Race, prejudice and trust.

I live in a clash of cultures, where the influence of the West meets historic Africa.

There is so much segregation here. Sadly, it's not hard to understand why but then I feel the need to smack myself and say that it isn't and that it is not ok. If the English whites aren't talking badly about the Afrikanners then they're talking about the blacks and vise versa, it goes for every group here. There is so much segregation and prejudice it's all very unreal. I try to compare it to the history of segregation in North America but then realize that it is no where near comparable. South Africa is a unique case and there just doesn't seem to be an answer or a solution to the amount of hate against race here at the moment.

I'm finally driving on my own...and now that i'm over driving on the left hand side of the road I'm mainly focused on my safety....are the doors locked?...are the windows rolled up?....is my purse at my feet?...it's so hard not to be judgmental in a city like this...

I've been fortunate to come from a country where I have for the most part felt safe in and didn't need to feel threatened by a gender, race or appearance. I've been lucky to be able to trust the average person....it's obviously different here, you really can't trust a soul. It's scary to think about the possibility that after my time here I may judge someone so harshly by their appearance rather than who they are as a person....but then again, I suppose this is the price you pay when you decide to move to Johannesburg, the world's murder capital.

Until next time...

Safe and sound...

After 27 gruelling hours of travel Maple has made it safe and sound to her new home, Johannesburg. The first 3 days have been only exciting as it has been 5 months since I last saw my boyfriend.

Our little house is beautiful and very “African” with the thatched roofing and pavement walls. It’s winter, so the pavement doesn’t necessarily make a warm house at night, but I’m sure I’ll be thankful when summer arrives. While the house is cozy and homey, I also like to refer to it as Fort Knox…we are well secured…barred windows, many locks and high voltage electric fencing, simply a necessity in this town.

I haven’t been so much out and about just yet; it’s been a lot of unpacking and settling so far. So for those waiting for some crazy, hectic story (perhaps just to prove a point ;) ) it hasn’t happened yet.

I got the sit down lecture that I’ve been hearing for months and know what is out there waiting for me if I’m not careful. While confident and slightly excited for my new life, I can’t say nerves aren’t there beneath it all. I start work across the city next week, then I will begin to drive the highways alone and face the real Johannesburg that I have been barred away from.

To touch quickly on the subject, the violence that has been happening across the country (referred to as Xenophobia) is terrible and sad. One guy that works for my boyfriends company was badly hurt last week and he is not even a foreigner, but was mistaken for one. Let's hope and pray that the violence will slow down, as it doesn't look like it's going to any time soon.

I will write more and dive back into debates when I'm not so jet-lagged and overwhelmed.

Cheers!