And the adventures continue..

            Molweni (Hello in Xhosa)! Cape Town continues to be amazing!  Five of us decided to pitch in and rent a car, so we have been taking advantage of the freedom that offers us.  After class and service we have been checking out new beaches and other cool places around Cape Town.  We have enjoyed staying on the beach to watch the sunset—it is a really great time to reflect on the various parts of our day.  It has been a fun transition learning to drive on the right side of the car and the left side of the road.  However, I think Ben and I (the two drivers) are starting to get the hang of it now!  We have frequent visits to see Klaus (our car dealer) and alert him on the various ‘things that need to be checked out.’ This past weekend we ventured out of Cape Town to Clanwilliam, where our friend Dave has a lake house.  The drive there was absolutely gorgeous!  Roads here are very different though.  The whole way there was only one lane going in each direction and people continuously passing at high speeds (Mom don’t worry).  We frequently had to stop for 10 minutes due to construction, so we took the opportunity to jump out of the car to take some photos.  When we arrived at Dave’s house we quickly changed into bathing suits and got the boat in the water just in time for a quick swim in the lake.  While the boys worked on putting the boating gear away, us girls went back to the house to start preparing our braai (barbeque).  After that was all finished (which was several hours later) we drove to literally the middle of nowhere to see the most incredible stars.  We all laid on the benches in the back of the truck while gazing at the stars in amazement.  I have been many cool places and witnessed incredible stars, yet down here they are just so different.  We all went to bed relatively early so we could wake up early and get out on the lake.  And the next day we did just that! We managed to get out on the boat mid-morning and started off our day of water skiing, skurfing, and swimming!  It was nice to get to ‘ski’ down here.  Despite the fact that it was not the kind of skiing I am used to, I was more than happy to be on a lake in the sun and not in the cold snow! The weekend was tons of fun (despite our lack of showering—we decided the grunge look worked for the weekend).  We rushed home on Sunday, took showers, and packed a picnic for the Sunday night concert at Kirstenbosch.  Goldfish played and it was a really fun show!

            Classes are in full swing now.  The content and teachers are wonderful!  We have switched our schedules around so we only have class three days a week, which is really nice as well.  (Don’t worry Mom I am still doing work—we spend our ‘days off’ at our service sites from 10-2:30).  Service is going great as well.  It is really interesting to see people’s reactions when I tell them I work at Manenberg Primary.  Some people don’t believe me while others are so confused why I would go there.  They really don’t understand the place.  The kids are all so full of love.  Everyday we are welcomed by warm hugs and smiles, which instantly puts a smile on my face. I can't believe that our spring break is only two weeks away.  I really feel like I have been on break since December!

            I have officially decided to do the summer studio in Istanbul, Turkey this July, which is very exciting!  Now all I have to do is figure out where I want to ‘be a bum’ between June 11 and July 3.  My current plan is to stay here for a little, fly to London, see a bit of Europe and then go to Turkey! 

Well, I should continue with all that needs to be done here!

Sending love,

Catie