While in White River...

I moved to White River yesterday after three weeks in Pretoria. It's absolutely beautiful here but I'm torn over leaving my village. Saying goodbye to my family and friends and support system there was like a Hallmark movie (aka: heartbreaking end while waving from a car window, driving off into the sunset). Nobody understood why I could not return to the village and are angry and upset at what has happened there. However, the relationships there are monumental and have changed my heart, my soul and my perspecitve on life which I will carry close with me as I proceed through life. What I learned and experienced there is a once in a lifetime experience that most people will never come close to. I feel honored and blessed at having met these people. They are young and courageous and more honorable than I ever could be in my life. I will be back to visit as often as I am able in the next year and a half here.

White River could not be more different. It's clean and beautiful, surrounded by mountains and very green trees. The roads are paved with shopping malls and restaurants making up the main square. It's quaint and reminds me a lot of Montana. Similar to Kalispell or Whitefish, just with an African nature about it. I've joined a gym, there are movie theaters, white people all over, English speaking children with functioning schools and the town is swarming with NGO's and financial aid. The flat I'm living in for the next few months has carpet, a balcony, running water and a large bathtub. There is a stove to cook on with a large fridge in the kitchen. I can sit outside and read and actually feel safe, whatever that means to me anymore.

I'll be in White River until sometime in December, perhaps until I leave to visit Uganda and Rwanda. I'm learing policies and shadowing the projects that Megan, the other pcv, is involved in. I'll be visiting Sabie, where I'll eventually end up, and Graskop as well as surrounding townships. As gorgeous and "easy" as it seems to be, I think it will be significantly difficult to adjust to this "normal" way of life. Things amaze me and I can't help but eavesdrop on conversations since they tend to be in English here.

The amazing gift of all this is I will have experienced both extremes which make up South Africa as a counry. I cannot discount one end of the spectrum without having experienced the other. There is no one way or another here and the distinct line between poverty and not is crucial in understanding how South Africa functions. I feel my time here has been productive and meaningful, as I expect the next year to be as well. New adventures and New beginnings...