Thursday, 30 June

Today was a busy day, starting with a wonderful introduction to the Johannesburg Art Gallery followed with a trip through a very busy area of town. Our stop at David Krut added a lot of weight to many of our bags in the form of heavy, great books.
Not a lot of photos today other than works of art, but here are a few:











Tomorrow we make the 8 hour drive to Lesotho where there is snow on the ground, and reportedly very little Internet access, so stay tuned for a LOT of posts in 2 weeks!

Location:Johannesburg still

Wed. June 29

Today was a very full day. They is just so much to see here in Joburg and we are here for such a short period of time. Today we visited the Apartheid Museum for three hours. That sounds like a lot of time but many of us could have spent an entire day there. After that we were greeted by Arthur who showed us around his hometown of Soweto. He shared with us the various financial class neighborhood as well as the joys and hardships that go along with each. You could tell in his presentation how proud he is of the district and his home area.

He then took us to visit the Regina Mundi Catholic Church. This is a very significant church during the transition time period of Apartheid. This was followed by a visit to Credo Mutwa Cultural Village, Mandela’s House, and the Hector Peterson Museum. It was wonderfully packed afternoons that gave each of us a lot to process and reflect on.

Here are some more images from the day.

Tuesday 28 June

Many things today: (red texts are links)

Museum Africa
The Workers Museum
The Bus Factory (Unity Gallery)
The Voortrekker Monument











Here are some photo highlights of the day.

Location:Pretoria and Johannesburg

Constitution Hill

Today started with an excellent tour of Constitution Court.
Click here or on the photo below for more photos and descriptions









As we were finishing up our tour of the prison, our tardy companions caught up with us. They had come straight from the airport after 47 hours of travel!! but they are here and we are finally a full group.

Genevieve adds:
Today, we had the chance to explore a powerful symbol of South
Africa's journey from the past into the present and future. The
Constitutional Court, located at the site of Johannesburg's most
inhumane prison, is a moving site. Led by two fantastic tour guides
(who were law clerks), we learned all about the Court, its guiding
philosophy, and the deliberate decisions that determined its location
and the design and contents of the building.

Its design was guided by the theme, "Justice under a tree" and every
element of the building incorporates this theme (which has its roots
in tribal culture) in very thoughtful ways. From the sun light that
shines brightly throughout to highlight the transparency of justice to
the tree-like elements which symbolize the shelter a tree provides,
the design of the building is striking and meaningful. The richness
of the design doesn't end with the building--the Court houses an
incredible collection of art as well. Reflective of the court's
philosophy and values, the art balances a need to acknowledge the
legacy of apartheid while also offering hope for the future.

Mandela's hope for the Court was that it would stand as a beacon of
light for oppressed people all around the world. His hope was
realized.

Location:Johannesburg

We are here! (well, at least some of us)

We realized as we boarded in Amsterdam that the DTW folks were not in line, were not near the gate... Were not going to make our plane! So Mark and Shari and Jenna and Mona and Melissa and Kristen had a lovely re-route through Kenya and will catch up with us tomorrow. Safe travels!

We, on the other hand, were greeted at customs by this lovely sight: (Joy, Erica, and Saul)















And then loaded our bags into our transport for the next 38 days...

Location:Stanley St,Germiston,South Africa ( Johannesburg)

New Yorkers are on the way

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:JFK

Day 1 - Airport Etiquette

Today was already a rough start. Don and I stopped for a bite at McDonald's where (as if this is by surprise) the tears started rollin because lift off was only a little bit away. I suppose it also didn't help that our landlord was bringing people through the house to try and get new tenants. Boo :( Despite all that crap, it was such a cool feeling to know that in only a few days I would really begin to see what this trip was all about. I have prayed about my experience being incredible and so valuable ... and I know it will be. Waiting for the flight to leave here at 3:23 and then it's go time.

No turning back now :)
36 days of rockin out in Africa baby!!!

Here is our merry band of travelers.

All fresh and ready to learn and see and do! Only a week to go!


Click here or on the photo below for the alter ego of the group...












Basic itinerary:
(subject to last minute changes)

Leave our various homes 25 June
Arrival, JNB 26 June
In Johannesburg 26 – 30 June (Don Rosebank)
Travel to Morija Lesotho: 1 July
In Morija 1-8 July (Morija Guest House)
Move to Roma, Lesotho 9 July
In Roma 9 – 13 July (Trading Post Guest House)
Travel to Qwaqwa, RSA 14 July
In Kestell 14 – 20 July (Bergview Complex)
Travel to Bloemfontein 21 July
In Bloem 21-26 July (Bains Game Lodge)
Travel to Cape Town 27 July
In Cape Town 27 – 30 July (Protea Hotel Cape Castle)
Depart CPT 23:30, on 31 July

Location:Still in the US