South Africa trip, Week 4

Well, you know I'm behind because I've actually been back in the country since Dec. 17th. Week 4 was the last week, though.

Let's see. That last week I wrapped up my research questions. But it's the kind of research where new questions are constantly popping up, so I already have more.

I took another trip to a township. The YMCA coordinator that invited me promised me the traditional food that I had wanted (amagwinya or ijeqhe (sp?)). I was fed, but the food turned out to be more of the same as what I had been having. I think he just wanted someone to take all the photos for the awards ceremony there were having and he didn't have a digital camera. I was extra mad, too, because other people who were supposed to come didn't and they were supposed to join me in going back home (to the YMCA). So I had to go back by myself after dark and, as I told you, my neighborhood is not the best. But it all turned out okay.

I was taken out on the town by a couple of guys. One was Zimbabwean (Ndebele), but he had lived in S. Africa since high school. He was a student in Johannesburg and was visiting friends in Durban that weekend. The other was Ugandan, though raised in Australia. I've already forgotten what he was doing in Durban. Anyway, we went out to try to find a hip hop club, which it seems are scarce in Durban. Durban is more of a house music city. But we went to one hip hop / raggae place, then one house place, then back to the first place, and finally to another hip-hop place which was kinda empty (cuz it wasn't free) but at least had better music and places to sit down.

Earlier that night, I had told Thando (Zim guy) that I needed a pic of someone's hair to round out the set of hair photos I promised to show my hair board and he pointed someone out to me. Which brings me around to our favorite topic, hair. For the continued discussion on hair, see Week 4, Hair Chronicals.