Our Final Adventure in South Africa!

On Saturday, we left the beautiful city of Port Elizabeth to head to Cape Town for our final weekend in South Africa. I would dearly miss the learners at Emafini Primary school as well as everyone we had met along the way. Saying goodbye to the wonderful staff at Algoa Bay, was tough. Priscilla, Billy Jean, Ana, and Nasi Pala had become family over the last few weeks. Their graciousness, hospitality and kind hearted spirit is something that I will never forget.

After saying goodbye, we piled into our cabs and headed off to the Port Elizabeth International Airport. When we got there, Mr. January was waiting for us. I thought this was an extremely kind gesture and I was happy to see him before we left. The flight to Cape Town was just a short trip, taking us only about 1 hour, from take off to landing. As we made our final descent into The Cape Town Airport, I was blown away by the enormity of Table Mountain, and the breathtaking view of the Indian Ocean below. I was very impressed with Cape Town and the heavy European influence of Dutch and British architecture.

On Sunday, we had an excursion to Robben Island, the famous maximum security prison where many black African's were sent during the Apartheid era. One of the most famous people incarcerated at Robben Island was Nelson Mandela, who spent over 27 years here. We toured the various cell blocks and even got an opportunity to see Nelson Mandela's jail cell. Our guide Joma, a former prisoner for 5 years, showed us the courtyard and garden where Mandela hid his manuscript for his famed book "A Long Walk to Freedom."

A view of Nelson Mandela's Cell.

After viewing Mandela's cell and the courtyard, we were taken to the rock quarry where prisoners spent 8-10 hours a day, laboriously chipping away at the limestone. Rather than let themselves be oppressed by the work, they viewed the rock quarry as a tool for self improvement. Prisoners held political debates, and had discussions while they were working. Robben Island was nicknamed "The University," because many of the prisoners went in uneducated and illiterate and left with college level degrees. One of these prisoners was Jacob Zuma, the current President of South Africa. By teaching one another, the prisoners helped to galvanize and strengthen their minds and spirits. This helped them to overcome the hardships they faced and shine light into an otherwise dark and gloomy existence. Our visit to Robben Island was a powerful experience, it enabled me to see the strength of the human spirit and is a testament to the omnipotence that education has.

A picture from the rock quarry. These stones stand as a memorial

for all those who were imprisoned at Robben Island.

On Sunday night, we had the wonderful opportunity of having dinner with the first Lady of South Africa,  Madame Bongi Ngema Zuma. We were invited to the State House, where she talked to us about her non-profit diabetes organization, The Bongi Ngema Zuma Foundation that raises awareness and offers tips for prevention against this deadly disease. At first we were all pretty nervous, and everyone was hesistant to speak up. However, during the delicious dinner, she actively engaged us in lively conversation and we realized how easy to talk to she was. She was very articulate and made us feel very comfortable and at home. During dinner we talked about her charity, education and her son.  I was thoroughly impressed with Madame Zuma's commitment to those afflicted with diabetes, and her passion towards helping fight this devastating disease. While talking about education, she made it clear that she had a strong affinity towards helping those less fortunate, and talked about how she was going to donate school supplies to a Township school from her home town over the holidays. Overall, the dinner was fabulous. I enjoyed talking with Madame Zuma and learning about her organization and views on education. She was a very charismatic and charming woman, whose compassion for her country and people was extremely evident.

Group foto at the State House.

On Monday, Chelsea and I took the Red Bus Tour around Cape Town. It started out at the waterfont and took us to many of the famous sites and attractions that the city had to offer. After about 30 minutes of touring the city, we decided to get off at the famous Table Mountain. Although it was cloudy, and we were warned not to hike to the top. We were determined to scale this epic size mountain. Walking up the mountain initially was pretty tiring, and the steep incline as well as elevation made it a taxing feat. However, after about 30 minutes of hiking, the path started to level off and the climb began to get easier. The views from the mountain were absolutely spectaculiar and breathtaking. The pristine blue waters of where the Atlantic Ocean met the Indian Ocean were stellar and the view of the city down below was awe inspiring. After about getting 2/3's of the way up, the cloud cover was so bad that we were forced to turn back. Unfortunately, we never made it all the way to the top, however, just to climb as far as we did was still a victory in my book.

A breathtaking view from Table Mountain.

The weekend truly flew by, as did the entirety of our time in South Africa. It seemed as if we had just got there and yet we were already leaving. On Tuesday, we flew back home to the States. I had very mixed emotions. All though we were all eager to go back to our friends and family, South Africa had become our home for the last few weeks. I was sad to leave this wonderful country and all of the amazing people that we had met along the way. South Africa will truly be missed!