South Africa was such a dynamic place. Cape Town was so modern and metropolitan. On my first night in Cape Town, I went on a Semester at Sea program titled “Cape Town Jazz evening”. Having signed up for the program sometime in November or December, I could not remember what exactly it entailed. As I got ready to go out to the bus, I was thinking we were going to a few jazz clubs and then dinner and coming back to the ship. I was thrilled when our tour guide announced we were actually going to the homes of local musicians and hearing them speak and play in the comfort of their own place. We got to the first musician’s house and his wife had made us a traditional dinner. He and his protégé played songs for us and told us how they started in music. We then moved on to another artist’s house where he and his band played traditional songs for us. They then asked if anyone wanted to get up and jam with them. While I have a background in music I am never the one to get up and advertise this. To my embarrassment, a friend called me out and the group pulled me up with them to sing Summertime with them. What an incredible experience. As the musicians improvised solos one after the other, they nodded to me letting me know when to come back in. It was such a special moment in my trip and reminded me how important music is and how greatly it can affect people. This night was unforgettable.

The next day, I went on a class trip led by my amazing professor, Dr. Pete Seel. He took us to Robben Island to learn more about the history of South Africa. Our tour guide, Itumeleng, who had been a political prisoner on Robben Island for 7 years, met us as we exited the ferry. He was incredible, I could not imagine going through what he went through on the Island, and being able to come back and speak so openly about it. I asked him how he was able to do this, and his response was “South Africa belongs to all who live in it.” We walked the grounds, heard stories, and were finally led to where Nelson Mandela served his time. As I looked into this tiny space, I began to cry. I could not imagine how Mandela could have lived in this cell, been treated the way he had been treated, and still come to change the country in such a positive way. Going to Robben Island was an incredible experience and taught me so much about the alarmingly recent history of South Africa. After Robben Island, we visited Mabu Vinyl. For those of you who have seen the Documentary “Searching for Sugarman”, you may recognize this name. Mabu Vinyl is the record shop owned by Steve Segerman, the star of the documentary who found the hit singer Rodriguez after so many years of mystery. We got to speak to Steve about music, the Anti Apartheid movement, and life since. We also got to meet a local journalist who spoke to us about her life in the field and how Apartheid and the censorship that stemmed from it affected the media world. As every trip Dr. Pete planned has been, this was such an interesting and informative day. That night, I met up with my old camp counselor who I had not seen in about 7 years. She grew up in Cape Town and lives there now. It was so awesome to get to see her again and get the inside scoop about the area.

Next, I went to the Fairy Glenn Game Reserve. The reserve is nestled under large mountain, making for a quiet serene landscape. I got to go on two game drives and saw so many animals. We saw four of the big five, everything but leopards. It was so cool to see all the animals living in harmony. Keeping with the animal theme, the next day I went shark cage diving. With an early start to the day – 3:30 am, we were driven to the boat where we were each given wet suits to put on. We rode off the coast a few miles and began to look for sharks. We got about 30 minuets in the actual cage. As sharks came close, the guides would yell “Down!” as we dove down to get a closer look at the sharks. I was terrified the whole time, even on the boat I was much closer to sharks than I would have ever wanted to be in my life.

I spent my final day in South Africa hiking Table Mountain. I’d say this “hike” was more of a climb. It was the most strenuous activity I think I have ever done. Once we got to the top, it was all worth it. The views from the top of the mountain were unforgettable and incomparable. My friends and I had planned to take the cable car down the side of the mountain, but to our dismay, the cable car was closed that day due to high winds. So, back down we hiked. It was exhausting, but it was worth it. Once we got to the base, we went to the local food market and ate as much as we could, as it was our last meal before we got back on the ship. The food (and ice cream) was so good. Then we returned to the ship for a much needed rest.

While South Africa was a great experience, you could see traces of its history everywhere you went. As our guide at Robben Island explained, Apartheid was ended on paper, but repercussions of it could be seen on an everyday basis throughout the country. It was unsettling to me how little people knew about the history of South Africa coming into the country. Apartheid was something that happened so recently, yet we are taught little about it in the US. I am excited to use my experiences and the things that I have learned from this trip to help my friends and family learn the same.

A Cheetah showing his tongue in Cape Town, SA.

A jam sesh in a home in Cape Town.

Itumeleng on Robben Island, Cape Town, SA.

A view of Table Mountain from Robben Island.

Elephants grazing in South Africa.

A Lion shows off his teeth in South Africa.