Battered Suitcases

I now know what it feels like to be a mom who is reunited with her children after they’ve been “lost” in the supermarket for a short bit. Well... two out of three of them, at least.

Y’ALL, I HAVE TWO SUITCASES OF MY CHERISHED STUFF.

Considering the fact that I’ve been living on a few key items my pitiful self has accumulated, this is a huge victory, even if there’s still one suitcase missing. I’m pretty sure my name has been red flagged for all future travel on US Airways or South African Airways (a special thanks to all of you who have hounded each airline since the day I left), but I just might be the happiest girl in Cape Town today.

I couldn't help but notice the irony of the baggage tags, which were plastered with seemingly urgent commands. I've been here for a week, so I'm confident in saying the airlines have a different definition of "rush" than I do. After all, these poor things have been to Nashville, Chicago, Philadelphia, London, Johannesburg, Cape Town... and who knows where else. Regardless, I got to wake up this morning and think What should I wear today? for the first time since I've left Bowling Green.

My first week in Cape Town has certainly been a lesson in simplicity. A few days without a cell phone induced quite a few withdrawal symptoms (as anyone who knows me can imagine), and a week without free-flowing internet has forced me to be in the moment. Retrospectively, these things are probably gifts, as I've really had to immerse myself in my new surroundings. As for the suitcases, I'm almost embarrassed to admit how unsettling their unknown whereabouts were, but I already feel leaps and bounds more comfortable with a few familiar things by my side. 

"Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life." - Jack Kerouac (On The Road)

Navigation

The smallest things make a place start to feel like your home. Yesterday, it was being able to negotiate drop off points with a taxi driver. Small victories.

A day full of exploration helped Lindsey and I make sense of our home away from home. With the intention of setting up a phone line and internet service, we ended up buying an emergency swimsuit (or swim costume as they tend to say here) in the Victoria Wharf shopping center at the V&A Waterfront… all by foot. We must have asked for directions at least twenty times, but we managed to start to make sense of Cape Town.

Along the way, we discovered even more beautiful views and charming shops/vendors. One of my favorite things here is the abundance of juice bars, which let you pick your fruits and juice them right in front of you. The result is an incredibly satisfying drink on which I'll be spending many rand. 

Lindseys with fresh juice. Pineapple and orange for her, watermelon and orange for me!

Palm trees against a backdrop of mountains. How lucky am I?

The best discovery of the day was that we could walk to almost anything we might need, and will most likely choose to rent cars for special explorations. I've always wanted to live in a big city with so much to offer in such close proximity, and I'm finally here. I just still can't believe I moved half a world away to find it, but I'm thanking my lucky stars for landing me in such a breathtakingly beautiful place.

Tourists in a New Home

Update: Still no internet. Still no baggage.

In other news, we finally got a feel for more of Cape Town yesterday. We met up with our landlady (she’s become a personal tour guide) and another one of her tenants for brunch at a market held each Saturday at the Old Biscuit Mill area in an area called Salt River. It was so incredible! There are all sorts of funky shops and street vendors, and when you go inside a nearby warehouse, there is what can only be described as a festival of food. Everything you can imagine was inside this place, and we settled on a pizza with a modern twist. We’ll definitely make a tradition of this one.

The Old Biscuit Mill

Lindsey E. enjoying lunch at the market

One of our landlady's other tenants - Jonathan, a 20 year old German

Observatory, where many young people live, including Jonathan

We spent our afternoon in an area called the Waterfront, where we went out to sea on a big tour boat. Having seen pictures of (stunningly beautiful) Cape Town from an aerial point of view online for close to a year and a half, it was incredible to see similar views in person. I’m convinced you could be in the worst mood ever here, take a look around, and instantly feel like one of the luckiest people in the world.

Just one view of this beautiful place

Lindsey E, Alex, Jonathan and our landlady, Sheray on the boat

Following our day, we were initiated into Cape Town culture with a braai hosted by Lindsey’s friends Leslie and Chris. They’ve just moved into a new house in a neighborhood called Newlands, and the braai served as a housewarming event. A braai, as we understand at least, is similar to what Americans would call a cookout. Each guest brings their own share of meat – we took burgers and an ostrich steak to try – and the host cooks it on the grill for you. This was especially fun because Chris is a Capetonian and Leslie is American, so there was a mixture of both cultures there. From there, we went out for traditional Cape Town drinks with our new friends, which was such a fun time! I'm looking forward to getting to know Leslie and Chris (and their friends) throughout our stay. 

Though we still have a handful of things to do, it was nice to take a break from our to do lists and see a bit more of the city. Each time I catch myself being halfway excited, though, I remember that I still don’t have my suitcases. Ugh.

As they say here, cheers!

Turbulence

The road of life can only reveal itself as it is traveled, each turn in the road reveals a surprise. (Unknown)

In case you haven’t picked up on it from my disgruntled emails, texts, WhatsApp messages, and social media posts, my journey to Cape Town has been nothing short of turbulent (literally and metaphorically, indeed). Figuring out how to turn a foreign city into your home is full of challenges, and that’s even if your suitcases arrived.

Yep, that’s right. All three of my strategically packed, oversized suitcases have yet to find their way to me. I’m still not sure of their whereabouts, but I can guarantee you that if they make it to my possession, it’ll be one of the best reunions I’ve ever experienced. Until then, I’ve survived on what I’d packed in my carry-on backpack and my roommate Lindsey’s closet.

And if you think that’s the biggest happening of our transition into Cape Town, you’re severely underestimating this adventure. Last night, Lindsey woke up to an armed man banging ferociously on her window. In a city with a reputation for crime, one can imagine this to be a rather alarming wake up call. As it turned out, the man was simply an ADT security guard responding to a false alert from our alarm system. Good to know it works, you could say.

Think we’re done? Not quite. Another roommate’s efforts to make this place her home came around to hurt her – quite literally. While she was putting together a drying rack for clothes, a simple slip turned into a severed tendon and surgery in a nearby South African hospital. The event didn’t lack a loud shriek, an abundance of blood, a frantic request for her to be taken to the hospital, nor a handful (no pun intended) of worry.

We’re all doing our best to cope with our bumps in the road with laughs and good storytelling… along with therapeutic visits to a café just down the street that serves iced coffee with a side of free Internet. Rest assured, this year won’t be one short of memories to recall for years to come.

One side of a pillow I found at a home store here in Cape Town.

The other side of the same pillow, which I found quite charming.

Wait, Where Are You Going This Time?

If only I had a rand for every time I got that question.

Yes, I said rand. That's the currency in my future home away from home: South Africa. I'll say farewell to the US dollar in just over a week, so it's about time I introduce my destination...

Meet Cape Town, South Africa. 

Aerial view of Cape Town

Cape Town at night 

The City Bowl, a natural amphitheater home to many neighborhoods

My initial interest in South Africa was rooted in the education reform conversations taking place in the country. As I learned more and more about the dynamic country, I realized this was the perfect place for my year as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. 

I'll live and study in Cape Town, which has the second highest population of all cities in the country with about 825,000 people in the city and about 3.7 million people in the metropolitan region. It is characterized by landmarks such as Table Mountain, Devil's Peak and Lion's Head (mountain, too), as well as Cape Point and the city's harbor. While in Cape Town, I'll live in what's known as the City Bowl, the central area of the city which is home to a handful of neighborhoods, including ours: Tamboerskloof. The climate is rather moderate with mild, wet winters (from June to August with temperature ranges from 47-64 degrees Fahrenheit) and warm, dry summers (from December to March with temperature ranges from 61-79 degrees Fahrenheit).

When people ask why I'll spend a year here, I tend to think, Why wouldn't I?

From Beginning to... Beginning.

I've been seeking this adventure since Fall 2010. 

During my last semester on campus at WKU, I sent a simple text message to my friend Aric: "I need to find a way to go abroad again." I had completed a short-term study abroad program in London, and I was already anxious for another experience. He had a few adventures under his belt, and I knew he'd understand the wanderlust that was setting in just as the pressure of graduation was setting in. A Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar himself, he suggested that I meet him for lunch. By the end of that lunch, I was inspired by his imminent adventure to Scotland and hopeful that I might have a similar story to tell in the future. 

Aric referred me to WKU's Office of Scholar Development which, among other incredible things, supports students as they apply for nationally competitive scholarships. With the help of the team at OSD, I spent several weeks drafting (redrafting, scratching, drafting and redrafting again) strong application essays that would lead me to a panel interview by Rotarians from across Kentucky. Prior to my interview, I went through a handful of mock interviews hosted by OSD, which helped me understand my strengths and weaknesses in interviews and helped me know what to expect when the time came for the actual interview.

After about two questions had settled my nerves and I was reassured by the smiles increasingly revealing themselves on the faces of the panelists, I got the feeling that the interview was going well. I knew I was prepared for almost anything that could be thrown at me because of my preparation with OSD and Aric's veteran advice, and I was confident that I was doing the very best I could have. I was sharing my passion for education and articulating why studying education in South Africa would supplement my own education and experiences to make me an effective educator.

I was pleased with the interview, and I was humbled by a comment the last panelist made: "Lindsey, I'd love for you to have the opportunity to study education in South Africa, but I can't help but wish you'd be in Kentucky to teach students like my grandchildren." I still remember calling my mom on my drive home from the interview. I told her that even if I didn't receive the scholarship, I was more sure than ever that I was passionate about my career in education, which might have been the real reason I was led through the sometimes exhausting experience of the scholarship application. The sun was shining and I was full of optimism, and my mom said, "Linds, what if you actually get the scholarship? What if you actually move to South Africa?" 

What if has since transformed to a more definitive when, and I sometimes still can't believe it. Last Friday, the OSD team gave me a sendoff gift: a travel size Big Red, a red towel, a WKU notepad, and a card full of warm wishes from the team that has supported me from beginning to end. Without Aric's prompt and without OSD's wisdom, expertise, and experience, I certainly wouldn't have so much to write about today and in the coming year. And, though this journey began over two years ago, it's only just begun. So thankful.

Kind gifts from WKU's Office Scholar Development

Four Weeks

Just one year ago, I was attending a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship orientation in Nashville with mere daydreams of my faraway year in South Africa. I was seated by another scholar who would head to South Africa, also named Lindsey, who quickly become a very good friend of mine. We were both excited about our looming adventure, but we knew there was over a year between us and the experience of a lifetime. We spent the night talking worldwide adventures with another scholar, Waylon, who would take his first airplane flight to begin his year in Denmark much sooner. In fact, he's halfway through his Rotary year already!

Fast forward one year and here we are: four short weeks away from a travel itinerary that takes me from Bowling Green, KY to Nashville, TN to Chicago, IL to Philadelphia, PA to New York, NY to Johannesburg, South Africa to Cape Town, South Africa. 

Cape Town, South Africa

I'm dedicated to keeping this blog a bit more active, if not for my friends and family, then for myself. I know that my year in Cape Town will be filled with things worth writing about, and there's no better way to stretch an experience than to preserve it in words. 

Words for "to start a journey" include depart, embark on, sail, sally, set forth, set off, set out, start, start off, start out, strike off, hit the road, set sail. My personal favorite? Sally, which means "to leave a place to go on a journey or for a definite purpose, showing confidence and energy." Onward!