Allegra Takes on Africa: A Home in Soweto

When it was first time to get on the van and go to our homestays for the weekend I was a mixture of nervous and excited. I had been feeling extremely homesick and really missing my own family so I figured being with a new family would make it even harder. From the minute I stepped off the van outside of my house for the weekend, I was greeted by two smiling faces, my 11 year old host sister, Mbali, and my 6 year old host brother, Nathi. Mbali smiled as I complimented her cute shoes and she introduced me to her friend as they ran off to the house giggling. Nathi immediately started talking to me about his new remote control helicopter and I don't think he stopped talking from that moment on (the entire weekend). My host mom, Nellie, met me at the gate to the house and immediately offered me food and drinks. My host dad, Vincent, was sitting in the living room and asked me to come sit and talk with him where we discussed his childhood in South Africa and his current job in the South African Police Service. Emily, another student on my program, was also with me for the weekend and we both sat in awe as our host parents talked about their lives growing up in Soweto during Apartheid. We asked questions and they answered anything we wanted and in a matter of hours we had already learned so much.

Our house was an adorable one floor house with three bedrooms, a dining room, a living room, and a kitchen. Nellie always cooked us delicious meals with lots of meat and veggies. We were all mostly sitting in the living room watching cartoons or South African news stations while we exchanged stories about where we were from and what we liked to do. After only a couple of hours being in the house with them, I was beginning to feel so at home and comfortable with my surroundings. I missed my family back in RI so much but it was really nice to have a family here who was always taking care of me and making sure I was as comfortable as possible. The next day I helped my host mom with laundry where she taught me how to wash the clothes by hand and then I hung them up to dry on the line outside. Then our parents surprised us with tickets to the opening match of the Africa Cup of Nations, a huge soccer tournament throughout Africa that is being held here in South Africa. It was super exciting! Unfortunately it was raining a lot and lots of people didn't come out for the game but it was still so spirited and enthusiastic. All of the fans who were there were excited and ready to cheer on their team. This place has so much pride in their country and it really makes me so happy. I felt like I was really a part of something amazing as we blew the vuvuzuelas and waved our South African flags in the crowd. It was also the stadium where the final match of the world cup was held so that was awesome too! My host family was so excited to be there as well and it was nice to see everyone so pumped up. My host mom kept saying how important soccer is to the South African culture and she really wanted me to experience that firsthand. I definitely did and I can't thank them enough for taking me!

Emily and I with our host siblings and host mom outside the stadium!

The stadium

Inside the stadium with the players warming up

Jacob Zuma, the current president of South Africa officially opening the games

So glad I got to experience this!

The next day was already our last day in Soweto! We went downtown to some shopping centers and looked around and bought some souvenirs. We went to Nelson Mandela Square in the Sandton District and it was super classy. There were a lot of nice restaurants and stores and tons of diversity! I loved seeing all the business people and babies wandering around the square. The super tall bronze Nelson Mandela statue was also pretty fun to look at and take pictures with. At night, my host mom taught us how to cook some traditional African foods such as Pap, something made from maize and kind of like mashed potato consistency and Chakalaka, a carrot, bean, and vegetable dish. I can't wait to try and make some of thee things at home when I get back. We ate with our hands and mixed lots of it together to eat which was really fun and interesting! It's like our whole life we are raised to not play with our food and eat our hands and it is so normal and cultural here! After, some of our neighbors came over and we all drank tea and played cards in the living room. Two of the boys in our group, Jacob and Joe, were actually staying with the family next door so they came over for socializing. The neighborhood is so nice too! They were all so welcoming and neighbors and kids would all come over and talk to us about our lives and always wanted us to ask questions about theirs. It was really cool to exchange stories and feel so welcome by a community I had only been a part of for 2 days.

In the morning we woke up early to send the kids off to school and say goodbye. I was actually really sad to say bye and leave the Phangisa family. They were the sweetest and most accommodating people ever and really made me feel at home at a time when I wasn't so sure about everything here. I know now that I always have a home in South Africa for any adventures in my life where I may find myself back here. I promised them I would come back and I hope someday I get that opportunity to visit this beautiful community again.