Monday, September 26, 2011
New Address
My new address is:
Joni DuFresne
Lukalo Primary School
P.O. Box 542
Tshaulu, South Africa 0987
About Previously Posted Pictures
The pics I posted were taken on a trip some of us were able to take on a holiday during our PCT training thanks to the training director, Victor, a wonderful man everyone loves. He is a kind, considerate man who really knows human nature and how to motivate us and is amazing in the way he handles himself and reacts towards others in times of duress and when there are problems he must address.
He and our team leaders arranged the details so some of us could travel back to Rustenberg to the Pilanesberg Game Reserve. It is located behind the college we stayed in our first week in South Africa. I had looked out at the fence between our college and the game reserve and wanted to see what was behind it. Some of the PCTs who were in a building closer to the reserve had seen some animals while we were there. But, even though I walked along the fence taking pictures of things I found interesting at the time, I never saw an animal - only the back of the hill surrounding the park.
During our visit to the park I found out that it is located in an extinct volcano. The landscape inside the park is amazing itself. A beautiful lake is surrounded by a large expanse of open ground with all kinds of rock strewn about. Then there are the cliffs which have very interesting rocky outcrops and areas very green with plant growth due to the channeling of water. One of the pictures I posted was of a dam we passed when we exited the park. I do not know how much that dam has to do with the creation and preservation of the existing lake but I believe someone said it was built to create another lake within the park. I would really like to learn more about the geology of that area and of all of South Africa.
The whole PCT class could not go to the game preserve because we only had so much room in the Peace Corps vans and in Victor’s truck. The entrance fee to the preserve was 65 Rand to get in, about $10, and we paid the Peace Corps drivers entry fee so we put in another 10 Rand a piece - well worth the price. The drivers drove us back and forth from Makapanstad and everywhere in the park. We were told the one-way drive between the park and where we were staying was 2 hours but it was closer to 3 or 4.
The people who signed up to go to the game reserve were asked to decrease their numbers by about 10 people. So we passed around a list for everyone willing to not go to sign it. I signed the list with a tentative “if needed” behind my name. When I checked there were enough people who signed the list that I was still able to go and I am sure glad I did because it was a really spectacular place. And I got to see rhinoceros, giraffes, zebras, blue wildebeests, warthogs, ostriches, quail and a beautiful (impala) animal with horns that have gentle curves. The others went to the mall in Pretoria and some saw a movie.
There were a couple of options of travel in the park. You drove yourself, like we did in the Peace Corps vans, or you spend more money for a 2-hour guided tour in a large safari truck or a smaller vehicle. I think the safari truck was R130-140 each. I can’t remember the details and do not have them written down but they may be available on the park’s website. This game reserve is located next to Sun City, a famous casino and resort, which we never got to visit.
For those of you who are asking about coming and visiting I live a short drive outside of a Kruger National Park’s Punda Maria gate. I do not know anything about this park yet except what I have read on the internet and seen on maps. There are people in the village I live in who work in the park. One person I talked with says he is in charge of one of the camps where people stay when they visit the park. I will have to talk to him more and get details.
He and our team leaders arranged the details so some of us could travel back to Rustenberg to the Pilanesberg Game Reserve. It is located behind the college we stayed in our first week in South Africa. I had looked out at the fence between our college and the game reserve and wanted to see what was behind it. Some of the PCTs who were in a building closer to the reserve had seen some animals while we were there. But, even though I walked along the fence taking pictures of things I found interesting at the time, I never saw an animal - only the back of the hill surrounding the park.
During our visit to the park I found out that it is located in an extinct volcano. The landscape inside the park is amazing itself. A beautiful lake is surrounded by a large expanse of open ground with all kinds of rock strewn about. Then there are the cliffs which have very interesting rocky outcrops and areas very green with plant growth due to the channeling of water. One of the pictures I posted was of a dam we passed when we exited the park. I do not know how much that dam has to do with the creation and preservation of the existing lake but I believe someone said it was built to create another lake within the park. I would really like to learn more about the geology of that area and of all of South Africa.
The whole PCT class could not go to the game preserve because we only had so much room in the Peace Corps vans and in Victor’s truck. The entrance fee to the preserve was 65 Rand to get in, about $10, and we paid the Peace Corps drivers entry fee so we put in another 10 Rand a piece - well worth the price. The drivers drove us back and forth from Makapanstad and everywhere in the park. We were told the one-way drive between the park and where we were staying was 2 hours but it was closer to 3 or 4.
The people who signed up to go to the game reserve were asked to decrease their numbers by about 10 people. So we passed around a list for everyone willing to not go to sign it. I signed the list with a tentative “if needed” behind my name. When I checked there were enough people who signed the list that I was still able to go and I am sure glad I did because it was a really spectacular place. And I got to see rhinoceros, giraffes, zebras, blue wildebeests, warthogs, ostriches, quail and a beautiful (impala) animal with horns that have gentle curves. The others went to the mall in Pretoria and some saw a movie.
There were a couple of options of travel in the park. You drove yourself, like we did in the Peace Corps vans, or you spend more money for a 2-hour guided tour in a large safari truck or a smaller vehicle. I think the safari truck was R130-140 each. I can’t remember the details and do not have them written down but they may be available on the park’s website. This game reserve is located next to Sun City, a famous casino and resort, which we never got to visit.
For those of you who are asking about coming and visiting I live a short drive outside of a Kruger National Park’s Punda Maria gate. I do not know anything about this park yet except what I have read on the internet and seen on maps. There are people in the village I live in who work in the park. One person I talked with says he is in charge of one of the camps where people stay when they visit the park. I will have to talk to him more and get details.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
A Few PCT to PSV Highlights
We, the 24th group of South Africa Peace Corps Trainees (SA24 PCTs), arrived in Johannesburg South Africa then traveled by bus to our first training site. It was situated next to a game preserve which some of us had the good fortune to be able to visit on a holiday during training. The first few days were filled with classes, some of which were in 4 of the 11 official South African languages. I thought being able to concentrate on one language would make learning the language of my future village easier. For me it wasn’t. A group of 7 of us were assigned the Tshivenda language which is used in the Venda District of Limpopo Province north of the Tropic of Capricorn and is known as the breadbasket of South Africa because it has rich soil, adequate rainfall and two growing seasons.
We traveled to Makapanstad north of Pretoria where 57 village families agreed to take in Peace Corps volunteers for the 8-week training period. More families agreed to host the Language and Culture Facilitators who taught us our target language and culture. The villagers speak Setswana but many speak more than one language. The children in all villages are taught in their mother tongue up until grade 3. In Grade 4 they switch to being taught all subjects in English. They are also exposed to other languages. For example there are 4 languages in the South African National Anthem.
We observed and taught in a school in the village during training and were introduced to the legacy of disparity including the reality of large class sizes, up to 80 students +, and lack of resources. We also experienced morning assembly where I witnessed amazing singing and heartfelt prayer. In the schools I have seen the students willingly do a lot of work not related to learning. For example, they sweep the rooms, wash the meal plates and carry boxes of books kept at school for use during class. Cleanliness is very important to them and I have seen students carefully cleaning their shoes which constantly become covered in the powdery red dirt that is everywhere. It covers roads and any other place not irrigated to maintain greenery.
Like most rural South African villages, Makapanstad is governed by a chief who actually is the one who owns all of the land and handles local issues and disputes if possible. Because of the influence of chiefs, their relatives and village people these areas are relatively safe places to live. My host family, like most people in the village, received permission to live in the village from the chief. Then they paid him 200 Rand for which they were allotted a sizable piece of property on which they built 3 multi-room buildings/houses. They also have a large area for growing food and raising chickens.
Learning about the history of South Africa is really fascinating and was one of my favorite class topics. We were taken to the Vortrekker Museum which was built to tell the story of the people who claim to be the only white tribe of Africans, the Afrikaners. It is an amazingly beautiful place surrounded by a wall of stone wagons representing the protective circle used by South African, and American, wagon trains. Their story is carved into the white Italian marble covering the inside walls of the museum.
We also visited the Apartheid Museum that had a special Nelson Mandella exhibit which told the amazing story of the only known peaceful transition out of an oppressive regime and changed the conscientiousness and reality of South Africa.
The 8th of September the American Ambassador to South Africa and the CEO of the Hope Foundation attended and gave stirring motivational speeches at our swearing in ceremony where the PCTs of SA24 became PCVs.
Friday September 9th I arrived at my permanent site located near a Kruger National Park gate. There are a lot of mountains in the area and mango trees everywhere.
We traveled to Makapanstad north of Pretoria where 57 village families agreed to take in Peace Corps volunteers for the 8-week training period. More families agreed to host the Language and Culture Facilitators who taught us our target language and culture. The villagers speak Setswana but many speak more than one language. The children in all villages are taught in their mother tongue up until grade 3. In Grade 4 they switch to being taught all subjects in English. They are also exposed to other languages. For example there are 4 languages in the South African National Anthem.
We observed and taught in a school in the village during training and were introduced to the legacy of disparity including the reality of large class sizes, up to 80 students +, and lack of resources. We also experienced morning assembly where I witnessed amazing singing and heartfelt prayer. In the schools I have seen the students willingly do a lot of work not related to learning. For example, they sweep the rooms, wash the meal plates and carry boxes of books kept at school for use during class. Cleanliness is very important to them and I have seen students carefully cleaning their shoes which constantly become covered in the powdery red dirt that is everywhere. It covers roads and any other place not irrigated to maintain greenery.
Like most rural South African villages, Makapanstad is governed by a chief who actually is the one who owns all of the land and handles local issues and disputes if possible. Because of the influence of chiefs, their relatives and village people these areas are relatively safe places to live. My host family, like most people in the village, received permission to live in the village from the chief. Then they paid him 200 Rand for which they were allotted a sizable piece of property on which they built 3 multi-room buildings/houses. They also have a large area for growing food and raising chickens.
Learning about the history of South Africa is really fascinating and was one of my favorite class topics. We were taken to the Vortrekker Museum which was built to tell the story of the people who claim to be the only white tribe of Africans, the Afrikaners. It is an amazingly beautiful place surrounded by a wall of stone wagons representing the protective circle used by South African, and American, wagon trains. Their story is carved into the white Italian marble covering the inside walls of the museum.
We also visited the Apartheid Museum that had a special Nelson Mandella exhibit which told the amazing story of the only known peaceful transition out of an oppressive regime and changed the conscientiousness and reality of South Africa.
The 8th of September the American Ambassador to South Africa and the CEO of the Hope Foundation attended and gave stirring motivational speeches at our swearing in ceremony where the PCTs of SA24 became PCVs.
Friday September 9th I arrived at my permanent site located near a Kruger National Park gate. There are a lot of mountains in the area and mango trees everywhere.
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