Today was much different than yesterday (which I spent primarily dealing with the robbery - where dealing = sewing because I was too nervous to focus on anything else). I can't wait to upload some of the photographs I took today and I hope to be consistently online again by the end of this week to do so.
This morning J and M (the women from CAS I work with) picked me up and we drove around north of the city from about 11am to 4pm. First we went to Kwa Mashu - this was the first township I have seen since I have been here and it was such a range of extremes - the settlements there are labeled by letters. The "N" section houses professionals (nurses, teachers, etc.) from the area and the houses were relatively nice (completed houses with four rooms, a gate, and electricity/water/plumbing) compared to other sections - in particular the "K" section. This section consists mostly of what are called "informal settlements" by the government but what most people would realistically call metal shacks. The standard of living here is so low and so hard for people that they have to steal electricity because Eskom (even though it's government-owned) has not installed safe electrical access in their area. During times of heavy rain (such as we had last week for a few days) people can be electrocuted and fires can start because the electricity hasn't been grounded safely. There is no running water here for each shack and there is often only one drop toilet for every 100 people. Also during the rains the waste can be washed into the streets, enter nearby water sources, and devastate the health of those living in the area.
In the center of Kwa Mashu, however, there is a community center that was opened in March 2004 that is a beautiful space that gathers community members together for performances of many kinds. They have a recording studio and have produced albums, there is a men's dramatic performance group (the men were all previously in jail and have now committed themselves to community outreach) - there are so many amazing programs the Kwa Mashu Community Advancement Project has sponsored since opening its doors. There I met Z, who does amazing video editing work (seriously - I was envious when I saw his awesome Mac studio complete with Final Cut Pro... especially with me being Mac-less for now) and he gave me a copy of a great short documentary that was made about two residents of Kwa Mashu. I told him about Writing With Video, the course I have taught at UIUC and we might cook up some sort of video collaboration in the future involving my class (if/when I get to teach it again) and the community center- as I've placed a lot of emphasis on video production that focuses on local situations and how they connect to global issues.
After that we stopped at a casino in the area to have a laugh really. It has been decorated to simulate a traditional Zulu village and it was really something. The interior simulated a night sky (like the Paris casino in Las Vegas) and there were statues of Zulu warriors and animals everywhere. As far as I could tell there were only slot machines rather than table gambling, but we spent most of our time outside to enjoy the views it offers guests of the coast of Durban - you could see Umlangi in the distance and also downtown Durban. The Indian Ocean was so deeply blue.
Next J insisted we drive out to Tongaat to see a very special Hindu temple there, the Sri Jagannath Puri Temple. Tongaat houses the Hulett sugar company (on the drive up there I could see fields of sugar cane - a new sight for me!), which has quite a history in the area. Many Indians remain in Tongaat, as it was settled originally by Indian indentured laborers working for the sugar plantations. I will write more about the Temple and its history later when I can include pictures. Oh but we had a wonderful visit with Mr. Kamal, whose grandfather built the temple in 1900 - at a time when hardly anyone but Whites were allowed to own land. But I should bite my tongue (typing hand?) for now, as I want to write about the visit and our conversation in detail later.
I'm home for the evening and will probably return to my sewing (and watching this horribly wonderful Afrikaans "soapie" they play on TV called "7 de laan" - at first I thought that I was watching it for "linguistic research purposes" but as soon as San Mari collaped from anabolic steroid use because her new boyfriend Conrad was administering them to her in secret so she would win a biatholon... I realized maybe I was getting hooked on ummm the "universal human stories" the program explores!).
My thanks to everyone here and in the States who reached out to me and helped me deal with the robbery yesterday. I know I wouldn't be feeling as safe and as better as I do now if it hadn't been for those who contacted me with their thoughtful messages, help, and conversation. My friends make me feel so happy.
Glad to hear things are going better! Keep on truckin', chica!
Posted by: Mark | February 13, 2008 at 06:08 PM
Hey Martha,
I will write more, soon, and hopefully we can get into better contact, but I wanted to drop a brief note to let you know I'm keeping up on your blog, and am quite excited to follow the adventure, good and bad. Best of luck in everything, and I promise more meaningful conversation soon.
Best,
Ted
Posted by: Ted | February 13, 2008 at 10:32 PM