Gluttony

I have never felt as gluttonous as I have in the past few days. The trip from Mombasa, Kenya to Durban, South Africa has given me some insight to the difficulties of dealing with reverse culture shock (and yet still in a developing country and very far from my own culture).


I’ll begin with my time in the airport in Mombasa. As I looked around the airport at 5:00 am, I saw a sea of white people. On average, if I saw more than 5 other white people in a day (other than my fellow volunteers), it felt like a lot. The more European languages I heard around the airport, the more I wanted to speak Swahili! I felt like I didn’t belong with the people that may have looked more like me (with the exception that my skin is not as leathery looking as most of theirs). It was a strange sensation. I think this was related to the fact that towards the end of my trip, I started to see where rich Europeans come to vacation and I started to understand why the local people believe that all white people have money. Many retirees come and stay in resorts/cottages and sit on the beach and tan. They have money to spend, and they find ways to do it. The most uncomfortable part, which I actually learned about very early in, was how popular sex tourism was in Mombasa. As I looked around the airport, I did not feel like I belonged with this vacationing crowd. There were only 6 black men in the domestic departures waiting area to Nairobi. I found a seat closer to them. I think I just wanted to feel more like a local than a tourist.

The reverse culture shock intensified when I got to Johannesburg. I went to the food court and the first thing I see is a neon sign at a restaurant that says SUSHI. I looked at the menu and say that it cost 50 rand (it was $7 for a single roll) for a California roll with salmon in it. I decided to look around the food court. I started to feel nauseous at the amount of options that I had in front of me...and no chapatti and maharagwe (beans). There was a bakery next to the sushi place that was just busting with treats and about 5-6 other fast food joints. It was overwhelming! I decided to splurge on the sushi. I have never savoured a sushi roll as much as this one. I felt every flavour in each piece and it was amazing! It was hard not to feel guilty for enjoying this meal so much!

I arrived in Durban in the evening after a flight that I was pretty sure was not going to make it all the way to my destination. After some confusion at the airpor, where they loaded us on one plane then unloaded us and put us on another plane, the turbulence was like being on a roller coaster! I have never been so scared on an aircraft before and I have no fear of flying. The captain came on to apologize for flying through the unforeseen storm about a minute after I actually flew out of my seat! I was so frightened that I took my money and my passport out of my bag and put it in my pocket. I have never been so happy to be on solid ground.

After I got my bags, my friend Matt, his girl friend Sarah, and his friend Gareth were there to greet me at the airport. We went back to Matt’s house and I took a shower. I couldn't believe how gluttonous I felt taking a shower! The water was both running and hot! I didn’t want to get out and yet didn’t want to waist more water than I already was...the feeling of soap being washed off my body without pouring the water on myself was incredible!

In the morning, the same crew and Melissa, Matt’s sister, took me to the Midmar dam at 5:30 am. On our way there, we drove through a local town (white South African’s refer to Black South African’s as locals). They were asking me how I felt about driving through the community and I said that it wasn’t the community that made me feel uncomfortable. It was going the contrast of coming from the comforts of their home to this town, while towing a boat that we’re going to use outside their homes. They often talk about the dangers that still exist in South Africa because of the lingering effects of Apartheid.  This is usually due to the social economic imbalance but it can be misinterpretted as a racial divide because the vast majority of poor people are black.  Until I gained that understanding, it was difficult to keep safety concerns in the back of my mind.  I just came from a place where, for the most part, I felt safe.  There were no bars on my windows or gates to unlock when leaving the house.  There was no racial tension, between my Kenyan friends and I.  In fact, we used to joke about our racial differences together.  Having talked to my South African friends more about this situation, I began to understand that it wasn't a divide based on race, rather is was on economic security.

I am so happy to be in South Africa before my 2 month safari begins because I feel like I can refresh a little bit, but it’s been an interesting adjustment.

(Stay tuned for the next blog where I will tell you about being charged by a zebra at the dam! It was pretty funny.)