Time flies

     It's hard to believe I have been here for over a month. This is the longest I have ever been out of the country. It has really flown by. It seems like I've been here my whole life practically. It probably helps that I wasn't very busy before I left. This experience has been great so far. The group I'm with are a bunch of exciting people. No one wants to sit in the house and do nothing. We've done some exciting trip every free minute. It's funny because everything is still such an adventure that even taking a 10 minute bus ride to a big grocery store can be fun. Hopefully, the next 3 months don't go as quickly though. I don't want this adventure to end!
     I finished my first full week of service. It was amazing. I got to know the school age kids really well. They are a super diverse and lively bunch. It really does make an interesting dynamic having first graders in the same classroom as eighth graders. The teacher has me go work with the little kids learning to count, spell, etc. I had to explain division to a girl and I think I just confused her. I'm horrible at math and apparently, that includes third grade math. In my defense, the teacher lets them use calculators and I'm trying to explain it to them the way I vaguely remember being taught. I also couldn't understand a boy when he was saying his name and I was writing it in dot letters for him to learn how to spell. I think I may have given him a slight identity crisis..
     We have a long weekend right now. South Africa celebrates Women's Day, so no service or classes on Tuesday. South Africa is one of those countries that has a billion public holidays that everyone has off. It's strange though because the primary and high schools all have Monday off as well. A four day weekend rarely happens at home, I feel like. This is also coming from the girl who had the most snow days of her life once she got to college. Everyone here is planning their spring breaks. It's weird to think of spring break in general because at GW, that would mean more practice and some meal money. Here, it means "cheapest safaris in SA" or "all inclusive trip to Mozambique." Or for those of us on a stricter budget, googling "cheapest rental cars" to do the Garden Route, a coastal driving route that has a lot of cool activities to do. It's the first week of September, so for all the American teachers and students still studying at home, you'll just be starting. If my mom doesn't come during spring break, then I'll brave the open road and visit various beaches along the eastern coast of SA and, hopefully, swim in the Indian Ocean!
     This weekend, we went to a market in Bo-Kaap. It was exciting because one of our tour guides from a few weeks ago saw us and was so happy we could make it. Unfortunately, it was the least exciting markets I have been to since coming here. Afterwards, we took a train (first class...5 rand) to a beach town yesterday. I had fish and chips and it was amazing. I walked into some really great beachy stores and I got excited to think my summer is just starting again. Almost, it's still really chilly here. Today, we went to a market near the Green Point Stadium, where the World Cup was. The taxi driver said he was driving some Asians around and they said after their 2008 Games, a bunch of the stadiums were torn down and the materials and land were re-used. Cape Town spends millions of rand a year to maintain the structure while they are installing public bathrooms in the townships for people to use as their main toilet.  It seems like a lot of people wish the World Cup had helped them financially a lot more than it ending up doing. The market was amazing. It's been my favorite one thus far. I bought a beautiful painting and want to go back to buy some more.
     Here are some pictures from this week. Hope you enjoy

My new friend, Cole, and I sitting in the circle before class starts. The teacher tries to make light of the kids' illness in order to keep them happy. When they have to get their blood drawn, she says they're visiting the vampire.

Sara and the boy I gave the identity crisis to. His name is Ayubulela

Harry Potter appreciation is universal, naturally.

This girl, Asive, is going home this Friday. She can be a bit of a diva sometimes.

A picture of the beach we went to on Saturday, Kalk Bay. I can't wait to go back there when it's summer!

And here is a picture of one of our mini-bus adventures. They are always interesting