Alive and Well in South Africa

My adventure began bright and early Saturday morning as I boarded my flight bound for Johannesburg. Sadly, due to unfortunate circumstances, Avni was not able to join me on our trip to South Africa. Although I will greatly miss her company, I am confident that my time in South Africa will be a tremendous learning experience and one that will open my eyes to the world and encourage me to learn about myself.

After a long (30+ hours of flying) and arduous journey, I arrived in Cape Town and met up with Sarah, a loveLife Y-Center director (Y-Centers are youth centers established in different townships around South Africa. They are similar to community centers but they incorporate lessons on sexual health and HIV prevention and also include health clinics for teenagers to get tested or speak with doctors and counselors). As Sarah drove me to my hostel, she explained how loveLife is a fundamentally unique HIV prevention program because it relies on South Africans to teach and counsel other South Africans on HIV and sexual health, unlike many other HIV programs throughout Africa which employ foreigners who are not aware of the culture and specific attitudes of the people in that region.

A few minutes later, we arrived at the Cape Town Backpack. I was excited to see the hostel was full of young people, particularly in its bar/lounge area playing pool. Immediately, I felt at home and comfortable. My room is small but has everything I need in it, including my source of heat for these winter nights: a hot water bottle!