Vacation – Part 2: Durban

After hanging out in East London, I decide to continue on alone to Durban. This coastal city is situated in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, home of the Zulu nation.  

Durban - Look to the East Coast!

On the 8-hour bus ride, a few really cool things happened:

1) Staring out the window, I felt something familiar. I oftentimes miss Malawi, the landscape and the earthy, basic beauty of the place.

In big, cosmopolitan Cape Town, I often long for this feeling. Seeing the rural landscapes pass by, I feel like I am back in Malawi.

My Aunt Sandra once told me that as a child, she believed that it wasn’t the car that moved people places. Instead, she thought you would get in the car, close the doors, and then the world would somehow move around you.

I felt the same way on this bus trip (as ego-centric as that may sound!). I plunked myself down on a seat near a window and the world morphed around me, offering landscapes that I could never imagine. How could I, with such little effort, have such a nice experience sitting looking out the window? 

2) The bus stops for a while due to construction. I look down at my phone and use the Facebook ‘check-in’ function to figure out where I am. Turns out we were stopped no place other than Qunu, the place where Nelson Mandela grew up!

3) Somewhere past Butterworth (yes, towns here are named after the colonizer too, despite seeming very away from their namesakes!) a woman gets on the bus and sits next to me.

The first thing that strikes me about Jazz is that she looks like a character from the book I was reading, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun. The beautiful character Olanna is described in this way:

‘Her oval face was smooth like an egg, the lush colour of rain- drenched earth, and her eyes were large and slanted and she looked like she was not supposed to be walking and talking like everyone else; she should be in a glass case like the one in Master’s study, where people could admire her curvy, fleshy body, where she would be preserved untainted.’

I feel shabby next to her in my makeshift head wrap, crumpled travelling clothes and pimple inflicted face.

She smiles and talks to me anyways. Turns out that Jazz is going home to Durban after visiting her family in the Eastern Cape. Her Dad is a town counselor and her Mom a teacher (sounds a little familiar right?!).

She asks where I’m staying and when I tell her the name of the cheap backpackers where I booked a dorm bed she looks very concerned. You’re going to be eating cockroaches all night there! How would you feel if I invited you to stay with me instead?

Technically, I know it isn’t the smartest thing to stay with an utter stranger in a city you’ve never been to. Especially when you are a solo female traveller in a very unequal country where ‘crime’ seems on the tip of everyone’s tongues.

At the risk of sounding trite, I disregarded that technicality and followed my intuition. And I’m glad I did.

Jazz is finishing her studies in Durban. She lives with her brother and sister who were gone for summer vacation. I had a room to myself, complete with a double bed. I woke up in the morning to a stunning view of Durban.

View from 'my' room - Durban

Jazz and I - at the Ocean 

The next few days, Jazz shows me around the city and I spend time hanging out with her and her boyfriend Lunga. They adore each other and I adore being around wonderful people who are positively in love. Having recently come out of a tough break-up, they remind me that love exists, and I feel hopeful and happy in their company.

Jazz and Lunga

The first morning she prepares breakfast for us and shows me how she makes eggs. The next day I make French toast for them, and the day after I teach them how to make it on request. Despite having to substitute corn syrup for maple syrup, they still liked it and wanted to learn! 

One of the things I love the most about travelling is this type of exchange. As trivial as it may sound, I love sharing breakfast making techniques and other little shards of lives.

I’m always floored by how willingly people share and open up to a foreign, scrungy traveller like myself.

I arrive back in Cape Town and am greeted at the airport by my dear friend Marina from the States. I am warmed, humbled and astounded by the love that I have been surrounded by here. This trip was exactly what I needed.

On the way back to Cape Town

Trip to Eastern Cape Province

A few years ago, I interviewed health care workers in townships surrounding Cape Town as part of a volunteer project. These health care workers, called Patient Advocates were truly inspiring individuals who work tirelessly to support people living with HIV in taking their medication and living healthy lifestyles.

Eastern Cape

Most of them, like many other South Africans in this area, hail originally from Eastern Cape Province.

A mostly rural area, Eastern Cape is said to be the home of the Xhosa people. It also happens to boast some of South Africa’s most famous, including the first and second presidents of democratic South Africa, Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki as well as founder of the Black Consciousness Movement Steve Biko (just to name a few!).

Needless to say, I've been wanting to visit the Eastern Cape for some time. 

I was lucky to receive an invite from a friend to join him on a trip home to East London (one of Eastern Cape's major cities) for a visit. There ended up being four of us travelling together, two friends from East London, a German expat and myself.

The 18-hour bus ride in itself was very eye opening. We move into more rural areas and pass through smaller towns. Siseko points out young Xhosa initiates wearing blankets with faces painted white, walking along the side of the road.

It felt new and familiar at once – in some places the level of development made me think of a less populated Malawi. 

One of my favourite things in the world is travelling overland to new places - I am always giddy with excitement and childlike as I press my face up the window to take in the new surroundings.

View from the bus window - Eastern Cape Province

East London is situated on the Indian ocean. The waterfront is beautiful and the weather more temperate (a treat after Cape Town winter). Rather than playing tourist as I usually do upon arriving in a city, I went along with whatever my local friends were doing - which was a lot of hanging out (and a lot of fun!).

East London

Street vendors posing for a picture - East London

One highlight was going to a Chisa Nyama, which is a barbeque restaurant. You buy raw meat from the attached shop and give it to the cook to have it braaied (barbequed). There are picnic tables to sit at, big bottles of beer to wash the meat down and loud, fantastic music.

Cook at Chiya Nyama, East London

Braai @ Chiya Nyama

I also stayed in a township for the first time which was both an eye-opening and heartwarming experience. People were extremely friendly and welcoming. A walk through the location quickly turned into hours hanging out on the street and chatting. The day was a beautiful blur of people blasting music from their cars, greetings, conversations and laughter.

The last evening, we visited another home and were met with (yet again) wonderful hospitality. We stayed up late into the night dancing in the living room to South African music (a mixture of old freedom struggle songs and newer stuff). What a beautiful glimpse into a different side of South African culture and life. 

Ewonke busting a move

Below are some pictures of our time in East London, most taken by Siseko in the community where he grew up. 

Owner of Lungi's Tavern - She invited me in to chat and hang out with her grandchildren (below)

Tumi

Following a few days in East London, I continued on alone to Durban (next post!).

Malawian Proverbs

Sitting in the office with my colleague Eddie, I learn that the Malawian government has made a commitment to phase out a toxic compenent of HIV treatment. This response was partially triggered by an advocacy letter that Eddie himself signed.

Laughing, he say's 'I'm glad for the result. I thought I had burnt my fingers signing that letter'.

I sit dumbfounded for a moment, trying to understand what he is saying. After a second I realize that he is saying that he thought he had made a career limiting move by signing the letter, a very political act of advocacy.

After congratulating him oncemore on such a huge victory, I start thinking about the use of proverbs here. What a simple and beautiful way to express himself. It gives the listener an image, ignites the mind and accurately conveys his message. Burning ones fingers is much nicer than saying 'I thought I screwed myself over'

Malawians use a plethora of proverbs in daily life. These are used for expressing thoughts and feelings as well as imparting lessons.

Coming from a very direct culture, these mind twisters are oftentimes lost on me. Its a shame that I can't seem to wrap my head around more because they are one of the parts of Malawian culture that I appreciate most.

After a year here, I've managed to learn a few that I apply to my experience in Malawi.

Being that I'm leaving this week, I wanted to share the proverbs that have helped me understand this experience.

1) Proverb: 'Walira mvula walira matope.'

Translation: 'He who cries for rain cries for mud.'

In a country where over 80% of Malawians engage in subsistence agriculture (growing their own food to eat), the rains are fundamental to life. Mud being a byproduct of rain, the proverb reminds us that if we ask for something, we have to also be prepared to take what comes along with it.

I came to Malawi because I desperately wanted to learn about a different way of life, to develop as a person and to hopefully to make a difference. My time here has allowed me space to do these things but hasn't been without challenges. The proverb reminds me to suck it up when I'm taking a cold shower, sitting in the dark or craving cheese - because these challenges are the mud to my rain.

2) Proverb: 'Zidze pano ndi zatonse'

Translation: 'That which befalls one of us befalls all of us.'

Child in Rural Nkhotakota, Malawi

Follow the leader! Nkhotakota, Malawi

This translation apparently doesn't capture the full meaning behind the proverb. When asking colleagues to translate, they would say things like 'if the ship is off course, we are all going in the wrong direction' or 'when the rain falls we all get wet' – not direct translations, but they were trying to convey the actual meaning.

Coming from a culture which prioritizes individuality, this type of communal mentalitiy has been a pleasant shift in my way of thinking. It is true that events that have occurred during my time here have help bind me to the country. I felt afraid along with Malawians when the president died and a new leader wasn't announced for days. I felt angered alongside my fellow women at the trouser strippings and joyful at the coming into power of Malawi's first female president. Devaluation of the currency by 50% and the subsequent inflation was felt by all of us. The HIV virus impacts our workplaces, relationships and communities. When someone gets married (however distant the relation) we all go to celebrate.

Oftentimes when walking here, people come and walk beside me. Sometimes they speak and ask questions, and sometimes they just silently keep pace and provide company. There is a sense of community and connection to fellow humans here. Zidze pano ndi zatonse.

3)  Proverb: 'A child who doesn't leave his family compound thinks his mother is the best cook.'

Typical Malawian food: Nsima, chambo, soup and rape (green leafy veg).

First off: Mom, I love your cheese and brocolli casserole.

This said, trying new things allows us to experience more of the beautiful flavours and textures that life has to offer. Coming here and trying something different has allowed me to experience new music, different types of food, words in a new language, and a different approach to time to name a few.

I'm grateful for these experiences and have no doubt that they will continue to enhance my life after I leave.

The use of proverbs in language is something else that I have come to appreciate being here – something I wouldn't have gotten if I'd stayed on the family compound.

Eating typical Malawian food with my friend Happy Joe.