(From April 15)
Honestly, on Wednesday morning, when I woke up to prepare for a full two days of school-related observation at a bus terminal, I didn’t expect to have that much fun over the next forty-eight hours. But, IHP always tells us to expect the unexpected, and surely enough, I ended up having one of the best IHP days thus far.
Okay, well, to be truthful, Wednesday was kind of a boring bummer of a day. I loved my group for my transport case study, but sitting and watching trains and buses go by isn’t my cup of tea. We hopped on a train to Bellville Station, the last station on whatever line we were riding, idk. We received some super pertinent information from Protection Services at the station, but I was distracted during the interview by the shocking realization that my wallet was not in my bag.
*GASP*
I was slightly panicking, as both of my debit cards and way too much cash were stuffed into this sunglasses case-turned-wallet, but I tried to breathe deeply and focus on the case study at hand without COMPLETELY FREAKING OUT like I wanted to. I also have this like weird internal karma system involving my possessions that I’m going to try to explain for the first time outside of my own head, so bear with me if it’s nonsensical. I have this theory that at certain moments, I should definitely have lost some important possession due to carelessness/theft/forgetfulness, and so when I check my belongings for my passport/cell phone/wallet, and it is there, I believe that some good karma has like saved me from losing my passport/cell phone/wallet. I always toss a little “thank you” into the cosmos to whichever karmic being has saved my life by watching out for my belongings. So, when my wallet seemed misplaced, I saw it more as a refill of my karmic bank (as I’d used it all up) than as a devastating loss. I took it in stride, called the restaurant at which I’d eaten the day before (wasn’t there), and prayed and hoped with all my might that my wallet would be at home, under my bed.
And guess what.
IT WAS.
Hallelujah, karmic being!! Hopefully the stress and worry and trust in karmic goodness refilled my karmic bank—but from now on, I’ll be obsessively checking my bag for my most precious belongings (just checked right now).
Because of how helpful and informative the workers at Bellville Station were, my group was able to gather all of the necessary facts and craft a PowerPoint presentation by 4 PM, meaning we had an entire free day (on Thursday) to do whatever we so pleased!!
I celebrated the revelation of a daycation with a long nap before a delicious dinner with my host fam and Dorothy. I finished Infinite Jest, almost cried because it was one of the worst conclusions to a book that I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading—I literally can’t even talk about it right now—and then went to sleep, excited to snuggle in bed long past my usual alarm.
Thursday, a day I’d expected to be full of grueling presentation prep, ended up being incredibly relaxing and wonderfully unique. A group of seven (including me!) set out for Simon’s Town, a region far south of Cape Town known for its beautiful beaches full of… PENGUINS! Yes!!! Wild African penguins populate Boulders Beach and waddle in between and around the awed humans of whom they seem to have no fear. Our excitement for the experience of chilling with penguins dimmed slightly as we attempted to finagle an actual way to get to Simon’s Town. We ended up taking a minibus to a train, transferred to another train, then took another minibus to get to the beach. #stress. It took us about two hours, and we were getting cranky and cramped and annoyed by the time we arrived at Boulders Beach for a take-away lunch.
But, all of the aggravation dissipated the second we hobbled down onto the sand and caught a view of the adorable penguins and the breathtaking beach—it was gonna be a great day.
I borrowed Sally’s sports bra and stripped down to my boyshort undies (because fuck the patriarchy, wear what you want) and laid out under the sun, soaking in the rays and listening to Zayn’s new songs and reading an amazing book. I listened to the penguins squawking and waddling, watched the turquoise waves crash over the huge gray boulders, felt the warmth on my skin, and I was happy and at peace. God, I love the beach. When I’m on the sand, when I smell the salt water, when I hear the gulls and absorb the sun, I am home—it doesn’t matter the continent or ocean or season!
Anyway, I totally enjoyed unwinding with my companions, as well as catching up with my mom and dad via videochat enabled by a nearby WiFi connection. Around 5 PM, we packed up and began a long 40-minute walk back to the Simon’s Town station. Lo and behold, though, a random minibus chugged over the hill, and we hailed it with the victorious hoots and hollers of a shipwrecked crew rescued by a passing barge. Our driver even offered to drive us back to Langa for about the price it would have cost for all of us to use disjointed public transportation to return home. Instead, this one driver took us back in a fraction of the time with none of the discomfort, and he dropped us right at our front doors. AMAZING.
Though it was only 7:30 PM, I had just enough energy to drag myself through the doorway of my house, scarf down a delicious fried chicken dinner, and burrow into my blankets for a ten-hour slumber. (Hence, my lack of post yesterday.)
The half-hour case study presentations took up most of this bright and sunny Friday, and my classmates and I sit restlessly in our windowed classroom, antsy for the beginning of what is sure to be an eventful, once-in-a-lifetime weekend. I’m writing this as my professors prepare us for the writing of our final project—a three thousand word paper covering one topic that spans the three cities which we have visited. To put this into context… I usually write at least four different three thousand word papers per final exam period. My paper for my Israeli internship (in which I also spent three months doing research) was about ten thousand words. So, one three thousand word essay, with an entire semester of collecting evidence and observations, is not exactly difficult. Or even stressful. In fact, I’ve already written 1,200 words in snatches of free time that I’ve been able to grab. This blog itself is over a thousand words!!! I think the most difficult part of writing this essay will actually be keeping it under three thousand words!
In just an hour, I’ll be sitting in on a book talk with the incredible Sonwa Ngowa, an educational aide to our class and published author. He’s written two fascinating books, and I can’t wait to listen to his descriptions and explanations of them!
I’ll then head home, per usual, perhaps work on my CA paper, read more of my favorite author (holla @ Michener), then go to sleep in preparation for this weekend.
Because… this weekend is…
MY SAFARI.
YES IT’S TRUE. Caitlin, Sally, and I are going on a safari this weekend!!!!!!! I am so excited I could CRY. In fact, I probably will. If I see a wild elephant… Oh my god, prepare for the waterworks.
So, I’ll get back to paying attention, and bide my time until giraffes and elephants and lions and Michener. WEE.
Love,
Aubrey
Honestly, on Wednesday morning, when I woke up to prepare for a full two days of school-related observation at a bus terminal, I didn’t expect to have that much fun over the next forty-eight hours. But, IHP always tells us to expect the unexpected, and surely enough, I ended up having one of the best IHP days thus far.
Okay, well, to be truthful, Wednesday was kind of a boring bummer of a day. I loved my group for my transport case study, but sitting and watching trains and buses go by isn’t my cup of tea. We hopped on a train to Bellville Station, the last station on whatever line we were riding, idk. We received some super pertinent information from Protection Services at the station, but I was distracted during the interview by the shocking realization that my wallet was not in my bag.
*GASP*
I was slightly panicking, as both of my debit cards and way too much cash were stuffed into this sunglasses case-turned-wallet, but I tried to breathe deeply and focus on the case study at hand without COMPLETELY FREAKING OUT like I wanted to. I also have this like weird internal karma system involving my possessions that I’m going to try to explain for the first time outside of my own head, so bear with me if it’s nonsensical. I have this theory that at certain moments, I should definitely have lost some important possession due to carelessness/theft/forgetfulness, and so when I check my belongings for my passport/cell phone/wallet, and it is there, I believe that some good karma has like saved me from losing my passport/cell phone/wallet. I always toss a little “thank you” into the cosmos to whichever karmic being has saved my life by watching out for my belongings. So, when my wallet seemed misplaced, I saw it more as a refill of my karmic bank (as I’d used it all up) than as a devastating loss. I took it in stride, called the restaurant at which I’d eaten the day before (wasn’t there), and prayed and hoped with all my might that my wallet would be at home, under my bed.
And guess what.
IT WAS.
Hallelujah, karmic being!! Hopefully the stress and worry and trust in karmic goodness refilled my karmic bank—but from now on, I’ll be obsessively checking my bag for my most precious belongings (just checked right now).
Because of how helpful and informative the workers at Bellville Station were, my group was able to gather all of the necessary facts and craft a PowerPoint presentation by 4 PM, meaning we had an entire free day (on Thursday) to do whatever we so pleased!!
I celebrated the revelation of a daycation with a long nap before a delicious dinner with my host fam and Dorothy. I finished Infinite Jest, almost cried because it was one of the worst conclusions to a book that I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading—I literally can’t even talk about it right now—and then went to sleep, excited to snuggle in bed long past my usual alarm.
Thursday, a day I’d expected to be full of grueling presentation prep, ended up being incredibly relaxing and wonderfully unique. A group of seven (including me!) set out for Simon’s Town, a region far south of Cape Town known for its beautiful beaches full of… PENGUINS! Yes!!! Wild African penguins populate Boulders Beach and waddle in between and around the awed humans of whom they seem to have no fear. Our excitement for the experience of chilling with penguins dimmed slightly as we attempted to finagle an actual way to get to Simon’s Town. We ended up taking a minibus to a train, transferred to another train, then took another minibus to get to the beach. #stress. It took us about two hours, and we were getting cranky and cramped and annoyed by the time we arrived at Boulders Beach for a take-away lunch.
But, all of the aggravation dissipated the second we hobbled down onto the sand and caught a view of the adorable penguins and the breathtaking beach—it was gonna be a great day.
I borrowed Sally’s sports bra and stripped down to my boyshort undies (because fuck the patriarchy, wear what you want) and laid out under the sun, soaking in the rays and listening to Zayn’s new songs and reading an amazing book. I listened to the penguins squawking and waddling, watched the turquoise waves crash over the huge gray boulders, felt the warmth on my skin, and I was happy and at peace. God, I love the beach. When I’m on the sand, when I smell the salt water, when I hear the gulls and absorb the sun, I am home—it doesn’t matter the continent or ocean or season!
Anyway, I totally enjoyed unwinding with my companions, as well as catching up with my mom and dad via videochat enabled by a nearby WiFi connection. Around 5 PM, we packed up and began a long 40-minute walk back to the Simon’s Town station. Lo and behold, though, a random minibus chugged over the hill, and we hailed it with the victorious hoots and hollers of a shipwrecked crew rescued by a passing barge. Our driver even offered to drive us back to Langa for about the price it would have cost for all of us to use disjointed public transportation to return home. Instead, this one driver took us back in a fraction of the time with none of the discomfort, and he dropped us right at our front doors. AMAZING.
Though it was only 7:30 PM, I had just enough energy to drag myself through the doorway of my house, scarf down a delicious fried chicken dinner, and burrow into my blankets for a ten-hour slumber. (Hence, my lack of post yesterday.)
The half-hour case study presentations took up most of this bright and sunny Friday, and my classmates and I sit restlessly in our windowed classroom, antsy for the beginning of what is sure to be an eventful, once-in-a-lifetime weekend. I’m writing this as my professors prepare us for the writing of our final project—a three thousand word paper covering one topic that spans the three cities which we have visited. To put this into context… I usually write at least four different three thousand word papers per final exam period. My paper for my Israeli internship (in which I also spent three months doing research) was about ten thousand words. So, one three thousand word essay, with an entire semester of collecting evidence and observations, is not exactly difficult. Or even stressful. In fact, I’ve already written 1,200 words in snatches of free time that I’ve been able to grab. This blog itself is over a thousand words!!! I think the most difficult part of writing this essay will actually be keeping it under three thousand words!
In just an hour, I’ll be sitting in on a book talk with the incredible Sonwa Ngowa, an educational aide to our class and published author. He’s written two fascinating books, and I can’t wait to listen to his descriptions and explanations of them!
I’ll then head home, per usual, perhaps work on my CA paper, read more of my favorite author (holla @ Michener), then go to sleep in preparation for this weekend.
Because… this weekend is…
MY SAFARI.
YES IT’S TRUE. Caitlin, Sally, and I are going on a safari this weekend!!!!!!! I am so excited I could CRY. In fact, I probably will. If I see a wild elephant… Oh my god, prepare for the waterworks.
So, I’ll get back to paying attention, and bide my time until giraffes and elephants and lions and Michener. WEE.
Love,
Aubrey
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