You say Kaapstad, I say Cape Town

Greetings from the Rainbow Nation!

As the title implies, I spent this past weekend in Cape Town. I had an awesome time. The reason of my trip was not just to see the amazing city, but also to connect with the local Jewish community. I'll explain why, what happened, and what it means to me in this post.

I want to preface this post by saying that as rewarding as an exchange is, there are low moments. Is it bad? No. I think it's natural. Is it fun? Not at all, but it's life. Sometime during my third to fourth week I became somewhat homesick. Why? I'm not too sure. I think that it's because my surroundings are no longer new, and they are now the new norm. That is how it supposed to be. However, you start to miss what is familiar to you. An example in my case is food. I don't really miss American food, because South African cuisine is quite similar. However, I had a moment last week when I would have been willing to pay 500 Rand for a Chipotle burrito. Anyone who knows me knows that Chipotle has found it's way into one of my food groups. Last week I think I had withdrawal. How did I get over it? I had some of the best fish & chips I've ever tasted. You see, the idea of cultural exchange permeates through all facets of a student's life abroad. While I missed a familiar food I discovered a delicious new one.

Back to Kaapstad, I mean Cape Town. I had been in contact with a Jewish congregation over the last few weeks and they invited me to spend the weekend with a Jewish family in Cape Town to observe the Sabbath. The last two weeks or so have been quite difficult for me so it came at a good time for me. My hosts, the Fine family, were very gracious. They had a big group of people come for Shabbat which was overwhelming for me but also really cool. Interestingly enough, they served most of the same food my family would eat on a Friday night. I suppose Jewish food is universal. Even though I was 8000 miles away from my home I felt as if I had never left. The remainder of the weekend was spent touring Cape Town. The highlight was spending Sunday morning with the congregation doing the "Signal Hill Challenge." It certainly was a challenge. I imagined a bunch of families walking up a path on a hill and then returning to the starting point. I couldn't of been more wrong. The walk started out easy. We went up the many steps and steep roads of the City Bowl. After that, it was up the hill. They call it a hill but in Chicago we would say it's a mountain. There was really no path, so it made for an interesting trek. I had a lot of fun doing it. Once we made it to the top we were rewarded with spectacular views of the entire city.

The real reason for going was to also find a new host family. Many of you know I no longer live with my first host family. I am with a temporary family that can only host for a few weeks. Therefore, my natural family and I took the opportunity to seek out the Jewish community to help. The weekend in Cape Town allowed me to network with congregants and their families to peak their interest in hosting an exchange student. While it still isn't settled yet, I should be moved to Cape Town in about two to three weeks.  I'm really satisfied with how the weekend went. Besides the networking opportunity, it was great to see and experience somewhere different than Mossel Bay.

Here are some pictures from the weekend!

 Pitstop on the way to Cape Town. South Africa's natural beauty never ceases to amaze me.

 Me at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town

 Waterfront. 

 Cape Town, from Signal Hill

 Driving through Cape Town. Mountains everywhere!

 Trekking up Signal Hill

 The easy part of the challenge--shmoozing

Representing UBC in South Africa!

"Welcome to South Africa"

...is what my friends say when I talk to them and discover a cultural difference. It always gets a good laugh.

 I'm so sorry for not posting recently! I took a break from the blog to immerse myself in what South Africa has to offer. The more time on the computer is less time to be part of this dynamic cultural mosaic.

In my last post, I talked about the differences I noted between school here and at home. Now that I've been at Point High School for three weeks, I feel that I have a lot more perspective on how education here is different than home.

My humanities classes here are quite different than they were at North Shore. Here, you sit down, take notes, read from the book, summarize it all, and then take a test or exam in a few weeks time. There is no real discussion or debate about any topic. At North Shore, I would spend entire class periods deliberating over the validity of Muhammed Yunus' ideas and plans to eliminate global poverty. Here, it is not like that.

I celebrated my 18th birthday here in South Africa! It was certainly different to have my class sing the traditional birthday song to me during my first period and tourism classes. It was no "happy birthday", but equally fun! I've never celebrated my birthday away from Chicago, or my family. I did miss my family on the special occasion but I will see them when I return to Chicago!

Other than school, I have been hanging out in the town of Mossel Bay with friends, getting to know my host family, and just settling into my life here. I am glad that I made the choice to spend my second semester of senior year on exchange. Everyday I learn something new and different. Last night I went to "The Buff", which is a big motorcycle rally that comes to Mossel Bay each year. It was really cool to see all the bikes, as well as the bikers themselves! We got soaked in the pouring rain but it was an awesome time. The other day I went to Hartenbos with some friends. What is Hartenbos? It is the equivalent of Panama City or South Padre Island for Johannesburg-ites. It is just down the road from where I live but it's a world away. It's a holiday resort right on the beach with a lot of fun stuff happening all the time. The beach, by the way, is probably one of the nicest ones I've ever seen. I'll post pictures soon!

Currently I am in a transition. What kind of transition, you may ask? I'm in the process of changing host families. For privacy reasons I will not say why, but I think it is a positive move on my part to be involved in this change. Right now I am living with my contact person and his family in Mossel Bay. For the next few weeks I am going to continue to be in this town and attend the same school. Come April, I will be moving to Cape Town! I don't know where or with whom yet but I am happy about this change.

Remember, if you have any comments or questions please feel free to comment or send me an email! I'm more than happy to share my thoughts and perspectives about my experiences abroad.

Here are some pictures of my adventures around Mossel Bay and Hartenbos! 

 Hartenbos

 50 cupcakes for school? Sounds good to me.

 My friend Anzel and me at "The Buff"

"The Cliffs"--This spot doesn't actually have a name but my host sister Bea gave it the name.

 Hartenbos, where Afrikaans culture is vibrant

 Me at the point in Mossel Bay

 In the middle of nowhere. Still, it's picturesque.

Santos Beach, Mossel Bay

It's been one week...

Ah yes, the opening lines of one of my favorite songs, "One Week", by the Barenaked Ladies.

Yes, it's been one week here in South Africa. Actually, it's been one week here in Mossel Bay. Seven days, a bad sunburn, and lots of Afrikaans phrases later, I can honestly say I love it here.

In my last post I discussed the differences between school here and at home. Yes, it is different. Even at home, schools vary widely. Point High School is different than North Shore but I don't feel that it represents every school here in South Africa.

That brings me to my next point: generalizations. We all have them. Before I left, my friends joked around with me thinking I would be going to school next to elephants and giraffes, and that I'll live in a clay hut. Obviously, it is not the case. Mossel Bay resembles a Caribbean island, like Curaçao. There's a great deal of history, charm, and culture here, while situated in a sub-tropical locale. The architecture is more Dutch than it is "African". I like it a lot. My friends at school ask me if I've seen famous people in the street. The concept is lost upon them that Chicago is 2,000 miles away from Hollywood, and our only real celebrity is Oprah, whom I've never seen in person. Shocker. Therefore, generalizations go both ways. My image of South Africa before I left is obviously very different than the reality. I'm happy with the reality of it. In many ways it is like home but in other ways it is quite different. Beautiful estates are only a few kilometers away from abject poverty. Dichotomy is a reality here.

I'm starting "hockey" next week. No, not ice hockey like back home. This is field hockey, and yes, guys play it. Should be interesting! Need not to worry, there are no skirts!

I'm not sure if I posted this, but I found out the day before I left that I got into my top choice college, the University of British Columbia. It's in Vancouver, Canada and I can't wait to go in September! Life is good. South Africa today, Vancouver in September. Can't wait.

I hope all my friends and family are doing well back home. I miss you all but I'm having an amazing time here and it only gets better everyday! I noticed on my ClustrMap that I have 211 visitors....wow! Also, the diversity of countries represented of those visitors is amazing as well! I feel so international.

Feel free to comment or ask me a question! My email is danny.schur@gmail.com