a City Tour, which was a great idea. For $30 US, or $110 dyham, we could take the 2 hour Night Time tour.

A quick pitstop in our room and we were on our way.

My first impression of Dubai is this: all of the building cranes in the world must be having a convention here. Either that or it is building code to have a crane on top of your building. There is SOOOO much major construction going on here, it’s difficult to describe. And here is where the Las Vegas on Steriods description comes in. The people of Dubai LOVE twinkle lights. They LOVE neon. They LOVE colored outdoor lighting. Every palm tree in the area is wrapped in white twinkle lights. Most of the skyscraper buildings are edged in some sort of neon (red, green, blue), just outlined. Every hotel is garish and grand and imperial and gaudy.

And sandy.

The tour drove us past a number of the big hotels, such as where you can ski inside. We didn’t stop to go in, but the place was immense. We stopped to take photos of the building that is now designated as the tallest building in the world. It, of course, has a crane on top.

Our tour guide talked about life in Dubai. Unemployment is practically non-existent. As he put it “there is too much to do here for people to not be working, plus if everyone is working, there is no time for crime or drugs or other bad habits.” He spoke at length about who can and who cannot get married here. I wasn’t listening too closely (being already married myself) but I think that a non-local woman cannot marry a local man. Homosexuality is illegal as is pre-marital sex. 20% of the residents are natives and 80% are non-natives.

We drove through the new Palms man-made island area. Classed as the “Eighth Wonder of the World” (I don’t know who came up with that - the Tourism Department of Dubai??) but one does have to agree it is pretty impressive. Hundreds of man-made islands representing the fronds of different types of palm trees.

But what I saw was this.

Block after block of new condos. In the states, we would call this track housing. Hundreds of condos and houses looking exactly the same – same color, same front door, same, same, same.

Everything is under construction. Freeways have orange cones for construction, surface streets are blocked off for construction, and the monorail system is being completed. Here is a photo of the detail of the under side of the monorail system. Pretty elaborate.

One other note: many, if not most, of the buildings were dark. So many condos and houses – all dark and empty. Who is this huge city being built for? Is there really THAT much excess oil money that it is being poured into Dubai?

And what are going to be my feelings as tomorrow, we get into the poverty of Cape Town?

For now, off to a well deserved night’s sleep.

11 hours to go ....

11 hours down …. 4 to go ….

Dana has been joking about “Trucker’s Butt”, but the reality is that this is a hecka long flight. We are flying Emirates which is a relatively new airline. Seats are small but comfortable. Someone had mentioned to me that since this was such a long flight that there wouldn’t be many families or babies, but almost all of the other passengers are families. There are at least four tiny babies, one who, after 11 hours, has just now settled down.


Flight attendents are a step back in the past. When we came on board, the women wore perky red hats and white scarves, plus long sleeves, covering most of their bodies. Not that the flight attendants are scantily clad in the States, but these girls (and the do look like young girls) were covered. And they were all exactly alike, from the uniform to the slash of pink rouge makeup across their cheeks, sort of Stepford Wife-ish.

Dinner was good, a very tasty Lamb Curry, smoked salmon coucous, and strawberry dessert. Snack was a tuna wrap, and breakfast should be here in an hour or so.

To date, the longest flight I have been on is San Francisco to London, and that flight is about 9 hours. We passed that mark two hours ago. My knees ache. My hips ache. And even though there is a port to charge my ipod, I can’t find the connector in my bag and my ipod went dead two hours ago.



Sigh ……

At last :)

It's today. 

Finally!!

Today is the day Jim gets back into cell range so that I can talk to him.  Feels live FOREVER since Sunday.

Oh, wait.  hehehe ......  today is also Departure Day :)  Almost as exciting ..

Must be nerves because I woke up this morning at 4:12. Thought about going to the 5:30 am spin class, then thought that probably, as nervous as I am, that would be a sports injury for sure, so best not to risk it.  Instead, I went on-line and paid for the extra baggage that I am bringing (no comments from any of my therapists on that, please :)) (the soccer gear). 

Once the sun came up, did Snail Patrol.  Found an amazing number of snails this morning and they all hissed at me as I plucked them off of my plants and threw them into the paper bag where they live before they get tossed out in the trash.

Felt sorry for Jim (sorry, honey) about all of the weeds. I thought sure I had them all pulled yesterday.  This year has been particularily wet and the weeds are growing like crazy.  Green beans are curling around the lattice I put up for them.

Spent a good number of hours getting the Centerforce budget done.  Tidyed up the last loose ends of this and that.  Rearranged (yet again) things in my carry on.  Made sure my passport was handy.

Airporter should be here soon ....

Final Countdown ..

Today was surprisingly busy.

Note to those following me on this trek:  I had to negotiate with Dominican on the Food Allowance.  There was some degree of confusion as to who was paying for this and that, even though Dominican had sent me a letter stating they were paying for this and that, and when Push came to Shove, they paid for that, but not this.

sigh .... oh, well.  I am going and That's That.

The point of that was I had to drive down to Dominican this afternoon to pick up a check for That.  While down there, I stopped by Centerforce.  I am the (contracting) Director of Finance there, and this week we received word that we were awarded a large (to us) contract.  Except, it was only 1/2 of what we had submitted.  This means that instead of my reading the mandatory readings (see my "on the shelf" list to the right of this post), on the plane I am going to be crunching numbers to significantly cut the FY11 budget. Then to find an Internet connection in Dubai, send that back to the States, so that come Monday, Centerforce can submit a new budget, and know what the agency budget looks like. 

I didn't factor in that amount of work AT. All.

Had to run to Target to get another big duffel bag for soccer gear.

Took Kitty the Dog to the Dog Park.

While I was at Dominican, I sat with Dana (the other MBA and my Roomie) and we talked about confusion with the program.  We both worry that the start up of our work will be slow, that somehow, things will be confusing and we won't be productive.  That is probably our own nervousness talking, but in our minds, it is real.  And on the Eve of leaving on a very big trip, a real fact.

Tonight, in my Feed Deb for the Week program, the Guthrie's are feeding me.  They are such nice people :)

In my suitcase are two photos of Jim and I at our wedding last year, along with the photo of the entire family (Jim, Deb, Jennifer, Graham, Sarah, Madyson, Grant, and Alex) .... reminds me of what I am leaving behind.  I also have two photos of Jim and I on our wedding day last year, in Yosemite, and if I keep thinking about it, I might pack up the first photo taken of he and I, the first time we went to Yosemite.  The time we, on the spur of the moment, climbed to the top of Upper Yosemite Falls.

He has only been gone since Sunday (five days.)  How am I going to get through an entire 60 days more??

Why are you going??

Ranking as the #2 question, right behind Are you going to the World Cup?, the question "Why are you going? is asked of me just about every day.

At first, I told a long story about how the Fellowship came to be, starting back when I was born on a dark and stormy November night .... hahaha ... .not really.  But I would tell FAR too much detail, and people would, after 20 words or so, sort of drift off into their own heads. 

Over the last two months, since I was awarded a spot on the Team, I have been trying to figure out the "Elevator Speech" explaining why I am going. An "Elevator Speech" is again that 20 or less words that you can say to someone before they lose interest. I tried different tactics, talking about my work in non-profits, I tried joking about having two teen-aged boys at home would give cause to ANY mom to want to leave the country (Grant and Alex - you both know I am joking, I love you both), I mentioned my being semi-unemployed for the last nine months.  But really?  No one (except for three exact people) really understands why I am going.

Then in my spin class this morning, I was listening to people talk about my leaving.  Everyone had a slightly different version, all hovering around things I had said, and it struck me like a ton of bricks.  Everyone has their own story about why I am going.  In their heads, they have thought about why THEY might go, or thought about a trip they wanted to take, or are vicariously living through my going on this trip, for whatever reason.

And it occurred to me that I really don't need to make people understand why.  That they, in their own way, get it.  It may not be MY reason for going, but people are happy and supportive and understanding.

(gosh, I hope that all made sense)

Last minute details

48 hours before the plane departs.  Nervous energy at every corner, can hardly sit still.

UPS came twice today - once with my long-sleeved work sweaters and shirts, then again with my new shoes with no holes in them. I was worried about the shoes.

Soccer gear continues to flow in.  I now have four big duffel bags filled.  Cones, line flags, a rule book, were some of the more interesting donations.  A few sports bags.

I figured out the 15 pound carry on packing dilemma.  The bag weighs less than the 20 pound bag of kitty litter, so I should be good.

Passport, foreign currency, immunization records - all here.

Yard watered and weeds pulled - done.

Large suitcase almost packed.  Some of it can't go in until tomorrow, such as my workout bag.  I decided to take my spin shoes.  The gym that I am going to join there (for two months) has spin classes.  I can't imagine that they would not have clips on the pedals, and the thought of doing spin for two months without shoes, well, ick.

I also decided to bring my two favorite gardening tools:  the red hand-clippers that Jim gave me for Christmas last year, and the fork-like thing (also red handled) that digs up weeds.  Just in case I come across a garden that needs weeding.  Or clipping.  Or even pruning. I can do some serious pruning with those clippers.

I bought some snacks for the plane.

Marin Community Foundation still has not responded to my request for support.  That is disappointing. Not that they are, perhaps, not funding me, but that they haven't even had the manners to write back saying so.  It was a long shot, me sending Tom Peters that letter after my graduation.  But the very least they could have done was to send a "thanks but no" letter.  Too bad ... sort of leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Tonight, the Pell's across the street are feeding me, helpless as I am when Jim is not here :) Tomorrow night, the Guthrie's are feeding me, then Friday night, Emirates Airlines is feeding me.

48 hours.

Kitty the Dog ....

 .... knows something is going on. 







This is the doorway between the laundry room and the house, with the door to the garage behind me.  Kitty has been staked out there since Sunday morning then Jim and the boys left.  Every day, she waits patiently for 3:00 to come around when Grant and Alex get home from school (she listens for the sound their bike kickstands make when they park their bikes), then she waits for the sound of Jim's motorcycle at 6:00.

This week, she just lays there, looking at the door, her ears pricking up at the slightest sound in the garage.

Waiting.  Poor Baby.

Pre-Departure Dinner

I was wondering who was going to feed me this week, what with Jim being gone and almost all of the leftovers also gone. 

Sunday night I had dinner with Jennifer and Graham, and Kitty the Dog came along for the ride.
Monday I had to feed myself!! Imagine that!  :)

Tonight, Tuesday, Gene and Barbara (Fellows from 2009, I believe) hosted a lovely dinner at their house in San Francisco.  Gene made a Moroccan dinner that Jim will want to know every detail about, and all I heard was stew over eggplant somethings, and Baklava for dessert.  Now, even though I don't know the names of the dishes I was eating, the dinner was wonderful!

Coming down from Marin to the city, I picked up Sarah Diefendorf, Executive Director for the Environmental Finance Center at Dominican University.  She is listed on the 2010 Fellows list as Faculty-In-Residence.  I felt like I was grilling her with questions about the program, how Dominican fits in with Teach with Africa, and about Cape Town in general.  Mostly I listened to her talk about her hopes and goals for the program, all which line up with why I am doing this.

We got to Gene and Barbara's house, due to an error on the arrival time, an hour early, but had a chance to chat with Gene and admire their garden.  At least I admired the garden.  I wish I had photos.  It was an absolutely beautiful evening in the Outer Richmond District of SF.  All the talking, and I kept thinking that I wanted to be sitting on the warm flagstone pavers outside smelling the lavender and some other purple trailing vine thing that I didn't have a chance to go and smell and feel.

Many of the Fellows from the orientation were there - Jennifer, Heather, Katie, Subina, ummm ......  a couple of others whose names I have already forgotten.  Katie and I talked about packing - what is in our suitcases, how many clothes are we bringing.  Heather and I worried about what to do when we get to the Cape Town airport - do we need to take a cab?  Do we need to rent a car?  Do we need directions?  In all of the literature, nothing says what to do when we arrive.

Good thing we asked - Amy said that someone would pick us up at the airport.  That's a great thing because I have at least 3, if not more, large duffel bags filled with soccer gear, and I can only imagine my hauling those even from the Baggage Claim to any sort of taxi or bus. Not fun.  But now, not a problem.

I also placed my wine order. Here it is Tuesday, and I let Jennifer (our Coordinator) know my wine preferences.  Priorities, ya know?

Well .... 9:37, Kitty the Dog says it is time for bed.  Time to shut down this All Too Quiet House and head to bed. The next couple of days are going to be busy.

Where did my family go?

Sunday morning, around 6:55 am, the house was in a flurry as the last bits of camping gear got packed into the Explorer, then in a cloud of dust, Jim, Grant, and Alex, left for the Boy Scout 50 Miler Rogue River White Water trip.

This isn't my guys, but will give you an example of what they are doing this week, while Kitty the Dog and I stay home getting ready for Africa.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bIuznJoMKY

I will be gone before they get back.  Probably a good thing - there is going to be some N.A.S.T.Y camping laundry to do.

15 pound carryon

Emirates isn't like other airlines, or so it seems.  I guess in order to haul me and all my gear, and 350 other people and their gear to Dubai, they have to put pretty strick weight restrictions on things.  I can bring 2 - 50 pound checked bags, and 1 (!!!!), as in one carryon.  That has to weigh 15 pounds or less.

I just loaded up my computer bag with all of my essential technology, a couple of books, snacks (for the almost 16 hour flight), my wallet, and a change of clothes and toilitries for the night in Dubai. I lifted it up and it can't possibly be less than 20 pounds.

Trying to think it through is difficult because I am leaving from San Francisco (where it is a bit chilly), but I can wear a sweater and socks under my sandals.  Then we get to Dubai, where it is a balmy 105.  But do I want to wear the same thing I have been flying in for 16 hours?  Clothes that cover my elbows and knees, in order to be culturally sensitive?  Then we fly to Cape Town, where today, it is 52 degrees.  So back go on the socks and fleece vest .....

Maybe it will work.  Of course, it HAS to work, no doubt about that.

The GOOD news is that the extra bags I will have - all the donated soccer gear - that gets checked through all the way to Cape Town, so once I get it to SFO, I don't have to deal with it.  Three huge duffel bags so far and stuff still arriving.

The Momentum ...

Can you feel it growing??

Just like those vuvulezas in the stadiums .... the drone and humming sound of South Africa .... the momentum is growing here at home, until I get on the plane on Friday.

I am going there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHakXmDlVms&feature=related

This Friday.  I'm going there.

You know how you all keep saying "So, Deb, are you getting excited??"

The answer is yes. This Friday, I am going there.

Cape Town street scenes

Enough of me blabbing :)

I was in the gym this morning on the treadmill, and caught a glimpse of this video - be sure to turn your speakers up - the music is great :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiWQNTWLySM

Santa Baby ...

Will you be home on Friday?  Seems that I will be going right over Santa's House at the North Pole.

Being the Ever Curious person that I am, and also being pretty bored because Jim, Grant, and Alex all left this morning to go on a White Water Rafting trip, leaving me with Kitty the Dog and cherries that are too ripe to eat .....

whew !!!!!

I started wondering about what route the flight from SFO to Dubai will take.  From what I found out on Google, the flight leaves SFO, runs up the coast past Seattle, then over the North Pole, and down through Russia, passed India, finally landing in Dubia.  Elapsed time:  15 hours 20 minutes.

Which THEN led me to ask the question, what is currently the longest flight on a regularly scheduled route?  This was a table which didn't upload very well, and is now edited:

1. Newark to Singapore- Singapore Airlines 18hr 50min
2. Los Angeles to Singapore - Singapore Airlines 17hr 20min
3 Johannesburg to Atlanta - Delta Air Lines 16hr 40min
4. Dubai to Los Angeles -  Emirates 16hr 35mi
5. Los Angeles to Bangkok - Thai Airways International 17hr 30min
6. Dubai to Houston -Emirates 16hr 20min
7. Dubai to San Francisco -  Emirates 16hr 00min
8. New York to Hong Kong -  Cathay Pacific 15hr 20min

16 HOURS!!  I already knew that.

That is one BIG plane!

The Summer Garden

This is all very strange.  It is ..... checking the calendar ..... June 13, and I am already pulling out the Calundulas, which under normal circumstances would get yanked around the Fourth of July.

The Cherry Crop of 2010 came and went without us actually getting out there and picking them (an annual Family Event.)  Between the rain last week, which cracked most of them making them inedible, then the crows got the ones in the top of the tree, then all of us being just TOO busy with the end of school to go out and pick ... well, that is a lot of excuses for why the cherries are over-ripe and still on the tree. :)


Here is Kitty the Dog sitting under the tree, looking guilty. She has decided, all of a sudden, that she LIKES cherries.  She is now spending hours sitting under the tree, waiting for the random cherry to drop.

But what really got to me today, as I worked my way around the yard, clippers in hand, is that I have never been away from my Handy Dandy clippers for more than 30 days.  Here at home, they almost live in my hand, and I am NEVER outside without them.  Last week, I wrote to the Host of the B&B we will be staying at and mentioned that I am an avid gardener and will be looking for weeds to pull or rocks to move, or seeds to plant.  He was excited to hear that, but I am not entirely sure that I can go more than 60 days without getting dirt under my fingernails or clipping something.

Jim, if he was home, would laugh at the very idea of me even HAVING clean fingernails.  I rarely do.  Just one of those things when I like to play in the dirt as much as I do.

I bet that B&B owner doesn't have any clue.  Hehehehe ......  I can't WAIT to get my hands into that Cape Town soil.

Now, here is a thought to ponder:::  I wonder if a large plastic bag of my home-grown compost would make it through customs??  Sure would be nice to take some there ....

Reigniting the Passion

Over the course of the last 30 errrrr .... ish years, I have worked in Non-Profit Land.  1981 to be exact was my first Assistant Bookkeeper position with a non-profit devoted to Skilled Nursing Facility quality standards. During those years, I have worked a variety of places, but mostly at YNI (Yosemite National Institutes, now called NatureBridges.)(No comment on the new name)(and we are going to call it YNI or Headlands Institute because that is where I worked.)

I LOVED working there, and did so for more than 15 years.  The people I worked with were passionate about their work. Not just the instructors, but the administrative staff as well. During the peak years of the institutes, it was by far the best work experience of my life, and may remain so.

But people move on and times change.  Fast forward seven years.  A group of seven of us met for dinner earlier this week. I can't speak for anyone else, but I had more fun than I have had in quite awhile.  We laughed, and told stories of the old days, and Remember When stories.  After dinner, we walked up the hill to the Mark Hopkins where David Breashears was speaking.  The event was the annual award of the Rowell Award for the Art of Adventure. Galen Rowell as a board member for YNI.  When he and his wife died in an airplane crash, an Rowell Award was started.  You can read more about it here:

http://www.rowellaward.com/index.htm

This award is given to someone that has shown extraordinary passion towards their adventure project.  And I mean extraordinary.  Prior to David Breashears speaking, the 2009 Award Recipient spoke - Craig Childs.

This man is PASSIONATE.

Look at his eyes in this photo, you can see the passion.  Isn't that stare intense?? When he spoke about smelling the salt in the arroyos of Utah, deep in the canyons, and hearing what the earth has to say to you, the man positively DRIPS passion.

And as I was driving back home, across the Golden Gate Bridge, catching the lights of nighttime San Francisco out of the corner of my eye as I went north up Highway 101, it occurred to me that somewhere along the line, I have lost my Non-Profit Passion.

Somewhere between leaving YNI/Headlands, the passion has leaked out. It could be the work I did at Centerforce (my fiscal sponsor and the organization with whom I still do accounting contract work).  That work was hard - dealing with the incarcerated population, and meeting payroll twice a month, and laying off 29 people during the three years I was there.  Centerforce isn't to blame, by any means, for my loss of passion, I think it just sort of slowly ozzeeeddd out of me during that time.  Cutting budgets and the drain of managing an extremely tight cash flow will do that to you. It leaves you tired and drained.

And here is my (perhaps long-winded) point.  Sitting and listening to my old co-workers/friends, and listening to Craig Childs, I felt that passion.  I know it is still in there.  I think it has been "resting", waiting for the right time to come back.  It wasn't there when I applied to Canal Alliance back in February, I never could have done, in my heart, the job they wanted me to do as Director of Finance and Administration.  But it is there now.

And it's growing.  Getting this Soccer Gear Drive going feels like the Passion of Old. The closer I get to getting on the plane next Friday, I can feel the Passion grow inside of me.  Like this little ball gaining speed, carrying me towards Africa.

T-8

Eight days to go. 

Mixed emotions to be sure.

I have the suitscases out.
All of my technology is spread across the family room floor.
The Soccer Gear Drive is coming along.
I spent ALL DAY today sorting out a Federal Grant Funding report, only to have it still now balance.
Jim gets back from Seattle tonight.
Grant and Alex had their last day at school.
Kirby the Cat got lost outside (again.)

Wanted: Soccer Gear

So many of you have asked ..... here's the deal.

The end of last week, I started a VERY informal drive for soccer gear for the kids (see my One Shoe post) at the LEAP school.  My idea was that I would bring with me a few pairs of cleats, maybe some socks, etc.  I put the idea out to our Boy Scout troop, and word has spread a bit.  Then others started reading my One Shoe post, and asked what they could do ....

This is what I am looking for:

In TEEN AGE sizes, please: 

Jersey
Shorts
Socks
Shin Guards
Cleats
Soccer bags

Clean please.  No smaller child sizes at this time, maybe later if this all pans out.

There will be a plastic container at Marin Fitness, by the front door under my poster, starting Friday June 11.  If you are my neighbor, send me an email and Grant can come and pick things up, or drop off on my porch.

If you are not local and want to help, email me about donations.  The photo is just in case you missed my One Shoe post about how the kids play soccer in the outlying townships.

Finding Winter clothes in the summer ... good luck!!

This is something that I did NOT plan ahead on very well. Nope, not well at all.

Some of you know I have been semi-unemployed since last August, and when I do work, it is usually out of my home office.  Needless to say, my wardrobe has sort of diminished into gym clothes, shorts, and jeans.  At the end of this past winter, I had a number of clothing items that really needed to be replaced, as in ALL my nicer work shirts, ALL of my nicer work pants, and ALL of my work shoes.  The shoes have holes in them so big that I can't wear them on rainy days (but I get my $$$'s worth out of everything!) My assumption was that come this fall, when I am back in the regular work force, I would go on a Buying Frenzie and restock the closet.

But somewhere in there, South Africa mixed into the plan. Now, it is/was May or June and I am trying to find winter clothes, and believe it or not, Macy's just doesn't carry long sleeved warm white shirts this time of year. Nor do they carry warm shoes with closed toes and heels so your feet don't get wet.

Even going on the Internet (which is what exactly EVERYONE has suggested to me) hasn't turned up much, even on the Ultra Clearance Rack sales.  I have haunted so many websites, that I could just about tell you the complete stock at Coldwater Creek, Macys, Sierra Trading, Dockers, and so on.

I have found, I think, enough heavy weight goods to get by, but I sure am going to be tired of wearing these clothes by the time I get back.

And ~~~~  since I ordered the last of my shoes today, I am praying that they are delivered before I leave.

For those of you following in this journey:  PLAN AHEAD!

The rest of the Team - 2010 Teach with Africa Fellows

I haven't talked much yet about who the other Fellows will be on this project.  This morning, in a quick Google search, I found this listing posted, and will link it here.


http://teachwithafrica.org/projectTeamBios.html

The World Cup

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE who hears I am going to Cape Town immediately asks me if I am going to the World Cup.

Deb:  I am going to South Africa this summer to volunteer my services ...
Other Person:  Ahhhhhhhhh ........ are you going to the World Cup??

Never mind that I am not really a soccer fan, unless you count my two boys (16 and 12) and how many seasons they have played soccer. 

I couldn't tell you what a Side Out is.  Maybe 10 combined seasons and I still don't know what to watch for.  Can't say when to play offense, when to play defense.  I DO know how to cut up the oranges for snack, though, and to bring wet rags on hot days.

:)

So I don't know if I am going to the World Cup or not.  Tickets are running $300 and up.  That is out of my budget.  People keep saying it is a Once in a Lifetime event, but ya know?

Anyway, this morning I saw this Nike ad - touted to be the "best ad ever", so I had to watch.  I have to admit that being in the Cape Town stadium (see the webcam post for a live shot of the stadium) would be exciting.  We will see.


http://www.slate.com/id/2256074/?GT1=38001

First stop - Dubai

I thought I should check out where our first stop is going to be - after 15 hours in the air - Dubai.

I know nothing about this country. When I mention that I will be there overnight, people look at me and say "Oh, yes - they have a hotel with a ski slope" or "you can surf at one of the hotels".  But surely - there must be more to this country than some cheesy tourism?

So I went to Wikipedia, which may not be a valid source to quote when writing an MBA paper, but is a wealth of information for the lay person. 

Dubai climate is generally warm most of the year. It’s not so bad in the winter months, but summers are extremely hot. And the high humidity levels just make it unbearable.

So I am going to leave our moderate San Francisco climate, which lately has been cool and rainy, to go to someplace that is hot and humid.  OK, got it.  Need to reorganize the overnight carry on bag I have.

Being in a Middle Eastern country, my advisor suggested that we might, as women, need to cover our heads.  You know what?? I don't even own a scarf. Fortunately, thanks to the Internet, Lonely Planet says that covering one's head is no longer necessary. However, we women DO need to dress conservatively.  What does that mean? That means in 105 degree weather that we should wear long pants and long shirt sleeves.

It hadn't even occurred to me, at the start of this adventure, that I would be spending the night in a Middle Eastern Country.

Who knew??

I get one shoe, you get one shoe ....

I have a story stuck in my head.  The story was told by Ed Kujawa, the Dean of Education for Dominican, and the person (I think) in charge of those of us on the trip from Dominican.

And for those of you that keep asking me "Deb, why are you going to South Africa??"  - it is this heart-breaking story that is at the base of why I am going.

I am going to take some writers' liberties here, so I am not quoting Ed directly, and I may get facts and dates wrong, but none of that will effect the point of the story itself. (Is that enough of a disclaimer??)

A year ago, Ed was in Cape Town, meeting with LEAP staff and putting together the program I am participating in.  Someone (maybe a 2009 Fellow?) had donated a pair of soccer shoes to the school.  The staff offered the shoes to a male student, who promptly offered to his best friend one of the shoes.  That way, both he and his friend would have A soccer shoe.

How can you hear that story and NOT be impacted?

Ed went on to tell us that the kids at the school play soccer in their school uniforms, that there is no gear.  I found this photo, and I would imagine it is a pretty good view of how Cape Town kids play soccer - in the sand in their regular clothes.

All week long I have been thinking about this story.  We signed up Grant and Alex for the fall season of soccer here in Novato, and there is no question that both of them will have two soccer shoes.  And shin guards and new jerseys, and socks, and maybe a bag to put it all in. There will be Gator-ade and snacks at the games, and they will be playing on "groomed" grass, not playing in sand or dirt.

Now, the logical thing for me to do would be to put together a Donate your Soccer Gear drive.  See how much I can gather, then ship it all over there. Or even, pay the extra cost and throw a big box on the airplane as checked baggage (even though Jim is worried about how much luggage I will be hauling around).

Less than two weeks before I leave. I am not sure what I am going to do, but I DO know I will do something.  At the very least, both Grant and Alex have cleats that are outgrown.  Grant thinks he may have four pairs.  Alex has a couple of pairs.  That is six pairs of cleats, or 12 shoes.  In three weeks, will 12 SA kids be wearing one new shoe each?

Baboons on the Prowl

Who knew??










Seems the big vandalism problem this year is headed up by the notorious Fred the Baboon Ring Leader.  Fred has gained quite a reputation for leading his 29 or so followers into a life of theft.  These baboons are big into "Breaking and Entering" - cars specifically.

We talked about this at the orientation.  Seems that last year, one of the groups went to Cape Hope and forgot to lock up the car, only to return to find their car filled with baboons.

Should that happen to us, it will probably make a great story to tell later, but I can only imagine how much baboons must smell.