Day 2 in Cape Town

So I arrived in Cape Town yesterday afternoon at around 1pm. The hostel I’m staying at arranged for a driver to pick me up at the airport, so once I got out with my luggage, the driver was standing right there to greet me. My mom and I were so worried that the driver would be sketchy, but we were both so wrong I was ashamed. He was the nicest driver ever. I think he was actually one of the friendliest people I’ve ever met… if there’s such a thing as “the most friendliest people”.

I got out of the airport and it. was. gorgeous. I hate humidity, but it’s winter here so it’s not that hot (apparently, even in the summer, it doesn’t get much hotter than 30C too often). There’s so much green everywhere and all of Cape Town is pretty much situated around Table Mountain and the surrounding mountains (google Table Mountain). You can just imagine how beautiful this place is.

Anyway, a fear that I have is getting lonely while I’m here… Not lonely because there’s nobody to talk to, but lonely because the friends I make and the people in the hostel and people in general are so outgoing. I like knowing people and getting to know new people but being surrounded by too many extroverts that I’m not too close to too often can make me feel pretty damn lonely (introvert problems, fml). Luckily, I have two close(er) friends that are also from UofT. I’ve only met the both of them once in Toronto before coming to South Africa, but I still feel so much closer to them than everybody else.

Also, the place I’m in right now is called the Observatory, and it’s a small student area near the University of Cape Town. My friends here showed me around the area a bit.. and I found a small cafe in a nearby plaza that’s owned by a Korean couple!! They also have a little prayer card on the counter which probably means they are Christian. I NEVER expected that meeting Korean-Christians while abroad would bring me so much familiarity, comfort, and security. Weird, huh? Well after talking with the owner, I now know there’s a Korean restaurant nearby and a Korean store with Korean groceries!!! YES!!!! I’ll have to check it out sometime. Next time I see them, maybe I’ll ask if there’s a church too. Or when I get used to the transport system, I’ll check out Hillsong South Africa XD

I start work on Monday so I’m pretty excited! The people from work were so nice over email already, I can’t wait to meet them in person.

@1 day ago
colchrishadfield: Cape Town, South Africa and the South Atlantic calling to forever.

colchrishadfield:

Cape Town, South Africa and the South Atlantic calling to forever.

@1 week ago with 391 notes

Balloon sellers in Afghanistan
[sources: 01 - 02 - 03 - 04 - 05 - 06]

(Source: desroubins, via thesunshinepolicy)

@2 weeks ago with 11697 notes

"I know it is very hard to accept a love without conditions,
but I know it exists:
that He loved me when I was useless to him."

Brooke Fraser (via mauv-e)

(Source: ohsimplelife, via seayoo)

@2 weeks ago with 1586 notes
colchrishadfield: Huge congratulations to the Maple Leafs for making it into the NHL Playoffs! Looking forward to watching from orbit.

colchrishadfield:

Huge congratulations to the Maple Leafs for making it into the NHL Playoffs! Looking forward to watching from orbit.

@4 weeks ago with 369 notes

juxtaposition's summer travel blog 
Now that a busy school year has come to end and summer begins, many students are taking the…

I will be in Cape Town, South Africa for the entire summer!
If you want to know what I’m up to or why I’m there, check out the travel blog I’ll be posting on! It’s called JuxtaLife, and it’s going to feature the summer adventures of a bunch of us exec members of Juxtaposition Global Health Magazine (campus group). We’ll all be doing something related to global health this summer.

So live vicariously through me/us and see what global health is actually about!

@1 week ago

lickypickystickyme:

If grandmothers around the world had a rallying cry, it would probably sound something like “You need to eat!”

Photographer Gabriele Galimberti’s grandmother said something similar to him before one of his many globetrotting work trips. To ensure he had at least one good meal, she prepared for him a dish of ravioli before he departed on one of his adventures.  

“In that occasion I said to my grandma ‘You know, Grandma, there are many other grandmas around the world and most of them are really good cooks,” Galimberti wrote via email. “I’m going to meet them and ask them to cook for me so I can show you that you don’t have to be worried for me and the food that I will eat!’ This is the way my project was born!”

The project, “Delicatessen With Love”, took Galimberti to 58 countries where he photographed grandmothers with both the ingredients and finished signature dishes.

He acted as photographer and stylist during each shoot with the grandmothers, taking a portrait of both the women and the food they made for him.

From top to bottom: 

Inara Runtule, 68, Kekava, Latvia. Silke €(herring with potatoes and cottage cheese).

Grace Estibero, 82, Mumbai, India. Chicken vindaloo.

Susann Soresen, 81, Homer, Alaska. Moose steak.

Serette Charles, 63, Saint-Jean du Sud, Haiti. Lambi in creole sauce.

The photographer’s grandmother Marisa Batini, 80, Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy. Swiss chard and ricotta Ravioli with meat sauce.

Normita Sambu Arap, 65, Oltepessi (Masaai Mara), Kenya. Mboga and orgali (white corn polenta with vegetables and goat).

Julia Enaigua, 71, La Paz, Bolivia. Queso Humacha (vegetables and fresh cheese soup).

Fifi Makhmer, 62, Cairo, Egypt. Kuoshry (pasta, rice and legumes pie).

Isolina Perez De Vargas, 83, Mendoza, Argentina. Asado criollo (mixed meats barbecue).

Bisrat Melake, 60, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Enjera with curry and vegetables.

(via chrisungeun)

@1 week ago with 72650 notes

윤하 - 우리가 헤어진 진짜 이유

@2 weeks ago
doctorswithoutborders: MSF Access: Dear GAVI Campaign MSF vaccinates millions of people each year and fully supports the introduction of new vaccines in developing countries. But negotiations between companies and the largely taxpayer-funded GAVI Alliance for the newest vaccines have not resulted in deeper price cuts that would help more children benefit. The lack of transparency by companies on vaccine manufacturing costs and their focus on profits above ensuring sustainable prices for vaccines for low-income countries are at the root of the problem. Help MSF and send GAVI a message on Twitter asking for them to open up their lower prices to non-governmental organisations and humanitarian actors like MSF now. CLICK HERE TO SEND A TWEET.

doctorswithoutborders:

MSF Access: Dear GAVI Campaign

MSF vaccinates millions of people each year and fully supports the introduction of new vaccines in developing countries. But negotiations between companies and the largely taxpayer-funded GAVI Alliance for the newest vaccines have not resulted in deeper price cuts that would help more children benefit. The lack of transparency by companies on vaccine manufacturing costs and their focus on profits above ensuring sustainable prices for vaccines for low-income countries are at the root of the problem.

Help MSF and send GAVI a message on Twitter asking for them to open up their lower prices to non-governmental organisations and humanitarian actors like MSF now.

CLICK HERE TO SEND A TWEET.

@4 weeks ago with 118 notes
colchrishadfield: The Nile flowing into the delta at Cairo at night, like a living thing.

colchrishadfield:

The Nile flowing into the delta at Cairo at night, like a living thing.

@1 month ago with 679 notes