First Night Out & Baps Orientation

It is amazing how much can happen in 24 hours. It's like I have a totally different mindset sitting here today compared with yesterday. I LOVE IT HERE! Yesterday (of course) I was so unsure and didn't know anyone and now I feel like I've been here for weeks, at least. It is a very, very good feeling.

So yesterday after I wrote I continued to check out Obs, mostly just Lower Main street which has several blocks of shops, restaurants, and bars but is not all that busy during the day. There are lots of cute shops I will definitely have to come back to, and apparently Wednesday nights are really good here so I will probably experience that tomorrow. I got some take-out sushi (so cheap!!) which was the first substantial thing I've eaten since Saturday morning (and still I have basically no appetite, weird). I also went to the Pick-n-Pay which is the grocery store and got a few things since we are on our own for lunch and dinner (can't get used to how inexpensive things are, I payed probably less than half of what I would have at home).

When I got back to the house the girls were planning to go to the V&A Waterfront to see the new James Bond movie and invited me along, so 6 of us (Me, the four girls I had already met, another girl who's 28 & dutch and an American kid Kyle who's 18- Kyle and I were the only Americans but he went home today- I think). Anyways, so we took a minibus, which is kind of van-like and the drivers drive around and just whistle and honk at every person they see to see if they need a ride, will pick them up and drop them off wherever, and everyone just PILES in. It is a sight to be seen. Took the minibus into Cape Town, got to see Table Mountain from the front and it is amazing, I don't think I will get used to seeing that as the backdrop of the city the entire time I'm here. The Waterfront area is really really nice, I didn't get to see all of it and will have to go back, we were in an area kind of set around the mall- lots of outdoor restaurants and an open air stage, etc. Saw James Bond, it was good and would probably never have seen it otherwise.

After the movie we decided to go to Long Street, which is the famous bar street in Cape Town. We first went to Cafe Mohito and met up with three volunteers from Gary's Surf School (another AVIVA project) who were all really nice (and convinced me to go out to Muizenberg for surfing lessons one day- HA that will be interesting) and we all sat and had appetizers and drinks for a while, then went to another bar that was having a comedy night but ended up talking to a couple British volunteers on holiday from the work they are doing in Namibia the whole time. Had my first Obama conversation which was very interesting and very exciting to hear their enthusiasm!! After this we took a cab to a club but the line was too long, so went next door to The Shack which is a big bar with lots of levels and rooms, hung out there and talked to the surf school volunteers and a couple guys from the Netherlands for a while. Left when they turned the lights on with Fredericka (German) and the surf school people to go back to the house. Ate a legitimate sausage hot dog from a vender outside the bar while waiting for our taxi- something I would NEVER do at home but it was delicious. See what an open mind I have here?!

Additionally, & not surprisingly, it takes only one night out like this one to make fast friends with an international group of people, which makes me now feel completely comfortable in the house and no longer "new" or a stranger. Yay!

This morning I woke up at 9:30, which would have been harder if I wasn't so excited to see Baps. Ed, co-director of AVIVA, came to pick us up at 10 and took me, the two girls who had been home sick, and the 28 yr old who was doing Gary's Surf School but switched to Baps & so was doing orientation with me, to the orphanage. All of this is kind of hard to explain because I can't imagine understanding it without being here & seeing it- both in terms of the extreme poverty & the kids at Baps. Kayalitcha is the township that Baps is located in about 20 min outside of Obs. The entire drive there you are passing these "informal settlements" that I mentioned before- shacks with tin roofs that are small - like the size of a shed you would put in your backyard or something. And driving past you see kids just playing by the side of the highway with nothing, in the sand or maybe with a ball. When we get off the highway we followed signs to Kayalitcha through these shacks, though I am not sure what distingueshes Kayalitcha itself from the rest of it- It all looks the same. There were a lot of people around & random herds of cows & lots of dogs. There were also a lot of signs painted onto walls about HIV/AIDS awareness, clinics, etc.

We pulled up in front of Bapumelele, which is completely enclosed with a tall wall- the area around it is not safe, and while we are there we are not supposed to leave it. So we go in through the gate and are introduced to Allison, who is from Raleigh, NC and has been here for 4 months. Within about 30 seconds of being inside I felt two little hands on the backs of my legs- I turned around to my left and didn't see anything, turned to my right and didn't see anything, back and forth back and forth (the little boy kept dodging out of sight). He was maybe 4(?), and ADORABLE. He thought his little game was very clever. The two of us having orientation went into the office to hear the rules and all that stuff from Allison. Then she brought us out for a tour, because Baps has grown a lot in the past four years- it now has the original house that older kids now live in (very crowded, like 4+ triple bunks to a room), a building that the older kids eat and hang out in, above that is the flat for AVIVA volunteers and currently there are 8 German volunteers also at Bap for a year who stay there (it's fine, very basic- pretty much my meals there will have to be microwaveable), then there is the Babie House, which is where I will be the majority of the time, then there are 7 Cluster Houses (these hold ten kids each with one caregiver with the aim of creating a family-like environment; two of the seven are brand new and will open in January). There is also a soup kitchen and a health center where people in the community can go for information about HIV/AIDS. All of this is within the walls of Baps, and except for the older kids house none of it was here four years ago- it really is amazing what they have done. It has gone from 30 kids to about 150, ages 0-18, and is a model for children's homes across South Africa (possibly even Africa I guess).

Even having said all of that though, it is still heartbreaking. Throughout the entire time we were being shown around both of my hands were being held by at least one child each. They followed us everywhere and were so friendly, always smiling and laughing and eager to see who we were, what we were wearing, checking out my nail polish & jewelry & even the stamp on my hand from last night. And each and every one is just gorgeous , like the most beautiful kids I have ever seen. And I haven't even gotten to the baby house. We walk in and there are several rooms off of the main room/kitchen area, so we walk into one of the bedrooms with two triple bunks in it and on each middle bunk there are probably 4 kids, all around 3,4 yrs old, just rolling around and laughing and climbing on the beds-- again, so happy, all smiles. The cutest things you can imagine. Next to that room is the baby room, which has probably 8-10 cribs lining the walls and at the time there were 5 babies- teeny, tiny babies, the smallest I have ever seen- in their cribs. There are more, but I think they were out getting fed at that point. And again, adorable. I am SOOO excited to go back, I wanted to stay. I am so glad that I chose this project, they definitely need the help there with so many kids and it is so sad that they don't get the individual attention that they deserve & need.

Good God this is a long entry, I'll try to sum things up but there is so much to say!! So when we left Baps it was just me, Ed, and the other new-ish girl (I really need to learn names) and Ed needed to pick up two volunteers who were just getting in from the airport, so we were gonna go with him and get a coffee or something while we waited for their flight to get in. However, once we got there we learned that their flight had been delayed, but we had already ordered some food so Ed offered to pay & said he would just come back for the girls later. So we got to eat and hang out with Ed for a while and he is SO super nice, which is not surprising at all seeing how all the AVIVA staff are like the nicest people I've ever met. Anyways I was able to ask him about the Kruger Safari I had wanted to do--- since I have gotten here I've learned that the safari, since it's 6 days away from Cape Town, is usually done before or after one's alloted time at the orphanage since we are there every 3 days. So for me, this would mean no safari since I am leaving right after my time at Baps is up. So Ed said that he would look into me doing the safari one week, and then the next week doing 6 straight days at baps to make up the time, which would be awesome so I REALLY hope it works out. So after lunch Ed took us back to the house, and then I came here!

So it has been a very busy, fun, informative, and a little bit culture-shocked past 24 hours. I think that tomorrow I might climb Table Mountain, maybe the two new girls will want to do that. Ida, who is on my shift, told me yesturday that the other girl on our shift, Georgina (who I have not met yet, I think she comes back from Baps today, but I didn't meet her when I was there) hasn't really wanted to do/book anything to do, but that she (Ida) definitely wants to do as much as possible, which is awesome! I am trying to convince her to Sky Dive but I don't know if she will agree to that, though I'm gonna keep working on her. She already did Table Mountain but maybe will want to again tomorrow. I think Christmas day I am going to go to Camps Bay beach and just lay out... sounds like an absolutely wonderful way to spend the holiday =).

Now I am going to go back to the house and probably shower and nap. Ursula, the AVIVA staff member that picked me up from the airport, is having a holiday party tonight and invited all of us so I am guessing we will go to that!

Forgot to mention before- when I got here I got a welcome pack which included a really nice fleece, a SIM card for my phone (which I think I just figured out M&D!!- and which will be way more handy than I expected since I have already met people outside of the house that I would have no other way to get in touch with again), some kind of voucher to send postcards (? I don't know really what that is), and a bottle of wine. I do love AVIVA =)