Ah! Breathe it in folks! I'm in Africa! I can hardly believe I've made it but I have. Apologies on the tardiness of my posts. Ive recently experienced the situation that is the internet in Africa. Lets just say, not so reliable. Anyway now I am in Windhoek, Namibia (actually pronounced Vind-hook, by the locals) at the Center for Global Education, or CGE, house! It has been an amazing trip so far!

First we arrived Sunday evening to Johannesburg, South Africa. The flight was very long. Around 17 or 18 hours. We stopped in Senegal to refuel and but unfortunately never got to leave the plane. The ride was nice though. I got to know people on my trip and got some sleep. Finally we arrived! I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was! We had finally made it! We were shuttled in these vans that they call combis in South Africa which they use kind of like taxis and is the main form of public transportation to a hotel/hostel called St. Peter's Place. It used to be a seminary and Archbishop Desmond Tutu studied there! Sharon, the manager was very nice and explained the historic place to us.

My time in Johannesburg was full of education, speakers, tourist sites and getting to know my group! There are 17 of us students on the CGE trip. 13 are girls and 4 boys. It's quite a distribution gender-wise, but Kristin, our intern and saving grace here, says that's quite common. Anyway I'm enjoying getting to know the group though there's always some pressure to get to know everyone and be on your best behavior.

Anyway the next day, or our first full day in Jo'Burg, we went to the Hector Pieterson Museum. This is a museum dedicated to a little boy who died in a student protest. The students were protesting the apartheid government's ruling to force Afrikaans, the language of the oppressor to be taught in the schools. The students organized and did not tell their parents because they feared their parents would stop them. They marched peacefully protesting the use of Afrikaans in the schools. The police set loose a dog on the students and tear gas, the students killed the dog and the police opened fire on the students. Hector Pieterson was the first to be killed. He was only 13 years old. Antoinette Sithole, his older sister came to speak to us about it. She was so brave to speak to us about how her brother was killed. There is a very famous picture of her running after another student who was carrying he little brother. I thanked her for her bravery as a student protesting and surviving the trauma of her brother being killed. The museum was full of information about other student protests that the One that originated out of Soweto inspired. Many people died. The student strikes began in June 1976.

Later we visited the Regina Mundi church. Churches were an integral part of resisting the apartheid government, as blacks were not allowed to organize they did so secretly in churches and if the police came upon them they pretended to be in the middle of a sermon. The police came to the Regina Mundi and demanded that thousands of people leave the church in just a few minutes. There weren't enough doors and people were shot and killed in the church. There are still bullet holes to this day and part of the altar has been chipped off when a police man whoe slammed the butt of his Ak-47 against the altar and chipped it.

These events were quite a lot to take in, along with a quick history of South Africa and some important cultural cues.

Anyway I could be on ALL night if I go at this rate so this is just going to be a teaser until I get caught up! I promise I will keep posting and posting until I'm up-to-date. So keep checking it. The weekend is coming up so I may have more time! Follow my photos on facebook as I post them and you can see so much of what I've mentioned today and the following days. Now I'm out for a low-key night at the Cardboard Box, a bar just down the block from our house.

In Namibia,
Sam

Today is the day!

Forgive my tardiness in posting but I have confronted some technical problems that delayed it. Anyway I am now in Washington D.C. in a hotel by the airport. I spent the night here after having begun my journey all the way back in Indianapolis. I didn't arrive at the hotel until around 2 a.m. and though I slept like a rock I still feel like I could sleep for hours, which I guess is a good thing because in about 7 hours I will be boarding the plane to Johannesburg, South Africa!

Amidst the feelings of fatigue I am also excited and scared! I can hardly believe it's happening! I am en route to South Africa! I find myself barely able to contain it, as I have told everyone I have sat next to on the planes so far! I feel a whole mixture of things. Excitement to be able to have this chance and start this journey. Fear of the unknown. Sadness at leaving behind those that I love. 

I have gone between the three of them quite frequently! It's exhausting! Just kidding, mostly I just keep my eye on the prize, especially while traveling. I know that if I think too much while in the airport I may just randomly breakdown in tears or a fit of excitement. I know this may sound like I'm quite a handful but really I am quite stable!

I've been lucky so far in that I have arrived safely and on time for all of my flights. I realize as I say this that I may somehow be jinxing myself and the most important flight is going to go wrong, but that's just me being a bit anxious.

It's been a little hard on me to travel. I get so lonely when I see people traveling in pairs or groups. Also my check-in bag originally weighed 57 lbs! Imagine my family and I, pulled over to the side taking my luggage apart for the heavy things that can go in my carry-on! Now my check-in bag weighs exactly 50 lbs on the nose! And my carry-on is heavy too! So the weight of rolling those two bags around and my lap top is exhausting me, just thinking about it! Another stupid thing about the airport is that the Internet is readily available to all... who want to fork over the change it costs! Lame! It seems un-American to charge people for the Internet.... although it seems American to want to make a buck!

Airports aside, I'm ready to meet all the students going on this trip with me! I can't wait to meet them and finally have people to travel with. I want to get to know them all since we are going to spend the next four months of our lives together. I wonder how we will all mesh as a group. Also I can't wait to get to South Africa! I feel stuck in the limbo between here and there and I don't much care for it. Sometime I wish we could exist in the far future where travel is so easy, you go to sleep and when you wake up you're there... ah someday!

Well I guess I am out. It's strange to think that the next post on this blog will be coming at you straight from Johannesburg, South Africa! Anyway, to all my loved ones and friends in the U.S. right now I just want to thank you all for your support in getting me to this point, on the edge of the precipice. Your help is invaluable to me and you all are never far from my thoughts. Thank you, again and keep reading! It's bound to only get better!

On her way,

Sam

P.S. I was so nervous when I was packing that I would forget something important but the only thing I can think I forgot so far, was a pen! Who does that? Who forgets a writing utensil, as the schools call them? I guess me! : )

T-5 Days

Since my last post I have been running about, though I wish I could say I have been running about getting ready! I have much to do before I am actually ready, which I hope to accomplish in this week... no I HAVE TO accomplish in this week! I'm leaving for Washington D.C. Friday afternoon so this is my last minute window of time to get my business in order.

I guess it wouldn't hurt to clue you in on what I have been using to procrastinate on! I saw Avatar in IMAX 3D which was awesome! It was very beautiful! But lets not get carried away it was no District 9! Anyway then I had coffee with a friend and spent some quality time with the family.

A lot of the quality time with the family has consisted of watching international movies and I must say it is quite a gamble with some of them. We've watched some of the strangest movies ever! For example we have seen two Japanese films that have totally bombed! We are still searching for the right fit as we're sure SOME Japanese flick out there has got to be good. If you don't believe me the last film we watched a woman literally licked a man's eyeball! It was probably one of the strangest and most disgusting things I've ever seen!

Onto the next...
Eric and I helped a friend move into his house in Bloomington. Then I spent the night there which was quite fun! We played this game called Celebrities and won one and lost one. I'm not the best at trivia, even pop culture trivia, oh well! Go team '07!

Now I'm back home and the two biggest things on the agenda are, say goodbye to more folks and get ready to go! On that note, I'm off to do so. Thanks for reading and wish me luck with getting everything done this week, I'll post updates on my awesome productive nature this coming week!

Saturday is the day!
Sam

T-7 Days: A final romp in the snow!

Today was a nice day! Woke and attempted to be productive. I researched non-profits in Indianapolis as I am searching for a summer internship. What would be ideal is a summer internship that paid and focused on events managing or coordinating. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Then the snow came in HEAVY! A gal pal, Christina, and I had planned to get some coffee that afternoon but we rescheduled for tomorrow due to weather. So instead of keeping warm we celebrated the new snowfall by going sledding!!

Austin, my little brother, Eric, my guy, Grant, his little brother, and I went up north and sledded to our hearts content! It was so much fun! We competed constantly to see who was the best sledder. Needless to say team Ryan whooped team Churchill! It's ok, better luck next time. I know we can't all be as incredible as my brother and me! ; )

After that we got in the car and began the painful process of thawing! Austin and I finished thawing at home over dinner and a couple French films. My mom and I are something of international movie-goers.

now I'm back at Eric's watching....

You'll never guess!

Doug!

Remember Doug?!? From the 90's, our childhoods!! We LOVE it! It's so nostalgic and unique, there's just nothing like it!

7 days 'til Namibia!

Sam

T-8 Days!

I am writing now from my living room in Indianapolis, Indiana 8 days from when I'm departing for my voyage to South Africa and Namibia. I am going to spend a semester abroad there. Three months and three weeks to be exact. I will be taking classes and working at an internship. I will be spending most of my time in Windhoek (pronounced wind-hook) the capitol of Namibia, I will spend my first week in Johannesburg South Africa and my last week in Cape Town, South Africa.

The classes I will be taking are as follows:
Racism and Resistance in Southern Africa and the U.S.
Political and Social Change in Southern Africa
The Development Process- Southern Africa
Religion and Social Change in Southern Africa

The beauty of these classes and this entire program is that it fits so beautifully into one of my majors: International Service. My major is a large part of the reason why I chose to study abroad in Namibia. Telling people where I was studying abroad elicited many different responses!

I'm going to Namibia because I am looking to gain an invaluable experience by studying abroad and working abroad. It's so important to me to see and experience other parts of the world and how people live. Also my internship will be working at the only home for domestically abused women in Windhoek, called Friendly Haven. I hope this will be a challenging and valuable experience.

Ultimately, I'm unsure of what Namibia has to offer me but I'm excited and ready for it! A part of me is scared! I don't quite know what to expect but I'm sure whatever will come of it will be an amazing experience.

Keep up with my posts to see how I'm doing before I leave and what I am up to while in Namibia and South Africa!

Sam