Jammer?

..that means "sorry!" in Afrikaans.

What am I apologizing for? Well, it has been a long time since I posted and a lot has happened.

Six days ago I was waiting in the sterile airport terminal in Chicago, waiting for my flight to La Guardia. Typically before I go on a trip, I indulge in Starbucks, Red Mango, or something else delicious in the terminal. This was not the case. During the few days leading up to my departure, I became very nervous. When I mean nervous, I mean almost at the point of becoming sick. It's very unnerving to leave your home and culture for six months, and to resume life in a completely different one. That aside, I had a safe journey to my orientation in New York. During my time there AFS gave the other student and me the rundown on how to act appropriately on exchange. We even got to go to a South African restaurant in Brooklyn–it was delicious!

Friday, we arrived in Johannesburg. First, I want to thank South African Airways for its outstanding service. There were always flight attendants coming down with coffee, tea, food, and anything else to make the arduous journey easier. Once we arrived in Johannesburg I became rather alarmed. There was no AFS representative present as promised. Instead, I asked the police to make an announcement on our behalf. I was told nothing can be done. That statement became an indication of the attitude many South Africans have, which is "sorry, not my problem". Eventually, we met the rep and we went to the arrival camp. At the arrival camp there were students from various countries and we did activities that helped us familiarize ourselves with South African culture.

Saturday, I arrived in George and met my host family and new friends at the airport! It was so great to finally meet them after talking on facebook and email! I really like my family; they're very nice. We went to meet Mindi, my host sister who lives with her husband on a farm. After that, we went to the mall in George to have a bite to eat and do a little shopping. I tried Bobtie, a traditional South African dish, for the first time, it's lekker(good)!

Sunday, my host sister Bea and I went down to the beach here in Mossel Bay. It's really nice and only a kilometer or two away from home. We also went to the point, which is a dramatic cliff/rocky area a little bit further down the road, which was equally spectacular.

Today was the first day of school. I don't think that North Shore Country Day could be any more different than Hoerskool Punt. School starts at 7:40 and only lasts until 1:50. There are no free blocks, class meetings, advisory, or community gatherings at this school. There isn't even a lunch period! You have seven classes with two 20 minute breaks during the day, and you eat your sack lunch then. There are no such things as off-campuses. I had a hard time explaining the oddities of North Shore to my peers at my new school. The uniform is...well a uniform. I'm not the biggest fan of it but at least you don't have to worry about what to wear in the morning! My classes are in "English" but the ones with Afrikaans students tend to be taught more in Afrikaans. Afrikaans, by the way, is probably the most difficult language to learn. My host family speaks it and I honestly have no clue what they're saying. I shall learn soon enough!

Now I'm going to sit outside on the patio that overlooks the ocean and do some schoolwork.

Bye!