Alex: great excursion but glad to be "home"

We just returned from Johannesburg where we had a week full of museum visits, historical sites, and safari drives. I learned so much from each and every place we visited. It was amazing getting to visit places that we have discussed many times in class, especially those dealing with the apartheid years. At times the sites we visited were emotionally difficult to walk through; the Hector Pieterson Museum in Soweto being one of those. Walking through a museum that is dedicated to the thirteen-year-old boy, who was shot by the police while peacefully protesting against using the Afrikaans language in school, was definitely not the easiest thing to do. Though I had this reaction to several other museums and places we visited, it was still worth it because I was able to learn so much.

Out of the many things we did while in Jo’burg, my absolute favorite part was having the chance to spend a few hours at the Boys and Girls Club in Soweto. My senior year of high school I worked at the Boys and Girls club in my hometown, and it was so great getting to volunteer again, even if it was just for an afternoon. I loved being able to see how similar the two clubs were, even when on different continents was, and how easily the children opened up to our visit. From playing games and reading books, to running around outside playing a game that mixed kickball with dodge ball, the afternoon couldn’t have been more enjoyable. I absolutely love how welcoming the kids are. Willing to help teach us games we had never seen before, and full of energy, they really made the trip spectacular.

Overall, however, I found the best part of the trip to be our time at Kruger National Park. It was amazing to drive through the park and pass elephants, zebras, rhinos, giraffes, and more. By the end of the trip I was still gasping when I saw any animal. There was nothing more pleasing than realizing that I wasn’t seeing these animals behind a wall or a cage, but in their natural habitat unharmed by humans. I loved that they have such a vast amount of land where the animals are free to roam and be wild, with us being able to look at them from a close distance. The evening we arrived we quickly put our things into our huts and got ready for our sunset game drive. We piled into a large convey and headed out on our first safari. As we drove we saw springbok and kudu, a rhino and giraffe, and some extremely beautiful birds. Each animal was just as graceful and magnificent as the previous one, and I loved having the uncertainty of what might appear ahead. As the sunset we used spotlights, however were unlucky to spot any more animals. The following morning we met a little before 5 to go on a sunrise drive. This one was one of my favorites because we saw so many animals. At one point, however, we saw a large male elephant off in the distance eating. As we sat and watched him he walked closer and closer, and began to cross the street. During this process he turned and faced us head on flapping his ears. Now, I don’t know that much about elephants, however I began to get a twinge of anxiety at the thought of a large, not so happy elephant coming towards us. Luckily, he moseyed on his way across the street. That afternoon several of us signed up to go on a game walk. It was so interesting (and at times difficult) getting to walk through the bush in search for animals. We saw several impalas and one lone giraffe in the distance, but nothing else. Though the walk lacked many animal sightings it was still really nice to be out in the middle of the reserve on foot taking in all of my surroundings.

Alex on Game Drive at Kruger National Park

Our trip was very enjoyable and I loved seeing so many historical sites, and I can’t put into words how much I enjoyed the two days at Kruger. However, with that being said, Jo’burg is definitely no Cape Town, so I’m glad to be “home.”