Beginnings :)

Pictures from the first week!

So I want to do a legitimate post one of these days, but I need to go to bed and I'm just getting started. Here are some basic pictures to give you a sneak peak of our experience so far. Because of some sketch areas and due to our work schedule, we have to be driven pretty much everywhere and haven't had much freedom to explore. However, we've been treated so well by our host professors and host family and I'm excited to get some more pictures. Durban is beautiful, and very diverse. I didn't sense a whole lot of diversity while flying when the very few people sitting behind us at our gate in Johannesburg were talking away in their Utah accents about BYU-Hawaii (rich Mormons on their way to a safari). I was satisfied the second I arrived on campus I felt beyond WHITE. There's probably 60-70% of people here who are of African descent (Zulu, Xhosa-I'm getting down my click- Tswana, Tsonga, etc.) about 20% who are Indian, and 10% white (from what I can see). That's a really rough estimate. Getting around isn't too hard because it's really just a more picturesque version of the UK (and WAY better weather) with a whole lot more diversity.  I will have more pictures of the campus, our reserach team, the beach, downtown (driving is NUTS) and the Anniahs in the next two days. To sum this post though, this is evidence that we are not just surviving- we're thriving. And to everyone who is still somewhat naive enough to think that all of Africa is huts and forager people...it's not. Africa is a continent- NOT A COUNTRY. South Africa has a lot of diversity, and plenty of problems. But the more I'm here, the more I respect everyone I meet. People are BEYOND gracious, and ultimately, as the title suggests- seem to eminate Ubuntu. 

Represents the 21 hours we flew (+ odd another 7 hours of layovers for the whole trip). God bless that lovely  Mango-Orange juice!

I have an obsession with all African treees. This one is outside the flat. 

The flat is posh! Sam and I were happy to have such a nice place to work and hang out in. They found it an hour before we landed in Durban.  

This is an example of one of the lovely bedrooms and view. I sleep in another flat. 

Sam's trying escargot for the first time (sorry about the lighting).  Ironically, this was at a SA version of a Texas steakhouse. Native Americans and iconic US stuff everywhere. Everything (including escargot) was covered in cheese. 

At the steakhouse with the Anniah's! Nickyle and Andrew are two parts of this amazing family. They're all locally from Durban, they're Indian (or what they may consider Asian). Durban has the highest concentration of Indians outside of India because of the sugar can market that sent a bunch here in the mid 1800s. We've hung out at the main flat with them for dinner twice, have played with their kids and have caught dinner and movie. Bev, the oldest sister with the kids, makes the best curry EVER. And we eat it every day. Ya, we're really starving in Africa. 

Adapters. Believe it or not, this is the slickest set-up we can do ;) haha.  And as you can see, I'm constantly chatting with people at home on FB when I can.

This is what Africa does to my hair- and this is tame. Rawr. 

A beautiful church right next door (Methodist church) on Percy Osborne (our street). We live in Morningside, a suburb of Durban.  About 10 minutes from DUT.

We live 10 minutes outside the beach, and this is across the street from our Prof's hotel. It really is paradise here!