Crossing Off The Top 3

Today I finished my list of South Africa cuisine that I had to try during my time here.
1. Chickens feet
2. Fatcook
3. Smiley - today's lunch!

A smiley is the local nick name for a boiled then braai barbecued sheeps head. After having read the book Khayelitsha, in which smileys are mentioned often as a delicacy and a socialable dinner that is fairly common in the township, I had to try one. It's amazing that I was able to try this meat and for such a good price - particularly after sharing the cost between 5 other people. I was a little disappointed we couldn't carve the meat off the head ourselves but unfortunately we didn't have a knife to do it with. Instead it was already butchered after it was cooked and we got to dig into all the pieces. I found it really interesting to know which part of the head I was eating. But the girls who weren't trying it were less eager and made faces throughout!

Personally I found that I enjoyed the cheek and tongue the most. The cheek was the most like a normal cut of lamb meat, whereas the tongue was very similar to the consistency of liver. Each mouthful we got to season with a special mix the came with the similey which comprised of a lot of salt and some other red spices like perhaps paprika or chilli/curry powder, I'm not sure but it sure tasted good!
The part that I had the most trouble with was the ear - it was manly cartilage which was in a layer between two layers of meat/fat that was only very thin. The crunch was very unusual and was a bit difficult to follow through with. All I could do is remember the crispy pigs ear we used to treat my dog with when I was younger.

Monday

In other news I've had a great past couple of days - Monday saw the arrival of new volunteers. It's so fun not to be the newest anymore! I get to share my knowledge with them instead and I love to talk so I'm really enjoying it! For example two new people joined me for HomeFromHome so I taught them the peanut butter and jam sandwich ritual! This week we made King/queen crowns after having a quick chat about English monarchy and how it links to politics in the UK. It got real messy real quick but I had a blast making my own crown with them.

Tuesday

Tuesday was a mixed day - in the morning we had to stay in the classroom to complete the end of term PE tests with the kids. I tried to make it more fun for them by doing actions for the coaches explain atoms but I'm the end I was stuck marking all the papers, but I was in the company of a really funny coach who was in a talkative and cheeky mood which created a fun atmosphere for us.. Fortunately HomeFromHome made up for the morning. Accompanied by the new sports volunteer we proceed to facilitate a really fun and engage sports lesson where all the boys and girls were playing together really well with good sportsmanship. 4 corners worked well as a warmup especially as I added anew command called 'break it down' which got the kids dancing! They love to dance so it went down as well as I had hoped so much so they we used it Wednesday too!

Wednesday

Smiley was the obvious highlight but project was super fun today too. I really enjoy doing multiple classes for 30mins as we can get them running around exercising amd playing games. 4 corners, the numbers game and buddies up was so much fun!! And the new volunteer loved to learn the new games like Sharky Sharky. Which was fun as always - Mingle was a very popular game today which got everyone involved and singing. And as I was captain I lead the game which strained my voice just a little! Then I spent the rest of the day playing cricket with the grade 2-3s which was really enjoyable in the Cape Town sun / rain! Yes it was a bit cold and wet today, reminds me of home.

Until next time xxx love to all my family xx

So then in the afternoon it was GAPA

CatchUp Weds Thurs Fri & RealTalk

Let's do a quick highlight reel the of the past week (take #2)

Wednesday 

Another day on project at the Khayelitsha primary school. Only this time our classes for grade 1 had cancelled because of assessments. So instead we taught the classes which were free and had to adapt our plans. One grade we taught was the grade R's which was amazing as they are at the age where they will follow any instruction to the letter which is just adorable.

Again we got to snack on the local fast food, they boil bread rolls in oil and create a savoury donut type bread roll called a fatcook. Then they fill this delicious bread with various things like burgers or onions and relish or sausage or even chips. It's great, going into the project I didn't know whether I would eat very well but I probably eat more here than when I'm at home!

The afternoon project was GAPA (Grandmothers Against Poverty And AIDS) an after school club ran by elderly members of the local community who we call the Grannies. In the Xhosa culture elders are respected so much because of their knowledge and experience. Today was extra special because it was a staff members (of 2 years) last day. So one of the Grannies gave a extremely powerful speech about the importance of our voluntary work. The passion and strength in her voice was incredible and filled me with pride, and her words rang true. She explained that she would stand up and shout to anyone who will listen and together as one we could bring about change for her country and her people. We have taken the first steps by shedding our prejudice and simply playing and talking to members of the township, most people in South Africa would never even consider doing such a thing. So by having international volunteers that can help broadcast what they have learnt is invaluable.

Thursday

Morning project is the primary school in Khayelitsha, with the grade 4's that we missed the day before because of assessments. They were so excited to be outside playing and doing sport so we had so much fun. We played one of my new favourite games with them called BuddiesUp. Where in pairs of one girl and one boy they need to do certain actions together, reacting to my signals. For example switching places in the line or giving piggy backs etc. It's so much fun! Another new game we played was a game called 'mingle' where they sing a song which goes.. "I like to mingle, miingle mingle mingle!" And repeat ad needed. Then when I call a number they must make a group containing that number or else they are out! 

Me and Åne had become a well oiled machine by today. We work so well as a team, we take it in turns to take the lead explaining and synchronise doing example drills to the others explanation. The relay races we did worked really well, making them practise catching for their coordination, and then skipping ropes too. This activity worked the best today because we had lots of 30 minute classes due to assessments in school, so the fact that we could re use the same cone layout was really useful.

GAPA afternoon: today is the day where you can buy items that the grannies have crafted to help fund the project. They have a range of different knitted toys, hats and mug cosies as well as ornate necklaces and bracelets made from the traditional coloured beads. I just had to buy some presents for my familly! In addition to that I was the captain so I had to lead to the 'each one teach one' meeting with the grannies where this week they taught us a song. This was complicated as half the grannies had to cater for the business men/women from the board where the rescuers funding. So there was actually only one granny in the meeting! So instead I convinced her to fetch some kids to help me learn the 'make a circle song' in Xhosa - it sounds so fun and all the kids know exactly what to do when they hear this tune! Afterwards with the kids we played games like 3 sticks, benchball  and tomatoe ball which was all great fun.

 

When we got home from project we had a delightful evening as the Happy Africa Foundation was hosting a pub quiz at a local establishment called 'A Touch Of Madness' which has great local craft beers and nachos. Despite the two volunteer teams coming joint last it was a great night with the volunteers and members of the public alike all pitching in and getting involved. Lyda took some amazing pictures on the Facebook AfricanImpact page.

Friday

So, Friday- the half day. Where we spend the morning on project which means Khayelitsha primary school for me, and then planning in the evening. The morning was a lot of fun, even though we only had two classes before we had to leave (because we had the responsibility to pick everyone else up.) we did races and then an obstacle course which was really hectic. Lots of kids trying to go round a small obstacle course all at the same time was carnage but great fun. Åne did a great job of setting it up and getting everyone doing the stations the right way.

When we got home we planned the next week ready for the new volunteers to follow with me on Monday - as Åne would be leaving on Monday! Which is super sad - I'm going to (am) missing that dude as my sports buddy. His Instagram and Facebook has so many good photos I might just have to adopt all his galleries.

In the evening after dinner we decided to have a quiet night ready for the community tour the next day.. Which I will write a whole post about because there was such a vast quantity of interesting historical and present information about the various townships we working in and around and just general history of South Africa which is fascinating.

To the weekend! Cheers! 

Brief

I did write a blog yesterday which talked about last week but it deleted itself instead of uploading.. So, I am okay. Last week was great and I will have to rewrite it at some point today. But right now I'm up so early to catch a bus that's going to take me and some other lads shark cage diving. Should be amazing but right now I'm just trying not to fall back asleep!

More blogs coming soon! Love to all my familly xxx

CatchUp, RealTalk: Tuesday Brings A Change Of Plan

Manifestations In Langa Create An Interesting Start To Another Great day. 

Today kicked off with drama. Originally the sports crew were heading to Langa - the same place as yesterday- which I was super excited about because I enjoyed it so much. Plus, this time I would have my phone on me so I could take some great pictures of our sport lessons, with Table Top Mountain in the background. However, that's not quite how it unfolded because in the morning we discovered two situations that would cause problems for us.

Number one was that all the train lines in and around Khayelitsha were out of order, so some of our staff members couldn't meet us at HQ in Observatory. So instead decided to rendezvous at the school.. But as you can probably guess from the title, that was not a simple journey:

RealTalk

All this stems from the conversation I had with Thulani (the bloke trying to meet with us, a knowledgable and talkative guy whom I trust for news like this.) So, there are two roads into the township Langa, and both were blocked in protest by unhappy residents. Recently the government is trying to convert parts of the informal settlement into formal houses, built by the government. However the waiting list is so long that people are become restless as the rate at which construction is taking place simply isn't quick enough. With limited houses being given out, they were unhappy about the selection process - with rumours of corruption. The people just want a secure place to call home.

So in order to show that they are unhappy they shutdown the township by blocking roads and burning tires. Not in a malicious way to hurt anyone - just to disrupt people's daily lives and make the news so their voices will be heard. Nevertheless the police showed up in force to refuse entry to the township, protect the new houses.

CatchUp 

We had to be flexible and adapt, so we picked Thunlani up from the motorway and headed to the other primary school in Khayelitsha. Our coordinator Vicky matter-of-factory said to us it's 'just what you have to deal with sometimes in (south)Africa.' So some kids got to have some extra sport lessons! They were very excited about this - especially the little Grade R's (preschool age.) With whom we played many games like 'Sharky Sharky' with lots of different animal combinations where we had to make the sound of our animal before they ran. It's was super fun and they are just the cutest! They will happily do whatever you ask of them which is perfect for us coaches.

Then in the afternoon we travelled to the HomeFromHome project nearby, which means peanut butter jelly time! Plus we brought some string and scissors to make bunting out of the craft people the children made the day before. When we hung it up in the library room where all the mamas and teachers stay they couldn't believe how good they looked! Saying that they wanted to get some larger pieces of fabric so they can copy the designs and sell them! It was really sweet and I was very proud of them all.

On Tuesday's we do sports with the group instead of crafts so today we played a lot of team games like 'tomatoe ball' and the 'caterpillar game' which was fun. But we noticed that the girls were losing interest and the lads were getting rowdy in rough and tumble so we commenced a game of football. I had a blast playing for the orange team - despite the 4-3 loss and getting too sweaty I'm the process.

In the evening after project we planned our weekend - we're going on a community tour of Khayelitsha led by Thulani which should be incredible. Ideally followed by a cable car to Table Top Mountain. Then Sunday is SHARK CAGE DIVING followed by camps bay beach! So it's action packed and I hope to make full use of my pay check from Chatsworth today!

Love to all my familly xxx see you tomorrow! 

CatchUp: I Love Mondays

New School and the Sandwich Dance

This morning the bus was not a volunteer bus, it was the lads on tour bus! We had the transport to ourselves which was slightly strange seeing as there are only about 6 staff and volunteers out of 25 that are male. So naturally it was all girls and football talk.. No not really, it's Monday morning for crying out loud! 

But saying that I had probably the best day yet today. Everything at the primary school went according to plan. The kids were slightly older than what we normally teach so it was so refreshing to be able to challenge their abilities with some more complex drills. Today we focused on passing and dribbling the ball with various relay games and drills that we made up ourselves - it so satisfying to use the same cone layout for 5 different things so that you don't have to constantly change the playing field. During the lesson we also did some endurance and agility runs to tie in with the specification for physical education in schools, within their age bracket. 

So we completely smashed the morning in regards to coaching, and then to put the icing on the cake the sunshine was so lovely and warm (don't worry I did put on my sunscreen) which made our unhindered view of table top mountain just stunning. I've never gotten over how unreal it looks and I don't think I will get tired of its majestic peaks even when you can see it from anywhere in the city.

The afternoon only continued to snowball my amazing morning. At Home From Home I was practicing my German dancing (benefits of having tipsy German friends) whilst making sandwiches because I was in such a good mood. So when I got into the classroom I was motivated to have a good session. As it is South African heritage day this week I had planned some craft activities for the group. However, before we got stuck in, we compared my British traditions to Xhosa and South African traditions. It's was so lovely to have a discussion with the kids and I was genuinely learning so much from them. Weddings and ceremonies about entering manhood particularly stuck in my mind and interested me.

Our first activity was to make bracelets out of craft paper and decorate them with traditional South African patterns. Some of the designs they produced were really creative and certainly reflected their country, it was just what I wanted to see. I even got to make one myself with them, seeing them so engaged and the way I was interacting with the group was perfect - just how I want the sessions I run by myself to unfold.

Half the lesson was based on this craft, and with a short interlude of an intense national quiz we proceeded to designing an outfit for the paper men I had brought with me. We managed to get some off cuts from the local textiles store, so we had a whole bag full of brightly coloured, patterned fabric. Which we cut out and stuck  to the figures. Again the kids loved it and when I showed the staff back at HQ they couldn't believe how good they looked and how sweet it was that they had put all this effort in and really connected with my lesson. As you can imagine the tidy up at the end was an absolute nightmare but it didn't detract from the experience at all.

Love to all my family xxx catch you tomorrow!

Memorable Moments from the Weekend

Dancing, Hop On/Off and the Amazing Adventure That Almost Happened

Friday night kicked off my first weekend in Cape Town with free time so explore as I pleased. First of all a small group of us travelled to the waterfront mall to have a wander around the shops. Some of us wanted to buy a cheap phone for the free sim the staff members gave us , personally I was on the look out for a new baseball cap as a useful souvenir. I found the perfect one and have worn it everyday since! Then we had a quick drink before heading back to Obz (Observatory the suburb in which we stay.) 

All the volunteers met at 'Jerrys' a local bar in time for the football match - Liverpool vs Chelsea. (I'm just glad we didn't do the same with the Man Utd game the next day.. Enough said.) Everyone was in high spirits and by the end of the match all the girls had lost interest in football and much preferred a round of tequila - lead by the lovely, loud, latina - Andrea of Mexico. The party carried on into another place, a favourite spot for the volunteers to listen and dance to some RnB/rap music and then to an amazing bar full of pool tables. There must have been over 20 tables and also some arcade machines dotted around the place. The two things I remember the most there was the Malibu and Coke tasting great and the number of songs by the Arctic Monkeys! A little bubble of Sheffield thousands of miles from home. 

Saturday was when most of the volunteers went on a wine tour - I'm far to unrefined for that sort of stuff.. In other words I don't like wine.. Luckily another volunteer was of the same opinion so instead we went into Cape Town city centre to explore using the bright red tour bus. We managed to walk down long street (a notorious street dominated by bars and nightclubs) which was quite lovely during the day. In particular a cute little cafe called Lola's where we stopped for some roobios tea (tea from the Cape) and cheese cake. Then we explored around the area - like Bo-Kapp a colourful Muslim district with beautiful houses and a mosque. As well as the company gardens which was lovely, lots of pretty flowers, fat squirrels, majestic trees and birds that will scare the life out of you with their deafening squawk. Yeah that happened to me!

The other highlight was the tour guide from the 'pentagon castle' which was a pretty puny fortification compared to the massive ones in the UK. He was incredibly knowledgeable and super fun. Especially as he asked where everyone was from, so he could point at a citizen of the country he was giving a history lesson on. Naturally the Dutch and English (me) got a lot of attention but it was in a lighthearted manner which was really funny. But the key moment was at the end. He obviously lived and breathed this history. The passion was incredible, so when he gave a speech about historical attitudes and how to move forward it was inspiring. I remember the way he made me feel rather than specifics words he said. However this phrase stood out: 'Only when we free ourselves from shame and blame can we move forwards' 

Sunday was the day that might have been. Don't get me wrong the morning was magical, half of us sat down at a local cafe for breakfast. I had French toast with syrup and fried banana but the eggs benedict looked amazing, not to mention the French toast with fruit nuts and Nutella.. Can't believe I didn't choose that in hindsight! But fortunately I have a sweet friend who donated some strawberries to me so I was a very happy boy.  

Now for the nightmare part, we split up to get ready for a nice easy hike around the silver mines reservoir. Or at least that's how it was recommend to us. When we told the taxi driver where we wanted to go he just looked blankly at us. Bless him, I had just woken him up from his nap in the car. So he callled HQ on the radio trying to find this place and we just went round in circles for like 15 minutes. It was laughably terrible. It was going to cost a lot and take us 1hr to get there according to the radio. That was NOT what we were told. The fair was far too much for us so we aborted mission and went into the city centre. And tipped the bloke well for the fiasco we had caused. 

And so we embarked on a relaxed cultural tour of the city - of course I was now the guide having spent the day before in town. Company gardens again, a quick pop round the informal markets and then we went to the South African national art gallery. The security was hilarious - the 'safe' lockers for our bags could be lifted up.. Maybe I just have a criminal brain, the others thought I could be a master thief. It was a shame you couldn't take pictures because there were some freaky statues and powerful artwork- as you can imagine coming from a country with such a recent emotional history.

I feel that covers just about everything - I have learnt a lot this last week and going forward I will try and do more frequent smaller blogs and now I have a couple RealTalk and Heart2Heart topics to share too. Stay tuned! Love to all my family xx

CatchUp: First Week in Cape Town!

The Plan 

As a Sports Volunteer Coach I have my week planned out by the organisation - where I will be volunteering and with what age group. And for the last week because I was new they had planned out activities for me to do as well. As I did not plan the games so worked better than others so naturally I created a flexible session where I could focus on certain activities that the kids understood more/enjoyed the most.

Pretty reliable games quickly presented themselves: 'BenchBall' and 'Sharky Sharky' were well know games by the kids and they always had a blast playing them. On the Tuesday we played a game called 'don't fall in the water' where yoga mats we brought with us were the islands and the ground was the sea, and they had to get from one side to the other, without falling in!

Unfortunately on Friday there was a terenchal rain storm all morning. We set out on the bus in the morning cautiously optimistic that we could still do a session with the kids despite the rain. But it was soon obvious that we would not be playing any games outside. Huge puddles blocked half the streets down the narrow township tracks, relentless rain made me empathise for the inhabitants of the informal houses - they don't look too waterproof!

So when we arrived we had to stay in the little hall, without doing any classes. So to keep busy we started planning activities for next week - me and Aane shared our knowledge of different sport drills, it's so fun to learn all different games from different countries. I feel like I have an endless supply now! After we exhausted the planning process we decided to get some more chicken feet again! But still we had time to kill, so the coach from school went to get a class and we hastily set up a benchball game. Imagine having 40 kids in a classroom that would be full with all of them sitting down, but all running around like crazy headless chickens!They had a great time though, and I helped keep everyone safe on the sidelines and made sure there were no fights because green team was winning so much!

In the afternoon we planned for next week and organised what equipment we will need and packed it all away, ready. Me and Aane already thought of so many things it was easy, and then all the staff members were very impressed with us. I'm so excited to start next week and do the sports we planned! I'm confident it's going to be loads of fun and will work perfectly.

 Now we could relax and enjoy the weekend.

CatchUp: Coach! Pass The Chicken Feet

First Day At School

Wednesday was the first day me and the other sports volunteers spent at the primary school in Khayelitsha for the whole morning - and then at GAPA in the afternoon. GAPA is awesome but that will be for another time. 

A quick note about Khayelitsha (Kai-lisha) it is the 2nd largest informal settlement in South Africa just outside of Cape Town, and it is also the fastest growing township. Officially 1 million people live there but in reality it's more than double that number.

We come into primary schools because physical education is not a compulsory lesson within the curriculum so they need coaches and volunteers to facilitate 1 hour for them each week. Because of this they're so excited and have so much energy which is awesome. If you can engage them and direct that energy into your activities then it's so much fun. At first we helped the school employed coach with his lesson - making sure the kids are doing the drills correctly, and not cheating.. They're so competitive!! And my fellow volunteer coach Aane, feeds off of this energy - he loves it.. And so do I! From now on we will try and make everything a game or competition to give the kids that extra kick.

It's amazing how quickly I had to pick up some Xhosa words to control the children. 'Baleka' became a integral command and my body language was so important when communicating. But obviously I could not run a session by myself. The most fun part of the whole day was playing 'buddies up' with the children, where you have to react with your partner - doing certain movements - when the coach shouts. The slowest pair are out! The joy on my partners face when she was lifted up the highest for the piggy back was the cutest thing. Ever.

Then after all the activities - my Xhosa supervisor/African impact employee - convinced me and Aane to give him 10 rand to pick up some chicken feet - popular street food sold in Khayelitsha which is very cheap. He brought back around 10 of them in a greasy brown paper bag. He then proceeded to teach us the correct way to eat them. First pull of the bone and suck off the meet and skin attached. Then what's left is the actual foot. The trick is to bite off the claws first making sure to find any meat attached, and then just pop it all in at once! Fiddle around with it around your mouth and give it a little crunch, fatty bits, skin and chicken flavour is the best way to describe it. And then you simple spit out any cartilage and bone that you have picked dry. It was really fun experience and I am not a fussy eater and found it rather tasty!

In the afternoon we did similar activities with children in the after school project GAPA. The little boys charging round with a football was especially fun. As well as the little girls who were trying to teach me various hand clapping games.

Back to the house in the afternoon/evening for a family meal and discuss weekend plans. Hopefully me and a couple others can hike up Table Top Mountain or even hit the beach. Definitely dancing surfing in the South African sea! Probably will be more pleasant than Cornwall!

Days are so busy and enjoyable I'm finding hard to find the time to blog as I'm so preoccupied with volunteer stuff and socialising on an evening. To my family: love you all xxx and  I'm having an absolute blast with a group of wonderful people in an amazing part of the world. Learning so much everyday - it will take me forever to say everything!

First Day In Cape Town

Catch Up: Exciting First Day with African Impact

I arrived at Cape Town International yesterday morning at 10am where I was met by two lovely African Impact staff members, along with a fellow volunteer who caught the same flight as me! I felt instantly welcome and the car ride home was buzzing with excited conversation about ourselves, our plans and how amazing it is to be in Cape Town. Even though I was amazed by the natural beauty of the cape flats and table top mountain I couldn't help notice the mass of informal houses that we swept by. Stretching for miles in all shapes and sizes were corrugated steel sheets, haphazardly fixed together to provide shelter. Passing by Luntu and Khayelitsha I reflected on the years of geography lessons about 'favelas' in Brazil and the shanty towns of India. It's very different seeing them in person. But I am prepared to work with an open mind and from my background research the people are extremely warm. I remember feeling just such an overwhelming pull to the place - I wanted to experience it and learn about it. I was excited!
And then when we got back to volunteer HQ and met the rest of the gang I knew this experience will be amazing.

Fortunately, because I landed in the morning, I got chance to join the project in the afternoon in the township (informal settlement) of Khayelitsha. I went to the HomeFromHomw after school project. (I got a personal introduction to the program which I will condense for you now: ) This is a daycare initiative for 10-14 year old fostered children to get them off the streets after school. Studies show that this time from 3pm till 5pm is when children are at their most vulnerable, as they are without adult supervision. With substance abuse, gang crime and other antisocial behaviour is common in the township it is very dangerous.

This project is ran mainly by the 'mamas' ( mothers ) with support from us volunteers. They also get a snack and a meal as added incentive to come and to make sure they have some food.

Another volunteer had a plan already in place for me to deliver to the children. So we sat down in the classroom and I gave a brief lesson on Ireland and Celtish traditions and then they coloured in a Celtic knot pattern. And for being so good they got to play a game of guess the flag afterwards.

Because it was the first night I felt it was important to meet everyone and get to know them, and there was also a lot of general information thrown at us so that the house could be run efficiently and everyone knows they're jobs and the routine. Now I feel comfortable (and have the wifi password) I think on a night I can blog about the days experiences. But we will see if that is sustainable or not.

I can't wait to tell you about my first full day on project and all the facinating details I learnt during the induction about the charity and the area. So stay tuned.

Sitting In Heathrow

The Special Day When I Travel To Cape Town

Right now I have found a quaint little 'Grande Brasserie' with good music and a coffee. Despite the women opposite me eating like a half starved chimpanzee, I'm enjoying the atmosphere. And I'll tell you what: I've had a wonderful morning. My family have made me feel very special. I had my favourite breakfast (PANCAKES!) and a sunday roast dinner to send me off right with the tastes of home.

With 2 hours to wait until my flight I feel as though a blog is a great way to kill some time reflecting about my already emotional day. Having to wave goodbye to my family was tear-jerking. 
So far I have passed with flying colours. Which is slightly out of character for me. I'm not some control freak, detail driven individual who plans and organises well. Which is probably why I'm so good at seeking help and I'm definitely going to keep on improving these skills over this year.

Let me define flying colours: I haven't forgotten anything, I didn't lose anything the day before (actually, I did have to fish my wallet out of some dirty chinos. But I promise I knew they were there..) and I've ticked off items on my checklist to buy at the airport! I now have a way to charge my various devices ( that could have been a disaster) with a funny looking South African plug and a new USB Apple lead. And I still had change left over for a coffee.

I've also been thinking about how I am going to manage to keep doing the blog and send my family and friends updates. So to maximise efficiency we now have a Instagram account: boywriteshome 
and at least 2 family whatsapp group chats. Now all I need to do is find a decent wifi cafe in Cape Town and we're golden.

I also have a couple ideas for organising the blog too. In the subheading I'm going to list the area I am going to talk about, to minimise the waffle. And they're going to be divided into 3 categories: 
1. Real Talk - where I will try to share some of my experiences and pearls of wisdom that I have picked up over the summer so you don't make the same mistakes as me!
2. Heart2heart - if I ever get emotional and want to talk about my family at home or something special I witnessed while volunteering this will be it he subheading.
3. Catch Up - this will be the majority of posts when I tell you about my day to day exploits.


And that's about everything I wanted to say today! Next time I will be reporting back from Cape Town, South Africa! How surreal! I'm still waiting for it to hit me, maybe it'll happen when I arrive, or on the plane journey? Speaking of which I best go catch a flight..!

Getting Started

How Do Adventures Start?

My Gap Year Plan, Why Take A Gap Year, and My Progress Thus Far.

When it comes to gap years or traveling advice I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination. However, in an effort to help those; who like me need/needed some encouragement I have this... JUST GET STARTED!
But those three simple words are much easier to say than to adhere to. For example I have been waiting since February for a special day to punctuate my first blog and make it a special occasion (which was a great excuse to procrastinate.) However now, with 3 days until my gap year 'starts' I have finally decided to bite the bullet. And you, the reader, have a lot to catch up on.

The Master Plan

Which really isn't a master plan, it's just the 3 things I really wanted to do going into my gap year.

1. Become a Snowboard Instructor
2. Spend summer 2017 being a camp councillor on a North American kids summer camp
3. Volunteer abroad

Now three things doesn't seem too bad but believe me, these simple and naive wishes quickly filled up my time and emptied the money in my savings account! I've listed them in the order of my personal desires, in reality they will happen in the order: 3, 1, 2. So yes, I have managed get all the cogs in motion to make all of this happen - but I did not do this alone. In fact almost none of this would have happened without the input of my loved ones and their overwhelming support.

In other words.. after realising what I wanted to achieve, they were the ones who frankly yanked my head out of the sand and made me face the daunting, terrifying, exciting prospect of spending a year fulfilling some of my life long dreams. It too big to take in all at once, I struggled to grasp the reality of it many times but by breaking it down and sharing my worries and research; its happening.

Why Take A Gap Year?

For me it's a chance to take a break from the education system which just seemed to drag on through sixth form and didn't engage me as much as I wanted. It's a period of time to reevaluate my aspirations and make sure that if I commit to going to university I am doing a course I will love, and it will be worth the £27000+ of debt and the arguably more expensive - 3 years of my life.

That commitment scares the life out of me, I want a bit of adventure and life experiences before I get tied down with all these seemingly 'grown-up things' to an 18 year old boy. I'm the only one out of my circle of friends taking a gap year. Many of them seriously questioned my decision with reasons like 'you will be behind everyone else' - life this isn't a race between each other, and the fact that everyone expects a kid with a brain to go to university annoys me! It makes me question why.

So instead I'm taking productive gap year. Getting work experience, following my passion for youth work and sports education, and living my dream of traveling and seeing that massive, exciting world we live in.

My Progress Thus Far

It has not been easy sailing, planning a whole year is tough but it has taught me a lot. Now this post is already pretty long so I'm going to promise you more details of the planning process and my hard work that I am so very proud of for a later post. All you need to know for now is: 

I'm flying to Cape Town, South Africa on Sunday. Volunteering there for a month, the taking a 5 day safari trip in the surrounding area.

October-November when I get home I will see friends and family and work a lot ( in order to keep people happy and so that I can afford to eat for the next 8 months..) 

November 23rd I will be going to Panorama Resort, Canada to become a snowboard instructor and to work the ski season- and then over the summer I will remain in Canada become a camp councillor over the summer. Even thought that still needs to be ironed out- I know what I need to do.

So I have a lot report on this blog, and it will only grow as time goes on. So stay tuned!