We started off the day with a lecture from Nick Shepherd about South Africa in Context where he literally allowed us to ask any questions we wanted and he would do his best to answer them in relation to how the issue has affected the ZA culture. We talked about everything from apartheid to women in government. It was a great experience and I'm blessed to have been able to be enlightened by his wisdom and expertise when it comes to the culture and society here! Next, we had an IES Policies and Procedures presentation by Naomi, our trip's director. It was simple and quick. But this lady is exquisite. She is fierce and elegant all at the same time. We knew she meant business but also wanted us to embrace and fall in love with her country. It was great! That afternoon we headed to an area known as District Six for a tour. The name of our guide was Noor and he shared an incredible story about how he and his family had been affected by apartheid. We got to read and explore all throughout the museum and learn of the devastating effects that this event had on the people of Cape Town. Afterwards, the rest of the group went to a small open market in downtown but a few of us needed to go to the bank to exchange money so Veronica (my RA) took us. On the way, we walked up on a legit fight between cab drivers and quickly ran away. Veronica explained to us that they were probably fighting over a customer and to them, it's their life and one customer can make the difference in whether or not they get to eat that day. It was culture at its finest. After the bank, we were off to class once again where I was stoked for my tour! We got a tour of the entire hospital getting to see each ward and understanding how/why certain patients are in specific wards. We got to see all the operating rooms that they call "theatres." While we were on our tour, we saw so many doctors running through the hospital and what was interesting to me was that they were so young. They couldn't have been three years older than I am. I was shocked! So I asked David what the deal was and he explained that this was a teaching hospital and the students like to come here because they get to do so much more in ZA and get more experience/responsibility. It looked legit! In one of the elevators, we got to talk to a mom who was going to pick up her 12 year old "baby" who had been there for over a month and she was literally so excited her face lit up as she stepped off the elevator. I can't wait to start working here on Monday and I know the Lord is going to teach me so much!
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