Day 4 We made it to Langa and the wait was worth it
Day 4
Elissa→ We expected our day to start off on a serious note as we drove to the place that would take us to Robben Island, but due to the weather we weren’t able to sail across the challenge to the notorious prison on the island. However, we still had a beautiful day ahead of us; we shifted gears, as is so often the case when traveling, and stopped at Cape Town’s Diamond Museum. Thankfully, Sabreen informed us about mining in South Africa, when she eloquently articulated the history of diamond and gold mining in 19th and 20th centuries South Africa. where we learned the importance of who is telling what side of the story.In regards to South Africa’s mining history, we saw who was included in story of mining and also whose voices were silenced. We learned about the diamond industry including the 4 Cs of diamonds, the mathematics of diamond cuts, and so much more. South Africa’s current policies around ethical diamond trading. A fun fact; a highlight of the tour was when some of us, for example, Ms. Wolfe tried on a $64,000 diamond bracelet and others got to see very expensive, one of a kind pieces.
The importance of perspective followed us as we made our way to the Museum of Contemporary Art of South Africa and saw the way different artists expressed different parts of their identity, history, and culture. The museum had pieces that also touched many of us in different ways which made the experience very special. This museum was all about using art (painting, film clothe, sounds, etc) to amplify voices of those targeted.
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Olivia→
This is my first time being across the world without any of my family. Honestly, I was pretty nervous, thinking about all that could go wrong and wondering what would happen while I was so far from home. When we landed my worry started to subside when we finally saw the clear sky and vast mountains of Cape Town. A key theme we have been passing around is how South Africa is our home away from home; I was pensive about SA since I had just left my familiar home to the opposite end (and hemisphere) of the earth. But today, after we had toured the Langa neighborhood, we met the kids of Ituba and immediately I felt the connection each of them had, the strong sense of community, and spirit of ubuntu (which you readers will find out more about later) We were welcomed by the children with many dances, of which I was completely in awe because of my lack of ability to dance. To my surprise, after the children danced for us they were instructed to teach us how to dance as well. We split into 4 groups and began rehearsing. My instructors were very patient and to my surprise, I learned the material well and was able to help my group members who were struggling. Additionally, when the instructors had trouble teaching, Siviwe came and reminded them of the importances of teamwork and relying on each other to find a creative solution. Finally, the moment we all were waiting for was our competition, each group performed respectively. My group performed first and we called ourselves “The Cools” , however our name might have been cool but our dance moves certainly weren't since we didn't make it to the top two finalists. The winner, voted on by the entire group of iThuba, Happy Feet and Poly students, ended up being “The Orange Cats” (which included Elissa, Kristina, & Sabreen). Today was a good day and I am starting to get the feel of South Africa becoming a home away from home.
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