For the first time in days I finally have a few spare minutes, and I'm really not sure where to begin. It's difficult to articulate the immense energy, beauty, and life of this place. Some parts are so familiar and others are more different and wonderful than I could ever have expected or imagined. People talk about the contrasts and contradictions of South Africa (first world clashing with third world), yet Cape Town is not simply an amalgamation of different cultures and socioeconomic conditions. Everything is synthesized, and the whole is so much more complex and rich than the sum of the individual components. It's amazing how entirely aware I am of being in Africa despite the westernization and European influences. The air and sea and mountains have such a distinctive flavor, and I have never met people anything like South Africans.
Our days are filled with orientation tours and exploration, our nights with music and dancing. The UCT students take us to their favorite bars and clubs, and we meet locals as well as people from Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia. Despite a lack of sleep I think we are all running on the natural vitality of this place. Yesterday was a guided tour of the entire peninsula including the Cape of Good Hope. We drove by wineries, saw the penguins, hiked the trail at Cape Point. And somehow, a few of us still managed to stay up until 5:30 to watch the Super Bowl.
Once I'm settled into a routine in Rondebosch (the beautiful village at the foot of UCT and Table mountain) I'll report on more specifics. For now I just feel so blessed to be here, and I wish I could somehow better express how amazing this experience has been so far.
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