My First Week of Africa

One week down, about 15 more to go! I can't believe I have only been over here for one week, it feels more like a month! But not in a bad way I think time just passes slower, probably because we have longer days here. It was been a wonderful, beautiful and interesting first week though.

The Game Reserve next to the campus is so perfect for hiking, walking and running and it is proving itself to be such a good workout! Running up those hills brings back some bad memories of track, but its worth it for the workout :).I think everyone came into this semester thinking we would lose some weight, not eat much but WRONG they feed us very well here. And very unhealthy! Lots of butter, cheese, oil, sugar and salt. Perfect combination for losing weight. Not to mention we have tea time twice a day which includes coffee or tea and a muffin or cookie. Just a small concern of mine! Haha but today I had a nice workout with Jillian Michaels (my workout DVD) and some weights I bought at the mall here.



This past weekend was full of adventures beginning with the LIONS! We were able to see them up close and personal, thankfully behind a fence but still so close. It was scary close I was too afraid to turn my back to the fence and take a good picture! They were such huge, powerful creatures. We were even allowed to drive through their enclosure, but the last time APU did that the lions got upset and starting attacking the vehicles. Therefore, they decided against it this time around, especially in rental cars. Then we toured the city of Pietermaritzburg where we live. It turns out that Mahatma Gandhi was in South Africa for a while and during his stay he was thrown off of a train for having a first class ticket but being "colored". I guess only whites were allowed to sit first class. This event is what sparked his passive resistance movement in India and changed the course of his life. We visited the train station that this occurred at.

A couple of other highlights of the week... I woke up one morning to go running and there were about 15 monkeys outside the front door just staring into the chalet! It was so creepy and I couldn't leave the chalet until they moved so people outside had to scare them away. They are nasty mean little things who are just a menace around here. Its unfortunate because they look so cute, but they are mean!



I also got my first bee sting this week while I was journaling on the bridge above the waterfall. :( Speaking of the waterfall, we decided to get in it this week which was amazing! The water was coming down hard enough that it felt like a massage, but not too hard that it hurt. It was really refreshing!

Overall it was a wonderful week I am thankful for the opportunity to be here and make new friendships and experience a new part of God's beautiful creation. Fortunately, I am not homesick or anything yet, although I do miss family and friends! I look forward to what this experience will hold and how I can serve the people of South Africa. Keep me in your prayers as we begin working at our service sites this week...out of our developing comfort zones once again! :)