South Africans are an inspiring and inquisitive lot – we represent so many different cultures and yet seldom exercise our natural loving curiosity to explore those cultures.
Often that hesitancy, which leads to our being less informed, is most often used in it’s capability to shock.
Take a viral tweet doing the rounds at present by @EricJWest – a screenshot of a Facebook post purportedly by Smanga Mphephetse Ndukuzabafo that talks of getting black people to place various bodily fluids in the plates of white diners. Personally I cannot believe that the Facebook page of Smanga is genuine either as it represents all of the stereotypes that are racist, chauvinist and plain dumb.
BUT, you can choose to be enraged by Smanga and say words like; “I told you so” or “This country is going to the dogs” OR you can be reacquainted with that loving feeling reminiscent of when South Africa was praised as a beacon of hope and relive those days when we loved each other and embraced our differences.
An uplifting journey started by by Sonja Kruse on 31 October 2009 saw her set off on a countrywide journey with little more than a backpack, camera, phone and R100 to prove that the spirit of uBuntu in South Africa is alive.
In October 2009 she quit her job, gave her car away and left the familiar behind to embark on a yearlong journey around her country. She became known as the uBuntu girl as her journey took her 1 year over 13 685 km visiting 150 families from 16 different cultures staying in 114 towns in 9 provinces.
Sonja ended her journey after 350 days in her home town of Eshowe.
Wanting to give back to those that supported her on her amazing journey, Kruse enlisted the aid of an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to publish The Ubuntu Girl Book and then from 4 June 2014 to July 2014 returned to 49 Ubuntu families with a copy of her book. From 11 to 26 September another 38 families were visited and given copies with the final visits taking place from 14 October to 6 November 2014.
Spend some time on Sonja’s blog to read her amazing journey and experience the kindness of South Africans.
Sonja spent from 8 to 13 November 2009 in Port Elizabeth and met with kindness and Ubuntu from many of our Friendly Citizens. (See: PE the Friendly City – 9 Nov to 13 Nov).
From Sonja Kruse’s blog:
SUN 8th Nov
LIFT – with James (aka Beans) from Port Alfred to students digs Summerstrand PE
ACTIVITY – being greeted in the friendliest manner ever by flatmate Chad upon arrival. Hello sweetheart and a big fat hug (ha-ha, Chad!)
DINNER – my 1st braai!!! How awesome is this tradition of ours!
HYGIENE – a shower and flushing loo
STAY –crashing on missing-in-action flatmates bed (don’t think he knows about this, so shhhhhhh!)
Mon 9th NOV
BREAKFAST – chilli Bovril on toast………..(no marg……student’s life!)
ACTIVITY – filtering coffee(must have been left here by some non-student!) through toilet paper with disastrous results. Found using a t-shirt works better
LUNCH – toast with chilli Bovril…….
ACTIVITY – taxied (mahala –style of course!) to Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University where I was kindly permitted to use the internet service provided I could find a student to log me on! Thank you Lwandile and Janine King (who gave me her number)
DINNER – KFC!! Thank you Chad. Also for the Chocolate milkshake……a girl will be a girl
STAY – ditto
Tue 10th NOV
BREAKFAST – toast with Bovril- chilli flavour…………..ha-ha
ACTIVITY – 9am interview with FREE online magazine, http://www.all4women.co.za http://all4women.co.za/vivvo_general/travel/special-places/south-africa/ubuntu-sonja-kruse.html The magazine has been around for a year and is aimed at the thinking women of South-Africa. LUNCH – left over KFC (Chad ordered an extra piece for me for lunch. Any girls interested in his number????)
ACTIVITY – Met loads of interesting people ie foreigners travelling in SA (with positive feedback re their SA experience) and some lovely Kenyan ladies who has been living in SA for many years (Xenophobia is almost the exact opposite of UBUNTU)
DINNER – I cooked a healthy meal of veggies and greek-style lamb for the boys! yummy
Wed 11th NOV
BREAKFAST – mmmmmmmm Bovril chilli on toast with some more t-shirt filtered coffee
ACTIVITY – mixing with people and a long walk on the beach
ACTIVITY – thanks to Candice at Rehab Internet Cafe for the 30min internet access
LUNCH – Bovril on bread with Mayonnaise!!!!! Variety ha-ha
ACTIVITY – Saying sad farewells to my student friends and to Lateef and the security staff at the Boardwalk
STAY – with Janine and her family (mom Jean, brother William and auntie Lorna) in Gelvandale. Vibey and happy area
DINNER – curried mince and rice. MMMM have died and gone to heaven. Thank you auntie Jean
ACTIVITY – visiting with family and friends is a big part of the coloured community
ACTIVITY – trying to understand Janine, Devan (her boyfriend) and Kevin (cousin) with their PE coloured slang!!! Die bou val so: Nouba, my bra sal nog steeds hom se tjommie bly!) say what?? And i’m fluent in Afrikaans……or so i thought?
HYGIENE – shower and flushing loo
STAY – William (Janine’s brother) slept on the couch so I could sleep in his bed!!! No one wants my book to be interesting. I want to add that I’ve slept on the floor, in a garden shed……
Thu 12th NOV
BREAKFAST – weet-bix yum!
ACTIVITY – I went in a sweeper! You can’t say that you have been to PE if you haven’t been in a sweeper (a coloured taxi that drives around all day and doesn’t ‘doc’ in a taxi rank. With a Garchie who collects the money and hangs half his body out the window and performs to solicit more passengers!) Oh, I call it the BOOM BOOM taxi: you feel it before you see it; you’ll be on the sidewalk and your whole body will be moving without you doing anything; your eardrums will never be the same again; oh and you get a free anti-cellulite treatment with the vibrations! A truly exhilarating and authentic experience! BOOM BOOM DOEF DOEF
LUNCH – My host family packed me a lunchbox! Complete with fruit and all! Dit smaak soos nog!!! Am I spolit or what?
ACTIVITY – THE R20 STORY. Jean King gave me R20 to spoil myself. So i thought, CAPPUCCINO! I felt like a superstar, until i could not locate the money when the time came to pay. Foolishly I asked the waitress if she could take a photo of me handing over my R100 bill to them. It was after all a momentous moment for me! Of course everyone was quite curious, so i explained why the moment needs capturing! The owner loved the story and reimbursed me after I paid (and had the t-shirt to prove it!) Thank you Lorna and staff. You are all so wonderful and inviting. FRIENDS COFFEE BAR, 8TH AVENUE, SUMMERSTRAND VILLAGE
ACTIVITY – found some victims on the beach to play with!! Ha-ha some friendly, happy students who shared some laughs with me. And swam in the see a-la-sa-style. That is in my underwear! It was very liberating
DINNER – well, mielies and bone. (samp and beans, umngqusho) and as it’s known in the King household: Mills and Boon! And man, was it love between my bowl of food and me, or what?
ACTIVITY – lots of visits with loved ones again! I’m very blessed and honoured to be treated like one of the family
STAY – Ditto
Alan Straton
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