Tag Archives: Politics

We have Arrived in SA!!!

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We had an uneventful flight and arrived in Joburg at 7:30 AM. After my experience with the guy at the United Airlines ticket counter in DC I was well prepared with my iPad in hand to show the lady at customs that I would not be in the country more than 90 days, she could have cared less. So we quickly proceeded through customs to baggage claim. It took about 20 min for any luggage to start moving around the convayor belt and about another 10 before my two rolling duffels came out. We continued to wait expecting Alex’s blue adidas duffel to come out, but it never did. We immediately headed to the SA counter to report a missing bag. The guy at the SA counter was very helpful and gave us all the information we would need in order to check back in with them about the status of the search. He said it probably didn’t make it on the plane in New York, but I think it didn’t make it on the plane in DC because when we were boarding out little plane we watched them put my two bags on, but we never saw Alex’s.

After exiting through customs we proceeded to look for Elna (the lady we were staying with in Joburg) unsure if she was going to be there because she had not responded to our last email about where to meet (come to find out she didn’t respond because her computer crashed, oh PC’s especially with Vista 😦 After not finding Elna anywhere we went to the Vodafone store to get a SIM for our African cellphones (meaning the my old AT&T razer phone & Alex’s phone he bought the last time we were in SA) . Side note always save old cellphones because they are great for when you travel because who cares if they get stolen, lost or damaged. Once the phone was activated we called the number for Elna’s clinic but she was not in. One of the ladies who works with her gave us the address and said Elna would be back soon.

Since we were in no hurry to get anywhere, we took money out of the ATM (@ 8 Rand to 1 US $, which is a great exchange rate) and decided to go find a Wifi signal. Walking along the row of duty-free shops and restaurants we came across a Mug & Bean and decided to have breakfast. Mug & Bean is a chain restaurant that we use to go to in Durban because they had the delicious food (especially breakfast) with very large portions. In addition they offered 15 min of free Wifi. After ordering we logged in and found Elna’s email with her address and information about a shuttle to Sandton, which is the area close to her home. We also tried syncing our CoPilot App for the iPad, that Alex downloaded form iTunes while we were in New York, but it kept giving us an error message (This App is not compatible with you version of the iPad). Alex was not happy to say the least, $50 down the drain (He plans to contact the developers and let them know is frustration). The food arrived, but the proportions where much smaller than we remembered and Alex’s french toast (which was the breakfast food of choice that last time) was plain. We are hoping that it was just because it was the airport Mug&Bean and that the quality really hasn’t gone down that much in 3 years.

Finished with breakfast, we went to find this shuttle to Sandton. Following signs to public transportation we ended up in a parking garage, so we turned back around to go ask for help. The airport had set up this iHelp stations all over the airport in order to provide for tourists here for the world cup with information and directions.  We asked the guy if he knew of a shuttle to Standton and where we could catch it, he said no but the new train which has a stop in Sandton is now working. So we followed him through the airport to the train but it would not be open until June 8, so then he said he would show us to the shuttle, well that really meant he would take us to the taxis outside, which we were trying to avoid taking because of increased rates. We asked them how much it would be to Elna’s and they said no more than 300 Rand, but then the driver said it was metered. As we were loading our things into the bag we watched as the owner of the taxi company slipped the iHelp guy a tip for bring us to his taxi. So typical of Africa, the SA government tries to improve things for the World Cup and provide the needed assistance in the airport and the people who are supposed to be unbiased and helping are getting paid off by others to only provided answers that increase their own profit. To top it off the iHelp guy only received a 10 Rand tip, which is slightly more than 1 US dollar. I would have gladly given more then a US dollar as a tip if the iHelp guy would have really helped us try to find the shuttle.

Anyway, it was exciting to be driving the streets of Joburg again, but the left hand side of the road driving threw me off. Every time the driver made a right turn to the far side of the street I wanted to scream “What are you doing” but in a couple of days it will seem normal again. We pulled up into a housing area and the GPS said destination 200 ft. Nothing looked familiar and when we got to the places that was supposedly Elan’s house we were 100% sure that we were not in the right place. Well we come to find out the driver put the address in wrong to the GPS, so we pulled out a map book and had to direct the taxi driver how to get to Elna’s real house. When we finally arrived, the taxi cost 650 Rand!!! According to the ladies at the clinic that is double what it normally costs to get to Elna’s from the airport. We now know to avoid taxis at all costs, at least until the World Cup is over.

It was nice to finally be at Elna’s. She is such a wonderful, upbeat and funny lady. After saying our hellos I took a warm shower and took a nice long nap. Later on in the day Elna took us to Clicks (which is like a CVS) to get Alex some toilitries, since his bag had not arrived. After that we went to dinner and off to bed.

Morning of May 27

We slept in this morning, but Alex woke up with a terribly upset stomach, so he went back to sleep. Good news Alex’s bag has been found and it will be arriving today!!! Thank goodness because we are leaving for Mozambique tonight and we really didn’t want to have to go buy him new clothes today.

Tea

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Everywhere we went today the World Cup was present. Magazines with pictures of the country players in boxer briefs ( courtesy of Vanity Fair), newspapers with predictions of the winner, passengers on our airplane sporting their teams jersey, everywhere even our little travel pack with an eye cover, toothbrush & socks from SA airlines had a world cup theme. For most die-hard soccer fans that would probably be what they needed to have the ” rush” of reality that they were going to Africa for the World Cup, but I am not a die-hard fan. If you have not already figured this out this is Alisa’s post not Alex’s.

My ” rush” of reality came at 2 AM in the morning somewhere over Guinea. Unable to sleep I was able to enjoy the early morning complementary drink round. I ordered tea with a milk and a little sugar, probably not the best idea since I was already having problems sleeping and tea in Africa means black tea (typically some form of english breakfast) Oh well! One sip of that tea and I was suddenly back sitting with my host family outside our house in Ghana having deep in-depth conversations about politics, religion and culture. Another sip and I was in Namibia having breakfast with Alex and Mo at the base of the tallest sand dunes in the world. So many of my greatest memories of my 2 trips to the African continent revolve around tea. I have been up way too many hours and I am starting to think what was my whole point of writing this?  Well I guess my point is that everyday I look at baskets, masks, photos of my journeys as many people will do when they return home from SA, but they do not illicit quite the same memories or emotional response as that cup of tea. So while we are buying a 2010 world cup t-shirt and other reminders of your trip find your tea. Find the thing that no matter where you are in life you will see, smell, taste and it will bring your right back to SA and the 2010 world cup because when future generations ask you about what it was like to go the first World Cup ever hosted in Africa they are not going to want to see a t-shirt. They will want the little details that made this experience one of a kind, the memories that are often brought about by the smallest and most simple things.

A side note. I feel I should explain my relationship to soccer because it is very different then that of the other writer on this blog. Unlike Alex I had never seen a soccer game let alone a professional soccer game until I studied abroad at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban in the fall of 2007. The first professional game I went to was to see the Kaiser Chiefs play . After that Alex took my soccer education into his own hands ( I’m still learning). On our way back from SA Alex and I spent a few days in London where we did the grand tour of the Arsenal stadium( in exchange for him going to see Wicked with me). I was blown away by the detail that had gone into everything from the grass to the locker rooms. After returning to the states I realized how disconnected Americans were from the worlds most popular sport. Yes there is MLS ( Go Earthquakes!!) but for the majority of Americans it is all about American football. My biggest hope is that the USA qualifying for the 2010 world cup will spark more interest in the sport. Not just because it’s the most popular sport in the world and a lot more interesting to watch then American football ( in my opinion) but because of the power of sports to create peace and friendly competition. Sports psychologist have known for a while that play on a team sport like soccer builds confidence, cooperation and leadership. But recently members of the peace building community, like Search for Common Ground, have used sports ( mostly soccer) and television to address issues, raise concerns and build lasting peace in countries that have been torn apart by war. Please if you get a chance check out SFCG website and information about their program The Team, what it has achieved has only just begun. I will also post the articles I wrote about The Team on this blog if anyone is interested in reading them.

My soccer goal for the World Cup is to expand my soccer knowledge and learn how to kick the ball well enough to play in a pick up game with the kids in the villages I am volunteering at in Kenya starting in August.

The Magic Carpet Ride Begins

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The journey that has been 3 years in the making is about to commence. Six months in country, academic classes, refereeing in northern Virginia to build up the funds, interning in the District of Columbia, and extensive trip planning has all been in preparation for this: the FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

The next two months will be spent fulfilling my Southern Africa bucket list and enjoying the most one of a kind event humanity has created in it’s few millennia of existence. For one month the attention of mankind is focused on one country and 90 minute competitions between 22 men with a ball.

Alisa and I are all packed after one final day of checks and errand running to complete our packing list: 2 more SD cards (could only find cheap 4 GB ones; that only adds 45 min of 720p 60 Fps to my PlaySport, but oh well), toiletries, two microfiber towels that we found at the MCX on Quantico, and a Snugpack ‘elite’ (which was an unexpected expense), and some first aid supplies, and torch. It’s a tight fit in my adidas bag, but Alisa is bringing two mammoth bags, so most of the supplies are in those. The electronics and valuables will be on our person on the flight over…

Both of us feel like this has been such an easy pack. Even though I’ve moved across the Atlantic six different times, and packed a bag for trips spanning the globe, there’s always been some level of trepidation about finishing it all in time. This time, it seemed to go so smooth, and with no last minute packing (or repacking by my mother). So Alisa and I are concerned by the lack the worry, though it might be a signal of us reaching that age where future planning and foresight have come together with a trip that requires minimum items. We both know the territory we’re going to cover (save Mozambique, which will be an adventure like none other), so we know the clothes and supplies we need, as well as the fact that we can obtain anything our heart desires in South Africa (save Jelly Bellys :). Perhaps when comparing this pack to the one we did before our 6 month stay in Durban is what is throwing us. There we had to bring a substantial number of ‘extras’ in terms of clothes, supplies, and academic accessories. This time, its just us, our clothes, our medicines, our cameras, my iPad, Alisa’s Macbook Pro, and some Trident gum. We will be more mobile over these two months, and it will be interesting if picking up to move on a moments notice will be what we expect.

We fly to JFK in the morning and then straight into Joburg, arriving the next day. We get two full days in the city before hopping on a bus and heading to Maputo in Mozambique. Hopefully it will not be during this time that it hits us that the critical thing we’re forgetting comes to the forefront of our brains. It’s weird to think that by the end of the week we’ll be sitting on a white sand beach in Mozambique sipping Mojitos or Amarula with our feet in dangling in the Indian Ocean. After the past 7 months of both of us giving the majority of our time to Apple/Human Rights Watch/Search for Common Ground/Soccer officiating, it’s strange to think that we’ll be able to….. relax?

Even to me, going to Mozambique in order to relax and recuperate before heading to the ‘mission’ of following around my nation in the World Cup seems just too good to be true.

It’s exciting to be getting out of the cage that has been Northern Virginia. I returned here just over two years ago with a degree from one of the best universities in the world and found that no one wanted to pay me for my services. A journey through multiple NGOs, hundreds of soccer games, and 7 incredible months working for the world’s most envied company has created a future that was not at all envision in August of 2008, and  has caused me to follow paths I did not expect to take. However, my goal all along that time was to make it back to South Africa in the summer of 2010. Now, that has been achieved.

To all that have been apart of my journey up to this point, I owe you a great thanks for helping reach this point and hope that you’ll continue with me as I travel routes new and old!

Could Green Be the Color of the Future for Africa?

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Special Report – Business of Green – Leading Africans to Responsible Recycling – NYTimes.com

This interesting article should be seen as the way forward to many African economies. I think its quite odd that African industry should be expected to develop in the same way as European and American industry came of age during the Industrial Revolution. African economics need to find areas of the market that North America and Europe have either no desire or no substantial lead in those sectors and to exploit it to their advantage.

I’m sure the image of using Africa as the dumping ground for computer and electronics parts is not one that African tourism industries want to promote. But what if Africa became the worldwide leader in recycling electronics? The continent would be able to carve out a niche in the global market that is in high demand. Obviously, countries like South Africa and Nigeria have a leg up on the competition due to their substantial infrastructure, and they should put the pedal down and encourage more high potential growth industries to establish hubs in their country. Again the image of black Africans managing and working in a recycling plant that takes the West’s junk and turns it back around and ships it back might not be an image that is welcome. But it would provide jobs, would provide a endless stream of products, and has a solid long-term future. Can anyone imagine a world without electronics, or their rubbish? Someone will have to be willing to collect and destroy or recycle the parts, why not Africa?

The way out of poverty for the continent is each country to exploit markets that are currently considered small, but necessary. Matthew McConaughey’s movie Sahara, where the villans are running a disposal plant in Mali that can vaporize toxic/nuclear waste by harnessing solar power immediately springs to mind. The problem in the movie is that while storing the toxins as they wait for disposal there has been leakage into the underground water system. But the concept of a waste disposal system is ingenious. And while no one might necessarily set out to tell all the toxic waste producers in the world to ship them their barrels of sludge, think about how profitable a recycling/disposal plant like that would be. Factor in the shipping costs, the taxes payed on the profits, the high-tech/green jobs that would be created and you would have an industry that could be highly profitable for the private corporation and the country. Granted the investment in such technology would not be local, and the highly trained scientists might not be originally local, but that shouldn’t be a reason for dismissing the concept. Importing overseas talent would be a temporary measure as the nation’s government can then make an investment (through the tax proceeds of the new industry) in their country’s technical institutions to produce the scientists and technical hands to replace the expatriates that start out working at the plant. 

Thomas Friedman is one of the loudest voices pushing for a green revolution, and if he is to be believed ‘green’ industry is the next big thing. Hydroelectric power from the Congo, solar power from the Sahara, recycling plants in South Africa could be all part of an industry that could be led by those on the African continent. Creating that monopoly on green industry could inspire a new century of growth that would see the continent become an equal of the industrial north. The symbiotic relationship that could be created would be sustainable for both north and south economies, and just as important, for the planet.