Boys Choir and Canopy Tours

Sanibonani! (Hello to all of you!)

What a fun couple days I’ve had. Then again, I feel like I could say that any day, so I don’t know if it counts anymore :) But it’s true! On Wednesday, we drove back to Drakensberg after our hike there last Saturday, and went to see the Drakensberg Boys Choir, which is considered to be one of the best in the world. And they really were incredible. The first few songs were old, classical songs and then the director said they were going to sing some “American songs” :) The guy sitting next to me leaned over and said, “I bet you anything they’ll sing Michael Jackson.” He was right. They first sang Queen’s “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” and then Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror” complete with Michael’s dance moves. It was so funny.

We had intermission and then went back inside for the second half…act….whatever you call it for a choir. ;) This was by far my favorite part of the performance. They sang songs in Zulu, Xhosa, and English, complete with choreographed dances and many instruments. They played electric guitar, piano, xylophone, and so many different drums ,which was just wonderful. I was so impressed. All of these boys were probably around 11-13 years old and they were so talented!

On Saturday, we got to do the Karkloof Canopy Tours, which is the largest tour in all of Africa, and in the second largest indigenous forest in South Africa! Pretty cool! For those of you who don’t know (I didn’t), it’s zip lining! Now, I am terrified of heights. Absolutely terrified. So I was a little nervous about the whole experience, but figured it would be fun and a good way to decide if I really could do the bungee jumping next month. On this tour, there were 8 platforms, so we “zipped” between all of them, hundreds of feet above the jungle floor, swinging through the greenest trees, at one point, right next to a waterfall. It was gorgeous. I did the first cable and was convincing myself it wasn’t that bad. The second one however was a different story. On this one, it was VERY obvious how high up we were. And before I jumped off, the guide was explaining how to brake while we’re going, and I braked a little too much, resulting in me being stuck incredibly high in the air and having to use the little upper-body strength I have to pull myself the rest of the way. Let me tell you, I was saying prayers the entire way. I was so scared. It got rough after that. I think it just shook me up, so I had a guide go with me for the rest of the cables. I know, I know…what a baby :) But it eased my nerves so much, so then I could actually enjoy what I was doing without being scared out of my mind. Haha. So it was good!! I still have no idea what to do about bungee jumping, but we’ll just have to see I guess.

In other news: I have the week off! Everyone else is in Finals this week, but because Zulu students go for another 4 weeks (during the service sites), we have a week to relax. And we actually are going to Durban for a night! Wednesday and Thursday, we get to spend just at the beach and shopping and eating… I can’t wait :) It’s such a blessing.

And sorry for the lack of pictures in this blog. The Internet is taking FOREVER to load them and honestly, it’s just not worth it. :) But if you go to my Facebook, there are plenty of pictures from both the boys choir and the canopy tours! Here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?ref=profile&id=684270238

With love from South Africa,

Alex