Her Name Is Fredericka

The name isn’t pretty. But then again, neither is she. Fredericka has black beady eyes, she’s a little on the furry side, and she’s about 10 inches long from head to tail.

For the past few days, I’ve been noticing the back half of a loaf of bread slowly disappearing. And not slice by slice. I thought maybe we had a little mouse problem with the first hint of fading bread coupled with droppings. I was wrong. Last night I came home from the grocery store, disinfectant, paper towels, and poison in hand (they don’t sell humane traps here, otherwise I would have bought them regardless of price). As soon as I had put the bag on the table, I opened the cupboard door and was face to face with not a mouse, but a rat. A big one. We both froze for a few seconds as we made eye contact, but I was quicker. I slammed the door closed as I freaked out, jumped around little bit, added some expletives, propped the ironing board up against the door and ran to get my friends to freak out on, as well as the landlords, Edwin and Helen to take care of Fredericka. I wasn’t about to try and trap her myself and the thought of killing her never entered my mind.

Helen called one of the head student residents and he came over and tried to trap her with a reusable grocery bag, despite my friend Madison and I suggesting Tupperware or a bowl of some sort. As he opened Fredericka’s food-filled prison, she proceeded to jump from the top shelf of the cupboard (about five feet up), on to the floor, and scampered under the sink, all while surrounded by about seven human gawkers. We haven’t seen her since, despite my paranoia and constant monitoring of all possible hiding places. We laid blue candy (that’s what I’m calling it – it’s not poison) under the sink, just before the cupboard on the floor, and replaced my tainted, half-eaten loaf of bread with another piece of candy.

Now for the explanation of Fredericka’s oh-so-appealing name… The girls in House 6 have a problem with a bird, which they named Fred (or birds, we don’t know if it’s the same one or not). Fred looks like a large Kiwi Bird but can fly and is in South Africa, not New Zealand. Fred likes to wake the girls up with screaming banshee noises that no bird should be able to make.

So, we, the men of House 15, will wait and see if Fredericka continues to make appearances in our cupboard. But, without my whole grain bread, she may have to move on to less pleasing forms of sustenance. I hope she likes blue candy.

Saying No Is Hard

Yesterday we left early (10 AM but hey, we’re college students) for the president’s house and offices. We walked passed Embassies like Burkina Fasso, Tunisia, and Palestine. It didn’t surprise me not to see the US Embassy. We mostly walked through residential areas as we got closer to the Union Buildings. In China, the US Embassy was more like a complex with an office building and several surrounding structures that dwarfed all the embassies around it. American extravagance knows no bounds. Once there we were directed from a side gate to the main road where there were lots of street vendors selling overpriced African themed trinkets. The South African White House (as we so nicknamed it) was beautiful from the outside and had a large park filled with native trees and flowers in front of it.

We had lunch at a shopping center we passed on the way. But before we crossed the street to check out our options, a man named George stopped us and asked if we could bring him food, he would appreciate it. We had a delicious lunch at an African-themed restaurant and took George our leftovers. He explained what his life was like under apartheid and that even now as a city construction employee, it was hard keeping his two children fed on his salary. His wife died several years ago and he is now the sole supporter of his children. He thanked us for lunch and dinner for the three of them and we headed home.

On the way to dinner, we were once again asked for help but this time in the form of money. I have personally been asked for money at least three times a day since we’ve been here. Poverty and begging are rampant in Pretoria. Back home, I gladly give a few dollars to those who ask of me (Matthew 5:42). In China, I was more than willing to give a few yuan (cents in US money, but those cents would easily provide a meal to a Chinese person) to any beggars we came across. I only wished I could have spoken to them and gotten to know them as people. To let them know that they are cared for on a deeper level than just throwing money at them. I feel that people need to be reassured of their humanity when they have to resort to begging to make a living and to stay alive. But here, I feel that if I were to give to everyone who asks (as I should) for five months, I would quickly drain my bank account. The unemployment rate here is 25%, but could easily be as high as 35% if a false report is turned in or people and jobs cannot be estimated. Because of this and the only short period of time apartheid has been lifted, it’s easy to see why so many people are resorting to begging. And with so many asking, it would be monetarily difficult to say yes every time. So I am learning to say no. And it hurts.

NOT the Embassy

We got in last night around 6pm as the sun was setting. All our luggage arrived and we found our driver. On the way to Pretoria from Johannesburg, it was really strange having the driver on the right hand side of the car and being on the left side of the road. It was a little confusing even though I wasn't driving. Our driver took us to the University of Pretoria campus where we tried to get into several gates, all without success. On one hand, it's nice to know campus security is so good and on the other we just really wanted to get in. A few gate guards even told our driver to take us to the US Embassy but he didn't give up on us and eventually we made it to the Tuksdorp Apartments gate and our home for the next four months. The lady in charge of the apartments, Lindique, was really hospitable and drove us to the shopping center up the street where we got groceries and had dinner. Our apartments are a little primitive looking, but are quaint and wonderful nonetheless (I'll post pictures later). No heater and it's 54F at noon right now. It's supposed to get up to 62 and Lindique, said July is South Africa's coldest month.

Today Brooke, Madison (two other OU students studying at UP), and I walked around today and got new SIM cards for our phones. A lady at the Virgin Mobile store told us not to "loan" our phones to anyone who asks. She said people will come up to you on the street, ask to see your phone, and run off with it. We're at a coffee shop now, using the wifi. There are two other American girls here and they said it's the only hotspot for blocks. I think I know where I'm going to be spending my online time from now on. Later, we plan on going grocery and supply shopping and possibly getting a wifi USB stick thing. Thankfully this is a big city and everything is within walking distance. Have you seen Invictus with Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon about the Rugby World Cup in 1995 South Africa? Remember the presidential residence? Yeah, that's like a mile away from the University. It's on the list (of things to do, places to see, etc.).

It's weird to think apartheid has only been over for 16 years. Evidence of its existence still remains but many black South Africans, it seems, have done pretty well for themselves in those years. When we drove out of the gated parking lot for the grocery store last night (everything is gated here), Lindique paid a guard for the exit. She said that paying wasn't necessary but they do so anyway because many blacks still need employment and do so any way they can. At the airport, there were several blacks to help us load our luggage into the care. Unfortunately, Madison was the only one with cash and only had enough for the driver. When I talked to my friend Mark before leaving, he said that at the square up the street from Tuksdorp there are blacks who will stand around parking lots and bike racks offering to guard the respective modes of transportation for the period of time you are gone. On the other hand, there are blacks who we've run into that own their own businesses. Those who are fortunate, however, are much less than those who have no jobs or who offer to guard cars for small hand outs every day. Being here now makes me think this may have been what the US was a hundred years ago or what inner cities are like now at home. My personal opinion is that the remnants of slavery in the US are that of poverty seen in the black population now. The same can be said here in apartheid in that many blacks remain unemployed or self-employed. And I have yet to see the townships.

The demographics of South Africa are 79% black, 9% white, 9% colored (mixed race (and yes, that is politically correct here)), and 3% Asian or Indian. That is evident here in Pretoria walking around on the street. But everyone is so friendly. People in the US may think racial tensions are still high here, but I would already disagree. I don't think my opinions will change in the coming months. We've already ran into so many nice people willing to help and to offer a smile. I feel like I'm really going to love South Africa and I look forward to getting to know it and its people better. Oh, and I guess I could go north into Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique while I'm at it.

See you next time I have internett access.

We're on time.

The title of my blog may be a little confusing to some. Because South Africa is in the southern hemisphere, the seasons are swapped from what they are in the US. As a result, when I return in December, South Africa will have gone from winter to summer while America experiences a transition from summer to winter. I am skipping fall 2010. Granted South African winters range from ~40F in the morning to upper 60s in the evening, but the concept of skipping a season is cool nonetheless.

My friend Brooke and I have been sitting at the gate for about four hours now. Brooke is also an OU student from Tulsa who will be studying at the University of Pretoria this semester. After leaving Tulsa at 10:45 in the morning and landing in Atlanta around noon EST, we had what will probably be our last Mexican meal for months. We came to the gate, set up our internet, and began doing our own things. I opted to watch the series finale of Lost, while Brooke decided to listen to the World Cup championship game. I thought kind of funny to watch Lost while the world was watching soccer (football) in my future home. While watching, the screen above the counter turned on and Destination: Johannesburg, SA: On Time popped up. I was ecstatic. It's all slowly sinking in. Though I will be gone for five months (the longest I've ever been away from home, or America for that matter), I know the time will fly with all the adventures I will be having and new friends I will be making these memories with. I look forward to sharing some of these with you.

A fellow passenger just asked how long the flight will be. 15 hours, 40 minutes. Maybe I can get some walking and reading in on this aluminum tube suspended miles in the air.

See you in South Africa.