Exploring South Africa

By Idowu Jeremiah, Foster Undergraduate who participated in an Exploration Seminar in South Africa during Early Fall Start 2017. Idowu was a GBC Study Abroad Scholarship recipient. 

Over the course of three weeks, I explored the beautiful continent of Africa specifically Cape Town, South Africa. Now recording my experience, I still cannot believe that I got to live out a childhood dream of mine. South Africa embraced me with its deep-rooted history, vibrant culture and the empowerment of its people. I’ve never been in a country where its people were so proud to be South African amidst of the economic and political climate.

One unforgettable experience that I had was a visit to a restaurant called Marco’s Place. In a span of spending close to 3 hours at the restaurant I learned so much about the culture, its people and traits that I will forever hold near and dear to my heart. The restaurant welcomed my colleagues and I with open arms and heart. This created a safe place for us all to trust and try out different cuisines. I remember they had a live band which included native singers and amazing instrumentalists. My colleagues and I were challenged to dance in front of the audience and play some pretty awesome instruments.

The bulk of my experience however was in the work I did. I worked in an organization called CESVI. This non-profit organization works to help women and who have experienced different forms of domestic violence, child abuse, rape, HIV testing and so on. I worked specifically with the Inyanda network which is a youth empowerment sector specifically targeted towards young adolescent girls and boys to raise awareness of HIV/Aids, practicing safe sex and many more. I worked closely with the program manager to come up with curriculums that we could discuss with the kids to keep them educated.

My experience was amazing, I learned so much from the culture and its people.