Living In a Third World Country

I’ve been back from South Africa for 1 1/2 years and I can honestly say it’s something I think about every single day. It’s wild how I ended up there, I was feeling stuck and lost in March 2018, a year after the assault happened. I NEEDED to go somewhere, feel alive again. So, I did what any sane person would do and contemplate moving across the world. Literally, I was going to pack and move somewhere and leave everything. That was a short lived dream as I talked myself out of it but I then proceeded to the next rational idea and walked into the study abroad center at UNI. I was originally all set up to go to Japan, I’ve always been so fascinated by their culture and even took a Japan course the previous semester. As I was about to pay my final dues of the 3 month journey, I looked at the map on the wall in the study abroad center and was instantly drawn to that little shark marker on South Africa. I was drawn to a flipping shark toy that was glued on the map indicating there were sharks present in that study abroad option. So, I asked my advisor Evan about it. His face lit up as he told me about his experiences living in South Africa, he even prolonged his stay there to a year instead of the 5 month plan that is required for South Africa. That’s when I knew it’s where I NEEDED to go. Sorry Japan, I’ll visit you one day.

This is taken from the prier I would run to every morning from where we were staying. How freaking amazing is this view?

Fast forward to the fashionable arrival to Midway Airport in Chicago. My parents rented a ginormous van so my friends and family could wish me goodbye. Let me tell you, it was an adventure just on the way up there. After a tearful goodbye filled with goodbye letters and bear hugs I was off. I went alone on this trip, knowing NO ONE. I knew another girl from UNI was going and I was going to meet her there. Little did I know that this stranger would one day be one of the greatest people I’ve met and would become such a blessing in my life. After we landed in the Dubai airport, Morgan and I played an awkward but friendly game of cards. I didn’t know how to process being scared shitless, having an adventure high and trying to interact with a complete stranger all in one go. We laugh about that airport conversation now :)

Above is Morgan and I zip-lining on orientation weekend :)

I wanted to tell a little bit of the backstory before I jumped full throttle into my 5 1/2 month life across the world. When I arrived there I came with literally nothing except clothes and hygiene products. I didn’t know I was going to have to BUY everything. Thank goodness I had a mattress those first couple days and borrowed blankets from other students. My roommate and I connected right away. Nina was from Switzerland, my sheltered brain was like SHIT how do I communicate with her I only am cultured to interact with my same race, same language. God I was dumb. Her english was superb. Even across the world we were still dealing with the same everyday problems; boys, money, confidence, etc. All that except two big things, they get free health care and college. I still can’t process that. I’m in denial, she is lying. To continue this story I will gloss over all of the other incredible friendships I have made; I have friends from Denver, Minnesota, Mexico, Spain, Germany, France, South Africa, Japan, etc.

I look happy here but 5 minutes before this I was leaning over a rock trying to catch my breath while being grateful I was still alive after an incredible but ducking hard hike. Not to be dramatic or anything.

I stayed in dorm living that was mostly reserved for international students but locals were also welcomed, just a bit pricey. Right across the street was the beach. I walked to school but also got a rental bike when I wasn’t feeling the 45 minute walk to school. Let me just point out that I WALKED alongside cattle, stray dogs, riots where cars were on fire and the constant paranoia if I was going to get robbed on the daily. This is where walking in groups became the norm, unless my impatient self was waiting for NOBODY. Sorry mom and dad if you are reading this. I went to Nelson Mandela University, such a beautiful, unlabeled campus. There were NO signs on the building or room numbers, talk about a blind scavenger hunt ladies and gents. Our campus squirrels in Iowa are like their campus monkeys. I had to find out FAST that 1) although they are cute, do not and I mean do NOT look them in the eye. They will attack 2) you may be hungry but you are taking a big fat chance if you are walking around with any type of food in your hand. They love granola bars. 3) enjoy them from afar. We had a nature reserve on the freaking campus. At the time it was normal to just hop a fence and you were immediately on the hunt (an observation hunt let me be clear) for zebras, springbok or humongous beetles….now it just seems like it was a dream while I’ve been intoxicated.

I studied at the Nelson Mandela University. Here I am with my friend Julia from Germany with our main man Nelson himself. Don’t mind him, he’s a bit stoned right now…….I’m sorry for that…

While I was there I spent some time volunteering in two places. One was an orphanage located on a farm outside of Port Elizabeth, this was a girls and boys place. While there I spent 2-4 hours a week interacting with these kiddos, whether it be counseling services, helping with school work, playing basketball, teaching them ballet, watching them sing BEAUTIFUL songs or them teaching me cool jump rope tricks. I wanted to take them all away from how they were living, it was a constant battle of always wanting to do more. Another place I volunteered at was Little Angels Daycare located in the Walmer District. This was a one roomed schoolhouse (it has gotten bigger since I left) where Joyce , an incredible, selfless woman spent her time with preschool-aged kiddos teaching and preparing them for Kindergarten. She wanted more for this kids, who lived in places where the roofs were literally held down by rocks, so she transformed her own house into a school. The “recess” was the districts playground/landfill. Those two don’t correlate right? You can’t imagine how excited those kids were when they say the garbage man coming, they created rocketships out of old luggage, jumprope out of hair weaves and flattened balls into a game of FIFA. Get that image into your head, now think of the most happy, energetic kids. I have never seen such pure happiness out of kids, and they didn’t even have an iPhone in their hand. I went to church with Joyce and saw some of the kids there. I went to their graduation where I am haunted by the missed goodbye of a kiddo I grew so close with, he was supposed to be there and graduate but due to some troubles at home he didn’t go. My heart is forever touched by this experience.

Here are my kiddos I worked with. The sweetest souls you’ll ever meet <3

Now, if you were following me during my trip you were able to see that I did CRAZY shit. I rode an ostrich, I stayed at a random African farmers house (with friends) and saw snow while in the back of a truck with sheep, I stayed at another farmer’s house (who only celebrates Christmas July 1st) in the middle of nowhere where we got WIFI in one spot which was underneath a tree, I went skydiving and shark cage diving all in one day, I went sailing with the guy who owns Coca-Cola in South Africa, I went spelunking (intense cave exploring), I went kayaking and single rafting across the Indian ocean, I went cliff jumping, I went to Namibia and slept in a desert for three days, I had my first apple pie in a town of 14 people in Solitaire, Namibia, I went on flipping safaris!! God I could go on damn it. I LIVED.

Meagan and I woke up at 4:30 am to climb these sand dunes in Namibia. We were contemplating if it was worth it but once we got to see the sun rise come up in between the dunes…it was the most beautiful sight. Also, climbing up sand should be an olym… — Meagan and I woke up at 4:30 am to climb these sand dunes in Namibia. We were contemplating if it was worth it but once we got to see the sun rise come up in between the dunes…it was the most beautiful sight. Also, climbing up sand should be an olympic sport. My calves are still feeling it 2 years later.

And then it was time to leave. My lord, that day in November when I left was truly one of the hardest goodbyes I’ve ever to do. My friends that I made there made a goodbye video for me while we watched the dolphins at sunrise. Such a beautiful moment. The fact that those goodbyes were so hard makes me so grateful that I made so many incredible connections, how thankful am I? I left and then it took me two days to get back home. When I got home it was in the middle of the holiday season. I came back angry. I came back angry because of the glorified idea that parents and kids think that love is based on how much you get for Christmas. What I would do to have everyone take a glimpse into the mindset of those South African locals who glorify making connections with people and know the concept of it’s who you are with rather than what you have. My lord and if you want to make a DIFFERENCE in people’s lives who are “less” fortunate, talk to them and ask what they need. What I kept hearing again and again from the locals was that they want a genuine connection and a voice. You see the “white superhero” phenomenon where they are feeling awesome coming to this third world country and building a school and then blast it on their social media to share their good deed. What they don't know is that new school will sit empty because a school requires teachers and students to fill it. These kiddos HAVE schools, crazy right? Ask people what they NEED. Don’t just assume. They don’t NEED the new American Girl doll or lego set, you will do wonders if you have a conversation with the locals and compile what will benefit them more.

Random Facts (I’ll add more the more that pop into my head overtime)