Keep the braai warm, South Africa

So the time is nigh. Today is my last day in Groblersdal, and my last week in South Africa – well, at least this time around! What an amazing, crazy, stressful and rewarding few months it has been though. I’ve met so many wonderful people and seen all sides of the country – from rich to poor, city to nature reserve, bush to coast, and everything in between. It feels like I’ve been here forever, except that forever is not long enough!

Next week I have a series of meetings with various people from international NGOs and UN agencies. I am hoping that someone somewhere will have a connection to a permanent position in this field. There are so many exciting things going on here in the field of economic development that I feel like this is the place to be right now. Because of the crisis though, many are not hiring non-South African citizens and so that is a large hindrance. Whatever happens though, I know that soon I will be back – whether it’s in a few weeks or a few months though, only time will tell.

On my final morning run today I was thinking about all the things I am going to miss – the children running alongside me on the jogs, the beautiful sunsets, the animals, the climate, and most of all the multitudes of amazing people that I have met while here. I will even miss the taxis and their crazy, death defying driving on narrow dirt roads with gospel music blasting in my ear.

It was also a happy coincidence that on my last weekend in Groblersdal the son of the family that I am staying with got married, and there was a huge traditional African wedding at the house. That was one hell of a party let me tell you. I had to fight off all kinds of chauvinistic men (including the Pastor in church pointing to me and asking “Is it also not true in your culture, that a man is master of the house?”. It was only my respect for the family I am staying with that kept me from telling him exactly what I think of that comment so I just fixed him with a sarcastic look instead and kept my mouth shut. There were quite a few drunken old men that got to hear exactly what I couldn’t say to the Pastor later on that night though, so I guess the universe balances in its own way). Ruth’s friends were great though, and once I finished serving food and making sure the guests were taken care of, I joined their little group, where the guys were thankfully normal, polite and quite fun! The highlight of the night for me was a beer run to the local shebeen which also serves as a brothel! Now THAT was an experience. I really wish I could have taken pictures of that place but it wasn’t the kind of place you want to flash anything of value around, especially when you’re already half in the bag. In any case, the whole affair was a wonderful, rich, cultural experience in national geographic terms – and one crazy ass romp in my terms.

This week I had to finish the odds and ends at work while also sending out multitudes of CVs and setting up meetings for next week. I have networked my ass off. Sometimes I have no idea how I got from geeky, reserved science kid to the person that I am today. I know it surprises my family, but it often surprises me even more. Especially on those days when I wake up and temporarily forget where I am and what I have done, only to have it all come back in a flash and slap me awake to say “right, get up, this is your life!”. I sort of find that I love everything that I have seen and done in my (almost!) 29 years. The memories alone could likely sustain me through a Siberian prison sentence, although I do hope never to test that. Instead, I hope to keep doing more of THIS. Travelling, learning, experiencing, meeting more amazing people, helping more amazing people and loving the world and life, despite all its unpredictability and the wide multitudes of things to worry about or dislike, because I know there are many more things on the other side of those that tip the scales into the realm of endless, beautiful, possibilities. So on that note, South Africa, I shall see you again soon. Keep the braai warm, and the beer cold.

As for the rest of the world – get ready, because there is a lot of you I haven’t see yet, and that is something that simply will not stand.

Hungry, Hungry Hippos

What a wonderful, relaxing, nature reserve weekend I just had. Just thinking about it makes me feel like someone slipped me a mild tranquilizer, or if am being less cynical, like I just got a really, really big hug from a magical creature of some sort.

Seeing as my time at Groblersdal is coming to an end and I had not managed to visit the nearby Loskop Dam Nature Reserve, I managed to convince Fleur and Phil to come up for the weekend so we could rent a cottage and look for hippos and crocs while relaxing next to a firey braai. We found a wonderful place (which by my Geneva skewed standards I find amazingly cheap) that had us mere meters from a river and surrounded by bush. The sound of birds and other animals was everywhere – which during the day and evening was magical, but early in the morning it made me realize for the first time why people enjoy hunting.

The weekend went by luxuriously slowly, and most of the activities revolved around eating, drinking, walking a few meters around our cottage, flopping ourselves into the pool to cool down, and lots and lots of nature in all its glorious, African glory. Followed by more eating.

Our nearby company was mainly Afrikaaner families so I think this made us reluctant to go out and make new friends – looking as we did, like pale, decadent city folk. A brief, brave sojourn into the lodge’s bar resulted in fancy looking cocktails and awesome views, but also meant a steady supply of Afrikaans country music, which made us quickly retreat back to the safety of our cottage.

We did manage to rent a boat at one point (well, more like homemade floating metal platform but it did the trick) and go on a “booze cruise” at around sunset. I was keeping my eyes peeled for all exotic and dangerous animals but the most I got was some surly looking birds, with rather cool nests overhanging the water. That night, I got one of the best views of the stars that I have ever seen though. The night was so clear that you could see not only stars but nebulae! I had never seen the Milky Way in such stark relief. It put me into that good kind of philosophical mood where you feel thoughtful and reflective but not so much so that you friends try to avoid talking to you. Unless Fleur and Phil were just too tired to run away from the conversation at that point. Even though I hate having stereotypical conversations, I think under that kind of a night sky, it is acceptable to have the same sort of conversation that billions of others have had under similar circumstance: about feeling both small and insignificant and yet somehow so connected to everything in the face of the vastness of the universe. Ok, so I may have been in the more annoying category of conversationalist after all. What can I say? Take me as I am.

The next day we headed to the dam itself, hoping to see more animals on the actual nature reserve. We saw warthogs in addition to the usual suspects (giraffes, impala, kudu) but 4 hours of driving yielded naught a hippo nor a rhino, except for one questionable blob seen from a great distance which had vaguely hippo-esque features. Of course, it could also have been a low bush. Or a rock. I think I might go with the hippo story however, if I ever find myself telling this to my grandchildren. Apart from the lack of large dangerous wildlife however, it really was a perfect day. The area at Loskop dam is mountainous and surrounded by water. The vistas were stunning (I know I say that a lot, but come to Africa and you will understand) – and this formed a perfect backdrop to eating mussels from a can (which
I don’t say a lot, but you gotta keep things interesting.

When Fleur and Phil dropped me off on Sunday night I was at complete peace, despite all the reasons I have for being a nervous wreck. I am determined as hell to enjoy the time that I have left here. I know I will be back, but who knows if it will be in this area and how much free time I will have to enjoy the gorgeous views next time around. I love it here, and as a friend pointed out to me ironically this morning, I seem to love it for the same reasons I fall in love with people – South Africa is complicated and filled with both amazing beauty and troubled darkness, and though it has never, and will never ask me for help, I desperately want to save it from itself. Of course, given the way my love life has been, perhaps I really should trust that everyone and everything is responsible for saving themselves, and just enjoy the crazy, unpredictable, and surprisingly wonderful experience that is my life for what it is -- an adventure!

There is no I in TEAM...but there should be one in NERD.

I realized today that doing an MBA has in fact made me into a slightly annoying form of nerd. This realization came from two recent observations: I now get ridiculously excited for debates on international economics (I was just flipping channels this weekend when I saw the World Bank President, Robert Zoellick together with Paul Collier, the UK writer and head of the Center for Studies of African Economies, participate in a debate on the financial crisis and what policies need to be undertaken internationally to help the world move forward, and I almost wet myself with excitement – but this could also be a result of my limited net access). The second observation came from a friend: it seems I now have an overfondness for acronyms – which I apparently use without explanation, expecting that everyone will understand what I am talking about. Right. Thank you for that, MBA. I am gonna have to work twice as hard now to keep friends.

In any case, it is Saturday and I am sitting now in post-financial-crisis-debate glow and enjoying the African sun. Just three weeks to go before the end of my internship and there is still so much to do! I have been so into what I am doing that I haven’t been able to devote as much time to job applications as I would have liked, though I have in fact networked my ass off. I have been looking for microfinance and small business development posts in international NGOs and IOs (Kara, that’s Non-Government Organizations, and International Organizations, i.e. the UN) and focusing on posts in South Africa. It seems that jobs are scarce though. I have also been debating with myself on whether to consider applying to a major consulting firm and finally decided to look into it more seriously. After some research I found that I actually really like the McKinsey model. They are of course one of the biggest consulting firms in the world but I like the fact that they encourage you to move around and allow you to apply to work anywhere in the world, regardless of work permits and so forth. A little more research revealed that two of their offices in fact have a high focus on social sector consulting: Geneva and Johannesburg! That sold me. I am hoping I can visit the Jo’burg office before I head back to Canada but I will definitely apply. The process is a long one, and they are very picky but I think I have a lot of the things they are looking for. Now I just have to convince them of that. It would be nice to work as part of a team again, as I find I am starting to miss the intensity of IOMBA. Wow, I never thought I would say that, but there ya go.

I am still completely unsure what will happen next month! This is probably the longest I have gone without knowing what the future will bring. As the cash starts to run out, I am getting a little more stressed. I have always known that I can get some sort of job if push comes to shove, at least in Canada. However, I really don’t want to just do any job anymore. I am now far pickier than I have ever been but I also believe in what I am doing much more than I ever have. Surely that counts for something? I feel like I am on the right path, despite the stress and uncertainty. I am sure that one way or another it will work out! And if it doesn’t, well, I am not too proud to bartend for a few months while I continue the search.

All this thinking made me want to stop writing and do something more social. I think I will go inside and join the company that’s visiting. I should point out that watching sesame street in SA is a bit of trip. Tumi and her parents are over so they are watching kiddie programming. On sesame street they keep switching languages without subtitles! Pretty cool. Tumi can keep up no problem, but as for me I am mostly lost, though I did just learn to count in Afrikaans. Cool.

Oh, and this coming weekend I am going to Loskop Dam for a water safari! So that's something to look forward to. Apparently I can expect to see hippos and crocodiles among other things. The chalet we rented is right on the river as well, and it looks like it's going to be another amazing weekend in South Africa. *Sigh*

As for my Canadian friends, I will see you in 4 weeks! I don’t know yet for how long, but be sure there will be a party or two! Korean karaoke anyone??