Joburg

Joburg is a fascinating city where the oppression of the country can be felt more strongly than the other places I have visited. The disparities between the rich and the poor are vast. Sandton, where loveLife's national office is located, is the hub of wealth and fortune. The surrounding neighborhoods of Craighall and Hyde Park boast some of the grandest estates I have ever seen, even more elaborate than Beverly Hills. However, not far from these mansions are run-down houses and closed store fronts. Electricity is a commodity here in Joburg and power outages are common. My hostel, the Backpackers Ritz (don't let the name fool you, there is nothing ritzy about it!), turns off all electricity at 10:30 pm and turns it back on at 7:30 each morning.

Although about 10.5 million people live in Joburg, there is no public transportation, including taxis, so getting around town is challenging and often expensive. Last night, I went to a gym and then realized I had no way of getting back to my hostel because even though it was only a few blocks away, I could not walk alone. Luckily, a woman who worked at the gym offered me a ride to my hostel and I had my first experience with "hitch hiking" if you could even call it that!

Working in the national office, I have been busy working on an article describing my experience with loveLife. The article will be included in loveLife's monthly newspaper, which is read by about 7,000 loveLife staff around the country. The media partnership is an important component of loveLife's approach to spread HIV and sexual health awareness. Without the media exposure, the youth and schools would not be aware of the program and the opportunities it offers.

Sadly, tomorrow will be my last day working as I must return to reality on Thursday. I plan to spend my last day at the Orangefarm Y Center, where I will enjoy my final dose of inspiration from the South African teens.

Something I will never get used to is the availability of free condoms everywhere you look in South Africa. Obviously this is part of the country's push for safe sex and HIV prevention but condoms are available in places you would never expect, and they are always free. I just realized that in the bathroom at the loveLife offices, there is a basket of condoms by the sink as we see mints in our bathrooms. My hostel offers condoms by the communal dining table and you often see condoms available in shopping malls and even restaurants. People here were appalled when I told them that we charge people for condoms in the United States, which made me think about how our HIV statistics might be affected if we offered free condoms and made safe sex and sexual health practices a stronger part of the national dialogue as well.