Vroom! Vroom!

     When I watch a well-run intersection, I find it fascinating how the cars flow past each other.  It seems like organized chaos with numerous unspoken rules... a little like a game.  In Cape Town, it is a whole different ball park though!  At one intersection on the way to Jubilee Community Church, tow trucks sit under the bridge every day waiting for an accident.
     Many types of drivers fill the streets, and the taxis simply add a new spice to the mix.  These minivans carry anywhere from 1 to over 20 passengers.  A helper hangs out hte window, whistling at passersby and calling out the taxi's destination:  "Mobricap, Cape Town!" or "Wynberg! Wynberg!"  When the taxi pulls over to the side of the road, this fellow also opens the door for the passengers and collects their change.  It usually costs me ten rand (around $1) to take the taxi from Rondebosch to Jubilee Church in Observatory.  I usually catch a ride with some of the staff from Jubilee when I need to get to the church, though.
     Taxis seem to have a road code all their own, and there has been fighting in the Nyanga township between the taxi drivers and the police.  Most taxi drivers don't have a driver's licence, and the police are cracking down on them.  This past week two Golden Arrow buses were set on fire as part of the fray.
     In the end, for myself I just learn to keep my eyes open when I am on the road or crossing it.  I actually really enjoy the thrill of crossing the road here.  Only newbies wait for the traffic light; everyone else simply crosses when the coast is clear--or clear enough.  While in Vietnam one could trust motorbikes to swerve around you when crossing the road, here it is better to trust no one--particularly not taxis!
       I think it will be interesting to start driving again when I return to Canada.  I haven't driven for 8 months, and the places I have been to don't follow the same rules as North America!  I appreciate how traffic flows in an orderly fashion in Canada.  However, I have learned to appreciate the fluidity and spontaneity of life while I am here, attributes which are mirrored in their driving patterns.
     I'm not sure how these past months have affected my driving abilities, but thankfully I have my licence and don't have to worry about passing another driving test until I'm 80!

     While I'm on the topic of traveling, I will be leaving South Africa on Sunday.  My 6-month internship is nearly up, and I am going to reunite with my team-mates in Kenya.  I am looking forward to the next phase of this journey, but also really sad to be leaving a place that has really blessed me and changed me.  I would appreciate prayer for the rest of my travels (which include Kenya, Ethiopia, Egypt and Turkey) and also that I would be able to leave well.  Everyone's prayers and support has meant a lot to me in these past six months!  Thank you!  ...And don't forget to stay tuned for the final flourish over the next couple weeks :)  

Challenge: Past/Present/Future

     South Africa is at an exciting new stage in their history.  The 'born-frees,' those born after the fall of apartheid, are coming of age, graduating matric (grade 12), entering varsity, and beginning to shape the future of their country.  What will this new stage look like?
     From my short experience so far, South Africa seems to be a young nation that is finding its identity--what does it stand for?  How will it achieve the things it wants to achieve? WHAT does it want to achieve?  What is its relationship to its past?
     At the beginning of December, I attended the Michaelis Graduate Exhibition put on by the fine arts students.  For me, "Challenge" was the theme of the event.  Many students chose to use their art to face their personal challenges, focusing on addiction or abuse.  One exhibit, "dis"(place)ment, arose out of three stories--a memory of furniture falling on the artist, of her house burning down, and of constant moving from place to place--and rose for three stories up a stairwell.  Furniture hung from the balustrade and ceiling so that it appeared to cascade down on the viewer at the same time as it seemed to swirl up--kitchen chairs, trellises, wicker chairs, small tables, and other wooden what-not.
     Other exhibits challenged the viewers.  Several addressed stereotypes of men, women and fashion, including a bridal-themed exhibit with a title "it's not all a garden of roses."  This last one displayed complimentary and uncomplimentary wedding photos, as well as some pornographic images.
     Some exhibits challenged our perception of the world.  I almost walked out of one entitled "In Plain Sight,"  thinking it was a lounge area, until I all of a sudden noticed lamps curving in strange directions, the chandelier hanging at a rakish, unnatural angle, the rug lying bumpily on the ground, and the champagne table stopped mid-crash to the floor!
     One young artist chose to face the challenge of how we view nature and cities.  We all see them through a certain 'lens,' so she painted some with a 'looking-through-a-glass' effect.  How we interact with and paint nature is shaped by our life and beliefs.  It is interesting how different cultures interact and portray with nature--think of the nature painted by the Japanese, the Native American, Americans during the Industrial Revolution, the Impressionist Era, and then our own!  I think this exhibit was my favorite.
     Another artist challenged the waste and wealth of the society she grew up in, especially in the face of overwhelming poverty.  She used food residue to form designs on paper, which I found thought-provoking but not particularly beautiful!  
     The only part that wasn't a challenge at the event was enjoying the free wine and cheese!  But overall, I felt like I was watching a whole group of people question what they know and try to discover who they are and how they interact with their world and their past.
     The role of the past in the present is an ongoing cause for much noise and excitement.  Students at the University of Cape Town have been agitating for the removal of a large statue of John Rhodes on campus over the past couple weeks.  John Rhodes was a British businessman in South Africa, founder of Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe), and a hardcore racist.  The debate has been going on for a while over his place on campus, in our memories, and in the future.  His future on campus was sealed this past week, as the statue was taken down, beaten by students, and carted away.
     Someone wrote on facebook that no one can tell others how to express their pain.  There is a lot of pain here in South Africa... A lot of it that I will probably never experience or understand...  We need to pray that people will learn how to face it well and to move forward with joy, purpose, self-sacrifice, and vision into the future.  Pray for creativity in developing new jobs and in addressing the massive rich/poor gap.  Pray that people will learn to forgive and break the cycle of vengeance and anger and bitterness.