Africa Genesis Program

Thank You South Africa

2005-08-17T11:13:00.000-07:00

How is it that a small town boy from Saskatchewan, Canada end up working on HIV/AIDS in Africa? Easy answer: AIESEC. This organization truley is the platform for individuals to discover and develop their potential.

On August 14th, my time in South Africa came to an end. Over the last four months, I have been excited, challenged, shocked, and enlightened. These things did not happen by chance. They occured because I took a challenge and stepped out of the bubble I was used to.

While in South Africa, I experienced a country that is vastly different from my own and realities that are also vastly different from my own. I had the opportunty to interact with over 30 of the most incredible individuals from all over the world. Each one with a different set of perspectives and experiences to share. I had the opportunity witness the realities of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

So to everyone, I had the pleasure of meeting or working with in South Africa, I would like to say Thank You! You have truely challenged my world view and changed my life!

Please stay in touch & I hope to see you all again in 2010!

Safari & Sun City resort

2005-08-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

The time is counting down until my return! Only about 2 more weeks to go. For me, this fact officially sunk in about 2 weeks ago. I realized that I have been in this beautiful country for about 4 months and really haven't gone outside of Jo'burg to see the sights. So when a few other Canadians mentioned going on a day trip to game reserve and lavish resort, I couldn't resist.

We left Johannesburg about 6am for the 2 hour trip. We stopped over in Pretoria to pick up two other Canadian girls. As soon as we were about 15 minutes outside of Pretoria, the scenary completely changed from big city to rural Africa. This was very exciting as it was a lot more what I was expecting from the country. The houses got smaller, the mountains taller, and everything was much more laid back. We arrived in Pilanesburg at about 10am. The reserve itself was in a huge mountain range and it's incredibly beautiful. We entered the park and immediatly saw a family of warthogs. Over the 6 hours we were there, we saw everything including zebra, elephants, giraffes, deer, springbok, impalas, rhino, hippos, turtles.

It was really such a relaxing experience and I even got to drive around the park....my first time on the left side of the road!

Another feature of this area is a resort called Sun City. In the beginning, we were'nt sure if we were going to go because it was getting a bit late. However, I think we were all completely amazed by this lavish place. When you drive in there are rock walls on either side. As we looked around, we noticed the buildings were a very popular attraction for monkeys. There were monkeys everywhere! In the distance, we could see an extravigant castle. This castle is know as The Palace. This is a very appropriate name because it is truely grand. On either side of the palace are lakes being fed by waterfalls. When you enter there are huge fountains welcoming you. Unfortunatley, entrance was only allowed to guests and tours, so we had to bask from the outside. We then went back to where they call the entertainment centre. Here they have gaming, international food court, gift shops, an arcade, movie theatre, and conference center. On the opposite side of the entertainment centre is the Bridge of Time. It is basically a long bridge with elephant statues on either side acting like sentinals. In the mountains surrounding the bridge there are carvings of elepants, monkeys, and lions. Apparently during the day, there is a simulated volcano under the bridge that pretty impressive. Unfortunatly, or fortunately, we were there in the evening. Everything was lit by torch light, which added a certain magic to the area. In the distance, the palace was also illuminated by torch light. We walked to the end of the bridge and found that it over-looked the Valley of the Waves, which is a simulated ocean where people can lie on the beach, swim, and even surf.

We all decided that was all we could take for the day. We all left feeling like we had really experienced something incredible. All the pictures I took are available on my site and there will be more to come!

Live 8

2005-07-14T02:25:00.000-07:00

Last week, I had the opportunity to take in the Johannesburg Live 8 Concert. Live 8 is a series of simultaneous concerts around the world with the aim of "Making Poverty History". Each venue features 8 prodominant world musicians, such as U2, Maddonna, Coldplay, Sting, Paul McCartney, and Elton John. The South African concert put emphasis on National bands, which were all very good.

I attended with a few native South Africans, who were really excited about all the performers. We arrived early in the day and stayed until the end. In total, I would geuss there were over 200,000 in attendance. Each person there put out a certain energy and it gave the whole event a special vibe. Everywhere you went there were groups of people dancing and really into it.

All the energy made the day very special for me, but the final appearance made it one I will never forget. The host came on stage and started talking about this incredible person. A person who has changed South Africa through his strenth and un-comparable determination. A person who spent 27 years in prision for what he believed in - Freedom. The crowd immediately errupted. Then an old, hunched over man canned his way on stage. I was in complete shock....could this be Mandela? When he came to the podium he became alive as if he were young again. His presence was immediate and the crowd became instantly silent. He began speaking about the need for reform in the way the world views poverty. It was one of the stangest feelings I have ever had. I felt like this was really a historical event and I was a part of it! What makes it even more significant is that this speech will likely be Mandela's last because he announced his retirement. What an incredible experience!

Happy Canada Day!!

2005-07-01T01:45:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone!
Just wanted to send out some greetings for Canada Day! Myself, I really enjoy Canada Day...hot weather, many barbeques, and great fun! For some reason, South Africans don't seem to be in the same holiday mood as me!? I am decked out in a Canadian hoodie and an I AM Canadian hat. Maybe a bit excessive ;)

I always find it interesting how people become more patriotic when they are away from their home country. As you can tell, I am the one exception to that rule ;)

South African Youth Statistics

2005-06-24T03:40:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,
I found this article in a local magazine and thought it was very interesting. Check it out and feel free to post any comments.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
If South Africa was represented holistically in terms of 100 young people (aged 5-15) in a room, it would look something like this:

80 are Black
9 are White
9 are Coloured
2 are Indian

50 live below the poverty line

50 will not work in the future

18 are HIV positive

24 speak Zulu as their first language
17 speak Xhosa as their first language
14 speak Afrikaans as their first language
8 speak English as their first language

30 are unlikely to be married by 35

57 live in urban areas

2 head a household

17 say Nelson Mandela is their role model
12 say Rebecca Malope is their role model
5 say President Thabo Mbeki
10 have no role model

68 believe racial prejudice still exists

51 are homophobic

75 attend township schools
53 will continue until grade 12
36 will complete it
8 will go onto University

3 have had abortions
41 have had sex
29 are regularly sexually active

6 have used cocaine
11 have used heroin
6 use club drugs
11 have used inhalants
23 are binge drinkers
21 smoke cigarettes

17 have tried to commit suicide

30 have been in a fight this month
14 are in a gang
17 have recently carried a weapon

8 have forced someone to have sex

0 have lived under structural apartheid
100 live with its economic effects

Birthday in South Africa

2005-06-14T01:34:00.000-07:00

On June 9th, I celebrated my 23rd birthday in South Africa. This was the first b-day I did not celebrate in Canada. At first it all was a bit weird, being away from friends and family. As the day went on, it became a bit better.

Apparently, there is a South African tradition to pour water on the person who is having the birthday. I came home for lunch and Abey and Saratu decided to continue the tradition. I was quite soaked and then Bende came home and got me again. I can't wait for someone else's birthday so I can join in myself.

In the evening, everyone made me a very Canadian birthday supper - Steak! This was the first time I have had steak since getting here so I really enjoyed it!

Children's Day

2005-06-14T01:19:00.000-07:00

On June 4th, Me and a few members from the Epiphany program took 30 children to the Johannesburg Zoo. All the children we took were from an HIV/AIDS orphanage called Cotland's. Cotland's has both a sanctuary for children who have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS and a hospice for children living with the disease.

We had been planning the day out since I had arrived in Jo'burg because we wanted to make it special for the children. The food for the event was sponsored by Shoprite & Coca-Cola. Shoprite donated about 60 oranges and Coke donated 48 drinks. When the kids saw the 8 of us walking up with all those oranges and drinks they were so excited. We decided to give them the food at the beginning of the day so they could focus for the rest. A slight misjudgement by us. These treats made the kids super hyper. This made the experience a bit more interesting to say the least.

Overall, both the kids and the hosts enjoyed the zoo a lot. I especially loved seeing all the animals I had never got to experience in Canada. This particular zoo boasts over 340 different species of animals including: elephants, lions, polar bears, giraffes, and monkeys! The entire place was so big we could not take it all in over the course of a day!

Convocation

2005-05-25T23:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the University of Saskatchewan's Spring Convocation. Needless to say, but I was unable to attend. In some ways this did not bother me, but in others I wish I could have been there. Instead, my yesterday was basically like any other weekday. Work from 8-4 and then go home and relax.

In the evening, two guys from AIESEC International came in from Rotterdam, Netherlands. They are here for AIESEC South Africa's Strategic meeting. They got in at about 10pm and they wanted to go over the 4 day agenda. We worked on that until about 1 am. By that time we were all so exhausted that we could not even focus, so we all went to bed.

Convocation has come and gone. The price you pay for experience!

Apartheid Museum

2005-05-23T01:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took a trip to the South African apartheid Museum. When you drive up to the museum you can immediately tell that it is going to be an experience. The building has been made to look like a prison from the outside. On the roof, there are huge pillars with the words: Democracy, Freedom, Rights, Diversity written on them. When you go to buy your tickets, they also issue you a pass. If you are white, they issue you a non-white pass and if you are black or coloured they issue you a white pass. You enter the museum through a metal revolving gate. One side is for "whites" and one side is for "non-whites". At every stop there are benches and other facilities labeled "Europeans Only" or "Non-Whites Only".

The inside is much like the outside - very confined and prison-like with "whites" taking one tour and "non-whites" taking another. The tour begins with the history of Africa and slowly progresses through colonization and the gold rush. In the beginning, the corridors are very confined with a lot of razor wire and steal bars. As the tour moves into the late 80's and the liberation from apartheid, everything starts to open up and be less restricting. In the last room, there are newspaper articles that have been collected since democracy was established in 1994. The last article is always from the current day's paper. In Yesterday's paper, I was very surprised to see how much attention was still given to the 11 year-old issue. As you leave, there is a panel titled Freedom and you exit into a beautiful garden with many restriction-free areas.

Before I went I heard a lot about this place from others who have went. They said it was very emotional and moving. That completely describes my experience. The combination of the incredible detail and descriptive accounts made it unforgettable.

The Food I Miss

2005-05-23T01:06:00.000-07:00

The foods I miss the most:
1. Dill Pickel Chips
2. Ketchup
3. French's Mustard
4. Begals of any kind
5. Wunderbars
6. Lipton Green Tea
7. Steak
8. Sun flower seeds

The new foods I have really like:
1. Appletizer - sparkling apple juice. Very good
2. Any type of fresh fruit - they are all grown here, so the have a lot of taste
3. Tendermints - Kind of like Mentos, but more addictive
4. Apple juice
5. Biltong - a lot like beef jerky, but dirt cheap!
6. Boerwors - South African Sausage made on the Barbeque(braai)
7. Paap and Morahogh - Paap is corn-meal powder that is boiled. When done it looks like mashed potatoes. On its own, it has very little taste, but with morahogh it is very good. Morahogh is basically spinach with onions. Very good.

Well, I have to go eat something that made me hungry ;)

The Mini-bus Taxi

2005-05-07T02:23:00.000-07:00

Mini-bus taxis are a true South African experience....especially for foreigners like me! They are the most common mode of transportation for blacks in Joburg, especially since the public transportation system is terrible. There are literally thousands of these "creations" all over the city. They are not regualed by anytype of government, so they can be interesting to say the least.

The System
They typically operate out of large central hubs called "taxi ranks". To an outsider these ranks seem chaotic to say the least. They are composed of long lanes that run parallel to each other, each representing a different area of the city. The taxis for each area line up in these lanes. When the taxi at the front of the lane has enough passengers to leave it does - no set times here. Each Taxi holds 15 passengers plus the driver so the wait can be long at times. When a person gets off, the driver will honk at every single pedestrian he sees in order to tell them he has extra space. Each person files into the spot were they feel the safest and waits to leave. After they take off, each passenger (from back to front) is responsible for passing their 4 Rands to the person in front of them. If the driver does not recieve all the money by the time people start getting off, there is a good chance a fight will break out. Pretty simple ;)

On the routes there are hand signals people can use to wave down the taxis. If the driver is heading in the direction in which you signal, he will stop at all costs to pick you up. In my first taxi ride, the driver held up Friday rush hour traffic for 5 minutes to pick up one lady!

The Drivers
These men are crazy. They have no regard for any type of traffic laws and see roads as guildlines. They all work on a commission type system, so if they don't take enough passengers in one day they will have to explain it to the taxi owner. They all seem to have their own secret language when they meet another driver on the road.

The Minibus
A 1985 Toyota minivan is the most common minibus of choice for drivers, but what they add to it(or don't add to it) is only limited to their creativity. Many times when you get into these royal mobiles, you are treated to a view of the open road through a hole that has rusted throught the floor. These are complimented with wires poking through the seats and windows composed of duct tape. I have realized why these minor details are neglected - the driver's lover for music. The rough edges of many of these taxis are really brought to life by a huge bass-pounding stereo located under the back seat. When you get in there is typically some Xulu rap music echoing through the "vehicle".

A popular pass time around Joburg is telling outrageous taxi stories. Since I have been here, I have been treated to a few gems. One guy told me that on one taxi trip, the driver desperately wanted to fit an extra person in. He tried everything, but his seat was too far back and if he moved if forward the steering wheel was in the way. So, being an inventive genius, he decided to take off the steering wheel and steer with a wrench!! Another friend of mine said that one night he was driving and saw a taxi without any headlights. To compensate the driver was hanging out the window using a tourch to light his way!!

All I can say is: Wow. That's all for now. I hope you had as much fun reading this as I did writing it!!

Freedom Day

2005-04-27T07:44:00.000-07:00

On April 27th 1994, South Africa was freed from the clutches of aparthied. Today is the 11th anniversary of this historic event and Johannesburg is alive with energy. Where ever you go there are people wearing South African flags and in an upbeat mood. On the radio, the announcers are more lively than usual promotion various Freedom Day specials. Myself, I feel very fortunate to be able to experience this event. At the same time, I have found it hard to really join in the celebration because I was not around before freedom was declared. I did not endure the same hardships that many here have. But still, I feel lucky and excited on South Africa's day.

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Soweto

2005-04-25T06:42:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, me and three of my roommates decided to take a trip to a nearby township called Soweto. Soweto is about 40 minutes east of Johannesburg. As I mentioned, Soweto is a township. For those who don't know about African townships, they can be a bit of an eye-opener. In a typical township, the standard of living is much worse than in the suburbs or even cities. The typical house is one or two rooms, no plumbing, heating, or usual amenities. Along with the low standard of living comes a high level of crime and poverty. As well, within the townships are usually squatter camps. These camps are a series of one room shacks composed of only four walls. When it rains, these camps are destroyed. Soweto is no exception.

However, over the past ten years Soweto has turned into a tourist attraction because of the former houses of Nelson Mandella and Desmond Tutu. Since we were with two native South Africans, one from Soweto, we got the entire tour. When we pulled up to Nelson Mandella's house, there was quite the crowd of both whites and blacks. We decided to walk up and see if we could get in. In the middle of the site, there was a larger mass of people with cameras. When we came in to see what the fuss was about I could not believe my eyes. In the middle of the crowd was Mandella's second wife who stopped by to see how things were going. I reached over and grazed her jacket. WOW. I could not believe it!!!

With each tourist stop we made there was a common theme - craft markets. The traditional African crafts at these markets were incredible. But even more incredible was the fact that they were all hand made by the people selling them. These people were very warm and vibrant when ever someone approached them. I found this to be a common theme in Soweto. Where ever we visited, the people were extremely inviting. In this rough looking township, the spirit and enthusiasm was like I had never seen before.

Arrival in Johannesburg

2005-04-20T04:29:00.000-07:00

On the way to Jo'burg, I got seated right in the middle of a Scottish family heading down to a family wedding in Pretoria. Apparently, Scottish weddings are quite the celebration, so they began the flight by partying. I am not one to break tradition, so I joined in. This lasted for a couple of hours, before they all went to sleep. Luckily, I slept for the rest of the way to Johannesburg. By the time we reached the city, I was wide awake to see one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen.

From the plane, I noticed a few things. First, the discrepancy between rich and poor. Some communities were composed of opulant mansions with swimming pools and other amenities. Second, I immediately noticed how gated everything was: houses, shops, and schools.

The airport was no different, the customs and immigration officials were anal to say the least. At the baggage claim, they had dogs inspecting everyone's bags for banned goods and drugs. It was funny because the dogs were not big german sheppards, but beagles. I reached down to pet one of them and the very stern African lady informed me not to. This is quite different from the Kamsack bus depot ;).
On the ground, I was blown away by the city's beauty accented by walls and razor wire. But, that is manor in which they are accustomed and it's not that bad. In the parkade, there were many foreign cars like BMWs and Fiats. When we were walking to our car, I noticed a beautiful Fararri. I could not beleive it but I did not let on because I did not want to look like a shock Canadian. However, all the people recieving me had the same reaction because these cars are not that common. At 8am the tempurature was only 17, but it felt like 25. South Africans drive on the left-hand side of the road, this was one of my first shocks...I was jumping the whole ride home thinking we were going to crash.

Touring the University of Jo'burg was also a bit of a shock the nature outside was very impressive, but the building itself was primarily concrete and very high security. Not like the UofS. The rest of the day, I toured some shops in a nearby district called Melville. I thought that I was about to experience my first mugging when an old guy came up to us with his hand in his pocket. As he began to speak, he quickly pulled his hand out of his pocket. I jumped because I thought it was a knife; however, he was only trying to point to something I could not understand because he was drunk. I composed myself and we kept walking.

In the evening, one of their trainees was leaving so we went out to a traditional Indian restaurant. Some of the best Indian food I have ever eaten.

London - Heathrow Airport

2005-04-20T04:11:00.000-07:00

I left Toronto Sunday night for London. The flight was quite turbulant so I could not sleep. On the flight, I watched the movie Spanglish and Ocean's 12. Spanglish is about a spanish woman coming to America to be a maid for a rich obnoxious woman. The rich woman's husband is played by Adam Sandler, who is great in it. Over all the movie is quite good.

When I arrived in Heathrow, I was quite exausted. Due to this, I decided not to venture downtown. I spent the entire 11 hours touring the massive city of an airport and sleeping. The airport itself was a bit of a culture shock to me because of it's size and range to people. Where ever I went, there were people speaking various languages such as German, French, and British;). In order to travel between the 4 terminals, you have to take a bus which drives on the left-hand side of the road.

One funny character at the airport was an asian gentleman with the funniest form of turrets I ever seen. Instead of blurting out random noises or swears, he made sounds like a cat. From hissing to meowing. At first, I thougt there was an actual cat behind me it sounded so real. Crazy.

My flight was scheduled to depart from Heathrow @ 6:55pm, so I kept checking the screen for my gate number. While I was having something to eat, I noticed the flight came up at gate 30. I finished up my meal and began walking over to the terminal with enough time to go. When I arrived at the terminal, I found that the flight was South African Airways, not British Airways that I was supposed to be on. I asked the attendant where my gate was and she informed me that it was at the opposite end of the terminal...a 30 minute walk. It was 15 minutes before my flight was to take off! Needless to say, I sprinted across the entire terminal. Thankfully, I made it just in time as they were a bit behind. Fun times!

Preparation in Toronto

2005-04-16T12:04:00.000-07:00

This is my first time in Toronto when the weather has been nice. The city is really alive! I am here doing some preparation for my job in South Africa. I am here for the weekend and then I am off to London, England. I will be in London all day Monday were I will get in as much of the city as possible. I leave London Monday evening for a ten hour flight to Johannesburg, S.A.

Yesterday I spoke with Saratu, the person who I will be working with in S.A. She told me I will be staying in a house with 8 other people from Germany, Estonia, Kenya, and South Africa. This will definately be an adventure for me. Right now it is winter in most of Africa, so the weather will not be too unbearable. The tempuratures will range from 5 - 25 celcius. However, the houses do not have central heating so the nights will be cold. When I spoke with Saratu she told me when it is 5 outside it is -6 inside. Funny joke.

That's all for now, more when I get to Jo'burg.