Outreach Begins

Our first outreach assignment was to harvest potatoes at the Garden of Hope that was planted for HIV affected children. We found potatoes, but they were only about the size of small rocks =( Still, we had fun ...








Some pictures from nearby squatter camps ... we've been getting to know the people who live in these areas through door-to-door evangelism and children's ministries.

Safari

To celebrate the end of DTS training, our team went on a mini safari here in Worcester. I'm not sure how it compares to a real African safari, but we got to see some wildlife and even fed some elephants.

Leaving from the base ...


These are YWAM's infamous combis ... we have a love/hate relationship with them.



At the game park (Fairy Glen Resort) ...




The lion's dinner ...








Just a random photo of us trying on our new skirts for outreach =)

Weekend Trips

Here are some pictures from my weekend getaways to Capetown.
A few weekends ago, the girls on my team and I stayed at a hostel called Zebra Crossing.



This weekend, I took a day trip with some of the Korean staff on base. We took a boat ride at the Waterfront, which was unexpectedly really exciting! We got to see a ton of dolphins, perhaps about 100 or more. They were really playful and beautiful!
I was in charge of steering the boat. j/k =)


Why do dolphins travel in pairs?


Picture of the shipmates.

Wedding

I went to my first African wedding last weekend. The bride is from South Africa and was kind enough to invite the HIV DTS to her wedding after only meeting us once! =) The groom is from Nigeria, which is about everything I know about him.=) The ceremony was at a small church in Worcester and the reception was in Glory Hall (on the YWAM base). Don't you love their outfits? I thought it was adorable - pink and brown!

Capetown Outing

Our team went on our first outing this past weekend to Capetown. Our first stop was in Simon's Town at a place called Boulders Beach. I didn't expect it to be so beautiful! This is the Indian Ocean side of Cape Point.


We got pretty friendly with these penguins that live on the beach. Aren't they cute? I have no idea how they've adapted to survive in such hot weather with all their blubber and rather sedentary lifestyle. But then again, I didn't watch March of the Penguins.


They were very friendly creatures but this was about as close as I could get =)


We also saw some of these beaver-like animals in the bushes.


Here's me with Martha, another staff member on our team. She's from Uganda and has two crazy little boys, Loren and Caleb. It was her first time ever going to the beach so we made her get her feet wet.


This is The Waterfront of Capetown. You can take ferry rides from here to Robben Island, where opponents of apartheid including Nelson Mandela were exiled and imprisoned. In the background is Table Mountain (supposedly very famous here). The cloud is like a tablecloth, get it?


Wow, I'm really far from home. =(


Here's Grant and Rodney, the youngest members of our team. They're technically called junior staff because they aren't students but are helping out. Grant's mom is one of our school leaders. Aren't they good-looking boys?


Here's Audrey, Luana, and myself (taking the pic) romantically dining over the waterfront.

Outreach and Missions Weekend

Here's my team enjoying some cool drinks in town.


This is the clinic that I volunteered at last week. It's in a town called Zwelethemba and serves a community of people who speak Xhosa. This indigenous language is soo interesting ... it involves clicks, lip smacks, and other sounds (like the X in Xhosa is a click sound)! Anyway, the people there were very warm and sweet ... hopefully I can build some good relationships there.

I was amazed at this old blood pressure machine. I had no idea how to use it!

Once a week, our team goes on local outreach. This past week we got to organize an afternoon program for high schoolers. We spent time praising God and sharing about what we love about His character.


This past Friday and Saturday, our HIV DTS team hosted a Missions Weekend. As pairs, we adopted a missionary family and presented their work/country. It actually went really well and we were able to raise some funds for our outreach. I'll try to post some videos of the performances and dances later.

Jan and I adopted missionaries from Angola. We learned how to make Mwamba (this peanut butter chicken dish) and Pap (Angolan version of mashed maize). Yum =)

This is my small group: from left - me, Audrey (She's one of our staff/student leaders from South Korea), Debz, and Jessica. I'm very thankful for Audrey because she feeds me Korean food and gets me invited to the Korean braais (bbqs) here. =)


Yay for crickets. At least they aren't flying cockroaches.

YWAM Worcester, South Africa

This is where I live! Pretty nice, huh?

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me besides quiet waters, he restores my soul" (Psalm 23:1-3). This verse and image was God's way of confirming that He brought me here =)

I'm on the top bunk and share the room with three other girls. Technically though, I have about 20+ roommates because all the rooms are only divided by curtains. One of the most annoying things is when my sleeping bag falls off my bed in the middle of the night!

These are the lovely ladies in my HIV DTS team. From left: me, Jess (from Oregon), Debbie (from Ireland), Luana (Australia), Tory (Colorado), Michele (Colorado), and Beverly (our team leader).

These are the guys: from left - Jonny (from Germany), Mkpot Stanley (Cameroon), and Ekane Kingsly (Cameroon). There are a few more staff members but I will have to post their pictures later.

Something random: I ordered a blueberry muffin at this coffeeshop, and it came with cheddar cheese! strange.