Yesterday was Saturday. We had planned to have an early start and drive down to Victoria market, which I have heard to be rumored as one of the biggest in sub-Saharan Africa. Whether this is true or not it is truly an experience to wander around the 138 year old Market.
To read more please click here <--
Unfortunately, we did not make it because we woke up late and had a slow morning start. In any case while Joe went out to get some provisions to do an oil change before our long drive to Johannesburg, I stayed at home to do Yoga. I made it most of the way through the 1.5 hour long video session then got ready to meet with the youth group I am involved in. Because the students in the area have half a day of school on Saturdays I was surprised to see our young ladies dressed in their "street clothes". I am so used to seeing them in uniforms that this was a nice surprise. Today was the first time we got to see the ladies' pictures that they had been taking with the project cameras. They seemed to be very eager to share and see each others pictures. When the meeting ended it was really nice to see people that didn't know each other before were walking together and forming friendships. It was also nice to see some of the girls in the neighborhood documenting their space.
Trevor Noah performed at Sibaya Casino. A magnificently opulently South African structure which incorporates Zulu inspired architecture, museum quality cultural artifacts, and of course slot machines and all other gambling paraphernalia. When we entered I was truly taken aback and took in all the visual stimulation as it came.
We found our seats in the iZulu Theatre and waited to be entertained. I considered the show to also be part of my research since Trevor Noah is a Coloured (aka mixed race) comedian who has a satirical outlook of South Africa's people and politics. A lovely surprise were the two acts prior to Trevor. One was another Coloured guy originally from Sydnam, Durban - a formerly Coloured area and a White beat boxer named George Avakian (aka Georgeous the Beatboxer) who blew the crowd away with the sounds that came out of his mouth. Please check out some of his work here <-- In all it was a beautiful night and we even got to do some dancing after the show. It was a quiet ride home, no traffic, but you could hear people drag racing down the open roads. Today, we went to church with one of the Rotary members from Chatsworth and afterward spent the afternoon with my cousin and auntie visiting some flea markets. Friday was a full day as well. I was supposed to do an interview but was late because I was getting my eyebrows threaded. For those of you who don't know about threading, it is a method of removing unwanted hair using a thread that is twisted around the hair and pulled out as a result. It has the same effect as plucking or waxing except the first time I tried threading I was amazed at how good they were and also enjoyed the novelty of the entire process. The place I went to to get my eyebrows done was at Lotus Park, during Apartheid an Indian area but since '94 and the democratic elections mostly "Black" Africans are moving in and not everyone is very happy.
In any case I got to the library to do my interview. It was supposed to take only a couple of hours but ended up extending because the man speaking was such an expert that he just began talking and before I could ask another question he was on to another topic. Well I was supposed to meet my cousins at 1:00pm but ended up meeting them at 2:40. We had decided to go to lunch because by that point lunch was way passed. Unfortunately for the people working at Yossi's, a Moroccan place, we got there just in time for them to have to stay open another hour and prepare four more dishes. Thankfully, the cooks prepared for us a lovely meal and satisfied our hungry bellies.
After we finished we ended up at the Botanical gardens to pass some time and while my one cousin went home to prepare for prayers, as he is an ordained Buddhist monk, his brother came with us and we headed to Suncoast Casino on Durban beach front to meet Cool and the Gang. We arrived a couple hours early so we got to walk on the beach before waiting in the Casino. Unfortunately, even though we were the first ones there we did not get to meet the band because we were not pushing in front like all the others. :( We barely got a signed picture but because we had been there so long I was determined to get something. Though I don't care about the group that much it was the principle of the affair. Plus I was hoping to give something to my uncles. Let's see if they like it.
Although the night was a disappointment it was really nice spending time with my cousins and laughing. I wouldn't have done it any differently. :)
To read more please click here <--
Unfortunately, we did not make it because we woke up late and had a slow morning start. In any case while Joe went out to get some provisions to do an oil change before our long drive to Johannesburg, I stayed at home to do Yoga. I made it most of the way through the 1.5 hour long video session then got ready to meet with the youth group I am involved in. Because the students in the area have half a day of school on Saturdays I was surprised to see our young ladies dressed in their "street clothes". I am so used to seeing them in uniforms that this was a nice surprise. Today was the first time we got to see the ladies' pictures that they had been taking with the project cameras. They seemed to be very eager to share and see each others pictures. When the meeting ended it was really nice to see people that didn't know each other before were walking together and forming friendships. It was also nice to see some of the girls in the neighborhood documenting their space.
When we left the girls we ended up returning home to rest up before going to see the comedian Trevor Noah. We had purchased tickets a couple of days after we heard he would be preforming from my auntie. Prior to getting on the highway north we also got to see the full moon, which according to the Sunday Times was the biggest and closest it will be this year. 
Trevor Noah performed at Sibaya Casino. A magnificently opulently South African structure which incorporates Zulu inspired architecture, museum quality cultural artifacts, and of course slot machines and all other gambling paraphernalia. When we entered I was truly taken aback and took in all the visual stimulation as it came.
We found our seats in the iZulu Theatre and waited to be entertained. I considered the show to also be part of my research since Trevor Noah is a Coloured (aka mixed race) comedian who has a satirical outlook of South Africa's people and politics. A lovely surprise were the two acts prior to Trevor. One was another Coloured guy originally from Sydnam, Durban - a formerly Coloured area and a White beat boxer named George Avakian (aka Georgeous the Beatboxer) who blew the crowd away with the sounds that came out of his mouth. Please check out some of his work here <-- In all it was a beautiful night and we even got to do some dancing after the show. It was a quiet ride home, no traffic, but you could hear people drag racing down the open roads. Today, we went to church with one of the Rotary members from Chatsworth and afterward spent the afternoon with my cousin and auntie visiting some flea markets. Friday was a full day as well. I was supposed to do an interview but was late because I was getting my eyebrows threaded. For those of you who don't know about threading, it is a method of removing unwanted hair using a thread that is twisted around the hair and pulled out as a result. It has the same effect as plucking or waxing except the first time I tried threading I was amazed at how good they were and also enjoyed the novelty of the entire process. The place I went to to get my eyebrows done was at Lotus Park, during Apartheid an Indian area but since '94 and the democratic elections mostly "Black" Africans are moving in and not everyone is very happy.
In any case I got to the library to do my interview. It was supposed to take only a couple of hours but ended up extending because the man speaking was such an expert that he just began talking and before I could ask another question he was on to another topic. Well I was supposed to meet my cousins at 1:00pm but ended up meeting them at 2:40. We had decided to go to lunch because by that point lunch was way passed. Unfortunately for the people working at Yossi's, a Moroccan place, we got there just in time for them to have to stay open another hour and prepare four more dishes. Thankfully, the cooks prepared for us a lovely meal and satisfied our hungry bellies.
Although the night was a disappointment it was really nice spending time with my cousins and laughing. I wouldn't have done it any differently. :)
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