Sharing Is Caring

Back home, sharing is not a common trait. At school, people would fight if someone took food out of their hands or off of their plate. Here, everyone at school shares. If you are ordering food, it better be for everyone or you will be classified as a selfish human being, and people probably won’t want to hang around you. My friends and I switch off days where we buy each other food. If we order pizza, the person who paid gets the last slice. It’s like an unwritten rule. You share, you just do it. You don’t hold a tab either, of the things you’ve bought for others. My friends (who are from different countries in Africa) told me that if you go home with food for only yourself and there are other people at home, that you cannot eat it. You have to wait for them to leave, or share with everyone.

Another thing my friends don’t get, is my (very American) sarcastic humor. We (Americans) say the rudest things to each other and call it an 'odd sense of affection.’ The sad part is, that I can’t seem to get rid of my Americanness. I even find it refreshing, at times, to be around other Americans because they get my humor. I try to contain it around my non-American friends here. When I say something that I think is funny, I’m either the only one laughing or I unintentionally hurt someone’s feelings. I often wonder why we, as Americans, are so violent and abrasive with ourselves and each other, in the name of amusement. 

From the outside looking in, America looks like a very selfish country to me. We don’t share like we should, we are often rude and inconsiderate. We have a self centered mentality that every other country see’s but that we choose to ignore. We view ourselves as individuals, with all the entitlements that come with individuality. Most non-Americans, and particularly Africans, see themselves as part of a greater whole. This allows them to be more gentle and considerate with each other. 

I like this concept of sharing. It is an aspect of Ubuntu, 'I am because we are'. It makes self-centeredness seem really silly and counterproductive. I also feel like using true words of affection makes the message “I care about you,” much clearer. 

It takes a lot less energy to make people smile, than it does to make them cry...and when you share joy, you get all that 

energy back! 

Look, Americans Sharing

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Holidays

Holiday vacation is a big deal in South Africa. Most people take a month off of work. Tourist attractions close during what could be their busiest time of the year, or the time of the year that they could make the most money. The American in me wants to know why people wouldn’t want to work at a time where they could benefit financially, but the other side of me understands that people should be spending the holiday season with their families. Family is more important than a few extra bucks, but money has been the controlling factor in an American mindset forever. Things like this make me realize how much greater the quality of life is here.

My holiday was filled with the four F’s; friends, family, fun, and food. I went to an area of Soweto that I hadn't been to before, with Lucy and her friend Ngwana. We visited Ngwana’s 100 year old grandma to give her medicine and sweets. She was the friendliest lady I’ve ever met. She moved and spoke as if she wasn’t a day over 80 (and I know some pretty feisty 80 year-olds). After we visited Ngwana’s granny, we visited my liaison Mama Thoko in Jabulani, Soweto. Soweto is the most developed township I have ever been to. It brings in a lot of tourists so it has more funds than a normal township, such as Diepsloot or Alexandra. Soweto is such an interesting place to visit. I went three times over holiday.

I Feel So Welcomed Every Time I See This Sign 

 Lucy, Ngwana and I, went on a road trip to the Northwest Province. It was filled with the most beautiful scenery. South Africa is GORGEOUS! People laugh when I rave about it’s beauty and say “you haven’t even been to Cape Town yet”. (To those who have said that, I am a "Joburger" at heart (lol), not a Capetonian, but I am excited about going there.) After arriving in the Northwest Province, we went to the Sterkfontein Caves and I got to go on a tour throughout the caves. The caves were cold and wet. They had beautiful minerals and rock structures that we weren’t supposed to touch, but someone has to break the rules (that someone being me). I loved visiting the excavation site at the end of the tour. It reminded me of the Jurassic Park movies, and my little brother (who aspires to be a paleontologist). After the caves we went to Maropeng: The Cradle of Humankind; a museum that breaks down scientifically how humankind began on this continent. In the states, I feel like my science and history teachers have always tried to brush over that fact or teach me something totally different. At Maropeng, I felt there was a sense of pride with the information I gained.

I Used A Sun Dial To Tell Time

These Hats Were Cute 

So Much Beauty In One Picture ;)

Maropeng

 On the way back, beggars were handing out santa hats. Our windows were slightly cracked and a beggar pushed 3 hats into the car, even though Lucy said we didn’t need them. He told her that they were free and then insisted that she give him money. She gave him some and he wanted more. Lucy said no because he initially said that they were free. He asked for a hat back and Lucy gave him the hat. Finally, the red light changed and we left the fake free hat guy alone. 

That night we ran into a SA ‘celeb’, Lalla Hirayama a presenter on Vuzu TV, at Woolworth’s in Sandton City. My friends and I often run into African celebtrities there. It’s a mall where people with ‘higher status’ go because it is such a nice mall in an affluent area. I have seen at least 5 and only this time did I take a picture with one, because Ngwana thought I should. Sorry guys, I know it would be a great picture, but I prefer pics of the normal people, not the westernized folk. On Christmas Eve, I got a pedicure and Ngwana went home to prepare for Christmas. South Africans don’t put up Christmas decorations like we do back home. I only saw one house with a string of lights on a tree. The malls and shopping centre’s were the only places fully decorated.

Lalla and Ngwana

 Me and Lucy went to Ngwana’s house in Soweto for Christmas Lunch. We had amazing South African food and homemade ginger beer that was BOMB (I am obsessed with ginger beer). Lamb curry, chicken, tieng (which is like pap but has more of a sour taste), we had several different salads, and dessert. South Africans love custard. Custard with fruit, custard with ice cream, and custard over malva pudding (a syrup pastry). We had custard over mint brownies for dessert. After we ate, we went for a walk to walk off the calories that we had just inhaled with ease. During our walk we ran into one of Ngwana’s lifelong friends, we were invited into their home, where we ate AGAIN. This time we had pap, braaid beef, and greek salad. Sadly, we didn’t walk off our calories. 

It Was Amazing

That's Why I Had Seconds...(Lamb Curry)

Custard, Fruit, Ice-cream, Chocolate

Meat And Pap 

Kids (Kings and Queens) of Soweto

Late that evening I Facetimed with my family in Chicago and Texas. Seeing their faces made my Christmas complete and perfect.

My Dad And Brothers

My Cousin Amira 

 The day after Christmas Lucy went to China for a 10 day vacation and I went to Gary's family’s house. We went to Sun City, which is a casino, hotel, and water park. We passed Platinum Mines on the way there. It’s ironic how the miners live less than a mile away from the mines, in shanty towns. They live next to billions, but live a life in poverty. We passed the Hartbeesport Dam during our road trip to SC too. It’s beauty put me in awe for the remainder of the trip. Sun City has man made hiking trails throughout its grounds. We crossed waterfalls and lakes just to get around. There was a pool that had such a beautiful view of mountains I could’ve stayed in it until my entire body looked like a prune. 

I made banana pudding for my family on NYE. I loved ‘turning up’ with them. We went to Carnival City which is a casino/entertainment centre. We went bowling and then I walked around the casino which was not as exciting as I had imagined. We also celebrated my host dad, Gary’s,  birthday in Soweto. We ate a restaurant called Sakhumzi that I have been to once before. We went to Madiba’s house, and to the Hector Pietersen Museum, and then had refreshments because it was a HOT day (90 degrees F 32 degrees C). Before we went to Soweto, we went to church. Gary’s family attends a New Apostolic Church. The culture of the church fascinated me. We would pray three times in a row and said ‘Amen’ in unison after each prayer. It had a vibe similar to a catholic church. After the service everyone greeted the pastor. He was friendly and curious about everyone’s life. We had a full conversation, and I was close to the end of the line. There had to be at least 50 people at church that day and I was like the 45th person in line, but he still took time to engage fully. 

I had an amazing holiday break in SA. Now I am suffering from a summer cold but I’m not complaining because I could be in "Chi-Beria". ;) 

Happy New Year! 

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Let's Break Stereotypes

I am beginning to think that the best way to combat stereotypes, is by laughing at them. Stereotypes will always exist, so I try not to be so offended by them. I have seen so many flaws, and so much harm, in stereotypes, that laughter has become my best medicine.

The term “packed like Mexicans”, which is commonly used in the States, could easily be turned into “packed like Africans”.

African people will put 30 people on a 16 seater taxi, and they will stand on a bucky (small pick up truck) to make sure everyone fits. I don’t know if I should view this as foolish or kind. People have died because of the way they arrange themselves in vehicles, but it also allows everyone to get from point A to point B without making several trips, which saves petrol money. Necessity makes you do things that may not be viewed as safe, smart, or ideal...but sometimes there is no viable alternative. I'm learning not to judge.

One of the American stereotypes that is considered offensive, is that black people LOVE chicken. I am going to venture to say that this is generally quite true! I think it is inherited from our ancestors. Black people here love chicken, and I do too. Again, it makes me laugh to think that people use this as an insult; are Italians offended if we say they love pasta? 

I have yet to see an Asian woman doing nails in South Africa. I only had my nails done by a black person once in the States. I guess it really depends on where you are in the world with this one! 

Pedro is not going to be your gardner here; he will be Thabo,  the black South African that travels from a township everyday just to serve you. Your busboy won’t be Juan, he will be Remember (Black South Africans have a thing about naming their children odd English names that translate into really pretty African names). Maybe the stereotype I should believe is that people just love to stereotype other cultures...it must make them feel better about themselves.

Africa is not a nature reserve; Africa HAS nature reserves. I am not afraid that a lion will come in my backyard at night, or that a giraffe will be eating the leaves off of the palm trees when I leave for school in the morning. Americans have a certain perspective of ‘Africa’ that is not realistic. Africa is a continent and it is HUGE; bigger than any small minded American could possibly imagine. 

My favorite stereotype: Ebola in Africa!

People in the States often ask my mother "aren’t you worried about Niani?”. I’m sure she is more concerned about the well being of herself and my family in America, because it is not even in the country I am living in. Ebola is nearly 4,000 miles (6,437.376 Kilometers) away from where I live in South Africa. Yet there have been cases roughly 700 miles (about 1,126 km) from my family in Chicago. So no, my mom is not concerned about me catching Ebola. To my family and friends in the States, be careful because Ebola has reached much closer to you, than to me. (LBVS)

Africa is the world’s most mineral rich continent. Like for real, its soil has diamonds and gold underneath it. So no, Africa is not just the poor black children with flies around them like we see in commercials in the States. I’ve never seen so many Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and Porsches, in my life. BMWs, Range Rovers, and Mercedes Benz are the NORM in cities in South Africa. These cars are mostly owned by prominent black people here.

Yes, Africa also has some of the poorest people, of any continent on Earth, but as I stated in a previous blog post, our idea of what that looks like is somewhat skewed. Americans find it hard to imagine, but many people are content with their lives in villages. Westernized standards are not what everyone dreams of. 

African people are rich in many other ways. Money is not everything. They are rich in ancestry and tradition. The closest most Americans get to seeing what that means, is in the Lion King; it shows that aspect of Africa, but I never really noticed it until now. They had a traditional ceremony when Simba was born, and Mufasa explains to Simba that the kings before him will always be there to guide him. This is not a belief that is instilled in black children in America. I’m grateful that I have a family that does as much as they can to teach me, my siblings, and cousins about the African traditions that they know about; it has given me an advantage in the world. I believe that African mothers are the most loving mothers on the planet. They might not have many material things to offer their children, but they show them an abundance of love and I am sure their children are fully aware of their mothers' love and care. I come from that type of love, and it is so eye opening for me to see where that comes from ancestrally. 

Less stereotypes...more love!

google.co.za

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The Journey Of The Doritos Bag

 

December 20th marked my 100th day in South Africa,  and it was one of my best days yet. Lucy and I met up with a friend, Busisiwe (aka Busi), from the Teddy Bear Clinic, in Johannesburg’s CBD (aka ‘town’). Busi brought a bag of Doritos to snack on as we went on an adventure, but we never ate them, the bag just traveled with us. Town is beautiful from afar...from the highway you can see the Nelson Mandela Bridge and the Telecom Tower, and it looks lovely. In a small section of town there’s Maboneng, aka Arts on Main (a really artsy part of town with restaurants, art galleries). It is a really chill area that has a lot of security (so it is populated by all races, not just black people). In South Africa areas with more security tend to be more diverse ethnically, and socioeconomically. Once you are inside town, and outside Maboneng, its image becomes blurred. There are beautiful old buildings with flawless architecture, but they are being destroyed because the people that live in them never do any maintenance or work on refurbishing them, so the buildings fall apart. As you walk through town, you go through an array of smells. You smell fish and chips, meat and corn cooking on small grills, all mixed with the smell of hardship and human feces.

The Well Traveled Doritos Bag

Busisiwe Means Blessing (which she is!) 

Town is very congested. It is filled with black people from all countries in Africa; there is the occasional Indian man selling a ‘gold’ watch or ‘designer’ bag, and you might run into a white person but the only one we saw was on drugs. My host mom, Lucy, stuck out like a sore thumb (she’s a very fair skinned Hispanic woman). She was a high focal point in the crowd.

We went into a mall to meet up with Busi and it was PACKED. It took us at least 10 minutes to get up each escalator. We assumed that everyone was Christmas shopping, but I didn’t see a lot of bags. Malls are also used as a quicker passage to get from one street to another because they are very large and cover several blocks. When we left the mall to grab some Chickin Licken we saw a guy in handcuffs surrounded by people. Busi told us that he stole a grocery bag from a lady and that he was getting punished. She said he would likely be beaten to death by the community. Lucy stated that if he had stole something else it would’ve been his fault, but the fact that he stole food means that it is the communities fault. I believe that is true in some cases, but if everyone in the community is struggling for food, it becomes less black and white. Fighting for survival, and struggling to meet the most basic needs, can make a person do desperate things; the thought is quite heartbreaking. 

Joburg CBD google.co.za

What I really appreciate about town is that everyone there is hustling. You can buy anything in town for the ‘low’. Lucy and I got the cutest wooden earrings for 15 Rand (about $1.50). People in Town have perfected the art of hustling: from Take 5’s (flavored ice) to ‘Converse’, they sell it all. I admire their consistent grind. 

Me: Can I take your picture?
(that's a Take 5 it cost R2)

We walked for about 30 minutes with our Chicken Licken and the Doritos bag until we finally reached the MTN (phone company that bought the lot) Taxi Bank, which is a really large place where most taxis gather. The banks usually smell really bad because people live in and around them. There are several different types of taxis: Quantum, Super 16, ikharakhara, and ikhumbi, are most commonly known. The differences I see are some have white with a yellow line across them, which I think are owned by one company, and others are just like normal vans but in many different colors. I have seen pink, yellow, red, and blue taxis. As we waited for the right taxi, the taxi ‘coordinator’ (a guy who has 2 phones and knows when each taxi will arrive and which one is going where) talked to Lucy in Zulu. At first he said “Sawubona, Unjani?” (hello, how are you?) she replied “good, you?” He jokingly continued to speak in Zulu, and then Busi translated for us. He asked where she was from and was very fascinated by her because of her whitish skin. Busi said people will refer to Lucy as Umulungu because of her skin and me as Americanah, once they find out where I’m from. Once we got into the taxi, we noticed it had a really decked out stereo system, but didn’t have a back window. This was actually nice because it was a 90 degree day (32 degrees celsius) and we were in a full taxi (16 people), traveling 45 minutes to a township called Kathlehong in Mailula. The taxi driver played really lively music that I jammed to during the entire ride.

Lucy And Her Take 5

 We passed people holding live chickens, people selling live goats and sheep, and women getting their hair braided on the side of the street. When we got to the township we visited a couple of Busi’s friends. I have only seen outhouses at camp grounds in America, but in the township they were behind, or in front of, almost every home. We walked about a mile and half (2.4 km) on the red dirt roads with no street signs until we got to Busi’s friend's house, where we sat and finally ate our Chicken Licken. The cutest kids ran around chasing each other and speaking Zulu. I could only communicate with one, because the others were just starting to learn English. When I first got there, the kids were eating pap. I haven’t had it in such a long time I kind of wanted to ask for some but I ate my chicken and chips (fries) instead. The Doritos bag looked like it was suffering in the heat. The bag that was once perfectly straight was crinkled and sweating. There was a baby (couldn’t have been more than a year old) drinking water out of a normal cup like a grown man. I feel like at that age if it wasn’t a bottle or sippy cup I would not have been able to function, but he handled it like a champ, and I was highly impressed. 

Coolest Kids In Kathlehong

Busi's friend was braiding her friend's hair right outside of her house, so we sat with them and had an enlightening conversation. Busi and her friend were discussing how they are frustrated because they both went to University and neither of them can find jobs. Busi’s friend said that she went to school to work in public relations but now she needs a PR license, which she doesn’t have money for right now. So she wants to find a job (even if she is overly qualified for it) just to afford to get her license, with hopes that she will find a job in PR. I find this to be really sad and unfortunate, because I see it weighing on their hope. There are no corporate jobs in a township, so they would have to travel at least 45 minutes into town, to work. A lot of jobs wouldn’t be worth the trip because of the low pay and the transportation costs. They both were volunteers at The Teddy Bear Clinic and they think that NGOs (Non governmental organizations or nonprofits) are dying in SA because of the lack of funds/funding from the government. I think that NGOs should be a bigger priority to the government, as they serve the communities directly. We also discussed the lack of dreamers in townships. Busi said that people in townships can’t dream big, by force. I understand what she means, because most townships are far from the cities and some people don’t have the money for petrol or taxi fare. It makes it hard to see yourself living in a way, or achieving anything more than what exists in the township. Her friend said that everyone has a dream, and Busi thinks their dreams are limited because they live in a township. Busi feels their situation limits their potential. Lucy added that it is generally easier to be negative during a dark moment in life. It is harder to try to be positive when all you’ve known is the negative. You become comfortable with that lifestyle. 

When we left, we walked through a big field with a red dirt plain that is most likely used to play soccer. People were constantly trying to get Lucy’s attention. They would yell out things like “I love you” and “you make the world brighter," in Zulu. People even asked if they could walk with us. One guy shouted “yellow bone”, referring to me. Most of the older people were really fascinated by Lucy, but little kids would run from her. They are not around white people while they are little, so they were more afraid. They go to school and go home in 100% black communities. 

I Feel Like The Sky Here Is Bigger 

I loved how chill Kathlehong was…there wasn’t a lot of noise, I felt safe, and it made me feel even more grateful for my journey in the motherland. 

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Random Thoughts about Culture!

Some of my MANY random observations and thoughts:

A lot people in SA drive hatchbacks. Lucy and Gary both drive them. Brand names like BMW, Range Rover, and Mercedes Benz are very common here. It’s very rare that you will see a Nissan or Ford. 

Okay…I have to admit that I am going through a food withdrawal. Pizza here is not the same as the Giordano’s, deep dish spinach, Chicago original that I’m used to.

To me, this is flatbread, but they call it pizza.

I love hearing the different names for Johannesburg. It is referred to as Joburg, Jozi, eGoli, or the City of Gold. 

The Absolutely Captivating Jacaranda Trees

The summer season is approaching soon and I’m getting a glimpse of the Johannesburg thunderstorms, which are quite frightening. Each storm is like something you’d see on National Geographic. One word: EPIC! I prefer the moderate temperature and sunny days in SA, over the Midwestern weather extremes in Chicago; but I am adjusting to the afternoon storms that happen religiously each summer day here.

I still haven’t adjusted to seeing people drive on the other side of the road. We went to the drive thru at Chicken Licken and it was fascinating seeing my host mom drive on the other side to pick up the food. 

When I lived in Pretoria, occasionally my friends and I would have to take a taxi to school. Taxi’s here are vans that carry 12-15 passengers. When you get into the taxi, you pass your money forward and the person sitting closest to the taxi driver counts the money and passes back everyones change. Taxi drivers can be reckless drivers and their taxis can be in ridiculous conditions. People ride them because they are very inexpensive. A one way ride cost R12 ($1.20) and you can either get dropped off really close to your destination, or right in front depending on the driver. There are different hand signals that you put out when you want to catch a taxi, and they change depending on what neighborhood or city you’re in. Where I live, your index finger pointing up means that you want to go to the Jo’burg CBD (Central Business District). When you point down it means you want to go somewhere local. I’ve steered away from riding taxis; in part, because I don’t speak the local language that most of the drivers use, and secondly, I don't, nor do I think y’all, really want to see my journey end in a taxi accident? 

In my complex the water went out twice last week. The second time it lasted for 5 hours. Each time was without notice. This time we got a notice that on this coming Tuesday, October 28th , we won’t have water from 7am until 5pm. This will be the case for about 5 neighborhoods in Jozi. It’s true that you don’t know what you have until it's gone, and a water outage is an extreme rarity in the States. Being the hygiene freak that I am, I was shocked. It’s crazy how the universe works, because the first day we experienced this, I couldn’t cowash my hair, like I normally do everyday. I just dampened it with my face towel and put my normal "juices and berries" in it (http://jadelilly.com hair butter and Jane Carter Collection’s Curl Defining Cream). My hair was flawless that day.

Fro-Shizzle

I created a Tumblr page to share my experience with more of the world!  All of my posts will be on Blogger and Tumblr, for your convenience! 

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Culture

I had an amazing weekend. I slept over my friend Tumi’s house, while my host parents were away on business. Tumi and Kwena are the children of a family friend, Carrie. Tumi is 16 and Kwena is 20. My host family and I first went to their house a couple of weeks ago for dinner. We all connected very quickly, and decided that Gary and Lucy's business trip would be a great time for me to spend some more time with them. 

Me to Tumi: "Let's take a picture in the middle of the street"

Their entire family are vegetarians, so I had very nice vegetarian meals for much of the weekend. The first night, though, we ordered Chinese; so I got to cheat on my vegetarian filled weekend by having beef and broccoli. Another night we had corn and salad for dinner. I didn’t think I would get full on such a healthy and seemingly light meal, but I did! The last night I stayed, we had veggie sandwiches. I had cucumber, tomato, lettuce, avocado, cheddar cheese, and onions, on a ciabatta roll with olive oil and black pepper. It was the best sandwich ever. I can’t wait until we go grocery shopping, so that I can have it again. 

My veggie sandwich 

After that, Ivana (Kwena’s girlfriend) made Nutella milkshakes. It was absolutely the best milkshake I’ve ever had (I've placed the recipe at the end of this post for your enjoyment).

Over the weekend I did lots of new and interesting things. Tumi, her friend Dylan, and I, went on a walk. Tumi likes to eat things she finds in her neighborhood; leaves off of bushes and fruit off of trees. She said she eats them all the time and that they were all edible, so I gave them a shot. I figured she’s a vegetarian, and she lives here, so she knows all about the right things in nature to eat in this area. I tried two different types of leaves, Mulberries, another type of berry, and we were going to have wild figs, but they weren’t ripe yet. The mulberries were quite nice; the less rich in color they looked, the sweeter they were, and the more purple they were, the more bitter/sour they tasted.

The unknown berry that I tasted

I also did a workout with Kwena and Ivana. We power walked around the block, did pushups, sit ups, jumping jacks, and planks.  I am still sore from that workout. Lucy and I are suppose to start a squat challenge but we keep “forgetting” about it. I want to start doing planks every morning but I just keep “forgetting” about it (Clearly we will "remember" when we get serious about it).

Before we started our power walk 

Tumi and Philippe (Carrie’s boyfriend) went to see a healer one day while I was there. I asked Tumi about how her sessions go. She said she was going to get her mind and body ready for her exams that she will be taking soon. She said the healer sent positive spirits her way. Kwena told me that when he went, the healer healed his back pain. Tumi also told the healer about some bad spirits that were going around Ivana’s house, and the healer gave Tumi 2 incense and a piece of rose quartz to give to Ivana. She instructed her to light the incense around her house and to put the rose quartz under her bed. I think that the idea of a healer is really fascinating, and I hope that I can go to a session while I’m here. 

On Saturday, Ivana and I walked 3.3 km to an outlet mall because we wanted to get out of the house. Carrie is in the States, and Philippe was at a market selling his artwork (he’s a French artist). In South Africa, you can’t start learning to drive until you’re 17, and then you can get your license at 18. I was surprised when I learned this, because in the states you can start learning at 15, and get your license at 16. I got some fantastic deals at the mall. We went to this store called Cotton On and I got the most comfortable pair of sweatpants. I have an obsession with sweatpants (they’re just so comfy) and I couldn’t bring many to SA, because they would have taken up too much space in my luggage. 

All in all, it was a really fun weekend, hanging out with other teenagers, and being exposed to other aspects of the environment here in SA! 

Here’s the recipe to the world's greatest milkshake:
Ingredients:
1/3 Cup of Nutella
1 cup of milk/skim milk
3 big scoops of vanilla ice cream/3 big scoops of low fat vanilla frozen yogurt

Directions:
Prep time 5 minutes
Add all ingredients in blender and blend 
Serve immediately (makes 2 10 ounce milkshakes)

Source:The Little Kitchen 

Bon Appetite! 

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Food!

My host mother, Lucy, is hispanic (which means I have the luxury of eating tacos and guacamole regularly). One day, my host dad, Gary's, cousin Jade came over and Lucy made black beans. While we were fixing our plates, Jade said, “I’ve never had black beans!" I was standing next to her astonished that she had never had them, because they are so common in the States. Lucy then explained to me that you cannot find black beans in South Africa, and that she had brought them here from the U.S.

Malva Pudding (google.co.za)

My host dad insisted that I try Malva Pudding, which is a native South African dessert, and  I LOVE IT SO MUCH. It's like a cake, soaked in syrup (it tastes like maple syrup to me, minus the high fructose corn syrup), with custard on top. Yo, it is SO good. I’ve also had Milk Tart, which is one of me and my host dad's favorite desserts. It looks like a pie, but is light and fluffy like a mousse. 

Prawns are served here instead of shrimp. Shrimp and prawns are often thought to be the same thing, but they are actually different in slight ways. The shrimp I am used to having in the States, are whole shrimp and have more of a fishy flavor. Here, prawns are served split in half, and have a less overpowering taste. 

Prawns and Chips

Biltong is SA’s version of beef jerky. It is better than the processed madness that we have back home. It is REAL dried meat, with proper seasoning. I never thought I would like it, but it is very good. 

I can't say enough about the freshness and quality of the food here. I am truly in love!

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Food in South Africa

I noticed while grocery shopping that the cereal aisle only has healthy cereal. You won’t find Captain Crunch, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, or Lucky Charms in a South African grocery store. They do have a "Cocoa Puffs" type of cereal, but it's made of oatmeal and is not unhealthy for you. 

I have been to several different American fast food places here (KFC, McDonalds and Burger King); none of them are the same as they are in America. I prefer South African fast food restaurants like Chicken Licken and Nando’s; they are similar to KFC, but have better quality chicken and other foods. We ate Nando’s the other day, and I had salad and Portuguese dinner rolls. Something like that would never come with meals at fast food restaurants in the States.

My Friends Irene and Guellor at Chicken Licken

I went to a family friend's house over the weekend, who happens to be a vegetarian,and ate a full vegetarian Moroccan meal and didn’t notice that we had no meat with dinner until I left. The food she made was AMAZING, a complete palate of flavor. Lucy made the same dish for dinner tonight but she added chicken and it was just as good. 

Lucy's remake of the Moroccan dish plus chicken 

I’ve also had ostrich meat that Lucy showed me how to prepare. It was very good, I could completely stop eating beef and just eat ostrich meat. Seriously, it is so flavorful and EASY to prepare. It is quick to prepare and it has a perfect taste. Who knew that a bird's meat could look and taste so similar to a cow's? We ate the ostrich with salad and rice.

Ostrich Meat

Milk here only last up to 5 days...I am used to milk lasting for at least a week and a half. I find it to be the weirdest thing that many products here expire the very next day from when it is purchased. I like the fact that there are less preservatives; if I continue to eat like this, my body won’t be so preserved when I die. Food here is not like a McDonalds hamburger in America, it won’t stay the same for years on end. 

It was so good!

Gary and I ate a triple chocolate dessert with layers of chocolate cake, chocolate mousse, white chocolate mousse, and chocolate ganache. We got it at my favorite grocery store, Woolworths. Can you tell which side my host dad Gary ate?

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Food in South Africa!

The first day I met my host family, my sister, Patricia, cooked cow intestines in a thick stew. Needless to say, it was very different; so I didn't eat much of it, but I was willing to try it. The next day we went to McDonald's. McDonald's is so different here. They have a pop called McFizz, with either watermelon flavour or Lychee flavour. I haven't tried it yet but I cannot wait to taste it!

Patricia and my mom made chicken, rice, and spinach the next day. The chicken taste like the chicken in chicken biriyani, which is one of my favorite dishes. My mom was so surprised that I knew about Indian food and spices. In my family, they don't refrigerate food they just keep it on the stove and reheat it the next day. It gets cold in the house at night so I think that is what preserves the food long enough to eat it over a few days. Pap is a popular food here. It is a really heavy porridge that you can eat with any meal. There is brown pap and white pap. The white one is very bland and taste like flavorless grits. The brown one, I am told, is suppose to be eaten as a more traditional food, but my mom prefers that one, so Patricia always makes both. The brown one is more wheat like and has a little more flavor. Pap is a "stable" food, meaning it is inexpensive and very filling, so it is used to supplement smaller portions of more expensive dishes, like meat. Soil is also a common snack food. My family eats it the way we eat chips in America. I'm still deciding how I feel about it, but I have tried it more than once.

I am adjusting to the foods, and enjoying the fact that it is so different from what I would eat in America.

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