Ashlyn's ready for her next adventure, carrying with her the lessons learned

Home is Where the Heart is

Although I don’t understand how it’s possible, my three and a half months in Cape Town are over and I’m back home in the United States. Walking off the plane in January into the African sun feels like a lifetime ago or yesterday depending on the day. I both was and wasn’t ready to return home to America. I wasn’t ready to end living with my fellow students and coming home to them everyday, and I wasn’t ready to give up seeing Table Mountain daily. However, I had basically put my life back home on hold and I was ready to resume it. During my time in Cape Town my journey was to better understand my country, a new culture, and myself. Now my task is to incorporate everything I learned in Cape Town into my life back home. I’m ready to tackle this new challenge!

           

Most of the other students took the same flight back home, but I took another airline company that resulted in a layover in Dubai (and a couple of unnecessary travel hours).  As I was standing in the Dubai airport at 2:00am, I looked around at all the different faces around me. Everyone had a different background, looked differently, and had a different story. During my time in Cape Town, I was surrounded by diversity and in the airport I realized I wouldn’t be surrounded by so much diversity back home. I live in a small suburban New England town with a racial makeup composed mainly of white people. I never really realized how little interaction I had had with other races until I got to Cape Town. After learning to appreciate diversity so greatly, I was entering a place with very little. In order to combat this I’m going to try my hardest to seek out diversity at UConn and to join organizations that allow me to get to know people from different backgrounds. I’m thankful for my Dubai airport realization, and to understand how important diversity is.

           

It’s quite weird for me to think that the Cape Town chapter of my life has been written and is over. I’m sure I’ll return sometime, but there are still many other places I hope to explore and discover first. I’ve always noticed things that have bothered me back home, whether it is how some people treat women or the lack of recycling bins. However coming back home I now have a whole new set of things that bother me (or maybe I should say I notice more things I wish to help change). Nothing has really changed since I’ve been gone (except the size of my mastiff puppy, that has changed drastically). My room is the same, my street is the same, and my town is the same. However, I’m not the same and neither are my friends. Last week I drove up to Storrs to see some familiar faces before everyone goes their separate ways for the summer. Although none of my friends went on a life-changing trip to Africa, they had all had their own realizations and growth in Storrs. I had always thought that everything would be the same when I came home (and a lot of things are) but the most important things aren’t, the people I care about. Its awesome that we’ve all grown and I can’t wait to share what I learned in South Africa and for them to share with me what they have learned.

           

I’m glad to be back and to be able to move onto my next adventure. Although my next adventure isn’t as adventurous as studying in South Africa, I’m excited to begin taking summer classes and start my summer marketing internship. So far I haven’t had too much trouble getting back into the swing of things back home. The pace of South Africa is quite different from the pace of the United States. I’m in the process of finding a good in between of the paces. I want to have the work pace of the U.S. and also be able to stop to smell the roses. Honestly, I think this is going to be one of the greatest challenges because at UConn I’m used to running around everywhere because I tend to bite off more than I can chew. Despite the challenges that lay ahead I’m very grateful for my experience in Cape Town, and I’ll be sure to carry the lessons everywhere I go.

Ashlyn's reflections on Unity

So this is the last post before I return home, which is really strange and doesn’t seem possible. This past week my mom has been here visiting the beautiful city that I’ve come to love. We’ve done quite a lot the past week and even a few things I hadn’t done yet, including going to Cape Point (which provides a beautiful hilltop view of the ocean), and going to a delicious restaurant called Mama Africa’s. On Friday, the two of us went to the Cape Town soccer game in the 2010 World Cup Stadium and we caught up with a bunch of other girls living in the house. I was sitting behind Caitlin, and we were commenting on the vuvuzelas (plastic horns that are used at sporting matches). At the game, various vuvuzela players who didn’t know each other would come together and get a tune going without any prior planning. Caitlin was telling me about a conversation she had with someone else about how such an occurrence would never happen in the United States. During our time here we’ve been discussing the differences in South African and American culture. I find the vuvuzelas a good metaphor for both South African and U.S. society. South Africans know that by banding together they can create something bigger and better than they could do alone, whereas Americans often get too caught up trying to get their own voice bigger and better than everyone else’s.

Ajax vs University of Pretoria (2-0) at Cape Town Stadium

As my time here in Cape Town comes to a close, it comes with a great deal of reflection on what I’ve done and learned here. Overall, I think the most important thing I’ve learned is to think more critically and to keep everyone’s best interests at heart. On the application to come here (which strangely feels like it was a thousand years ago or yesterday depending on the day) we were allowed to write an optional scholarship essay on what it means to be a global citizen. At the time I really had no idea what to write (or what the committee would want to read) and I remember being puzzled because I had never heard the term used before. I like to think I now know what the term means to me (and that it doesn’t matter as much what other people want to read, but what you believe). To me it means that many people throughout the world are only thinking about themselves, and it’s important to question the norm and think what’s best for everyone. To put it in South African terms; Ubuntu.

           

Ashlyn considers her childhood and that of some children in Cape Town

Some days I have to remind myself that I’m in South Africa, and other days I feel as if I’m in a different world. This Wednesday was one of those days where I felt as if I could have been in Wonderland. Upon boarding the minibus (vans that drive around Cape Town picking people up for cheap) Wednesday morning, to attend my internship, I realized that one of the workers of the minibus was a young boy. This boy couldn’t have been older than 12, yet he was working on a Wednesday rather than sitting in a classroom. When I was his age I was still watching Disney Channel and playing outside at recess. The inequality and hardships in Cape Town sneak up on one without any warning. It makes me deeply upset that many children around the globe aren’t getting formal education and will miss out on many opportunities due to this. However, this motivates me to help make sure that more children don’t go through this in the future.

Following this I arrived safely at my internship, where the organization was welcoming about 6 new interns. My coordinator at Surplus People Project is also overseeing these interns, so I was fortunate enough to be able to sit in on their first meeting. These interns were taken on in order to promote a youth project in their own community with the mission of Surplus People Project in mind. The meeting involved the new interns discussing the issues that are facing youth in  various communities. The most discussed topics were crime/gangsterism, poverty, and lack of role models. I had so many role models growing up that I never had thought of the severe implications of not having them. A good portion of time was used to discuss if the interns should be targeting crime or poverty in their programs. During my time here in Cape Town I’ve seen both great poverty and happiness, and I found it very eye opening to be able to hear from youth my own age discussing very different problems from mine.

 Best,  Ashlyn

Ashlyn: "I Don’t Think I’m in Connecticut Anymore"

The overarching theme of my past week here was remembering where I am. Since I have a normal routine in South Africa, live in a nice suburb here, and live with 17 other Americans, I don’t always feel as if I’m halfway across the globe. A lot of us joked on a safari last week that it was the first time we really realized where we were. I also often get caught up in my own life and I become so wrapped up that I don’t take the time to reflect. So this week really reminded me that I am halfway across the globe and what I really want to do here is serve Cape Town.

           

This past week our group traveled to Johannesburg and Kruger National Park (where we did the safari) while the university was on break. On one of the days in Johannesburg the group went to the Boys and Girls Club in Soweto, a township on the outskirts of Johannesburg. I spent half the day organizing child membership binders for the organization and the other half playing with the children, who were also on break. While going through the binders I had a great difficulty organizing them alphabetically because I couldn’t understand the handwriting. So I would go through the packet looking for the parent’s names in the hopes I could figure out the child’s last name. By doing this I found a section asking for the annual family income. There were options to check off ranging from R 1,000 to 10,000 (less than $100 to $1,000 USD). I was shocked. This was a gentle reminder that I only have two weeks left in South Africa, and that I should do everything in my power to assist the communities here because a lot of work needs to be done.

Ashlyn & her mom

The citizens of South Africa are very informed on the policies and practices of the United States. My mom is here this week visiting and is staying in a hotel relatively close to where we stay, but I’ve been staying with her most nights. The television was on in the background last night while I was scrolling through Facebook. The news station was discussing Hilary Clinton traveling to Iowa in order to gain more support. I didn’t think much about it at the time, but then at dinner it dawned on me that I was in South Africa and the news was discussing the U.S. presidential election. Back in the U.S., I don’t even know if the news covers when other countries elect their leaders (let alone cover candidates early campaign trails). It’s the subtle things that happen throughout the day that remind me I’m not in the U.S. anymore.

Ashlyn's very eye-opening day

A Very Eye-Opening Day

Some days I have to remind myself that I’m in South Africa, and other days I feel as if I’m in a different world. This Wednesday was one of those days where I felt as if I could have been in Wonderland. Upon boarding the minibus (vans that drive around Cape Town picking people up for cheap) Wednesday morning, to attend my internship, I realized that one of the workers of the minibus was a young boy. This boy couldn’t have been older than 12, yet he was working on a Wednesday rather than sitting in a classroom. When I was his age I was still watching Disney Channel and playing outside at recess. The inequality and hardships in Cape Town sneak up on one without any warning. It makes me deeply upset that many children around the globe aren’t getting formal education and will miss out on many opportunities due to this. However, this motivates me to help make sure that more children don’t go through this in the future.

           

Following this I arrived safely at my internship, where the organization was welcoming about 6 new interns. My coordinator at Surplus People Project is also overseeing these interns, so I was fortunate enough to be able to sit in on their first meeting. These interns were taken on in order to promote a youth project in their own community with the mission of Surplus People Project in mind. The meeting involved the new interns discussing the issues that are facing youth in various communities. The most discussed topics were crime/gangsterism, poverty, and lack of role models. I had so many role models growing up that I never had thought of the severe implications of not having them. A good portion of time was used to discuss if the interns should be targeting crime or poverty in their programs. During my time here in Cape Town I’ve seen both great poverty and happiness, and I found it very eye opening to be able to hear from youth my own age discussing very different problems from mine.

Ashlyn's valuable new perspectives

On Wednesday I attended a workshop being done by the Environmental Monitoring Group with my internship. The format of the workshop was quite similar to Human Rights Weekend, as learning took place through various structured activities and group work. One activity really stood out to me and greatly showed intersectionality. Every person attending was given a sticky note with a section of the environment written on it (insects, oceans, humans, etc.). The group was given a ball of yarn and the activity began. One person would throw the yarn to another person and say how their two sections of the environment were connected. Each person would hold onto a section of the yarn whenever it came to him or her. This continued for some time and at the end the facilitator cut one person’s strings. Every single person in the group was missing something and was affected. Throughout this activity I was thinking about how it could also be modified to show the intersectionality of human rights or interconnectedness of oppression!

           

Walking into the workshop, I recognized immediately that I was the only white person in the room. Being the only international/American citizen in the room was another way I was the minority. Throughout the day I had to represent America and it made me think about how minorities have to represent their culture every single day in America. I can’t imagine knowing that someone’s view of my culture is resting almost solely on my shoulders. A few weeks ago in class the group watched a video called “Blue Eyes” which really captured how quick people are to make assumptions about others. It never really dawned on me (as one of the majority) how fast I sometimes make assumptions on a culture after meeting someone, until it happened to me.

A male member of the workshop was wearing a t-shirt that said “hot girls and cold beer” with images of the two. The last couple of classes the group learned about female representation (especially in the media). Before those classes I probably would have looked at the shirt and only thought about how it is unprofessional for a workshop. Now I realize how harmful the shirt is. The image of the woman conveniently shows her boobs and bikini area, but not her head or legs. That’s not even a picture of a female; it’s a picture of body parts. A picture of that kind makes women seem like nothing more than body parts. The image also doesn’t include my two favorite parts of my own body, my legs for running and my head for thinking.

Ashlyn has so much to celebrate

Today is Saint Patrick’s Day! I’m super excited to celebrate. My freshman year I was in Louisiana, last year I was in Mexico, and this year I’m here. Next year I’m going to have to keep up the tradition of traveling on Saint Patty’s Day. I love celebrating holidays, and this year I feel like I have a lot to celebrate. Being in South Africa has shown me how blessed I have been in life. Everyday I walk to my internship on streets lined with tiny houses. I think about how houses that small don’t even exist in my town, yet those same houses are seen as a privilege in South Africa because so many people don’t have permanent housing. This year as I honor my heritage I’ll also remember how honored I’ve been.

The past couple of days have been great and I have so many things to be grateful for. On Saturday I partook in Holi, which is the festival of lights. Holi started as a Hindu religious festival but has become popular among non-Hindus. The festival involves throwing colored powder into the air and listening to good music. Holi was held on the Parade (a center of downtown Cape Town) and I really enjoyed getting to meet new people there. This past Sunday I also went sand boarding, which was a great experience. Sand boarding is basically the Cape Town version of snow boarding. I didn’t like going fast down the dunes so I would throw myself down whenever I sped up. Most of the time on the dunes we were goofing off however. We spent some time burying Jill in the sand and jumped down the dunes (which to my surprise was very entertaining).

Ashlyn's realization that there are only 7 weeks left

The calendar on my computer now shows the Two Oceans Marathon without me turning to the next page. I’m excited but also scared because I haven’t been training like I should have. In the beginning of April, I’ll be running my first international half marathon and my sixth half marathon overall. I’ve only trained to 7 out of my 13.1 miles. There are only seven weeks left in the program and I have no idea how I’m going to fit everything in.

Enough on what’s coming up, let’s focus on what I have done this weekend. On Saturday I hiked to the top of Table Mountain. Table Mountain is a major landmark in Cape Town and one of the natural wonders of nature. A group of 7 of us started the trek at KirstenboschGardens. At first the hike was through a beautiful forest with a canopy of trees above us. There were multiple ladders that we had to climb up. This portion of the hike was followed by a lot of brush. Overall the trek took us almost five hours. At the end we were pleasantly surprised to find a café at the top! I thought someone was kidding when they said there was a café at the top because it must be so hard bringing all the food up. The view from the top of the mountain was amazing and worth every second of the climb. The group took a cable car down the mountain because there was no way we were going to hike down also!

On Sunday, Jill and I started our day early and went to an internet café. After visiting an internet café, Jill and I went to a new restaurant in a section of the city called Observatory. The café had great french toast and coffee. The two of us then traveled home and met up with some other people. A small group of us then took a cab to a barbeque place called Mzoli’s.  Mzoli’s was filled to the brim with people dancing. First, we waited in line to buy some meat and then we waited for the food to be cooked. A few friends from the Human Rights Weekend met us there and I was so glad to be reunited (even though we had only been apart for a week). We spent hours eating and dancing, with old and new friends.