Mini bus taxi rides

Day 5 in SA and I am starting to get the hang of it. Just took my first ride on a minibus taxi. To give you an idea, just try to imagine 20 people jammed into a ghetto VW van that is supposed to seat 11, careening around corners, with one guy with his head out the side window hawking for more passengers.

Anyway, apparently its not safe for tourists to use because there have been some problems with gangs going on the taxis with the target and once the bus is on the road, robbing them. Luckily for me, my host dad Waleed comes with me and carries his piece with him. Somehow, when you forget about the safety concerns, it becomes kind of fun.

Capetown Geography 101

The geography of this city says a lot about its history and character. Right next to the airport in the eastern part of the city, there are several formerly “coloured townships” which are segmented into square residential communities by four uncrossable highways. Vanguard Estates is where I am staying. Vanguard is just one of the townships that makes up the Capetown Flats. These townships are the result of Apartheid policies which resettled people by ethnicity and discouraged interaction between communities. Just to our east are the wine estates. Can’t wait to go wine tasting!

To our northwest is the Table Mountain which is like a flat topped mountain (it really does look like a table). Lately the clouds have covered the top but I am told it is beautiful during the summer time (December, January is summer here). Past Table Mountain is the waterfront and city centre which looks, feels and is exactly like a modern European city. The waterfront area has several posh malls and touristy things like sidewalk cafes movie theaters, etc.

Transportation is going to be the key issue here. Between the townships and the City centre, it is about 20km of highway. Since the minibus taxis are not safe, the only means of transport is really private cars . . . I think I am going to try to learn how to drive stick shift and on the other side of the road so I can have some more freedom to move around.

South Africa – the cast of characters

Here are the people I have grown to know and love over the last couple of days . . .

Waleed Arnold – my host dad (but he’s only 28) and as they say in SA, “just crazy mon”. He’s like a Malay, muslim Santa Claus if you can imagine that. Booming voice, barrel chest, big stomach, kind smile. He is the kind of person that jokes around with you and treats you like family even if you barely know him. Behind the teddy bear exterior, I can tell he can be scary when he gets angry. Everyone knows him because he is a friendly guy and use to drive a minibus cab. No one will mess with him because I am sure they have in the past and regretted it. He carries a piece which he knows how to use it. He’s one of those people you are glad to have on your side. We play pool, joke around, talk about our different countries, play video games together.

Zainab – Waleed’s wife who works in a corporate job. She is of indian descent but now considered malay because apparently non-malays here must convert to malay/Islam in order to marry malays. Zainab and Waleed have a 5 year old daughter Nafeesah who takes after her father (translation: she is spunky, loves to laugh and joke around and tries to slap me around all the time)

Nazli – Waleed’s sister who I think of as my host mom. She is 32, single mother and has lived in Holland for 8 years. She thinks of SA as a stopping point in her life and wants to go abroad again. We talk a lot about travel and I find that she is curious and very kind. Nazli has a 9 year old daughter named Ferhana who is sweet, a bit quiet and conservative (basically the complete opposite of Nafeesah)

Mrs. Arnold – The Matriarch of the family she is Waleed and Nazli’s mother, a tall and noble Malay muslim woman. She walks around with her head held up, cooks and cleans all day and is really the core of what holds the family together. She is very religious and has very strong political views. We have talked about the past, how Malays and other Coloureds (their word for those of mixed African/European heritage) were treated under Apartheid and how corrupt the current government is. She is married to a harmless old guy that I call Grandpa who is currently sick in bed with the flu and suffers from high blood pressure.

Marion – The students primary contact within the CFHI program here. Her role is to place the students in their homestays, make sure they get to the clinics and overall have a good experience here. She looks like Whoopi Goldberg with her frazzy hair and dark complexion (she is coloured). She is laid back, jokes around, kind hearted and in a short time becomes like the sister you never had. Her brother, Clive on the surface seems totally opposite. He has steely green eyes and with one look can shut you up and make you feel stupid. He is worldly, intellectual and very liberal in his views (he was a former hippie and politically active in the SA freedom movement).

Sister Avril – Sister is the prefix title given to nurses in this country. Avril is quiet, extremely competent and very perceptive. She also cares about the students a lot and is very kind. She is a Nurse Practitioner and used to run her own clinic here. The only thing I don’t get is that she smokes like a chimney.

Anyway, this is the cast of characters I will be working with here. Over the last several days, they have really welcomed me here with open arms and given me a great impression of this place. The first students have started arriving already, I look forward to a good month.