7/9/14-7/21/14 Erin's Visit!

Hey guys! It's Erin. I've stolen Haylea's blog for a bit. I'm going to make one large summary of my visit from 7/9 to 7/21. This will be helpful for me to pass on to family members and hopefully will give all of Haylea's friends and family an interesting perspective on where she lives and works! Bear with me as I have boat-loads of photos. This also will probably not be anywhere near as elequent as Haylea's posts (Most of the history that I learned during this trip came from my lovely tour guide Haylea Hannah, some of you might know her, so I probably will not have much in the way of new history information to add). Here we go! Hold on tight! Fasten your seat-belts for turbulence!

Wednesday, July 9th- Thursday, July 10th
I flew Wednesday from RDU to Atlanta and then only 3 hours later from Atlanta to Johannesburg, South Africa. If you did not know, the flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg is now officially the longest flight you can purchase. There used to be another one that was longer, but they have now officially broken it up into two flights. Apparently 16 hour is the limit. I left Atlanta at 7:12pm and landed in Joburg at 5pm and was picked up by Haylea and Michelle who were, to my relief, waiting as close as they could get to me as possible. I received the best present ever: Haylea hugs! They really are the best. I said good-bye to my newly-found airplane friends (2 twenty year old guys going to South Africa to work with the Kaiser Chiefs, a big soccer club in South Africa) and we headed to the car.

I was immediately thrown off by the whole driving on the left-side of the road thing. I know that America is the only place that does drive on the right side, and Haylea had fully prepared me for this, but it is still something to get used to. It was already dark by this time and it was a beautiful sight to see all the lights of the city: reds, greens, blues. Haylea and Michelle informed me that they lived outside of Joburg in an area called Sandton which is where the more affluent population lives. Their apartment is definitely a step-up from where Haylea and I stayed in college. It is still very shocking to see barbed wire and electrical fences surrounding all houses. I know that it is a security measure, but it is hard for me to get past the aesthetic nature. We hauled my bags inside their apartment and we ate dinner and got ready for bed because we were driving to Swaziland in the morning! Haylea and I had to snuggle with her hot water bottle all night because the heater in their apartment does not function normally and it gets close to 30 degrees at night!

Haylea's Apartment on the top right. Friday, 7/11/14

Haylea's complex, surrounding by electrical fence

Friday, July 11th - The voyage to Swaziland!

We woke up Friday morning, rolled out of bed, ate some food, drank some instant coffee and got on the road for Swaziland! This was a five hour drive and I spent the majority of it snapping quick pictures as we flew along doing 120 km/hour. Swaziland is a small country to the right of South Africa that borders Mozambique. They have about 1.231 million people and their HIV/AIDs rate is 26%! That was definitely interesting considering the research that Haylea and Michelle are working on. 

We crossed over mountains on the way into Swaziland and stopped at Oshoek, the border between South Africa and Swaziland. We went through customs and got our passports stamped several times. This took about 1 hour! By the time we pulled into the entrance for Mlilwane Nature Reserve, the sun was setting over the mountains. 

There were military men and police men on both sides of the roads leading into the nature reserve and they all had heavy machine guns on them. When we arrived at the gate, a police man made us turn off the car and get out because the King of Swaziland was leaving the reserve and this was for protection. We watched as a brigade of BMWs left the nature reserve and drove off with police men saluting him the whole way. Mlilwane Nature reserve was having a celebration for 50 years of being active and the King had made an appearance. 

We got back in our car and drove to Sondzela Backpackers hostel where we would be staying (on a nature reserve!!) for the next couple days. We immediately saw Impala on the road, horses crossing the road and other wildlife. When I say "road" I mean a clay trail just big enough for a car with several small, creaky bridges over water. We checked in and were shown the kitchen that we would share with the fellow tented and hut dwelling backpackers, the living room, the bathrooms and showers and were brought to our very own little hut! All of the women who work at Sondzela appear the same and wear the same clothes and they just make me very happy because they are so cute. We made dinner, signed up for horse back riding adventures for the next day and went to our hut to get ready for bed. The sun setting outside of our hut with the view of the mountains in the background was unbelievable. 

Saturday, July 12th - Horseback riding, Hippo Haunt, Malandela's

We woke up, ate some eggs, got dressed and went horse back riding! I got one of the white horses and that made me happy. The guides were telling us all of the horse's names which were all super African and so I asked, "What's my horses name?...not that I will be able to pronounce it..." and my guide said, "Silver" and laughed at me. So for the rest of the day I was busy saying, "High ho silver away!" and then trotting off while giggling uncontrollably. Have you ever tried letting yourself loose while riding a horse that is trotting while also wearing a heavy camera bag? I could not stop laughing despite my guides hopeless efforts to quiet me. We were able to get really close to animals because our horses did not scare them. I think that is one of the reasons why were not supposed to giggle. We saw crocodiles and hippos (obviously did not get close to these). We saw zebras and wildebeest and warthogs. We trotted through fields with mountains in the background (this view was incredible and hard to capture while riding a horse). We went through streams on horse back and we struggled to keep our horses from eating every time they stopped. The guides taught us about different kind of trees, how much hippos eat in a day, why zebras eat burned stick and fields to help with their digestion... It was truly an experience that I will not forget. 

We went to Hippo Haunt for lunch which is the restaurant in Mlilwane Nature reserve. Haylea and I tried eating Wildebeest and Impala. I thought the Impala was good because it was more jerky-consistency but the Wildebeest was in a sausage casing and I wasn't sure how I felt about that. After lunch, we went out on our own tour back to where the hippos were sunning themselves to see if they had moved. We sad there for a while watching them without much movement; We did see the baby move around and heard a few of their strange noises that they make. 

After watching the hippos for a while, we drove back to our hut. On the way, we saw Zebras super close to the road, so we parked, jumped out and posed in a couple pictures with them. We were able to get very close. 

We got back in the car, ooo-ing and ahhh-ing about all of the animals we saw including warthogs and zebras right alongside the road. We showered, ate dinner and went to Malandela's a local bar. We drank Sibebe a beer made in Swaziland and spoke with locals. Haylea and I met a man who worked with the National Aids Council in Swaziland and helped bring Anti-retrovirals and decrease risk of transmission from mother to child. He worked from 2002-2008 and made such a difference. It really was a God-like moment to have met him; I always think that God has a hand in making such coincidental things happen. After he left, we met a family of native Swaziland people and the Uncle tried to marry off his nephew to Haylea all night; He was fairly attractive other than the fact that he was missing his front tooth!!

I forgot to mention! This was the night that we hand-fed an Impala (at least I think it was an impala. I believe the males are dark as pictured below). He waltzed right up for our huts door and we fed him shrubbery! It was amazing. It made some epic photos. 

Sunday, July 13th - Mhkaya Game Reserve aka Rhino land!!

We drove an hour in the morning to Mhkaya Game reserve which is well known for protecting their rhinos from poachers. They have only ever had 2 rhinos poached on their property, but unfortunately one was in the last year. We saw countless rhinos throughout the tour; They should have just named it "Rhino Reserve". We also saw giraffe, zebras, tsessebe, warthogs, water buffalo, guinea hens and of course impala. Our tour guide's name was Africa and he taught us about poisonous trees, trees you can use for medicinal purposes or for brushing teeth, the difference between black and white rhinos and what you can use white rhino dung for (some people use it as tea...yuck!). 

We had lunch at the reserve and were served Hake, a fish that is commonly prepared here and South Africa. We explored the shops and then traveled back to our camp. I forgot to mention that we also saw the hippos in the water on the way out of Mlilwane that morning! Picture below. 

Monday, July 14th - Packing up, shop exploring and driving home

We packed up our little hut and left early in the morning to head to the hand-craft market. I really wanted to go to the store that sold the tapestries that were hanging in Sondzela pictured above. We found Baobab Batik and it was amazing! A woman showed up through the factory and the process that goes into making one dyed material. They start with the lightest colors and then wax the area that they want to stay that color and then dye the next darkest color. They wash off the wax or keep it on and layer another layer of wax and dye another darker color. Eventually they come out as these beautiful pieces of artwork. I bought a tablecloth for my mother and a tapestry for myself. They also make stuff animals and they sell their stuff online!! We went to a candle makers store that is famous for making beautiful sculptures of animals in many different colors and that are very realistic looking. We also stopped at a glass-blowing factory that uses 100% recycled glass and bought little baby hippos and penguins. Needless to say, we spent money this day and found many treasured items. We also ate at this market and Haylea and I got coffee milkshakes which were as delicious as they sound. 

We drove home to Joburg. We had to cross the border again and witnessed the sun setting over Joburg. We ate Nando's when we got back which is apparently supposed to be this amazing restaurant as our South African friends suggested it to us. It is a chicken place kind of like KFC except more fancy. I got a wrap but it was super spicy!!

Some things I learned from Haylea while traveling: People ride dangerously on the highway in the back of trucks all the time. People will try to sell you everything at a stop light (which they call robots); This can be anything from key-chains to car bumpers. If someone approaches you at a robot, you just give them a thumbs up sign, and they continue on their merry way. You do not get out of the car at a gas station, they pump the gas for you and you have to check to make sure they didn't steal any of your money. There are fires along the side of the freeway all the time because they burn the fields so they can grow back more nutritious. 

Tuesday, July 15th - My day of rest

I slept in this day (10am) while Haylea and Michelle went in to work at the clinic. I was very appreciative to have this day seeing as I had literally hopped off a 16 hour plane ride and into a 5 hour car ride. I did laundry and found out that they do not have dryers in South Africa; Everything gets hung out on the line. I was limited in the amount of clothes I could wash due to the drying time especially because it was cold and it took forever for a pair of jeans to dry. When Haylea got home, we watched movies and hung out, talked about life and laughed. We went out this night to Rockets (previously mentioned in a Haylea post) and bought fancy drinks. I got Sweet Child of Mine because of the name and the song but it was too strong and not very delicious....and I accidentally spilled it. At least I didn't have to drink it! Greg (Haylea and Michelle's South African friend) met us out and we had a lovely time. We went to bed early because I was planning on going into the clinic with them in the morning. 

Wednesday, July 16th - Tembisa Circumcision Clinic

We woke up early this morning and went in to Haylea and Michelle's place of work. They work for the Aurum institute at the Winnie Mandela Clinic in Tembisa. Tembisa is a large town-ship made of shanty houses. During the Apartheid, black South Africans were forced to leave their houses in the city and move away from the white people into certain defined areas. Due to this destroying of their houses without compensations, these South Africans were forced to build houses of tin close together in defined areas. When Nelson Mandela finally became president in 1994, he attempted to clean up these areas, most notably in Soweto (this is why Soweto township appears a little more well-off than Tembisa or other townships). My photos were taken through a glass window in the car because I felt awkward sticking my camera out, sorry for the quality. 

While at the clinic, I was shocked to see the hundreds of people waiting outside to get circumcised in one day. Haylea told me that this was even less than usual. There had to be at least 300 men and boy waiting. I met a lot of the staff including the doctor and some of the nurses. They all made fun of me for not understanding their names or speaking their language. Because there are so many languages (11 national languages in South Africa), there are people who speak Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans, Swati...and I cannot understand many of them. Most of my conversations go like this: 

Erin: "Hi, what is your name and why do you wear your baby on your back like this?

Native: "anlfihuiabltygraiuth;urhy;oiaheuiae"

Erin: "Pardon, what?"

Native: "jagfuyagtiuehatoihaiehyjaeijtai"

Erin: "Oh! Okay. Makes total sense."

And then of course Haylea and Michelle and the locals all laugh at me. It's amazing how much the Americans have picked up already since being here. Including driving on the wrong side of the road and understanding Rand versus American money. (It's easier than I make it). 

  The picture immediately above is Haylea interviewing a woman which is what we did all day Wednesday. We asked them questions about their male partners and their circumcisions. Many did not know that you have to wait 6 weeks before sexual contact after circumcision or that circumcision only reduces HIV/STI transmission by 60%. It was definitely an enlightening day for me. It blows my mind that these young boys can walk into a clinic for free, get evaluated, get circumcised and walk out with a follow up in 2 days. It was also interesting to learn about male medical circumcision versus circumcision that occurs in an initiation school in the wild tribe environment. 

After work, we went to a restaurant at Four Ways which is a notoriously white and rich part of town. We had Salmon bagels with capers and it was so delicious. Being surrounded by white people who dress well felt like a stark difference than where I had been all morning. We went home, relaxed and went to sleep. 

Thursday, July 17th - Chocolate and Coffee Expo and Comedy Night!

I slept in again while Haylea and Michelle went to work to finalize the interviews. There were not as many women there this day, so they came home around 12 and we planned to go to the Coffee, Chocolate, Wine Expo at Montecasino around 4 and then to a comedy show afterwards around 6. Montecasino is another notoriously affluent place. The building looks like a giant castle and the inside is made out to look like you are outside on a street in Italy or something. The ceiling is painted like a sky and there are trees and fake dogs and people and clothes hanging from the upper levels of shops. 

We made our way through the worlds quietest casino and went outside for the coffee and chocolate expo. Clearly Haylea was excited. 

We tried Belgium chocolate, Turkish Delight, Coffee from all over and wine! We felt very happy by the end of this adventure. Haylea and I bought red wine and got the glass for free so we walked around feeling sophisticated. 

Afterwards, we headed over to the Comedy Show. We were there early, so we ate, drank and were merry. 

There were 6 (or maybe more) comedians who performed. There was one from the UK, a lot from South Africa and then the last one was from America! His name was Griff and he is the big black guy in the last couple photos. He was hilarious and wearing a shirt that said "God is from Johannesburg". He targeted us and found out we were American and what we were doing in South Africa and met us after the show and followed us all on Instagram. I got called on the stage once because Haylea and Michelle volunteered me and they won two free passes because of it! Griff talked a lot about the street venders at the robots and how traffic stops in South Africa feature one man who runs onto the freeway to stop you. It was hilarious for Haylea and Michelle because they have seen a lot of this while being here. 

After the comedy show, we went out to a club called Billie's Bums and danced all night! It was super fun and Haylea and I were throwing out all sorts of weird dance moves as per usual. 

Friday, July 18th - Nelson Mandela Day

Today was the anniversary of Nelson Mandela's Birthday so Haylea and I went to Soweto to see his house that he spent adult-hood in. I learned more about his wife(s) (but most famously Winnie) and his fight against the Apartheid. It surprising how little time Mandela actually spent in his house because he was in jail for 20-some years and then when he got out he became president shortly afterwards. Here are some pictures of his house and the paraphernalia inside. 

We then walked around Soweto, ate lunch and headed over to Hector Pieterson Memorial. This is to commemorate the students who died in 1976 during a peaceful protest over the implementation of Afrikaans in schools during the Apartheid. Hector was shot and a fellow student picked him up to carry him away. This was captured by a photographer and became an icon of the fight against Apartheid. 

We later went to Liliesleaf Farm which is where Nelson Mandela and other leaders against the Apartheid hid and met to have secret meetings. They were in the process of discussing their new violent plan (MK as Haylea has mentioned in previous posts) and they were all arrested in a raid. Haylea and I explored the different buildings and the different theories on how the place was discovered. I learned a lot and most of it came from Haylea, so I'm sure her previous post explains it better than I ever could. 

I find the Apartheid so interesting in regards to the fact that we never really learned about it in the U.S despite the fact that our civil rights movement was happening around the same time. All I ever knew about it was that it was a racial war. I think we are very uneducated in the United States about other countries and when visiting another country, it is impossible to ignore something that had such a big impact. The signs of it are everywhere. 

On the way back to Sandton, we saw Orlando Stadium, where the World Cup was held 4 years ago. It looks dilapidated already. There are all sorts of Ghosts of the World Cup throughout the city. 

Saturday, July 19th - Cradle of Human Kind and Elephant Sanctuary

We drove to Cradle of Human Kind (which Haylea has touched on before). It is where many humanoid fossils have been found that has helped form the theory that humankind originated in Africa. We explored the museum there and looked at many different fossils and re-creations of our ancestors. We ate lunch at the museum until we almost burst the food was so delicious. 

We drove to the Elephant Sanctuary for our tour at 2 and saw monkeys sitting on fences alongside the road. When we got to the sanctuary, we met our guide who's name was Simba. We got to touch the elephants, get a kiss, feed them and walk hand-in-trunk with them. Elephants have such beautiful eyes, but it's hard to see them because they are turned down. They had rough skin and when it came to areas like the elbows/knees, the skin was almost like concrete. All of these elephants were rescued from zoos or reserves. 

We went home exhausted but happy and rested up before adventuring into the night life for my last night out. We witnessed and was almost a casualty of a bar fight at a fancy place called Churchills. We went to several other places and hung out with the American guys I met on the plane on the way to South Africa.

Sunday, July 20th - Arts on Main and time to go home 

Haylea and Greg and I went to an event in Joburg called Arts on Main. This is a big event with food truck/tables everywhere, clothes, jewelry, art, and all sorts of artistic stuff being sold. Haylea and I got coffee and waffles immediately and then proceeded to shop through the clothes. Everything was so beautiful and unique and I deperately wanted something just so that someone would ask me where it was from and I could say "South Africa." But I tried a few things on with no such luck and they were pretty expensive anyway. We enjoyed the time just being together and looking at artwork. Later, we went to another craft market and saw more artwork. Some of it was so realistic it amazed me and others had stylized touches that were beautiful as well. Greg accompanied us the whole way and even helped us change our tire at his house. 

Haylea drove me to the airport and walked with me to check-in. We hung out for a little while afterwards, embraced sadly and then I went through security and the long flight back home. I got a little bit tired towards the end of this post and couldn't continue describing things in much detail. This trip was absolutely incredible and I experienced and learned so many things that I can never fully explain anyway. The best part of it all was seeing my best friend and her lovely faces...

So thank you for sticking with me through this entire post! I learned so much. I laughed a lot and ate a lot of chocolate and drank a lot of coffee and snuggled with Haylea and hot water bottles. Also I apologize for any miss-spellings as I am very tired at this point and don't feel like spell checking. Until next time passport!!

-Erin Gillespie 7/22/14