Cape Town has a truly lovely port - clean, gorgeous mountains, and lots of shopping places including a very high end mall where you can get a great coat designed by a local woman for 5000R! That's about $750 - somewhat over my budget and who needs it? Or a Gucci purse or a $10 T shirt, but not a common turtle neck or sweater. Many of us have decided we need some warmer clothes and today proved that! IT was windy and cold (about 50 degrees) and cloudy and our Robben Island trip was canceled for the second time. So Paul went back to the ship to entertain the troops and I went shopping with Louise, my new friend.
On Monday, after arriving, we were invited to a private lunch for a small group at Desmond Tutu's home in Capetown!!!!!! Can you believe that? This wonderful man is greatly impacting my life! And it almost makes me cry to think he included us! We're asked not to tell anyone, but we can tell you since you are not going to share it with any of our shipmates!!
But before we get to that great day, I want to share another wonderful adventure with you. I climbed to the top of Lion's Head Mountain (3000 feet) for a sunset picnic! The climb was more rigorous that I expected and I was really glad Paul decided not to go. We actually had to pull ourselves up with chains at two parts near the top. But I climbed better there than when we were in the Grand Canyon trip about 4 or 5 years ago. That’s lunges and lots of steps on the ship for you! I did have to get up during the night twice to take EmergenC and Traumel however.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu has many God-given gifts. Just one of them is making people feel special and pulling everyone into his circle. Paul and I were so very honored to be among the 32 guests that he and Leah invited to lunch in their home in Cape Town today. The other guests included 6 students, 7 of the dining room crew, 4 professors and their spouses, 2 SAS staff members, 6 life- long learners and Ryder, the 4 year old son of a professor who has spent more than half of his life on this ship and enjoys a special relationship with the Arch.
The Tutu’s home is modest and loaded with family photos and those of a few special occasions and African art of various media. Leah is a wonderful hostess just like Arch portrays her in his books. She loves to entertain. Even when they were a young couple with small teacher salaries, she could always find a way to share a meal with friends.
Arch introduced Paul to his son-in-law as his son from a previous marriage! The two of them just keep this ruse going ever since Paul called him “Daddy” back when the voyage began in late August. Leah said Arch was in the dog house because he was late coming from his office and he was supposed to pick up the drinks on the way home!
We were served Guava juice, South African wines and beer, and a delicious repast of African foods with lots of turmeric, onions and peppers. His birthday is Thursday, so the students presented gifts they had made – a painting, earrings and a necklace of turquoise stones, braided bracelets, and a student autographed SAS t-shirt. Rocky, a fantastic Environmental Scientist and Ryder’s father wowed us with a magic trick that reflected his deep spirituality and concern for the future of society.
After singing “Happy Birthday” which was led by Paul, we boarded the bus and proceeded to Arch’s office which is in an industrial office complex. When we passed the women next door, he introduced, “This is my harem.” He introduced everyone by name and their admiration was obvious. The two rooms of the office contained many of his awards, but not the Nobel Peace Prize. “I don’t know where it is!” Leah put it away and could not remember where she put it. Then someone broke into their house in Soweto some time ago, found it and stole it. But they were fools. They went to a bar and placed it on the bar. The bartender noticed and they were arrested and the Prize returned. But, alas, neither can remember where it is!! Arch says there are three requirements to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
1. You must have an easy name
2. You must have a big nose
3. You must have sexy legs!
He told us about another part of his work – building a college scholarship fund so students can put their knowledge to work to help their country grow to prosperity with health care and jobs for everyone. We learned just last night of another one of his missions – a foundation which feeds street children. As we were boarding the bus to return to the ship, many people from the other businesses around his office came out to greet him. Some even blew that raucous horn used in the world cup. He is a “Rock Star” in South Africa!
South Africa is a complicated place in contrast to Ghana. Here land along the Atlantic Ocean is resort and high-end home oriented. But just outside the city, the poor live in squalor in tin-roofed squashed boxes of the townships (ghettos) with all the problems associated with poverty and too little of life’s necessities. Many of the older townships started in 1920 to get the blacks out of the city have no plumbing or electricity. There are no trees. They were cut down long ago by the Dutch settlers. When we were in a school in one of the townships yesterday, we saw a child’s paper on the wall stating he had never been to Cape Town (just 20-30 minutes away) because he had no money to go. The middle class is non-existent. Unemployment is 24%. Education is not very good because the black teachers are not well trained. Apartheid was officially ended in 1994, but the affects live on and will for many more generations. The fiery young leader of the ANC Youth League is calling for nationalizing the mines of mineral resources. Corruption exists everywhere. Seems like lots of potential for trouble. And yet, there is so much potential for this country to be the leader of Africa. Before, during and after Apartheid to this day, there are three basic classifications of people in South Africa. They are the affluent whites, the colored - mixed races (white and black) and the blacks who traditionally have been totally oppressed and impoverished.
It is Paul’s time to say a few words. Yesterday, Suzanne and I went on a service tour of the Amy Biehl Foundation. Some of you might remember her story. It was a TV special a few years ago. Amy was an attractive Stanford graduate, a Fulbright Scholar, whose passion took her to South Africa to fight against apartheid and help the impoverished blacks. She worked on voter education and registration in advancement of South Africa’s first election after apartheid’s end. The day before she was due to return home to California, she drove some friends home to an extremely poor black township outside of Cape Town where seven boys had just been murdered by the police – shot in the back. Neither Amy nor her black friends knew about the protest march that was taking place there that day. An angry and violent mob spotted a white woman, pulled her from the car and stoned her to death.
The four men who committed this crime were brought to trial and sentenced to 18 years. A couple of years later, during the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings, Amy’s parents came from California to ask for amnesty for these young men. The Beihl’s and the murderers shared their stories. The appeal was granted. Two of the men are now working for the Amy Biehl Foundation. Her parents, Peter (now deceased) and Linda, established the Amy Biehl Foundation to continue Amy’s work. They have been highly supportive of groups concerned with the lasting effects of apartheid and the continuing racial discrimination of today.
We toured these townships in the afternoon. Most of the people are living in shacks with no electricity nor running water. Yet they were so excited to see our bus driving through their neighborhoods and waving to us. We visited three primary schools in various townships and were entertained by the staff and children who were so excited to see us. We sang and danced in a large circle and for some reason the kids enjoyed my crazy dancing etc. Of course, they hadn’t seen the wonderful dancing steps of a man in 60’s doing the twist etc. They are learning English in the 4th grade, music theory and practice, the Youth Reading and Role Models program where the 7th graders read to 1st graders. At the Buthisizwe Training Center, students get instruction on block making, sewing, aluminum widow-frame making. They have a sports club with soccer and golf. The Foundation provides these children and youth the opportunity for constructive and safe activities after school. As you imagine, this entire day devoted to the children was exhilarated and emotionally charged. We left feeling so happy to bring joy to them but so so sad for the poverty and racial injustice they continue to experience. This has to surprise some of you as Paul is being serious for a change. Ha
Unfortunately, it is taking 30 minutes to download one photo, so I will send this one with out photos. It is 1:00 am and the students are mostly off the ship getting drunk! But I still can't make this work tonight so later. I will resend the whole thing with photos, but wanted you to know we're working in this. Future blogs will include info about what the good kids are doing and some of the new friends we have been blessed to meet aboard the4 MV Explorer!
No comments:
Post a Comment