Escaping Goats

I’m back once again! I just finished my second and last rural homestay in the area of Impendle in the province of KwaZulu Natal. I very much enjoyed my eventful experience. This rural area was a little more developed than the last, therefore there was a little less “roughing it.”
The first night with my family was marked by a huge thunderstorm that ran through the village. The rain was pounding on the tin roof to the point where I couldn’t even speak with my mama who was sitting right next to me. After the thunderstorm passed I walked out to the pit latrine (aka toilet) to do my business. I absentmindedly left the gate open and in the 30 seconds it took me to pee all of the goats escaped into the garden. I ran back to the house to grab my little brother, Siyabonga, to help me find and catch the goats. With my excellent torch (aka flashlight) skills and Siyabonga’s ability to run after goats, we managed to catch all of the goats before they ate the cabbage. I would have felt so bad if the goats had damaged the garden because the garden provides a year’s supply of vegetables for the family.
The next day my group of 13 went and planted trees with some mama’s. It was extremely hard work using a pick axe but the mama’s whipped me into shape. Afterwards we watched a group of school children perform traditional dances in their schoolyard and visited some crafters to purchase some beautiful beading. On our last full day we visited a clinic in the village. We received a tour and spoke with some of the nurses and coordinators. The clinic was impressive in regards to its cleanliness and the fact that all services are free, but there were some obvious pitfalls. For instance, the clinic was severely understaffed which led to extremely long waiting lines. Many of the people have to wait at the clinic for the entire day before being seen by a nurse. Following the clinic visit, we were escorted to a hippie commune outside of the village. It was mindblowing how much it reminded me of home. It really felt like I was at the Saturday Market in Eugene.
Our last night was just as eventful as the first. As part of Erin and my homestay gift, we decided to apply temporary tattoos to our family. We tatted up the kids and mama, but the best part was when grandma ran into the room yelling “give me tattoo! I want one!” as she rolled up her sleeve to expose her bicep. In the end we all had matching flower tattoos. Later in the evening an isangoma, or a traditional healer, came to cleanse the house. Our mama told us that some man had been coming and planting bad medicine at her house because he has a grudge with her ancestors. The isangoma came to rid the house of all the bad vibes that the man brought. It was amazing to watch the isangoma work. She spread sand in each room of the house then placed candles outside of each door. She did some other activities which I didn’t quite understand, but all in all the process took about two and a half hours.
Overall Impendle was great. I ate like a king for every meal totaling about 4,000 calories per day if I had to put a number on it. I also had porridge for the first time in Impendle. It’s actually quite tasty with a little sugar added. Also, since it is spring time here it is the time for baby animals and boy are they cute! I loved watching the calves and baby goats prance around. My family also had a puppy named Stone that kept us entertained for hours.
And now I’m back in Durban. Yesterday I moved into a beachfront penthouse and it is beyond anything I could imagine. I never in my life thought that I would sleep out on a balcony and wake up to the sunrise over the Indian Ocean. I have six weeks of this and I will enjoy every single day.