Church and the Beach

            The first weekend in Cape Town I checked out a church a few blocks from the hotel.  It happened to be Methodist, which while not at all a prerequisite for me in a church, is the denomination in which I was raised.  They were also extremely friendly, helped me up the steep ramp at the entrance, and in general were eager to welcome me. 

Church selfie

Awesome stained glass windows

I knew most of the songs already.  Similar program to the US, except for the bongo and accents.

            Part of the sermon I really loved.  He was talking about ISIS and the attacks by Muslim extremists.  He said it was unfair to judge all Muslims based on the actions of a few, saying, "It would be the same to judge all Christians based on the actions of the Klu Klux Klan." I never thought of it like that but he's right.

            I love that church but it is pretty far from our apartment.  We tried out a new, small church today a couple blocks from our apartment.  It had an extremely steep ramp to wheel up which was fun.  The congregation was only about 20 people, but all were extremely nice and friendly to Rebecca and me.  They have their service in a small meeting room in a hotel.  Two funny things happened:

            1) The pastor’s son kept commenting on how cool my “bike” was and asked how I was allowed to take it into worship.  He was referring to my wheelchair.

            2) I was wearing my Chicago Bears hat, which has the NFL logo on the back.  The pastor asked if I was injured playing for the NFL.  Ha!  I laughed and said I guess I took that as a compliment.  He looked confused and then began speaking in alternating English and Afrikaans to his 2-year-old son, offering him a brownie.  They had brownies, tea and coffee after the service.

           

            It is interesting trying to find a church, as so many people do.  I am inclined to like all of them.  They all have believers that are committed to making their church work.  The idea of picking a church that “fits” us seems kind of silly, even though that’s exactly what we’re doing.  The part I don’t like is that it insinuates that other churches aren’t good enough, which of course isn’t the case. 

            On the way to church I passed by a Subway, with the smell of that unmistakable Subway bread permeating from its doors, just like in the US.  There is no escaping the US, it seems.  Everywhere you go here, the background music is 95% whatever is popular in the US, with the occasional South African artist thrown in every hour or two.  At checkout at the grocery, every single DVD for sale is an American movie.  We don’t have cable TV, and of the three main stations we get, two play popular US movies from the late 90s nonstop, and 1 plays futbol (soccer).  Along with not having cable, most people here watch US shows and movies, which they do by accessing Netflix or Hulu.  

Odd-looking modern art downtown.  Bart Simpson heads??? My guess is that it shows how culture from the West is ruining traditional African culture.  I don't know.

          I was even surprised that the vineyard in Stellenbosch we visited last week for a friend’s birthday carried Woodford Reserve behind their bar.   Also, that vineyard was beautiful and we felt spoiled as they brought us many delicious appetizers and wines, all at the courtesy of our host. 

Funny disabled bathroom sign at the vineyard.

            Yesterday Rebecca and a couple classmates hiked to the top of a small mountain here called Lion’s Head.  You can see it from our bedroom windows.  She is now the co-chair of Sports and Activities for her MBA program, so she organized the hike, however most of the students that had signed up were hung over and bailed.  

Rebecca being goofy on top of Lions Head.

            After the hike I joined them and we drove to Camps Bay to lie out on the beach.  I have been avoiding trips to the beach ever since we went to L.A. to attend her friend Sammi’s wedding.  We visited Venice Beach there and I had tried to walk in the sand.  It was a total failure.  I shuffled a few steps, fell down, got back up, tried again, and became exhausted realizing I had made it about 2 feet.  It was embarrassing and frustrating.  That was a year and a half ago. 

            Yesterday, however, I was very happy to find that it came much easier.  My knees bend and lift much easier now, so I was able to step higher through the sand instead of shuffle awkwardly through it like before.  In no time I was halfway down the beach!  Rebecca rented me a chair and the others settled down on their blankets next to me.  I enjoyed it a little too much and got pretty sunburned, unfortunately.  But I don’t really care.  I’m happy to have another little bit of freedom regained. 

Getting sunburned and loving it.

            The same Sammi I just mentioned and her husband Chad actually live in Johannesburg, now.  They are coming to stay with us next weekend and the four of us will go to wine country for the Valentine’s Day weekend.  It should be great and will likely be the next blog. 

            Now that we are settled, I am starting to get more aggressive about finding work.  My work visa is still in process, but I need to line something up.  I have been happily surprised to find that top consulting firms in the US almost all have offices in South Africa.  On top of that, it seems that there is quite a lot of focus on consulting in the public sector, NGOs, non-profits.  There is a lot of talk of how they want to aid and positively impact the people of South Africa.  I am skeptical since these same companies typically work with companies in the US with the primary aim of increasing profits.  But I will stay hopeful as I pursue a position.

            Random funny occurrence: I am typing this from another small café within walking distance for me from our apartment.  They have omelets.  I like salsa with my omelets, especially when feta cheese is involved – I don’t know why I just do.  So I asked if they had salsa and the guy says, “Oh the dancing music? Yes we actually have that CD in the back!” Ha!  I would never have guessed anyone would respond like that. 

Here are a couple more random pics:

Pretty cool, really. This is the trained behavior all over the country.

I took this at sunset while we went for a walk and roll on the promenade outside our building.

Dear Lord, thank you, thank you, thank you.  I have much to be thankful for.  Now I need Your help in finding something that will give me purpose here.  Please help me find work.  Continue to heal me.  Allow me to always be positive and thankful and to not dwell on life’s difficulties.  In Your name, amen. 

Have a good one!

Chip