“Free to Touch” by Sarah Ahmad

I spent a lot of time at the Green Market today and let me tell you, it is a very special place. It is filled with every African trinket you could ever want. These trinkets are sold by lovely vendors who swarm you if you take just one look at their tent. They all use some form of the phrases, “Just for you I give you special price,” “Take your time,” and my favorites “it’s free to look and free to touch.” I don’t really like saying no to people and the vendors sure don’t like hearing it, so I learned to stop touching and looking at random things I knew I didn’t want and just go for the gold. I also learned that I needed to be more assertive with my bartering. The first time I went to the market I did a terrible job and settled for very close to the starting price. Today I halved the starting price and they were offended and tried to explain that the necklace was handmade and that the mask was ancient and how absurd it was that I was trying to pay such a low price. At first they will tell you that there is no way they can sell it for that low, but if you start to walk away they make you a deal. This strategy does not always work and I sadly had to part with some of the things I wanted because the vendor did not follow me. Let’s just say that didn’t happen very often. When I got home today I realized that by the time I had gotten gifts for family, friends, and myself I think I could start a little stand of my own.

"Love That Hair" by Carlin Conner

Cape Town: Fighting Your Fears

So far in Cape Town I have constantly been presented with opportunities to fight my fears. During my adventure week I was submerged into a metal cage to swim with wild, hungry, great white sharks while teasing them with food, and I was shoved off of the highest commercial bungee point in the entire world to face not only my fear of heights, but to also battle motion sickness (that whiplash is intense!). Plus, when you have never really been acquainted with wild animals and a herd of elephants surrounds your van you get a little scared! But besides all of these incredible opportunities that I have had to conquer my fears, I was by far presented with thus far in the trip was today, when I was given the opportunity to go skydiving.

At first I was excited, looking at the plane that I would soon be jumping out of while simultaneously looking at pictures of the past skydivers that lined the walls left me more excited than scared. However, as soon as I piled into the tiny, rickety plane that would transport my 9000 feet into the sky, all feelings of self-assurance leapt right out the window. When sitting in a tiny place 9000 feet above solid ground, strapped to a complete stranger, the only feeling is fear. Well, fear and panic, but those feelings are pretty much intertwined. All I wanted to do was escape, but as soon as I was looking out of the window I knew that I would have to face my fear. Fortunately for me, if you have a fear of heights, facing your fear is one of the most enjoyable experiences in the world. Never in my life have I been so pleasantly surprised when conquering a fear, and I hope that I have the opportunity to do so again. Free falling through the sky while looking out at Table Mountain and Robben Island is an experience I will never be able to repeat, and I only hope that all of you reading this are able to one day have the same experience that I did. Plus, the effect of wind blown hair is just as elegant as you could have ever imagined.

"Top 10" by Alli Frank

The Top 10 of Cape Town

• Skydiving
• Visiting the Wine lands
• Going to Robben Island
• Serving in the Township
• Jaw dropping scenery
• Sunrise hike up Lions Head
• Adventure week.
• Cape Point
• Stellenbosch
• Making wonderful new friends.

“Cunning, Crafty, Quick.” by Sam McChesney

The students of Global LEAD have undergone many transformations during our time here in Cape Town, South Africa. Misconceived notions of poverty, wealth, family, and happiness have been altered and overcome through our coursework and time spent in the township of Sir Lowry’s Pass. Some of the most important lessons, however, are the ones that we have learned from our fellow classmates. The only Michael Phelps that most of us had heard of before this trip was the gold medal hoarding swimmer from the United States. Almost like a metaphor for the syllabus itself, my roommate, the REAL Michael Phelps, has represented a change in ideology of what it really means to bear that name.

Born from the rolling hills of Suwannee, Phelps is the epitome of man. He currently holds the record for largest Red Stag ever killed by bow and arrow in New Zealand (honestly). As a room, the gentlemen of room 136 have overcome adversity, grown in leadership, and jumped out of airplanes. I know this trip is about South Africa, but the life lessons that I have learned from Phelps, specifically from time spent hearing about his ARCA circuit racing career, will stay with me. Phelps once said, “rubbin is racing and loose is fast”. These words really resonate. They carry a deeper meaning after his 200 mph crash at Daytona back in 2008. In the middle of the 70^th lap, Phelps passed out due to carbon monoxide poisoning and hit the wall. Two weeks later he was back in the driver’s seat sitting at the first pole at Kentucky. Much like how we have been pushed to do on this trip, he overcame his fear and conquered it.

"Seize the Day" by Graham Williams

It is taken from the Latin word, "Carpe Diem". One life, that's all we get. Take advantage of every opportunity and seek out every chance you get to do something you will never forget. So when I heard about 4 weeks of living/studying abroad in South Africa, its the first 3 words that came to mind. Yea it was going to be an expensive trip and it might put me in a little debt to the ole parents but how often to people get to go LEAD in South Africa and do all that we've done? My parents never have, my grandparents never did, and most of my friends at home probably never will... But thankfully, when the opportunity came about, I knew I had to go for it no matter what. Here in Cape town, I've been able to experience many amazing things and even cross off 5 things off of my bucket list. Here is a list of the 5 things on my bucket list that have already been checked off in just a matter of 3 weeks:

1. Submerse myself in a completely different culture and experience life as they do. CHECK.
2. Dive with Great White sharks. CHECK.
3. Go bungee jumping of the highest bungee in the world? CHECK.
4. Go skydiving?? CHECK.
5. Go on a safari in Africa? CHECK!!!

And not only is all of this happening but as our trip is dwindling down and it will be disappointing to separate with new friends- I know that just one week after they all leave, ill still be here in Cape Town knocking just one more big thing off my bucket list: Going to the WORLD CUP

“Always Take Chances” By Laney Pait

What did I do yesterday do you ask?

Welllllllllllllllllllll, without thinking, I threw on a harness and hopped in a miniscule rickety old airplane. I sat watching the buildings and cars become smaller and smaller until I finally realized the reality of what I was about to do.

Why in the world did I think this was a good idea? It’s not natural for ANYONE to want to jump out of a plane 9,000 feet in the air…Clearly; this was the worst idea I had ever come up with.

Too late for doubts, the door swooshed open and I was being literally dragged out of an airplane by a complete stranger.

The second the wind hit my face and I spiraled out of the airplane, I knew I had made the right decision. The view was devastatingly beautiful and the feeling of my cheeks flapping in the wind was indescribable. I was flying.

Haven’t you always wanted to fly?

"Grounded at Last" by Arielle D'Avanzo

I’m not one for heights—I don’t like them, they make my stomach queasy and, to be totally frank, they scare me to death. Hanging by my feet from a bungee cord, after jumping off the highest commercial bungee jump in the world, just dangling there hundreds of feet in the air, I said to myself, “What was I thinking? I will NEVER do anything like this again” — all the while analyzing every possible scenario where my feet could slip out of the harness and I would very soon meet my demise somewhere over South Africa. Nevertheless, I survived. And I now know that bungee jumping is just not going to be my thing. But at least I can check it off the ol’ bucket list.

But what about jumping out of planes? Well, that’s a whole other matter. After the big bungee jump, I boldly (um, foolishly?) signed up for (you guessed it) skydiving. Again, what on earth was I thinking? Jumping out of an airplane, 9,000 feet in the air? Bye-bye, mom and dad. Bye-bye brother. Bye-bye life. The jump was breathtaking…literally. I haven’t experienced anything like it in my whole 20 years here on this planet. It was so exhilarating that, once I hit the ground, I was ready to go right back up in that raggedy, 20-ft. plane and do it all over again. All of us here know Cape Town is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Let me tell you, though, from 9,000 feet it’s absolutely stunning. When we climbed Table Mountain, I thought that was the best view of Cape Town. But I can now say with authority, that the very best view is high, high above, floating through the sky, looking up at—and down on—on heaven.

"The Five Senses" by Francie Fisher

SEE: Boys chasing our bus. Over 1000 houses no more than five feet apart. Cigarette butts covering the ground. Children in school uniforms, others in dirty clothing. Bare feet. Grimy fingernails. Blank faces. Stares. Clotheslines. A drunk father. Powerful women working. A man with dreadlocks down to the ground. Chipped paint. Bones protruding from bodies. Pink gums. Rotting teeth. Wounds. Gravel. Smiles. Waving. Glassy eyes. Brown. Pigtails.

HEAR: Dogs barking. Roosters cockle-doodle-dooing. Children laughing. Children crying. Silence. Pleads to be hugged and picked up. Afrikaans. Attempts at speaking English. Yells. Sniffles from a runny nose. Singing. Hand games. Hitting. Wheels of a bike. Grumbling stomachs. Whispering.

SMELL: Mildew. Marijuana. Alcohol. Stale breath. Grass. A dirty stench. Body odor. Outhouse. Gasoline.

FEEL: Strong wind. Rough skin. Dirt. Unwashed hair. A slap on the back. A little girls hands embraced with mine. Tension. Cold. Love. Hate. Excitement.

TASTE: Dirt particles in the back of my throat. Home-cooked pasta by my host mother. Dry, dirty air.

"Family Comes First" by Thomas Wamsley

Sir Lowry’s Pass has made me reflect on many facets of my life, but the most dominant area is with regards to family. Every visit I have left with an altered view of family. To them there is nothing more important than relationships. The relationship they most visibly show as most important is their family. However, the most disturbing part of their family life is that most families appear not to have their fathers living with them anymore. This is also the greatest irony since if the men took family as seriously as is portrayed to us during our visits; they would obviously stay with the family and care for them. Therefore, it seems that this view of family as the most important aspect of life seems to apply primarily if not exclusively to the women at Sir Lowry’s Pass.

What I want to stress in this blog is the changes and aspects of my family that Sir Lowry’s Pass has induced. First of all when I go back to Atlanta I want to make spending time with my family a priority. Additionally, when I get into the next stage of my life and start having a wife and kids of my own I want to create an atmosphere centered on relationships and family rather than material goods. In America, a lot of people lose sight of this. In particular, a lot of men will spend countless hours at work in order to make more money so they can buy more things. On the other hand, I want to balance my life between work and my family in a healthier way. The last area is that I want to make sure to take every possible step to stay with my family and not divorce my wife. Seeing all of these kids fatherless has been a tough thing to swallow because it is apparent that when things got tough they decided to split instead of help. This is especially difficult considering they were directly responsible for the kids, which are the major source for the drain on money. Therefore, witnessing all of this has refocused me to committing and dedicating myself to staying with my wife, and if I get divorced for some reason supporting my family no matter what.

My time at Sir Lowry’s Pass has been an invaluable experience. Among many other things it has reprioritized my view and dedication to my family. Throughout the rest of my life I plan to make it a point to spend more time with my family rather than on myself, do whatever I can to stay with my future wife, and to support my family no matter what happens. Therefore, my three words are family comes first.

“THE 2010 SENSES” by Mackenzie Lee

They told us to simply listen to their stories. This was the only piece of advice, we, the Bafana Bafana’s were given before our surprise trip to Sir Lowry’s Pass to spend the night. It may have seemed lacking at the time, but nothing could have prepared us for our encounter. Anything gained had no doubt been truly experienced; it had been soaked in from all angles. I’ve come to realize the heart of this trip has been a beautiful combination of observation and analysis.

We started out blindly by listening to the voices and stories of the people, our new families. We saw the bare feet, the cinderblock houses. Nobody missed the mangy dogs or the trash lining the road. We could smell the amazing meals wafting out of the windows of the houses, and they tasted even better. We smelled the soap the people used, since many don’t have showers. Nobody will forget how little legs feel wrapped tight around our waists, and the feeling of little hands running themselves through our foreign hair. Or the way the wind sounded as it blew straight through the cracks of the little houses.

All these feelings, sights, smells - they all contribute to something bigger. Because that extra long hug I got from one of the little girls wasn’t just another ordinary hug. After soaking everything about Sir Lowry’s Pass, I knew we were giving the people there something they could hold onto long after we are gone.