Journal Entry #2

What is your initial reaction to South Africa? How has what you've seen so far differed or confirmed your expectations?

Due to the fact we arrived so late in the evening on our first day in South Africa, my initial reaction to the country was primarily shaped by my experience at the University of the Western Cape as this was the first place we visited as a group. What stood out to me the most during the visit were the student presentations, particularly the post-doctoral student who presented her research on alcohol addicted mothers in South Africa. This was my first time learning about the prevalence of alcoholism in the country, so I found her research to be very interesting. I also related to her struggles with obtaining her participants and her strategy of going through alcohol anonymous programs to achieve her sample size. I too experienced the same struggle, so her comments regarding this really resonated with me. I also appreciated her statement about the therapeutic nature of her research and how it provided participants with the opportunity to share their stories and heal from their experiences. Again, I found a similar theme in my research where, for many of my participants, it was the first time they ever had the opportunity to share their story.

Tyriesa Howard and I at the University of the Western Cape

Furthermore, I also really enjoyed the students' presentation on gangsterism among youth in South Africa. I never imagined that I would hear about this topic. In fact, this became a topic of frequent discussion at the agencies we visited, which spoke to the urgency and seriousness of the matter. I found this to be very interesting and contrary to what I expected to learn about while in the country. Overall, I thought the campus was absolutely beautiful and much more modern that I had anticipated. In many ways, I felt like I was on the campus of a university that could have been located anywhere in America. I felt at home there and like it was a place that I could see myself studying.

As we rode through Cape Town on our way to the University, I got the opportunity to look around and observe the scenery and architecture of the province. It was so much more beautiful than I ever anticipated and exceeded my expectations in terms of what I might see there. As I looked around, I saw parts of the province that reminded me of home and other places in the states that I have visited. In many ways, I felt like I was still in the United States which brought a great sense of comfort for me and put my mind at ease. My initial thought was that, in terms of the physical and aesthetic aspects of the province, it really wasn't as different as I thought it would be. But, I also knew that there was so much more beyond what I was able to physically see and I looked forward to process of developing a deeper understanding of life in South Africa.

President Wayne A.I. Frederick with Faculty and Student, Tyriesa Howard, at the University of the Western Cape

At Library at the University of the Western Cape