Two weeks ago, I spent the weekend in the colored township
of Ocean View for a home stay experience. Located between rocky hills and shores
on the Cape Peninsula, maybe ten miles south of the city, Oceanview was
originally established when colored people were forcibly removed from the
surrounding coastal towns during Apartheid. Suddenly, people were distanced
from their livelihoods in these fishing towns and moved into the hills, where
they had to make a new community amongst new neighbors. Many of the current
homeowners are first generation Ocean View residents, including my host father.
On a home stay, students are placed in the homes of community
members and are essentially welcomed into the home as family for the duration
of the stay. Ryan and I were placed in a home with a host father, mother,
sister, and our family had hosted students on multiple occasions before. There
were also older children out of the home, and one of the young grandchildren
spent the weekend with us.
We spent Friday working with young children at the crèche
across the street, which is South Africa’s equivalent of a day care. We did a
fun activity with the kids and then took them to a nearby petting zoo. I only
had one child to look after, but even looking after one kid for a couple of
hours was enough to completely exhaust me. I can’t even imagine it being my
life. That evening my host sister took Ryan and I to see a Valentine’s Day
beauty pageant / talent show at the local high school. It was a really
extensive production, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more enthusiastic
audience for any event.
 |
| David (far right) and his UConn co-educators playing with children at crèche in Ocean View. |
My family spent the day at the beach on Saturday. We piled
in my host brother’s car and made our way to Fish Hoek, a picturesque beach on
the False Bay side of the peninsula. There was a really social vibe going on at
the beach, as it was apparent that a lot of folks from Oceanview and friends
were there for the day. We were there for hours, talking and swimming and
exploring, and other host families joined us. My host parents had relatives who
also lived in Oceanview, and they were at the beach with us, and were also
hosting students from my program. That evening we came back home and hosted a
Braii at our house, and welcomed a bunch of family members. There was great
conversation, and the meat was delicious.
Sunday morning was devoted to church. My host father is a
minister, so we attended his service, which is held in a classroom in the
nearby primary school. The service was filled with rock music, complete with a
drum set, and my entire host family participated, even the dog. After mass, we
headed back home and had another delicious meal, before walking with our host
parents back out of Ocean View and to the bus, where we said our goodbyes.
While I treasure my weekends in Cape Town as an opportunity
to get out and enjoy my free time, I really valued my home stay experience. I
don’t often get to spend time with other families, and really enjoyed the fact
that so much of my experience felt familiar. The house, which my host father
largely built, felt very similar to homes I’ve been in before in the US, albeit
with a few rough edges here and there and fewer automatic comforts. When we
laid back on the couch and watched a South African soap opera, it reminded me
of the time I’ve spent kicked back on the couch in my dad’s house, with
Brazilian soap operas on the TV. Really, I gained an appreciation for how
familiar life was in this different home and community, that there were the
same tasks and pleasures to be had: taking care of the granddaughter for the
weekend, figuring out how to fit everyone in the car, wondering where the dog
is, spending time with family.
I also bonded with the dog, Sasha. When we first came into
Ocean View, I saw her out on the street and couldn’t tell whether she was a
stray or belonged to someone, but she was very soft and friendly, and
appreciated my scratching. Turned out she belonged to my host mother, and spent
most of her time outside and about. When we left the crèche on Friday, she
accompanied the whole train of volunteers and children as we winded through
Ocean View, before apparently coming into another dog’s territory and getting
chased out of there. She would follow family members to and from the house, and
came with us to church, where she took up residence in the aisle during the
service. My host mother told me all about how she has to navigate Ocean View
according to the different dog territories, and how she’ll accompany Anne to
the market, but have to take detours at certain places to avoid certain dogs. I
formulated a sense of a separate dog community, another layer of social
organization that existed in Ocean View. I’m glad I had the opportunity to
experience it and grow.
No comments:
Post a Comment