South Africa to Korea... Part 1

A little over two weeks ago I moved to South Korea, and a little over 100 days ago, I left South Africa. Since arriving, many of my friends and family have asked me how South Korea compares to South Africa...

1. Packing
Packing was essentially the same, except that I included a lot of coats, tons of thick leggings, and scarves. I haven't lived in a snowy region since high school, and I'm a bit worried how I will do while living here. Luckily, unlike in South Africa, I will have heating in my school and apartment! No more wearing my coat during classes (or while sleeping!!!).

2. The school
My school in South Africa was located in a rural village 30km outside of Polokwane (the pseudo capitol of Limpopo Province). My class size ranged from 24-42 students, and I taught students as young as 4, and as old as 22. I had a lot of freedom in my classroom, and was able to bring in other programs to help teach English (i.e. SOUNS), and HIV education (i.e. Grassroot Soccer). I also was able to start after school programs (i.e. running club), and opened a library.

My school in South Korea is located in a suburb of Seoul. My class size ranges from 3-11 students, and I teach children as young as 3 and as old as 11. I don't nearly have a much freedom in the classroom, and I teach from a program that has been predesigned for me. This makes teaching a lot easier because I don't have to spend my nights preparing for classes. I have a designated time during the school day to grade papers, and print out work for class. I teach with four other foreigners (two Americans, one South African and one Canadian).

3. Vacation

My vacation days in South Africa were unbelievable. I got off a whole month for winter break, a whole month for summer vacation, a three weeks for fall break, one week for spring break, and lots of little South African holidays in between. I was able to travel, and explore South Africa like a pro with all these vacation days!

South Korea, does not have such wonderful holidays. My summer vacation is a total of six days... and that includes the weekend...

How I spent my summer vacation, site seeing, and taking too many snapchats.

4. Pay

Although I might not have so many holidays, but South Korea definitely pays a lot better than what I was getting paid in the Peace Corps (obviously). I still get accommodation like I did when I was in South Africa, but I also get paid almost 10 times more than what I got paid in South Africa, and to me, that's a huge win!

This is going to be me on my first pay day. 

5. Transportation

Many of my peace corps friends can attest to the fact that I avoided traveling in South Africa, unless I had a friend who could pick me in a car. Most transportation is by taxi, and not like a yellow cab taxi that you find in the states, but a 16 passenger taxi that fills up and drops people off along a route. I hate these taxis, they were unsafe, you were usually handed a baby, and you were always squished between a extremely large woman eating a king pie and an overly drunk and boisterous man.

The transportation in South Korea is an absolute dream! There are subways that run from 5am-midnight, and buses, and taxis (like the taxis we have in America!). The subways are crowded, but the subway gets you where you need on time, without the possibility of breaking down in the middle of south of nowhere Limpopo! I'm just waiting to encounter my first drunk on a subway, because I know that's bound to happen.

6. Running

Like South Africa, South Korea has running clubs all over. Sadly the best running club I've found thus far is an hour subway ride from my home, so I've been too lazy to make it out to one of their group runs yet. But I was able to post on their Facebook page, and found another runner who lives 2 subways stops over who is now my new running buddy! Sadly there aren't any rhinos, giraffes, or kudu sitings on my runs anymore.

7. Language

During the first three months in South Africa, I was given lessons in Sepedi, the local language of where I was going to be stationed. Although I was given these lessons, my Sepedi was absolutely horrific, and luckily a lot of people in South Africa can speak English, since it is one of the eleven official languages.

My attempt to learn Sepedi. 

In Korea, the language is Korean, and sadly I do not get free Korean lessons here. English is not nearly as widely spoken here as it was in South Africa, but you can definitely get by without the language. I am still struggling to learn how to read Korean, and learning basic salutations, but everyone knows how horrible I am with language skills.

My attempt to learn to read Korean

More to come...

Once Upon a Time in Pondo Land

My favourite trip in South Africa was hiking The Wild Coast with a group of Peace Corps volunteers and our tour guide Jimmy.

I've always said that it doesn't matter where you are, it just matters who you're with... and I know I've been very blessed to be in the best peace corps cohort ever created, and we can have fun anywhere we go, The Wild Coast, was by far the best.

The hike started in Port St. Johns and ended in Coffee Bay, a 60km (40 miles) hike that spanned over five days. The terrain was mixed, from rolling hills, to flat, to wading through streams, to walking on the beach, to taking 'ferries.'

 

Each night, we slept in home stays in little villages that were scattered along the coast. At the home stays, we were prepared dinner (usually samp, pap, and some meat), and breakfast (usually fat cooks, porridge, bread). 

 

And each night before we went to sleep, Jimmy, our tour guide, would tell us a story that always started out “Once upon a time in Pondo Land...” and he would tell us hysterical stories about his childhood, and what it was like growing up in the wild coast.

Jimmy, himself, could have a whole book written about him. He talked about the most outrageous things, and would say words like 'exactle', and would tell stories about the times he used to wet the bed as a child (his solution was to tie a piece of string to the end of his penis to keep pee coming out... you can imagine how that ended!). You would think that Jimmy, a hiking guide, would be extremely fit. You are so very very wrong. Jimmy had a beer belly, and would struggle up every mountain, but the whole time he would be laughing, and telling stories.

The Wild Coast is possibly one of the most gorgeous pieces of landscapes I've ever seen, and it's so beautifully untouched. We swam in the ocean off beautiful beaches that have few visitors every year. 

We didn't see any trash along the hike (something of note, since Limpopo is littered with garbage). We saw birds, and weird bugs, and tons of beautiful trees and plants. Due to the fact we were pack backing and were staying in home stays along a unpopulated area, there was no place to charge our phones... and really no use since there was no signal. In a lot of ways this made the trip better, because we were able to spend the entire trip focused on the hike and staying up late laughing with each other... 

 

...but it made it so that my phone was dead the entire time... so I only took one picture (all the pictures in this blog were taken by friends).

When we made it into Coffee Bay we were all exhausted and excited to spend a few days relaxing by the beach. We stayed at Coffee Shack backpackers, where we all excitedly ordered a Savannah Dry (a refreshing cider, which was much needed). While there we visited Hole in the Wall, ate tons of pizza, met some very eccentric people, and laughed... a lot. 

 

 

 

On Being Poor

One of the aspects of being in Peace Corps is being paid like the locals do. This means that we make around the same amount as our counterparts and coworkers. Depending on where you work, it might be less, or your could be getting paid a whole lot more. Of course, every country is different. In South Africa, our monthly stipend is R2,700. When we first arrived, this equaled to exactly $270, but with the rand quickly falling, I'm now making more around $200 a month. This money is to be used to buy groceries, travel, entertainment, and scads of other things. I've been very lucky and haven't had to pay for rent, water or electricity. I've also been lucky because I was able to save up some money while working in the states, that I have used to go on holiday with.

The reason we get paid this little, is so that we can learn what it's like to live in these countries, and to figure out how to make it work. Peace Corps also doesn't want the volunteer to stand out, and to be buying luxuries while our neighbors are struggling to put food on the table. I've survived many nights on rice and beans, and have learned to embrace the 5 kilometer walk into town instead of spending money to take a taxi. When I grocery shop, I have given myself the chose of either a bar of chocolate or a brick of cheese, I cannot afford both. I have rationed my makeup so much so, that I am using the same makeup that I left America with.

For the most part, I haven't really minded being paid this little, and I have just allowed it to be an adventure. Besides $200 can go a long way in South Africa, if you allow it to. When I worked for City Year (AmeriCorps), I got paid 4x this amount, and struggled so much more.

Of course there is a time when the reality of the situation sinks in. At the beginning of my service, I acquired a litter of kittens, and one spade cat. I didn't really know anyone living in South Africa at the point, and was too worried about posting something on South Africa's equivalence of craigslist to find the kittens a new home. I found homes for some, and the rest just stayed with me. I didn't have much money, nor did I have a car, so the two feral kittens, stayed feral. I kept thinking about getting the female spade, but the cost of hiring a private taxi (that would allow a cat) and the vet fees were just too much. A year went by, and I forgot about it entirely, beside Tsotsi was the runt of the litter, she couldn't possibly become pregnant.

Famous last words, Tsotsi definitely got pregnant. Normally an outdoor cat, I allowed her into the bathroom at my house so that she could start nesting in my house instead of outside in the bush. Then while working out on a random Monday, Tsotsi's water broke all over my yoga mat. Throughout her labor, all I could think about was how could I take her to the vet if she has complications. I continued to search on my phone to see how long labor should take, and when to be alarmed. Luckily, after three hours, Totsi started popping kittens out. Four beautifully adorable kittens. 

As the week went by Tsotsi feed the kittens, bathed the kittens, and allowed me to hold each of them.

 

But by day 8, something was seriously wrong. Chicken was wandering away from the group, and was not feeding. He was breathing heavily, and meowing on and off. Bat was also struggling to eat, and was getting weaker and weaker by the second. Without a car, and with very little money, all I could do was hold them. I held Chicken in my hands, and Tsotsi quickly crawled in my lap and looked at her baby. We were poor, and we were helpless. I never felt more useless in my life. I didn't have a car, so I couldn't run out to the store to buy goat's milk (which is what the internet was requesting I do), and since it was already night, the private taxis would have doubled in price (it would have cost a whooping R240). I couldn't call a vet, because the price would have been astronomical. I was stranded, with four kittens, a new mother, without a car and without money. So I sat there and did what I could. I held the kittens, and I cried.

 Pictured: Chicken

Pictured: Bat

By the next morning, both Chicken and Bat were dead. Luckily, a few other Peace Corps Volunteers were staying at my house that week, so they helped me find a box, and dig a hole to bury the kittens in. As I buried the two kittens, all I could think about, was how much it sucked to be poor. Losing these two kittens, due to the lack of stipend I received, gave me a taste of what it's like to be truly poor. But for me, it was kittens that I lost, in many of these villages that peace corps volunteers work and live in, they lose much more than a pet, they lose children, mothers, uncles, they lose people. With hospitals so far away, and mobile clinics coming only every once and a while, many children die due to not getting correct medical attention. Unable to get to hospitals, people living in these remote rural villages are unable to receive HIV treatment consistently (not taking your ARVs on a daily basis is deadly).

Yes, I lost two kittens, two kittens that I had known for all of seven days, and I sat on my bathroom floor and cried because I was unable to do anything for them. But the reality is, is that so many people are losing family members, because there are no other options for them, there is no money, and the hospitals are so far away. I couldn't imagine holding a dying child in my arms, because I have no other option but to cry.

Sebotsi's Got Talent

Since I am the librarian at my school, I have had the opportunity to get know the students who frequent the library. A lot of the grade 11 and 12 students use the library time to find books for research projects, and to chat with me about university applications and life in general. It's been great for both myself and my students; I get to understand the difficulties they face everyday, and they get to know a little more about American culture.

One trouble that many students at my school face, is not being able to pay for the application fee for University. This is a unbelievably heartbreaking barrier. Can you imagine working hard through school to face the fact that you cannot even afford applying for a university? The fee for University of Limpopo costs R350, the equivalent of $25 (a year ago, it would have been $35). Now to put this in perspective, I get paid R2700 a month, which is higher than many of the parents in the village I work in. If they did get paid R2,700 a month, the application fee to one university is more than a 10^th of their monthly salary.

In the beginning of term 3, two of my grade 12 students came to me explaining that many of their classmates are not able to apply for university due to the high application fees. These two students didn't come asking for money, they came looking for a sustainable solution. A solution that would not help their class, but for the students that came after them. We started talking about different ways we could raise money for the grade 12 students next year. One of my South African friends who teaches in the city had just finished up a Talent Show at her school, and was able to raise a lot of money. I suggested doing a talent show for the school and charging each student R3 to raise money. The boys loved the idea, and we started working on a date for the auditions, a date for the actual talent show, and the age range that was allowed to participate in the school. We decided on grades 5-11, since grade 4 was too young, and grade 12 needed to focus on studying for their matric tests.

Auditions took place at the beginning of August. The day before the auditions started I had my two grade 12 students go to the grade 5-11 classrooms and inform them about the Talent Show. I recruited another teacher to help me watch and judge the auditions. From the auditions, we decided to take 10 different learners to perform for the actual Talent Show. We had a great array of students audition from comedians to dancers to singers. We posted the list of students who were a part of the show outside the library. For the next two weeks, I had the students come and practice their performances, and to give them feedback. I asked one of my charismatic grade 12 students to be the MC for the show, and gave him a script that he was allowed to deviate from whenever he saw necessary.

Our MC for the Talent Show
 

The week before the show, I asked a few Peace Corps volunteers to help be the judges for the show, since I felt it would be nice to have judges from outside the village. Plus, I would need to extra help when it came down to the show. I also made a program for the teachers, so that they would know what to expect during the show.

Wonderful peace corps volunteers sitting in as judges for the talent show.

Two days before the show, I started selling tickets. Of course, this is Africa, so no one bought tickets the days before. I was a nervous wreck the night before the show, thinking how I had only sold ten tickets. The next day, I asked four of my grade 11 students to help sell tickets, and the two grade twelve boys. Quickly sales spiked, and we were selling tickets faster than I could print them.

When it came to the show, I asked Nic and Zoe (my two Peace Corps Volunteer judges) to help set up the room for the show. We have two classrooms that has a divider between them that turns into a bigger room for performances and lectures. While they were doing that, I collected my performers to quickly practice one more time before they got changed into their outfits.

When it was time for the performance to start, I had two grade 11 students at the door to collect tickets and to let students in. After about twenty minutes, all the students had shuffled into the room, and the room was packed! I couldn't believe how many students ended up buying tickets!

Our audience!

My MC walked up on stage and got their attention to calm down, he then called Mr. Rangwato onto stage to open our show with prayer. Of course, since I'm really cheesy, I made all the teachers come up on stage, and sing a beautiful rendition of shosholoza, the only song that I could think of that we all know.

It was now the students' turn. They each came onto stage, and did their performances. Each one was received well, with lots of cheering. The MC congratulated all of them on their hard work, and praised them for how well they performed. When the performances were done, Nic and Zoe went to decide who were going to be Sebotsi's most talented, while my MC kept the crowd going with jokes and dancing.

When Nic and Zoe came back, they thanked all the students who performed, and then began giving out prizes. They prizes were a book, a pack of blue, black and red pens (something the students are lacking), notebooks, a CD, and a certificate. Third place went to the break dancer, second place went to a dancer (who was so excited she started crying), and first place went to a boy who recited a poem that he wrote.

 

At the end of the day we raised over R500. Enough to help two students send in applications to a university next year. The teachers loved the talent show, and are now planning to do another talent show next year.

Helpful tips for PCVs:

Every village is different, and every village has their own medium income. From what I knew about my students, was that they wouldn't spend more than R3 to attend the show, your village could possibly be completely different.

When you sell tickets to grades 6-11, write the name of the student on the front, so that the tickets cannot be stolen from one another.

When selling tickets to grades R-5, give their tickets to their teacher, so that they can hand them out right before the performance (otherwise they will lose them).

Ask the students to bring their outfits the day before the performance. One, so that you can make sure their change of clothes are appropriate, and two, so that the student will be prepared on the day of the performance.

Ask around to see if someone from the community can come and play music between performances and while the judges are deciding who has won.