Author Archives: Alex Laverty

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About Alex Laverty

Recent graduate from USC's Master of Public Diplomacy and UCLA's Master of Africa Studies programs. My interests lie in understanding the interactions between digital ICTs & society. I try to make sense how are these interactions are changing democracy, diplomacy, and development.

US – Algeria Recap & The Return to Bangkok Wok

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An early rise was required today to make the 500km trip north to Pretoria, so on the road by 720 and we made the return trip up the N1. We hit some of the densest fog I have ever seen in my life just as we ended the highway in Bloemfontein. Then we actually drove through piece that was being windswept by the Sun and burning off. Then we hit another fog bank, but the road took us beneath it. It was an extraordinary side, being in a small valley with a think bed of clouds directly above us, with the morning sun stating to cut through an illuminate the lowfeld. Quite a start to our day, and we arrived in Joburg just after morning rush hour, allowing us to do the quick jaunt around the western bypass and up to the Pretoria suburb of Waterkloof where our B&B was located.

It took a bit to get inside the place, as the domestic workers knew nothing of a guest house nor the name of the place we were at, but two young girls arrived who apparently knew of our coming arrival, and helped get us our room and then offered to take us to the game as it was just a 4km drive down the ridge. We thought this was very generous and would allow us to avoid the hassle of the park & rides. This would have consequences though for us post-game. Continue reading →

Highveld Driving

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21 June (lost blog post until today 29 Dec)

A late start today meant that the Museums in Newtown must wait for our return to Johannesburg. A last load of laundry was done as we don’t know the next time we will have that access, and a quick cook up of the ‘minced’ meat that we seasoned with Taco seasoning and sour cream, inside terrible burritos. We thought it a novelty to try out the latest in Mexican food here in South Africa, as we had famously made a large serving of Mexican food while in the dorms at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in 2007. This could not  be topped by our attempt, as the ‘Mexican’ rice was quite a disaster, and the taco seasoning though in a similar package to that sold by El Paso, did not taste like much.

It was a bit surprising in the Pick ‘n Pay (the large supermarket chain started in South Africa and now in many African countries), that the selection has changed very little in the three years we have been out of the country. On a whole, the three major chains, Woolworths, Pick ‘n Pay, Checkers, all draw their products from both the UK and the United States. In most cases it is the best of both worlds (cheap prices on Cadbury Products as there is a factory in Port Elizabeth) and Activa yogurt. However, there are curious absences, such as no tortilla chips or dry stick deodorant. Most stores also seem to plan to sell most of their bakery and dairy products on the same day, as when you enter a store in the evening, the shelves of loafs of bread can be near bear and few bottles of milk left in the dairy section. It is rare to see a large trolley of bread at the checkout as we have seen most South Africans seem to buy what they need for the day, or only two days out. Though we did see a checkout total of R1000 (150 USD) the other day, so perhaps trends are changing. Continue reading →

Kimberley and Emo Adams

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19 July (written 5 months later)

Today we departed Hurlingham Manor early with Elna to get a ride to Park Station. She had a appointment at Wits University (or Univ of Joburg), so she was kind enough to give us a lift for our morning bus ride to Kimberley. We were going on our fifth week in South Africa and had spent much of our time in Gauteng with Elna. But it was on this ride to the train station we learned the most about her. She had grown up in Mafikeng, a border town with Botswana, where her father worked for the train company. She told us one of her earliest memories about Mafikeng was her out on the traintracks watching black migrant laborers heading to the Rand. One of the passengers had spit out a massive piece of chewing gum. Elna picked it up and chewed it, whereapon her mother found out what she had done when she arrived home and proceeded to wash her mouth out with soap. Elna seemed to make it seem that it wasn’t necessarily picking gum off the ground and eating it, but the fact that an African had been chewing it that was the part that needed cleansing.

It has always been of interest to listen to white South Africans, especially Afrikaners for their memories of the second half of the 20th century. They’re made out to be such vile and racist people, yet they were very similar to white Americans of the same era. Continue reading →

The Afrikaner Experience

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June 19

This morning we packed to leave Gemini and debated causing a scene over our remaining balance of what we had payed for our accommodation, but conveniently the man we would need to speak to was gone for the morning. Very unsatisfied about our stay up to that point, we decided to get on the road to Witbank, where the Test Match between Italy and the Springboks would take place. Skipping the cold breakfast that was served at Gemini (perhaps due to the frequent power fluctuations?) we headed to Rosebank mall where we had eaten our post game meal from the previous night. We found our restaurant, Nino’s, to be bustling with leople, so we decided to pop in and give their breakfast menu a go after last nights dinner had turned out quiet well. It turned out to be the best breakfast we have had since our return to South Africa. Mugg and Bean no long is top as they’ve suffered a bit of a let off since we were here in 2007. Great eggs, and carne in their omelets. WIll definitely try to go again if we find another.

We set off east towards Witbank and arrive just before 2 in the afternoon. We want to track down a top for Alisa, as she had hesitated on getting a Springboks kit when we first arrived, and now the match is upon her and the surprisingly warm temperatures, means that wearing my fleece is not yet an option. For some reason all the shops in Witbank close are 2pm, and the Mall was dark and deserted at 1350. Decided to head towards the stadium, and found a mess of cars spread out all over much as we have for our World Cup matches, but with more disarray. Continue reading →