Finishing Projects and Exams at UCT

In terms of school, the last few weeks have been very busy! I had a number of major projects that were due for my courses, two of which were based on research projects and included a presentation to the class on my findings. One was a group project, and the other I did solo.

For my African Studies course (Race, Culture and Identity in Post-apartheid South Africa), our group did the project on blogging! I started out in a different group, but actually switched when I saw how relevant this topic would be for me. In fact, I had already done most of the research on the specific topic that I wanted to explore, which is the state of social media, blogging, and web 2.0 in this country. I'm practicing it! We each used our own blogs as spring boards to the issue we were tackling, and I chose to do a case study on my blog post about Devil's Peak.

You'll notice that I have my most visited blog posts listed on the right sidebar of this page. My Devil's Peak post sits comfortably at the top, because once the mountain went up in flames I saw a marked increase in traffic to my site. There was lots of linking happening, or "Link Love!", and in some ways this blog became part of the South African online media. I was honored to have people stealing my photos, reposting them, and claiming that they took them! So this was the basis of my project. Since it counted for half of my large seminar course, the project alone was worth like 4.5 US university credits. Wowza!

The number of visits to this blog.

One of the slides from our presentation. Look familiar?

I did my other project for African Traditional Religion by myself. My research was to look for the role that music historically and presently plays in African religion, specifically within ritual, healing, initiation, and storytelling. This was probably one of the most interesting projects I've ever done, since I was able to hole up at UCT's music library looking through books and their vast CD collection. Since UCT is a very old university here in Southern Africa, there is a unique collection of recordings of tribal music from the 1950s and 60s, among other nuggets. I copied many of the CDs to my computer, so perhaps I'll share with you sometime. It was an awesome project, and I did well on the presentation and paper and all that.

Then, all my "production-based" work was finished. I had my last lecture at UCT on June 28th. The full week following that, or last week, we had off as time to study. I suspect that the university hopes we'll forget the material from class during this week. Yes, I realize that we're supposed to study, and legend has it that many people do... but let's be realistic. I did study, but this long amount of time only served to make me forget things. With exams being typically worth 40% of your final grade... you want to perform well.

We'll see how I did, but I finished both of them this week. And yes, I'm done with school for the summer finally! (Well, winter here.)

Stressing about exams.

Winter Creeps In

The past few weeks in Cape Town have ushered in a distinct autumn, and now winter has begun to rear its ugly head. Winter here is characterized by chilly temperatures and lots of wind and rain. The rain is probably the most notable, since it isn't uncommon for rainstorms to go on for several days in the months of June and July. We haven't gotten a ton of rain, but it is raining more often and the temperatures have cooled down. Think late October in WI. And although this is no Wisconsin winter, it might as well be in some cases.

When it is -10ºF at home, my bedroom is usually around 55-60º when I wake up, and I hate it. I despise waking up cold. In Cape Town right now, it may be 55º or 60º outside in the morning, but in a house that is build with no heat or insulation, and windows that are meant to keep out burglars and not drafts of air, I wake up to the same temperatures in my bedroom as I do at home. Or better yet, I get very cold at night and then wrap myself up more, only to wake up in a cold sweat. I've been trying different things recently, like layering and cocooning in a sleeping bag, which seems to help some.

The weather can be very unpredictable though, so it is a challenge to dress in the morning. Not only am I guessing what it will be outside in the sun and the shade, but guessing what the temperature will be on campus, up on the mountain, with a healthy Cape Town wind thrown in. And I usually bring my rain jacket with, because being caught in rain isn't fun and this city has a tendency to quickly destroy anything resembling an umbrella with a gust.

Panorama of UCT's Upper Campus.

Our swimming pool has shifted from a backyard paradise to an unhealthy, swampy emerald green color. We don't swim in it anymore, obviously, but our maintenance friend likes to still run the filter and add chemicals (maybe for fun, or to save it from ultimate chemical collapse), but we're still paying for the pool electricity and it is unnerving.

Swampy pool.

Life goes on though, as UCT students are now back into the swing of things after their respective Easter vacations. Things are wrapping up at school, and IAPO (department for international students) sent out an email warning students to stay vigilant about crime as they get more used to the city and their surroundings. Despite being more comfortable, crime is still a reality in the city. A few weeks ago, a girl from UW was robbed by two guys who put a knife to her neck on the other side of Obz for only a cell phone. And last weekend, two friends from my African Studies class were kidnapped in a minibus taxi and held for an hour while they withdrew hundreds of dollars from their bank accounts before letting them loose. I say this not to scare you guys or make it seem like I'm in danger, because I don't really think I am, I just don't want to paint an unreal picture of the city. I'm still loving it here, and I'm conscious of what could happen, but... it still happens. Despite that prospect, and what seems like more dreary weather, I am having more fun than ever, and we still have some nice days.

With 52 days left in my program, we've only got about three weeks of classes left. This will leave about a month of free time after classes end, and just a bit less after our final exams. I'm still looking for something to do when that free time arrives, but I have some ideas in mind. There are so many things I'd still like to do before leaving! It is actually approaching really quickly.

Travelling and spending money may prove more difficult now, though, since I have watched the exchange rate of my US Dollars to South African rands literally plummet over the last few weeks. I don't even like checking it anymore, because yesterday it reached a six month low. Ultimately, this just means that everything in the country costs me more for me than it did before. And it's dangerous because I'm used to thinking in my head "Okay, this is R300, which is just under $30." The "ten factor" works quite well and I've been spoiled. It is costing me almost $36 in reality, though. That's like 20% more! Poor me.

Exchange Rate:  Down... Down... Down.

As I get closer to coming home, I'm also having a harder time controlling my cravings for things at home. I'll cut to the chase: The first person to meet me at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago with a carnitas Chipotle burrito in hand will be on my A-list forever. Specifically: burrito, extra rice, extra black beans, Carnitas pork, corn salsa, cheese, and sour cream. Ohhhh, why did I just write that? It sounds so good. I did just fine ignoring this before, but the prospect of eating this in two months is a very tempting prospect. I'm also missing my boyfriend more than ever, and am excited to see my Matthew in a short time. It is particularly difficult since, for the last two winters in Madison, I have had him to warm me up most of the time when I'm cold in the mornings.

Next week I will be continuing my advanced diving certification, this time with a Night Dive at Long Beach on Wednesday. Here's hoping that it isn't freezing, that I will have a flashlight when I'm underwater in the dark, and that I see something cool if I see anything at all. Also, no panic attacks. :-)

University of Cape Town (UCT)

If you thought walking up Bascom Hill at UW was bad, try moving around the University of Cape Town. My campus was built into the side of a mountain! Not just any mountain, either, it is nestled on the side of Devil's Peak (which you could see in my Table Mountain panorama).

I just wanted to talk a bit about where I'm going to school, because as I've been going to class this past first week... I keep being surprised when I look over a building and see mountain peaks. Just walking along... switching classes, and to the left of me is a skyline. Not to mention that to the right of me is the whole city. That's right, since we're so high up, looking out some of the classrooms is in fact like stopping at a lookout point. I've still not gotten used to it, and hopefully I don't.

It was established about twenty years before UW, in 1829. The main campus is arranged into three different levels, easily named Lower Campus, Middle Campus, and Upper Campus. They run buses all day to the residence halls and around campus, similar to the Route 80 at UW, but with a few key differences. First, they are blue and called the Jammie Bus (much cooler name and color). Second, you board on the left side of the bus (remember, opposite side of the road? Don't worry, I keep forgetting, too... like when I slammed my taxi driver's door after getting out because I thought the passenger side was left open). Third, there are TONS of them! At any given time, UW is running three or four 80's, I think, and one or two 85's. There are 26 Jammie Shuttles, and they all seem to be running throughout the day. It isn't uncommon to see 6 stopped at one area at any given time. Although, I suppose when you need to transport students up and down a mountain for class... you need a lot of transport power. Lastly, the drivers are crazy. They don't really talk to the students, and can be spotted weaving through traffic down the main road at around 45-50mph sometimes. Kara described it as a terrible rollercoaster the other day (DOWNhill).



Upper Campus is marked with the prestigious Jameson Hall, pictured above. It is similar to Bascom. Upper is also where most of the instruction happens, and also where all my classes are. In terms of academic standing, UCT is widely accepted as the best university in South Africa, as well as on the continent. I've been very impressed with my courses so far, which I'll get to soon.

Perhaps one of the best views on campus is simply in front on Jameson Hall, on top of the stairs leading to it. Here is a panorama looking in 360º around a stationary point. The best way to view it is to enlarge it to fill the screen vertically, and scroll horizontally. You'll get a sense of what it feels to be standing there.

The view from Upper Campus

Here are the courses I'm taking:

AGI2000F - Understanding Gender (4 credits)
Offered through the African Gender Institute, the aims of this course include increasing student's awareness of the relevance of gender issues to their lives and developing a critical understanding of the multiple and contested meanings of gender in contemporary African and international contexts. It introduces key concepts such as sex, sexuality, gender, identity and culture and explores interconnections between gendered dynamics, 'race', class, generation and location. Topics offered may also include case studies on representations of gender in popular culture, gender based violence, HIV/AIDS and political issues in the South African context.

REL2044F - African Traditional Religion (4 credits)
This course explores the religious heritage and history of Africa through specific case studies in African tradition religion. Special attention is given to continuities and changes in the indigenous religions of Africa through studies of religious beliefs, ritual practices, ways of knowing, techniques of healing, and the social formations of the household, polity, and religious specialists.

CAS4005F - Race, Culture and Identity in Africa (6 credits)
A seminar offered by the Centre for African Studies, this course sets out to do two things. The first is to survey developments in post-apartheid society, with a particular emphasis on issues of culture and identity. The second is to provide some conceptual tools to make sense of these developments. It focuses on several case studies, including the making of contemporary space, anti-apartheid cinema, the politics of heritage and identity, and institutional self-fashioning and the reinvention of UCT.

All the Semester Study Abroad students on the first day of orientation.

In general, 40-50% of your final grade at UCT is dependent on a final exam, which is a lot more than in the US. The week before classes was also a bit hectic, since registration requires that you physically go to the course department, and get the department head to sign a form saying you are allowed in the course and have completed prerequisites. Once you have all pre-approvals (which can take a while with lines and walking, and also when people aren't there to sign, as I found out), you come back a different day for registration, which for me meant about 3 hours in lines before talking to someone that signs off on your course load and schedule. Then you get in another line to have them capture the information into their database. Since you are then registered, you are free to get your student ID... which took another hour. Then having the ID allowed me to activate my email address. So yes, some of the systems and procedures seem a bit outdated and inconvenient, but it was only a day or two of headaches, and I just reminded myself that this isn't home, more students have limited access to computers, and at least it is warm out.

Warm enough, actually, that each person has their own air conditioning vent in the Kramer Law lecture hall. I didn't notice until I was freezing, and couldn't figure out where the cold was coming from.

Chilling.

As I mentioned, South Africa loves to braai. The day before classes first met, we had a welcome braai for all first year and international students, right on the rugby fields. It was apparently sponsored by Coca-Cola, because the branding was everywhere. Look to the right in the following picture, and you'll see the city.

Setting up.

The food was actually pretty questionable, so we didn't stay long... but it was one of the first chances I had to see a lot of the student body together. I'd been trapped in orientations for several days, and was just struck by how diverse the campus feels. This is in contrast to UW, where the campus feels, unfortunately, white. I don't want to ramble on about how refreshing this change is, but certainly is interesting and refreshing to see so many different types of people walking around and talking on campus, dressed differently in some cases and speaking different languages. In fact, 20% of all students are from countries other than South Africa (with 38 African countries represented, and 104 countries worldwide).

At any rate, I love this campus. I may not be feeling the pride of being a Badger, or whatever the mascot is here (Tiger--apparently?), but the campus is beautiful, I'm really enjoying my classes, and I'm getting a workout from all the walking.

Anybody want to go to a party at Smuts Residence Hall? :-)