This past week, a number of my housemates had the opportunity to go to a “Home Stay” in Ocean View. A home stay is when a family living within a community agree to take visitors into their home for a weekend. Unfortunately I did not go; however, I had a similar fulfilling experience this weekend. In the past weeks I have talked about Ubuntu; the people at my job also share this attitude. So this weekend, a lady I work with invited me to eat Sunday dinner and sleepover. I am going to use the fictional name, Mary, to refer to the lady from my job. Since she lives in Belville, I was a little apprehensive about traveling that long way by myself. However, the journey and time spent with Mary and her family was enjoyable and priceless.
The trip from where I stay to Belville is a about an hour commute. First, I took a taxi into Town. Arriving in town, I wasn’t sure how to get to the Belville taxi. However, I was able to ask around until I eventually found the correct taxi. I realize that people realizing I didn’t know which taxi bus to take could have taken advantage of me but people were helpful instead. We all packed on the minibus and settled down for a forty minute ride to Belville. The driver would continually stop along the side of the road yelling, “Bee-yall-ville” until we reached the station. When I got to Belville I waited for my host Mary to come get me. To my relief she quickly came to pick me up. From this experience, I have learned that while there are people in Cape Town that will take advantage of you, there are just as many that want to help.
When I arrived at Mary’s house, I was able to meet her relatives. We soon sat down to bless the Sunday dinner meal. Mary and her family were very warm and made it a point to ask me questions about America and my life. Also, the food was great. After dinner we headed to the hospital to visit a baby that was undergoing an operation. It was evident that the baby and this family were close to Mary and her family. After a little wait, the family and I were able to go in and visit the baby.
After we got back, the family and I sat down to watch an Adele concert. This was no doubt my favorite part because I love Adele! Also, Mary's sister made a desert, made from Segal, for us to eat. We all eat and sang along to Adele’s hits. I appreciated this concert because the songs reminded me of being back home. Through the music, I connected my life in Cape Town with my life in the U.S. When the movie ended I said goodbye to the family and promised to find them on Facebook.
The rest of the evening was spent with Mary, her daughter and her sister. We had a quiet and relaxing afternoon. Her daughter plays the piano and we all spend time picking on the piano. I realized how bad I had become at playing the piano. Afterwards we took our baths and settled into to watch a movie.
Overall the weekend was enjoyable. Mary and her family were so receptive and welcoming. I was able to travel to a new part of Cape Town and still experience the spirit of Ubuntu. I am looking forward to more trips to Belville.
No comments:
Post a Comment