Thanksgiving '09 and VCT

So, the VCT. We had our tournament on the 28th of November, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Another intern came down for the week to help us finish preparing for the big day. We decided to do a full-on Thanksgiving also, so that added a bit to the craziness of the week. Sarah and I took most of Thursday off to cook. We found a frozen turkey at Woolworth’s, and realized that morning that we were supposed to defrost it overnight in the fridge. Whoops. We filled the sink with cold water and threw the bird in, hoping it would thaw out in a few hours.

We had to run into the office quickly, and grab some last minute supplies, and then we rushed back to the house to start the bird. I can definitely say putting my hand into that turkey is one of the grosser things I’ve done, though essential to pulling off the day. We got the turkey into the oven, and then proceeded to make all the sides. I was nervous all afternoon that I was going to screw up cooking the bird, especially when I couldn’t find a baster. We found a rubber brush that ended up as a good substitute, so crisis averted.

We knew we were on the right track when the boys walked in the door and we could hear their excited voices exclaiming how wonderful everything smelled. At that point Sarah and I were collapsed on the couch, watching Love Actually, completely wiped out. The turkey came out brown and crispy, and we had a pretty good crowd for the evening: an intern from last year was here visiting his girlfriend, so we had them come, as well as another American we’ve met here, and the staff from our office. Our supervisor, Mpumi, and two of our Head Coaches, Titie and Ngwenya, had never had Thanksgiving before, so it was fun to share our favorite eating holiday with them.

On Saturday we were up early to get to the VCT venue to set everything up. We had 12 teams participate in the tournament, 8 boys’ teams and 4 girls’ teams. Teams were assigned to two of our coaches for the day, who acted as chaperones to lead them to and from matches and Skillz activities. They would compete in a match, and then move onto an activity from our curriculum. They were also given an opportunity to test. At one point I walked back to the classrooms being used as testing rooms, and lines were out the door.
























Nurses from the Ministry of Health, as well as a testing van from a local organization, came to test participants as well as community members who came to the event. In total we were able to test 188 people, including the teams who played in the tournament and many of our coaches and staff. I tested for the second time since being in South Africa. My first time was in Cape Town, and it was a nerve-racking experience. Even if you’re sure you’re negative, having someone sit you down, take a blood sample, and actually perform the test makes you question yourself. It had been three months since my test in Cape Town. This is considered the “window period,” meaning if you test negative, and then negative again in three months, you are definitely HIV-negative. The antibodies that are measured by the test take some time to be produced once the virus infects an individual. A person may test negative when in fact he or she is infected, and hasn’t produced a measurable amount of antibodies. The window period of three months allows time for measurable antibody levels to be produced if an individual is infected.

The day was a big success. All of the teams showed up to play, which is unheard of, and we managed to test just under 200 people, our goal for the event. We had a great time hanging with our coaches for the day. We rarely get to spend time with them outside of the office, on the weekends, so it was a good day for some GRS bonding. The people we work with are incredible individuals, and they help keep me centered when I get overwhelmed by this place.



One of our coaches, Zukie, running an activity with the players






Siya (left) and Mpumi (right) on the vuvuzelas




Siya with his team at half-time






One of our coaches, Bere, having a dance-off with one of the kids










An adorable little girl, ready to party










The Team

Happy New Year to all! I have completely neglected blogging since November, but I’ve been writing down thoughts and stories I want to share, so I’ll be doing smaller, separate blogs to try to catch up.

We returned from our trip to Tanzania on New Year’s Eve and celebrated the night here in PE. It was a relief to come back, to see my bed again, after sleeping in a tent for 5 days. The past couple weeks have been dedicated to finding new accommodation for ourselves. We had our third break-in the night before we left for Christmas holiday. For me, it was the most invasive we’ve had so far. The guys used a ladder to climb up through our bathroom window, about 16 feet above the ground. We had left it cracked, not thinking someone would actually put in the effort to climb up through it.

We think there were two men involved. I was asleep for the entire thing, but my roommates, Mike and Sarah, heard the men climb into the bathroom, and Sarah saw one of them when they came into her room. When the man realized Sarah was awake, he bolted out our back door with the stuff he’d already taken. Thankfully they were just as scared of us as we were of them, and only wanted physical goods.

I do know that one of the men came into my room, taking my backpack and a computer that was next to my head. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about having a stranger in my room, that close to me while I was sleeping, and don’t really know how to write about it. It’s obviously a complete invasion of my space, but I feel like it’s much more an invasion of me, mentally and emotionally.

My first reaction to this break-in was anger. I was so pissed that these guys had the audacity to use a ladder to climb up a 16-foot wall to get into our house. Over the couple of weeks we were traveling I had a lot of time to think, and I spent a lot of time dwelling on what had happened. It’s not like I could do anything about it while I was in Tanzania, but I did have moments of overwhelming anger, and then overwhelming panic. Being in Tanzania helped a lot, taking my mind off the break-in and helping me focus on things outside our little bubble here. It was a wonderful experience, and it was also wonderful to come back to PE, back to our lives here.

Mike came back a few days after us, and his first night back he woke up to some guys trying to break into our neighbor’s car to steal his stereo. The alarm went off, and the guys bolted, but Mike heard tapping on the windows of our place. Everything was closed, but the thought of someone else trying to get in put us all over the edge. We got permission from GRS to move into a motel for the time being, and the go-ahead to start looking for a new place to live.

It’s been an experience learning how the real estate market works. I’ve never apartment-hunted in the States, nor have 2 of the 3 other people I live with. I think we’ve been up and down almost every road in downtown PE looking for a place. If anything, I’ve gotten to know the city better. After 3 hellish weeks, we’ve finally got an application in for a townhouse. We’re waiting to hear that we’ve been approved, but things look good. We’re trying not to get our hopes up until the lease is signed, but it will be a huge relief to have a home again.

The next few blogs will be stories from Christmas holiday, as well as the long-awaited VCT blog from November. Enjoy!