Weekend spent with the Indian Ocean :)

So our weekend in Pennington was a pretty good weekend indeed. We had a little car trouble on the way there. It was a little frustrating. A trip that should have been a hour and a half about, took us.....almost 7 hours! it was a little annoying just because it was sweltering hot and me being a red head can only take so much. But it all ended up being ok. We are a fun group so we made the best of the situation. We arrived at the camp site later than expected but it was all good. We were all super tired so we really just ate our dinner or pizza with vigor, then crashed into bed. We awoke the next morning though super early, because we wanted to see the sunrise over the Indian Ocean. Which as you all may know doesn't happen in California. The sun only sets over the pacific. It was really amazing and there were crabs the size of my fist scurrying around in the tide! I guess those are their sand crabs haha. Unfortunately I do have to admit that though it was very pretty, I don’t know I it was worth waking up at 4:30 for haha. Im glad that I did though I guess. But like my friend Nicole said, “its just like a sunset, but backwards.” We had a little giggle on that one. But really it was gorgeous and we got some cool pictures. The crabs were really cool too.

After that we went back to camp and had some breakfast. Then we spent the day walking around an Indian community and market. It was sort of like a street in downtown L.A. But way more crowded. The people were so friendly and a lot asked us how we were liking South Africa and how long we were staying an what not. We were very hard to miss, considering our group was a group of 53! We were noticed everywhere we went.

Then was the best part of the trip! THE BEACH!!! It was amazing! The water was so warm. It was kinda too warm in the shallow parts but out towards the ocean it was perfect! The waves were massive! The water was really salty too and burned my eyes a little but I was too busy having a blast to notice. All 53 of us were crammed into this one section. We had to stay in a certain part because of sharks! Scary huh! We all came out alive though. It was so much fun! We were in there for hours.

That night we had a barbeque with some of the youth from Indian churches. We had curry! Well it was called Bunny Chow. I think they made it less spicy than usual so I really liked it. It was really interesting to see how much the Indian kids in S.A. Were like us from the states. I guess it just shows that kids are kids and everyone has the same problems.

The next day we were split into groups and sent to different churches. Myself and about 7 other students went to an Indian Church. They treated us kind of like we were famous! They reserved front row seats for us and they were taking pictures of us throughout the whole service. Even when we were praying haha. Me and my friend Angie were like do we smile? haha. They had us stand in the front and they presented us with a S.S. keychain and they prayed over us. At the end they had us stand by the door so everyone could come shake our hands and kiss us. I have to admit it was kinda of awkward at times, especially the picture taking part. But they were so welcoming and loving towards us! It was so nice. Then we went and had lunch at the pastors house afterwards. It was an interesting meal for sure. The food was very delicious though! And not to spicy. The women didn’t eat with us though. They just served us. It was different being in that culture. The pastor we realized liked to talk a lot. He had many opinions on politics and how pastors are these days. I felt that none if us were able to get in a word edgewise. Talking it over with my intercultural communications class afterwards I realized that we were treated like a minority. Which I know we are here in South Africa, but we have not yet experienced it. At lunch we did. Our opinions didn’t seem to matter. Everything he said was right, while what we thought, if it contradicted him, was wrong. He even asked us at one point if we knew what salt was? Seriously? That like my favorite spice. It was a very different experience, one that I will always remember. Despite this lunch, which was not as bad as Im making it sound, the Indian people were a pleasure to meet. I will not forget the kindness and hospitality that they showed us. I hope i remember to treat all visitors to my church at home the same way. Anyone for that matter!

Overall this weekend was a look into the culture here and how they live. There is a saying here, “T.I.A.” This Is Africa. Which means that time is not as important as it is back home. The people take their time in doing things here. Schedules don’t really exist, and plans are not always made. That was hard for a lot of us to handle. We have been on schedules our whole lives practically! It was definitely frustrating to be waiting as much as we were this weekend. My professor claims they had so many things go wrong on purpose, and moved slow on purpose, and stayed off of schedule on purpose. He also claimed thats why we didn’t have a schedule at all. Just to help us be immersed in their culture and way of doing things. Bologna! I mean I guess towards the end we were all like we will just do what they tell us, and go with the flow. I guess thats how south africans live. But it was really hard! Not to have a schedule and a plan, especially with so many people. I didn’t realize how much I need structure and schedules! I didn't think it was that important haha.

Altogether it was an amazing weekend! Especially the beach! It was a great experience that I am so blessed to have been apart of, even along with the delays and waiting.

Love you all!

-Dani :)