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Lephalale

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After spending a nice weekend in Johannesburg, we headed up to Lephalale which at the time would be my home for the next three months. South Africa is so different from America. It was quite a culture shock. Before we left JoBurg we went to two craft fairs. These were places that are subsidized by the municipality so local craftsmen can sell their products to locals and tourist. I did not get anything as I already have too much stuff. In any case the shop keepers were eager to sell stuff. One thing that struck me about South Africa was how colorful every thing is. Perhaps it is in response to the surroundings. Unlike America, water is used sparingly so there are not many places with lush gardens. Just outside of JoBurg is a gas station that spans the N1 called Total Petroport Panorama. We stopped here to fuel up and get lunch. Two chains are owned by the same company and are often co-located, Steers which is a hamburger joint and Debonairs which is a pizza place. My second fast foo
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I don't Know Anything About Rugby

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After we went to the Lion Park outside Johannesburg, we went to a rugby game. One of the local teams is the Blue Bulls. I don't remember who they were playing. Rugby is a very popular game in South Africa. Rugby played a role in the end of apartheid. Here is an excerpt from a news article that quotes the South African national team captain François Pienaar about the events in 1995: "During those six weeks what happened in this country was incredible," Pienaar said. "I'm still gobsmacked when I think back to the profound change that happened. We started obviously with a great leader with a fantastic vision who realised that sport is important for the Afrikaner white community and to earn their respect and trust. "But on the other side I have such a respect for what he had to go through in the African National Congress because the springbok was a symbol of apartheid. The majority of South Africans never supported the Springboks, so to ask them to suppo
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Lions and Cheetahs Oh My

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The first Saturday in South Africa, the Country Manager for my company got us tickets for a rugby game. I had never been to a rugby game. It was going to be the Blue Bulls vs New Zealands All Blacks. The plan was to go to the Lion Park outside Johannesburg in the morning, have lunch at the Lion Park, then go to the Rugby Game Saturday night. Very exciting. I do remember getting breakfast at the hotel on Saturday morning. I remember it being very hearty and thinking that I could get used to this type of culinary choices. One of the things to get used to was they have Coke Light instead of Diet Coke. I used to work for Minute Maid which was owned by Coca Cola. Coca Cola as a company was always pointing out to employees how international the company was and how ubiquitous Coke is around the world .  Breakfast On the way to Lion Park I saw the first village with shacks. I had read up on the history of South Africa and this was my first time seeing in real life. The housing si
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Getting to Know South Africa

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One of my worries about going to South Africa for the first time is the fact that as a former Commonwealth Nation, they drive on the left side of the road as opposed to the right as in America. One of the things we implemented over the course of the project is that anyone new to the project would not travel the four hours to Lephalale by themselves. Either a South African citizen or one of the experienced members of the team would go to JoBurg to pick up the team member. In any case my co-workers had been in the country for two weeks by the time I arrived. The decision was made from them to take a break for the weekend and come down to JoBurg for a little R&R and bring me back up to Lephalale. I have recently wrote about my cousin Debbie who has traveled extensively. Her advice was to get to know the people and be sure to interact with all that I met. I am a fan of Stephen Covey's 7 Habits. Habit 5 is Seek First to Understand Then be Understood. My goal was to try to limit
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The First Day in South Africa

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I am looking through my photos and trying to figure out if I had breakfast at the hotel when I woke up in South Africa. I doubt I would miss breakfast since it is my favorite meal. I think I went down to have breakfast, then returned to my room to check email etc.  I later found out that my co-workers intended to pick me up for a meeting. They got stuck in traffic and ended up not coming to the hotel. This was serendipitous because I was not at the hotel. Around noon I went across the street to Sandton City , the big mall that encompasses Nelson Mandela Square . Nelson Mandela Square is the location of one of the Nelson Mandela Statues. The other is at the Government Buildings in Pretoria. When I crossed the street from the hotel, there was a woman begging for money. I ended up giving her change. I must have had a quarter in their that annoyed her. When I went back to the hotel later she gave me back the quarter. When I tell this story people will talk about the exchange rate
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That Time I Went to South Africa for the First Time

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There is something to be said about the first time you experience something. This is the theory behind why time seems to fly faster as you get older. When you are young almost everything is a new experience so time goes slowly. When you are older you are repeating things you have already done so they time goes by quicker since you have been there and done that. I hope I never forget my first arrival in South Africa. I looked out the window the whole decent into the airport. I was surprised to see farmland relatively close to the airport. Had we flown in from a different direction I may have seen townships which are very densely populated. I have to say, getting off the plane was a little anti-climactic. I am not sure what I was expecting. I am sure in my mind the few weeks of anticipation created unrealistic expectations. O.R. Tambo Airport is a fairly big airport and there is a lot of walking to get to passport control. I am sure I was more excited to be in South Africa than the g
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Airports, Cape Town, and Table Mountain

I suppose I am going to jump around in these stories. I originally meant this post to be about when I first set foot in South Africa. My Facebook memories feed made me change my mind. I have always been an airplane buff. I've never had much of a desire to fly them myself, but enjoy being in the back of big ones. Not really a fan of little planes as I tend to get sick in them. Most of the times I had the compunction to fly in a small one I have regretted it almost as soon as the wheels have left the ground. I am at the Indianapolis Airport preparing to fly home today after two weeks of work away from home. Interestingly in 2014 on this day I was in airports too. I was returning from a four day trip to Cape Town. That was an amazing trip. We went to Table Mountain, The Cape of Good Hope, and saw Robben Island, the prison where Mandela was held. When I was planning the trip, I was unable to get affordable flights from JoBurg. We ended up flying out of Lansaria airport which is o
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