Just by the airport service and mannerisms of the South Africans, who are both caucasian and black (the term used here), I know that this country also runs on a different time than in the States. Similarly to Indonesia, South Africa is a relaxed country, which is difficult to understand in an internship, where one is always wanting an itinerary and is ready for the next event.. or maybe that's just me.
I stayed overnight in Johannesburg, South Africa, where I had a twenty two hour layover. I had heard from a rotarian in Bloomington, Indiana that the airport was unsafe to stay in at night, so I connected to any rotaries that would be close to the airport in Johannesburg in order to find a place to stay the night. Just like with any rotary, there was someone who raised their hand.
The Lang's met me at the airport, helped me exchange currency- after me insisting that we exchange it before sitting down to a cup of coffee- and gave me a moment to relax in the hands of a soft, red leather couch while drinking a small coffee. Their house was only fifteen minutes from the airport so we were in no rush.
In the small time that we had together, I was exposed to my first calamari steak, rich African accent, and maid. Her name is Shelly, and she was the sweetest maid I've met in my travels... which I only needed to hug her twice to find that out!
The house the Lang's stayed in was beautiful, significantly more beautiful than my house at home... which is usually the case when I am sleeping at a Rotarian's house.
_
Continuing my journey, we flew down to Mossel Bay the next day at 3:25pm, and with the help of Vincent Lang, I was on the right plane, and finally found that the girl I had been following would be in my internship all along.
On the way down in the plane though, I sat next to a man named Leon, who was coming back from a week long business trip to Northern Africa. From his talking, I learned that South Africa's poor is actually taken care of very well, and it is in Northern Africa that the trouble with death, illness, disease, and animal attacks happen. I am 100% sure that South Africa stands tall in comparison to this because of all the possible tourism... which really holds this place up.
When we arrived, all the interns that were on the plane (a total of 7) took our stuff and headed to the oceans research lady who was waiting for us outside. On the way back to the hotel, we saw the best sunset that I have seen so far in South Africa, one with no clouds in sight :)
On the way, I learned that there is actually one man who owns basically all of town... save for only a couple businesses... his name is Albert, and I think it is quite interesting that one man is allowed to have such a monopoly in a place. It's a bit insane to think about.
Other golden nuggets of information are:
-there is a beautiful beach 5 minutes from my hotel room
-we drive on the left side of the road
-they go at least 80mph on the road, without seatbelts in the back seat
The thing I've learned so far... is to be patient. This past weekend... friday-saturday, has been terrible after we got here actually, because nothing was happening. We didn't have any plans until Monday, which is when the orientation would start, because they thought to give us the weekend off. But the problem was that we didn't know anything about this new place, and didn't even know where to walk. So until Monday, we were basically stuck in the hotel. This would have been a fine thing, except the wifi is a nightmare, the food is worse, and there is no vent in the bathroom so when we shower it completely steams up the bathroom and there's about an inch of water puddling on the floor.
We tried to be positive, and by Sunday it was relaxing to sit on the beach after running, and honestly be joyful in the fact that the Lord has brought me to such a beautiful place. I was able to be child-like, as I am :), and jump through the waves... while sharks swam around about a football field's length away.
The most interesting thing I learned is that sharks don't like the taste of humans, because we don't taste like fish. They also are curious, so will come if they smell blood to check out what it is.. but that doesn't mean they will automatically attack.
I accomplished the necessary feats to get the safe in our room worked out so that the maids didn't take our computers (which happens more often in South Africa.. petty thefts). I also got us more blankets, figured out how to soak up all the water in the bathroom with two extra towels everyday so that we didn't have to step out of the shower onto a wet floor, and figured out a ride for us to go to the mall to get soap, a little fan, and slippers- so that our feet didn't get dirty from the cold tile floor. That's a lot in this hotel actually :)
I haven't accomplished getting better food though.
The best part of this weekend was going with Natasha, one who handles the admin side of FAUP, to a local restaurant where the owner is the chef, the hostess, the waiter, and the story teller :) He was phenomenal and made us all feel so relaxed and like we were at home in his place. The meals were pure African, - which I learned, means that they have a TON of meat in them. It was fantastic. It was also on the little coast of the harbor about a mile down the road from us and the view was beautiful.
The biggest challenges I'm facing is to be positive in light of the terrible food... it's greasy, and literally only a snack. It's pretty difficult to do my best, concentrate on what's happening, and find other alternatives when one isn't being fed properly. To overcome it... I'm getting creative :) For example, each morning they only lay out bread, butter, terrible jam, vegemite, and three types of bland cereal. SO! I bring peanut butter, and use the wheat bread to toast. So I have peanut butter on toast!
Now... it's lunch time... and I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but it will be creative :)
The next challenge that's more a part of photography is not understanding what's going on at times because since it's photography, things are a bit more undefined and messy- so I have to ask pretty specific questions and figure out what's going on when, at what time, where, and how to take shots. To overcome this... they are actually getting a white board so we have a schedule, I am learning to be patient and becoming aware of the fact that it's not in my control- and that God's got it :) Finally, I'm asking a lot of questions, and learning as much as I can :)
I told them, that I want to be challenged... and I know I will get what I make out of it... so this will be good :)
The internship responsibilities I have are to take photos, edit them, and publish them. Along with go with our director, Fiona, to photo shoots and assist her in any necessary way- whether that be holding lens or taking more photos. I am also responsible for learning how to SCUBA, taking underwater photography shots, editing them properly and publishing them with Fiona.
The work environment that I will be in is so much more interesting than any other :) It will consist of underwater reefs, cage dives, mountain tops, coastlines, valley, waterfalls, islands, and much more. I will be taking photos of animals, surfers, people, and inatimate objects, but mainly action shots. Whether that be sports or animals.
I would say my first impressions of the key players in this internship (who are Fiona Ayerst, Lui, and Altus) are pretty good. Altus is very relaxed, but is a great teacher in SCUBA and knows his stuff really well- so i can ask him anything. Fiona is kind of scary, because she has been the managers of almost all the companies she's worked for- but she is very patient and understands your question. Lui is fantastically coordinated, even though he doesn't communicate with us the best, but not the best teacher. The other interns are really more talented than I expected, which is good- because I'll be able to learn from them. The support staff (Natasha) is phenomenal. She is great at figuring out the finance problems and being patient with all the paperwork we need to do.
The office culture is engaging and interactive. You need to be the one to come in and get close up this first week because there's 11 interns, but the open door policy is really good. I am able to come in any time from 7:30am-5pm to talk to Natasha about any paperwork/finance problems. I'm also able to ask any questions to the staff that are in the office, and they will take time to explain how to use the programs we do. It's really nice, and it's great because they let us help out putting together underwater equipment around the office.
Cheers! Sinikka