I've decided to resurrect my failed attempt at blogging while on internship in my home town, gorgeous Cape Town in South Africa. This is a quick summary of the country's atmosphere as I am experiencing it since my arrival in mid-August.
So let's start with the bad news down here include the crippling public servants strike, causing education and healthcare to grind to a halt. Final year high school students' matric exams are being affected as as teachers lay down their chalk, and more sadly, patients and young babies are dying as nurses all over the country elect to stay away from work during wage negotiations. Coupled with that there's much hype over a proposed bill, The Protection of Information Bill, geared at censoring the South African media.
But as always, on to the good news. I've had somewhat of a nice barometer on the South African climate, visiting here once a year for the past 5 years. After seeing a particular slump in the country's morale in 2007, I'm glad to report that after the world cup, the country is in a positive upswing. Several months after the event is over, flags are still flying brightly all over the place. Never before, since our transition to a democratic government after our 1994 elections, have I seen such positivity or pride in the nation, or our colorful flag adorning cars and attire and flying high from Franschhoek to Salt River.
And because of this continuous positive energy, encompassed by one of our favorite phrases, "'n boer maak 'n plan" or "we'll make a plan", which generally means in any situation, that we will be alright and we will figure it out, this country continues to amaze me. I am soaking up, with delight, its diversity as I research home internet use, interacting with lovely people of different economic, racial and class backgrounds, each with their own accents and cultural nuances. What a great place to be and how lucky I am to enjoy this rich experience in my life as a researcher :). And on that ending note, I hope this post inspires me to write more on my adventures down here in my latest attempt at blogging.
