At last! The moment I had long waited for: this weekend, I experienced a zoo like no other, as I went on my first Safari!

Mabalingue Game Reserve

The Reserve is located approximately one hour from Johannesburg. However, because of heavy traffic, we ended up travelling for four hours. On the bright side, this was actually good; the game reserve had what they call “low shading.” Low shading is where the government turns off the electricity for a certain period of time. So, rather than having arrived on time and living without electricity for hours, we arrived with only thirty minutes of “low shading” left. During those thirty minutes, however, my psychotic fear of the dark haunted me. You will be happy to know that our lodge was the only one that was illuminated thanks to my five flashlights (Yes, I travel with five flashlights!)

Day 1

The first day was amazing! We woke up in our cabin when a warthog began to knock on our door. With the help of strong African coffee, my host family and I set off at the crack of dawn to the Bush. We went in our own car which was clever since, not only did we get to decide where to go, but also, I got to stand up so my head was sticking out of the car’s sun roof in order to take spectacular photos. That day, I saw several impalas, zebras, monkeys, giraffes, birds and even poisonous trees. I felt as if I was living amongst the animals. At one point, we saw a group of ostriches, which were extremely rude; they refused to move out of the middle of road! Suddenly, the “daddy” ostrich came out of nowhere. It was enormous! He reminded us that they own the roads and to be patient around them.

Day 2

The next day was a blazing 40 degrees Celsius; we surely thought that the animals would have all died. Luckily, they didn’t! With my Canon camera and my sunblock, we went with a tour guide to look for “the Big Five”. The tour guide took us to an area with lions. There, I got to see a baby cub that played with us, a female lion who exercised in front of us and, finally, a male lion who slept the entire time (typical males!) It was truly fantastic! After the tour, we decided to look for the “Big Five” one last time; this was a bad idea. Not only did I burn (for the hundredth time), but we also found ourselves on a 4×4 road with several rain-holes. Our car, a family-sized-Honda-like-car, in the end, was completely drenched in mud and went berserk; it would not stop beeping, telling us that something (a branch) was too close. The animals were clearly trying to punish us for having spotted them!

Zulu Word of the Week: “Izilwanes” means animals

Community Service

This week, I was invited to visit a school in downtown Johannesburg. I was told I would help teach a class with grade two children. My little sister, Gabby, is in grade two, so I thought I knew at what level the children would be at. This was a moving, eye-opening experience. The school was very small, with less than 100 students, who were mostly orphans. I was astonished when I discovered that they could barely do basic adding and subtracting. This experience made me realize that not everyone is as fortunate as we are at LCC. In fact, some of the children had to share their only pen!

I cannot believe that I have been here for more than a month. I am so grateful for all my experiences and adventures. Next up…LeSedi! – Abby Shine ’17, Exchange Student at St Stithians Girls’ College