And it begins...

After lots of prayer, long hours on multiple planes, a few bus rides, and some hauling of over-sized luggage across various terrain, I arrived in South Africa! Our team actually spent the first two days in Johannesburg, and were able during that time to go to a theme park (no...I'm not kidding), visit the Apartheid Museum, and take a tour of the township Soweto. These were all incredible experiences, but I would have to say the tour of Soweto was probably my favorite...I especially enjoyed being able to go to the only street in the world where two Nobel Peace Prize winners lived, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, and visit their former homes.

Although we loved spending that time in Johannesburg, I think our whole group was excited to finally make our way to Pietermeritzberg (PMB), which will be our home for the next eleven weeks. Despite the warnings of how gorgeous it is here, I was still in awe, and will continue to be in awe for quite some time, at the beauty that is surrounding me here. It is so green everywhere, and there is a waterfall and a bamboo forest right outside where we're staying. There are monkeys everywhere, and right next to us is a game reserve where we can walk around with zebras and wild buck right next to us...craziness. The place we are staying is called African Enterprises, and the twenty-nine of us on the trip (nine of which are nursing majors) are staying in chalets, which have four rooms each, one or two people per room.

After having orientation today and getting our schedules and an idea for what our weeks in PMB will look like, I am so excited for what's going to take place here and all the learning and growing that I know is bound to happen...and the beauty of studying in a different country is that I don't only get to learn what's taught to me in classes, I get to learn about a culture, people, and history different than my own. I get to interact not only with other students from APU, but with South Africans who will be teaching classes, serving as cultural mentors, and once I start clinical, with South Africans needing health care.

Entering into this adventure I have so many thoughts and feelings, but one thing I know for certain is that God will do incredible things, and I can't wait for it all to unfold. I have so much to learn, and I pray I will humbled daily.

Quote of the Day:

"To be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."

Nelson Mandela