I think everyone knew that Cape Town was going to be an amazing, life changing experience but I don't think anyone truly realised how challenging and life changing it would be. It really amazed me how some people are forced to live in such horrendous, inhuman conditions while people (like us) are sat at home with all the latest technology and not even fully appreciating it.
I realised this in many ways but most specifically when we visited the local township, Langa and when we spent four days in Welcome Primary. It really opened my eyes too see that families of six would be crammed in a tiny hut with just room for one bed, it was horrific to see people living this way and how even having nothing the kids would run about with the biggest smiles on their faces, literally it was unreal I never heard one of them moan about even the slightest thing. I also found it really upsetting that people who live their have to make their money by giving us a tour around what they call 'home' so that we can see the bad conditions.
However, the primary school is honestly the most amazing and best experience of my whole life, it made me realise that working with kids is definitely a career that I want to pursue In the future. I realised that helping a child who doesn't have much for even as little as 10 minutes can totally change their life and impact them forever. It was so much fun although it was really emotional, me, Eilidh and Cali were balling our eyes out from the beginning being able to see how talented these kids are even though they don't have a proper education.
Throughout it all they showed how grateful they really were even though we were just showing them simple lessons to them it seemed to be the best thing in their life and I loved that, being able to come home feeling like I've helped impact someone's life is something I actually never expected but am so so happy to leave with. Overall the school was great and something I will never ever forget and truly hope I get the chance to do again. Also getting called Barbie by all the little girls cause of my unusual blonde hair was always giving me a laugh.
I genuinely couldn't had wished for a better group of people to have shared the trip with, so many different personalities and people from different friendship groups yet we all made such a good bond I almost feel like family. Even with the teachers who I didn't really know I now feel as though I could turn to them as a friend and talk through problems I'm having. It made me realise that you should never judge someone before you know them, because without lying everyone has done it when really you can't before you spend time with the person. I think we all had our ups and downs but then it was a hard, emotional trip but being 100% honest there wasn't one person I would change for the world and the fact that we are home already organising a few events to gather up is something I'm so happy about. After 12 days of being in constant closeness with Eilidh and Cali I feel like I've come home with two sisters, we have always been close but after this I find myself seeing them more like family after some of the stuff we shared, ended up crying ourselves to sleep with laughter every night because we always found some story hilarious. I think after sharing such a life changing experience it would be hard to come home and forget about one another, in fact in the airport I felt more upset about saying goodbye to my new 'family' than seeing my actual family after 12 days.
The trip has definitely been the best 12 days of my life from all I said above and the tourist trips to Table Mountain, Cape Point and the Waterfront along with trying the weird food like Crocodile and Ostrich it has seriously been so different from I expected but in such a good way and was soo much better than I could ever have imagined, I'm so grateful for being able to have this opportunity which a lot of people don't have and will never forget the feelings I have felt towards everything on this
Robyn
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