Sawubona

Sawubona!!!!!!!!!!!A warm (and I mean really warm) welcome to all the wonderful people I know.I have always had a very positive feeling about South Africa, eversince I applied for the study abroad program. This is only gettingreinforced as I experience each day in SA."Instincts manifest into actions without one consciously being aware of it."This is something I wrote at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris,France during the eight hour layover. I know my instincts arepositively guiding me at every step of my life. All of you should read"The Alchemist" by Paul Coelho. This is the book I read (again) duringmy flight to SA. I highly recommend it.I am absolutely glad that I traveled alone, because it gave me anopportunity to reflect on and prepare for my journey ahead-both thephysical and the spiritual journey.The physical journey was long (around 34 hours), and exciting, but thespiritual journey seems to be never-ending… or can I say, it just gotstarted!One of the most spectacular sights for me was watching the sunrisewhile I was thousands of feet in the air. It was like the beads ofsunlight pierced through the sky, and spread a soft, glowing light allaround me. Although, I never actually saw the sun, I knew exactlywhere it was. There was an orange, red hue all around it. At certaintimes, it felt like there were rivers of lava that were constantlygrowing and disappearing. This lava seemed to flow through white,snow-like expanses of clouds, but both existed in perfect harmony. Allthe beauty that I witnessed made me feel like a beautiful creation ofGod. I felt this same way later on in Durban, South Africa. Watchingthe sunrise was a great transition into SA. The fact that I witnessedthe sunrise was only an indicator that my life was about to startanew.I landed in Johannesburg at first, and was literally staring at allthe people. Everyone who was waiting at the customs, was white, akaAfrikaaner. Afrikaaners are the European descendants that have livedin SA for ages. Everyone who was working was African, i.e. the nativeblack people of SA. I have seen this pattern in many places I havevisited including cafes, malls, etc. Afrikaaners never seem to be theones working.One of the most striking things about SA is how nice the people are.They are absolutely delightful people, who are always willing to help.People literally go out of their way to help others. SomethingAmericans are not very good at! This lady, Primrose, who is a janitorat my Res came with my friends and I to help us shop on the very firstday we landed in SA. She didn't have to do this, but she did! I don'tthink people in the US would have ever done this.The porter who helped me with my bags was African, and was veryfriendly. All this is just the beginning of all the "niceness" that Ihave and will experience in SA.Well I have so much more to tell you about this beautiful place, but Iam super tired. I will type more some other time.A few details for all of you:My Province=Kwazulu Natal (there are no states)My city=Durban (overlooking the Indian Ocean)My university=University of Kwazulu NatalMy campus=Howard CollegeMy Res Halls: Mable Palmer, aka Mabes(The pictures online do not do justice to the beauty of this place)My classes as of now=Intro to LawInternational LawIntro to IsiZuluAfrican Music and danceBarbecue =Braai (VERY VERY VERY TASTY)Ketchup =Tomato Sauce (Vinegar with fries and chicken)Fries =ChipsNapkins =ServiettesApartments =FlatsElevators =LiftsTaxi =KumbiOk that's all for now… will tell you more later ByeIn Love with DurbanLots of LoveResham