South Africa

I was surfing the web the other morning and saw some flight deals to exotic places like Thailand, Mongolia and China. I also saw a list of the 16 most dangerous countries to visit. Seeing both things makes me want to travel. It also reminded me that I haven't really shared my story from this summer with very many people. You've maybe seen my pictures on facebook, but there wasn't much cometary with them. For those who don't know or need a reminder, I spent 10 days in South Africa, 6 in England and a day in Ireland this summer. Its always fun to see peoples reactions when I told them where I was going. Most didn't believe I was actually going to follow through with it. Others were excited and yet others were confused. "Why South Africa? The World Cup was last year!!" My mother was not too excited that I was talking about going to Africa again. The answer to these questions and confused looks was simple: I have friends. Yes, people, I have friends. I know its hard to believe, but I really do... well, at least I did. I'm hoping I didn't ruin anything on my trip :). In Capetown, a college friend of mine named Amy Helms had accepted a call to be a missionary. I thought it would be a great opportunity to hang out with her and be in SA. In England, many of the people I spent time with in Ghana were getting out of university and the time seemed right to visit them. The trip was an opportunity to broaden my horizons once again by heading to another African country and to see how my friends in England live. This post will highlight some of my favorite parts of South Africa. I'll post later about England.

I have written this blog twice, but it was super long both times so I'll just give hopefully a brief synopsis of some parts of my trip.

Pre Capetown: My trip actually began on June 28 with a drive to Pocatello to drop of my dog. From there it was a trip to Boise to golf and off to Oakland for Law's wedding. From there began my 36 hour trip to Capetown. The flight from LA to London put me next to a little girl who was very excited to be heading to London. She fell asleep on my arm a few times on the flight. The flight from London to Capetown was much more eventful as the retired lady I sat next two was a nervous flier and had lots and lots of alcohol to calm herself. She had toured the US by hitchhiking back in the 60's and had traveled all over the world with her late husband. She told me great stories of being attacked by a lion on a safari and how she watched a cheetah kill its prey. She had lived a very adventurous life and was glad that I wasn't a home bodied American and gave me a long list of things to do while I was in SA.

Side note: I had no expectations heading into South Africa. In fact, I didn't do much research before I left. I figured Amy would know all the cool things to do. My only knowledge of South Africa was from everything I had seen during the World Cup. I knew of the townships, the history with Mandela and Robben Island and the poverty gap. What didn't know/realize, was how beautiful the area was that I was going to explore.

Best Day???: My first view of South Africa was the sun rise from the airplane on our approach. It was amazing. I don't really have the words to describe what I was feeling at that point. Here is the picture I was able to get from the airplane.


My emotions changed rather quickly as we were landing and flew over one of the townships, which are tin shacks lined up for miles. I would later visit a few of these places that Amy worked in and learn much more about the divisions that exist in South Africa. I have been around poverty during my 3 months in Ghana, but the site of it will always break my heart. This is one of the reasons I strongly believe everyone and I mean everyone should spend an extended amount of time in a third world region. You can see pictures on TV or hear about it on the radio, but nothing compares to experiencing it first hand. Every time I think about it I thank God for the life that have.

As I deplaned and retrieved my luggage I was hoping Amy wasn't late. The last time I was in Africa my pick up person was late and I had taxi drivers try to shove me in their cars. Low and behold, Amy was waiting and had a little laugh as she saw me. Come to find out, I was easy to spot. She told me that it was "very like and American" to be wearing a baseball hat.... She quickly looked at her watch and told me we had places to be. Nothing like hitting the ground running...

Robben Island was an experience. To see first hand where Nelson Mandela and many other political prisoners were kept unfairly was one of those life experience many people will never have the chance of doing. The initial tour starts out with a drive around the outer edge of the island while a guide give a history lesson. Some of the more fascinating facts: People who were held on the island are free to live on the island at the expense of the government. The only thing they are asked to do is give tours as part of their "rent". Only 1 person ever managed to swim to the the mainland. He did it twice. Each time, the police were waiting for him on the mainland. Initially, Mandela and his fellow prisoners were only suppose to work in the quarry for 6 months. Instead, they worked in it for years. The next part of the tour was actually inside the prison. Our guide was held there and had numerous stories about his incarceration. He was imprisoned there because he was a arms dealer. I don't think I really understood what Robben Island meant to the people of South Africa until we were on the boat back to Capetown. I will never be able to identify with the horrors they experienced during the Apartheid. I am thankful for the opportunity to at least see and learn a part of what they experienced.

Mandela's Cell

The rest of the day consisted of me eating, being amazed by a whale outside my window and enjoying one of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen. I'm a sucker for good sunsets. I have pictures in my room of a few that I have witnessed. The vibrant oranges, blues, pinks and purples are hypnotic to me. I sit in awe of nature's ability to produce such beauty and this takes me back to God. I always come back to God when I see the natural beauty of the world because its His creation and thats where I feel closer to Him. Capetown allowed me a lot of time to sit and be in awe of the beauty of the world.



There were so many highlights from my trip but in order to make this post not enormous, I'll focus on just two or three points.

Hiking: One of the biggest surprises of the greater Capetown area was the amount of hiking there was. I managed to do 2 of the big 3 in my second day there. Amy ended up having to work so she was kind enough to drop me off at Table Mountain. I decided I was going to climb it and then walk over to climb up Lions head as well. She thought I was crazy. turned out i was.... The climb up Table mountain was crazy steep. It was like walking up stairs for an hour and a half.

Zig Zag of Death

Devils peak, Table mountain and Lions Head

However, once at the top there was a sense of accomplishment. So much so that I took the tram down :) Lions head was beautiful as it had a different look to the ocean. I was able to just hang out on Lions head for while and took in that fact that I was actually in South Africa. I was half way around the world visiting a friend from college, getting away from real life and learning how to relax while on vacation. These thought could do nothing but bring a smile to my face. As I walked down I thanked God for the opportunity to be in South Africa, experiencing amazing scenery and doing what I love to do: Hike.

Life experiences: While in South Africa, I was able to visit the southern most tip of Africa. Not many people can say they have done that. While there, i had one foot in the Indian Ocean and one in the Atlantic ocean. Again, not many people can say they have done that. Also, I was farted on by a rhino. No joke. During our Safari, we were actually close enough that a mother rhino pretty much farted on us. Granted, it was in our general direction from about 5 or 6 feet away, but still, it sound much more adventurous to say I was farted on by a rhino. There were 9 other people in our vehicle that were a part of it. Also, if you need verification, ask Amy Helms or Emily Borders.... Here is list of the animals I saw: cheetah, giraffe, Kudu, elephant, penguins, black mamba, green mamba, crocodile, lion, springbok, wildebeest, red hartebeest and eland. I'm sure I missed a few, but you get the idea. I could tell you numerous stories from our Safari most of them involving our guide name Corny. To the surprise of no one, his jokes were just like his name :)



Food: Kudu, ostrich, pork from the townships (best I've ever had) and a few local beers that weren't up to my expectations coming from all the micro's I drink.

Lesson: There were so many life lessons to take away from my trip. God is faithful. He has called people to serve all over the world. I met many missionaries while in Capetown and they are living proof that when God calls, He will also provide. Amy is there serving with an organization called Living Hope. Its a fairly new non-profit organization serving in many aspects in and around Capetown. They have their hands in numerous projects including AIDS/HIV education, education, hospice care, professional development, farming and many other things. Check out her blog to learn more about what she is doing.

Relaxation is key while on vacation. I have been on vacation before, but has always packed my day full of activity to make sure I didn't miss anything. Capetown was much different. I had no plan and was up for doing anything. My tour guide had plans that fell through at times, but that was ok because we could adapt, relax if we needed to and eventually were able to do many things from hiking to seeing penguins to watching the sunset to watching whales from my room :).

The trip was amazing. I could give you a day by day account because something great happened everyday. There were also trying times everyday because my heart breaks for those who live in some of the horrendous conditions I saw. Knowing how they were put in the conditions saddens me even more. Ever since I have left the question that has been on my heart is how can I help. This questions is unanswered for me. I've been reading a book call the Hole in Our Gospel and it makes me uncomfortable because it is challenging me to look at my life and see if God is calling me to do more with my life than just tape ankles in my comfortable life here in Spokane. I don't have an answer to that question yet, but I'm sure when God is ready for me to do something more, He will be faithful and provide me the answer and the means. I just hope I ready for that day.

Jon