Free Falling

Week 6! Wow! Seems like a long time in the grand scheme of things and certainly a lot has happened in those 6 weeks with week 6 perhaps being the most eventful to date…

Thursday brought about some rain, and boy did it rain! Three times I got soaked on Thursday. Apparently it doesn’t rain but it pours! On the way home from a grocery shop at the Spar the heavens opened on us and within a matter of seconds the water was running off us, but this wasn’t like the rain at home, it was actually enjoyable! WE couldn’t walk in our flip flops because they got too slippery so we splashed barefooted through the puddles all the way back to the Bantry. It happened on a further two occasions during the course of the day but I was so thankful for the rain. The people here need it so badly and although I’m not sure what affect one days worth of proper rain will have, I know that it must have had some sort of positive impact on the city.

Needless to say it hasn’t rained again since but the hot and dry weather also has it’s benefits. I’ve been to the beach to play volleyball, remembering very carefully all the techniques which Madeline taught us last year in PE and then very quickly forgetting them as I got caught up in the action, preferring to kick or head the ball rather than use my hands! It’s strange to think that six weeks ago I could not have imagined myself playing volleyball on a beach with Americans, Swedes and Germans and yet there I was. That’s one of the things that I’ve really enjoyed about the whole international experience so far, getting to meet new people from all over the world and everybody being so open to hanging out and doing things together!

Friday night saw me return to St. Georges Park…yes I’ve caught cricket fever, although as anyone at home will tell you I think I already had it! To use the lyrics from the song, ‘I don’t like cricket…I love it!!!’ Friday was the first of a three legged semi final between the Warriors and the Cobras and the home side yet again emerged victorious! We spent the first innings in Castle Corner which was fun because they played rock music and it just felt like a party but the real excitement came when Sebastian, the Swede, and I moved round to the St. Georges Park Band for the second innings! The atmosphere more resembled that of a football match rather than a game of cricket. We bounced, danced and sang (although not always knowing what we were singing) right up to the last ball when the Warriors secured their victory. ‘Bye bye Cobras’ was the refrain that went up around the ground as a wave of euphoria swept across the stands when the Cobras failed to score a boundary off the final ball! I also came across a guy on Friday night who could change his accent from South African to Irish without even thinking about it, which was very funny and I broke my trying not to eat McDonalds promise to myself…but it was nice to eat it while lying on the bonnet of a car at midnight!!! Little did I know then what was to await me the following morning…

The drive to Bloukhran’s Bridge was beautiful. No Mystery Machine this time, just an old Golf, but the scenery on either side of the road was breathtaking! Bloukhran’s is the world’s highest bungee jump with a free fall of 216 metres! (http://www.faceadrenalin.com/) Watching the guys going before us I didn’t feel to anxious and with a Red Bull in me I thought I would be able to do it no sweat! How misguided was I? The whole experience started by having to walking out along a suspended gangway to the middle of the bridge! Now, anyone who has been with me on Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge will be able to testify to the fact that I don’t like heights and that I don’t like walking over heights on a bridge that has movement on it! I don’t know what height the rope bridge is but I know that this was about a million times higher so I was absolutely petrified. I would love to have a commentary of some of the things I was saying as I was walking out as I’m sure they were absolutely priceless, I think I definitely cried out for my Mummy at one stage! I eventually made it to the middle where the pumping big tunes made it easier for me to take my mind off the jump until my number was called. Well, I have never been so scared in my entire life, not while I was drowning in Castlewellan, getting swept out at White Rocks or even teaching in front of a class of P2’s! The video, which I hope to upload to Facebook soon, is hilarious to say the least. I told the guys I wasn’t going to do it but when they counted down 5,4,3,2,1,Bungee, I, for some reason unbeknown to me, decide to fling myself off the bridge. The river and forest below me was hurtling towards me but I all I can really remember doing was screaming! When suspended at 216m below the bridge and probably a lot further from the ground I realised the magnitude of what I had just done and I think if the blood hadn’t have been rushing to my head I would probably have completely panicked! When winched back up to the safety of the bridge I was super pumped and the adrenaline was rushing through me, although when one guy asked me if I would do it again soon, I told him not any time in the foreseeable future!

 

That could have been the end to a great day but in all honesty the day was only starting. One of the guys who we were with suggested that we go for a hike in Nature’s Valley, located in Tsitsikamma National Park (http://www.natures-valley.com/). I have never seen anywhere on the earth as beautiful as this place. It was simple perfect. To describe it in words would do it a great justice which is why I have pictures here and many more on Facebook. The powerful waves of the ocean crashed onto a beautiful white beach, which backed onto a perfectly still lake which was surrounded by mountains on all sides. Our hike took us across the beach, through the river and some undergrowth and out onto a headland which overlooked the entire scene. On our way we climbed down some vines into a little cove where we were told we would find sharks. After plucking up the courage to walk along a rock face I wasn’t disappointed to look down into the water and see in the water below me 20-30 sharks swimming. Maybe when you go on a hike you might see a rabbit or a squirrel but sharks, now that was a first. On our return the sun was starting to set over the beach creating an array of magnificent colours in the sky and at the same time the moon was rising over the mountains. It was simply outstanding!

Did the day end there though? Not at all! After eating we travelled to our hostel which was situated in Storms River (http://www.dijembebackpackers.com/). On our arrival we were shown our room which housed triple decker bunk beds! When we came back down there was an African drummer playing in the living area and within about 10 seconds of me entering the room he had me in the middle of the floor telling me to shake it but not break it! So I found myself dancing around the room in front of a bunch of complete strangers, sounds like a night in the Union! After about an hour and a half of playing he invited us to go to a local tavern with him where he would continue to play. The day was going good so we decided to go with him and he, along with the hostel owners, brought us to a pub in the middle of the local township. Everything the visitors guides tell you not to do but it was so much fun actually getting to hang out and dance with local people. After are little excursion we were all exhausted an it wasn’t long before we were back in our beds!

The next day was a little bit of déjà vu as we returned to J-Bay and the waterfall, the infamous scene of the rolling van! Thankfully no rolling Golf’s on this occasion! The rest of my week has mainly been spent trying to catch up on some rest after such an eventful weekend and so after classes I’ve just been spending a lot of time chilling which is nice and finally getting some photos uploaded to Facebook so if you haven’t checked them out yet go and do that!

Class work is starting to get a little bit more intense. I have group assignments due for this Friday and next Friday, an online test at the start of next week and an individual assignment for the Monday after that. I think I’m going to learn the valuable skill of time management over the next few weeks as I try to balance all the different aspects of My South African Adventure! I’ve been learning about inclusion and inclusive practices in one of my modules and it’s interesting to see how this differs in South Africa as to Northern Ireland where I studied inclusive education last semester. I may be wrong but I don’t think that South Africans are perhaps as used to seeing children with special educational needs within their schools and so they place a lot of emphasis on the teaching Universal Design for Learning which sees that every school and every lesson is suitable for every kids needs. In Northern Ireland, I think we simply try to adapt our lessons using differentiation to include pupils and in many cases people are opposed to the idea of inclusion. I’m still not sure where I stand on the idea of inclusive education. Last semester I found myself feeling that children should be educated in a place which was best suited to their needs and so that would mean not trying to put every kid into mainstream education. Now I think I should open my mind a bit more to the idea that perhaps all children can be educated in the one place and at the one time although I still feel that it is not a good idea to force everyone together. It’s a complicated issue and one that I’m sure I will always have changing ideas on but then being flexible and adaptable is all part of being a good teacher and so if I learn to appreciate differing ideas this will only be a good thing.

Yesterday saw the start of the 100 day countdown to the World Cup. Unfortunately, despite my best efforts I did not manage to get my flights changed and so I will be home on the 1^st June as planned to watch from my living room! A lot of media attention has surrounded the issue of is South Africa ready for the World Cup, and so I thought I would add my own ideas on the matter as an outsider within South Africa. My head tells me that Port Elizabeth, at least, is going to experience some problems come World Cup time. Construction work continues as I speak and the roads around the stadium are currently being torn up and re-laid. They look a long way off being completed from what I could see although only time will tell and I hope the organisers prove me wrong. The water shortage in this area could also prove to be a problem as could the public transport system. The bus system seems to be unreliable but again this is something which can be remedied in time and I hope it is. The South Africans themselves don’t seem overly excited about the whole thing. I guess there town is going to be turned upside down for a whole month and they are wondering what is going to be left after it? None of the local sports teams are going to be able to fill the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium and so what legacy will it actually leave? Again, only time will tell. I think the outside world has to realise that it is going to be a ‘different’ World Cup and that they should embrace the African culture and way of life instead of trying to point out all the negatives, which I guess is what I have just done! When I asked one local if he thought they would be ready he simply said, ‘We have to be. There is no other option.’ That is why my heart tells me that it will be a success and that it will be a vibrant and colourful event because the South Africans will want to showcase to the world that they are capable and that they are ready. I know come the 11^th June I’ll be sitting in Mullavilly with my South African jersey on cheering not only the Bafana Bafana, but the nation as a whole, a nation which in six short weeks has captured my heart.

Peace

God Bless

“For I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength” Philippians 4:13