We tried to go to the top of table mountain in a 56 passenger cable car. At the top, Art and four more were going to rapell down the mountain and back up....I was to sit at the top and video this...but, when we got to the top, they just closed the cable car due to winds. Boo Hoo..our days are running out and we might not get to do this now. This is one of the hazards of this venture today. So we are able to find an internet cafe, Cafe no....in the back of a barber shop, down a seemy hallway. Here are the computers.
yesterday we had a speaker who spoke to us of the rights of the grape pickers in the wine country...it parallels the migrant workers of California. They now have a union working for them, but before 1994, women worked from Sunday to Friday and came home with 30 rand because they deducted for food and lodging...that is the equivalent of 30 cents. The men got a little more. When they picked the conditions were and are very poor for them..it is a seasonal work so people are left to being homeless when it is not picking season. Things are changing now for the better...very slowly, but they are changing. I think through educating the young people, rights will change here.
Before the talk, the CCS staff gave us a huge lunch, complete with turkey, and fixings for sandwiches...and chocolate cake...you can imagine how yanks devour a feast like this. We are also enjoying sunshine still and eating outside is a pleasure. Keep your fingers crossed that we do not have the torential rains that we had last week....my water wings got so wet.
Tomorrow we go to a lunch spot where we will be entertained by african singers than tour the slave lodge and museum. This weekend we will visit the vineyards one day and Sunday go to the around the cape.. It is cheap because the van fits 8 to 10 of us. We have formed a family within the house family. THe teen twins keep us laughing....they keep trying to get there dad to let them do what the adults are doing like bunjee jump, shark dive and many more things...poor dad , he just shakes his head and says, "my partner will kill me if I do that." He did entrust the twins with us today. Dad needs a break.
My field placement continues to be a learning for me and an opportunity for me to use my talents.....I must learn to not get sucked into their stories too much....today I learned that one thing that happens is that women often make up stories to get into the center to get clothes and free services and then they leave in the middle of the night.. This does not always happen, but once in awhile it does... Young moms use the luxury of the creche to drop their babies and then they go smoke in the sun......they are not to do this since the poor creche worker has big kids along with the babies....
Art and i have decided to return to the hotel for Friday night since last friday night was not so good. Thank you for all of your emails..hearing from the other side of the world is good for me. Bye and love...Dianne
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