Away for the weekend

We have left the friendly confines of hb2 and are now ejoying luxury at the V & A Waterfront Hotel in Cape Town. The weather has changed from stormy to cloudy with a promise of sun for the weekend. We will really enjoy our time here at the V & A as the accommodations at hb2 are comfortable, but far from luxurious. Our day at hb 2 begins at 6:20 and hopefully a hot shower. I say hopefully because with 18 people sharing hot water, the supply goes fast. I have found that if I get up early, I am guaranteed a hot shower.

We have become close with the volunteers at hb 2. Along with Juanita, we are the over 60 contingent. There is a father named Rick who is here with his twin teenage sons, Max and Nick. We also have Erin who is a recently laid off high school teacher from Seattle. She is a real joy to be around as she is so full of life. We also share with Bettina who is still waiting for her luggage that somehow did not make the trip from South America to South Africa. Katie leaves tomorrow. She is a perky 19 year old who is on her third CCS stint. We also have Aimee from Manchester England and Meaghan. Katie, Aimee and Meaghan are veterans which means they have been here for three weeks at least. Jen is a college student who will be joining me at Etafeni next week but will work on a different project. Amanda also leaves tomorrow, but she will meet up with her fiance and travel around South Africa a bit. We also have Shanika from Virginia going into her senior year in college in N. Carolina. We have fun together and have a nice little community. We think some of the young ladies may look on us as surrogate parents as I have seen Dianne in heart to hearts with some of them.

We had HIV AIDS briefiing yesterday. 6.5 million South Africans (out of 40 million) are infected with HIV. There are over 1 million AIDS orphans in South Africa. Treatment with ARV's begins when T Cell count falls below 200. If below 200 a person is eligible for disability of 640 Rands (about $80) per month. Once T Cells are higher, disability stops. Result, some people choose to keep T Cells below 200 by not taking drugs on regular basis so they can still collect disability. The middle generation is hardest hit by HIV AIDS. Result, grandparents (if alive) care for orphaned children. Obviously, this is a huge problem for all of Sub Sahara Africa.

I have made contact with the Salesians here in Cape Town and we hope to meet with them to find out about their work in Cape Town. Having been a Salesian teacher gives me an immediate entrance with Salesians around the world.

We hope all is well with all of you and will keep you posted.
Art