end of last week/south coast weekend

last thursday we visited a creche, or day care center, in town that is run by the Union of Refugee women. these women who run the place are all refugees from Burundi, Congo, Rwanda, etc and have all fled their home countries because of war. their building really was the sketchiest of places and it was nice to see such a haven of happiness within the ghetto setting. they are looking for a new place to stay since they can't afford that much rent. the women that run the place started out as car guards and as there has been a need for their kids to stay during the day while they work including other people's children too they set up a day care center. they focus on preparing the children for school and is assisted by a white woman who has a teaching background.

the center relies heavily on volunteers and they currently have two from germany and canada. since the inception of the refugee union the women have progressed into nursing school and in obtaining education for better employment. being their just gives one a great sense of joy and admiration for what the women are doing. and as we left, you can tell that we all wanted to volunteer and assist them. after the creche we visited the kwaMuhle museum that had an exhibit on the racial segregation in the US as well as apartheid in SA.

friday morning we left at 6:30am to visit the early morning bead market where tons of women from the rural areas sit and sell their products the entire day. these women are marginalized and make a few hundred per day. this only occurs on a friday. that same afternoon we left for the South Coast which is two hours south of Durban. We stayed at a quaint backpackers on top of a hill with a great view of the hills and the ocean. It was nice to get out of the city for a bit especially when so much has occurred in Durban in terms of the program for the past couple of weeks.

we took a several mile hike along the beach and then into the hills and passed by the area where several of the rural scenes in the movie Blood Diamond was shot. we also were able to see the hill that Leo DiCaprio died in the movie. it was a long grueling walk that ended with the group having lunch in a round shelter, typical of the SA countryside. and lunch was great. we demolished the food. I took lots of pictures however it was a pretty cloudy day and rained for a bit. before heading back on sunday we hit the beach and I spent 98% of my time playing football with local kids. it was a really good time.

this week we are looking into the Truth and Reconciliation Act, refugee and SA migrants and conflict resolution in SA and Africa. Should be interesting. *pictures on facebook should be up by the end of the week