My cast of characters

I think it's time I formally introduce you to my cast of characters, the people in South Africa who mean the most to me.  They're the ones I see every day, the people I work with, run with, have fun with.  Basically they're the reason that, when you ask me if I'm lonely over here, I say no!  I think I've mentioned all of them in previous blog posts at some point, but they each deserve a little special attention.  So meet:

Martin - Martin is not South African.  He is originally from Zimbabwe, but he has been living in South Africa for a while and he has worked at Hawston Hospice for about five years.  He is a professional nurse, trained in Zim but fully licensed in SA.  (Side note: nurses are called 'sisters' in South Africa.  Even Martin, who is a man.)  Right now, Martin is working towards a graduate degree in health care management, and I'm awed at his ability to put so much time into his studies at night, even after a long day of work.  He is a bit of a work a holic, rarely taking time off.  Martin lives in Vermont, the next town over from Hawston.  He does have a satellite TV in his house, so when Martin and I see each other outside of work, you can usually find us on his couch catching up on our shows or the latest movie.  Martin is a big reason why my work life is so happy.  He is a great nurse, very passionate about providing the best service to our patients.  He's really a joy to work with, and I am learning a lot from him.  



 

Martin is hard at work.  He says he's not photogenic, but I don't think that's true.

 

Mari and Ari - Mari and her husband Ari aren't South African either.  Actually, they're not even African.  They are Finnish.  Mari first moved to SA to work as an au paire, then stayed to get a degree in social work from University of Cape Town.  Since graduating, Mari has been working at Hope Africa.  While she was still finishing her graduate degree, Mari met Ari, who had already been living in SA for a while for his work.  When they fell in love and got married, they decided to stay here.  These two are probably my favorite people to spend time with in Cape Town, which is lucky, because about half the time I'm in town, I'm staying in their flat!  They are really a lovely couple, and being around them helps me remember what a good marriage looks like.  They joke with each other and tease each other constantly, but you can tell how much they really love each other.

I don't have any pictures of Mari and Ari together, so you will have to settle for this picture of Mari (and Melanie) making a poster on the HOPE Africa retreat.

 

Hananja - Hananja is my best friend in South Africa.  She is from Cape Town and went to Stellenbosch University.  Now she works for Stellenbosch as a clinical instructor in the dietician program.  We met through work because she brings students to the care centre as one of their rotations.  When I had been in Hawston a few weeks, Hananja called me and invited me to have dinner with her one night.  Our relationship just sort of grew from there, once we realized that we love all the same things like hiking, running, roasted vegetables with feta cheese, cookies, driving around and exploring a new area, swimming in dams, and silly animated movies.  Hananja might be one of the nicest people I know, here or at home.  She's just a genuinely sweet person who really loves everyone she meets.  I can't say enough good things about her.  She introduced me to lots of people in Hermanus who have also become my friends, so she is a major reason why I'm enjoying my time here so much.  Of all the people I know and love in South Africa, Hananja is the one who I will miss the most.  If you met her, you'd understand, because she is such a beautiful person that it is impossible not to fall in love with her.  

Hananja at the top of Lion's Head in Cape Town, on the sunset hike we did over Christmas.

Dewald - Dewald is one of the people that Hananja introduced me to.  His name is a little difficult to pronounce (sounds more like Dee-vauld) but he usually forgives me when I get it wrong.  Dewald has been living in the Western Cape for about a decade, but he is originally from Pretoria and still harbors a love of their sports teams (especially cricket).  Dewald is very athletic and has therefore become my go-to running partner.  I'm lucky to live near a guy who knows all the best places to run and is willing to go run there with me.  Dewald has been really welcoming to me and has gone out of his way to make sure I have plenty of fun things to do in my free time (and a fun person to do them with).  That's just the kind of guy he is - friendly and inclusive and fun to be around.

Dewald celebrates getting to the top of a very tough hike up Babilonstoring.

 

Amelia - There must be something about dietitians in South Africa, because Amelia is also a dietician, and she is another of my best friends here.  Amelia is from Cape Town, but she lives in Hermanus and works for the government health system.  We met because she visits patients at the care centre.  On one of my first weekends in Hawston, Amelia and I drove over to Stanford to check out a brewpub over there.  Hanging out with Amelia that day felt just like spending an afternoon with one of my friends from home, and I think that was the day I began to believe that I really would make friends in South Africa!  Amelia is a lot of fun to spend time with because she has a really positive outlook on life, which is my very favorite thing about her.

Amelia is even prettier than a Hermanus sunset.

 

The critters - OK, so they aren't people, but you also need to meet the animals who live next door to me, because I have started to think of them as MY pets.  Since I don't know what their names are (and they are certainly Afrikaans names anyway), I have given them new names that I think fit them well.

Niblett is my neighbor Mary's dog, but since the gate between Mary's yard and my yard is usually open, I often find Niblett waiting on my front porch.  He is called Niblett because he has spots that look like cocoa nibs.  He is well behaved, so he is allowed to come inside with me sometimes.  He also gets to eat some of my leftovers.  Lucky Niblett.  

Niblett enjoys his invasion of my house.

Buttercup is the orange cat who hangs out around my house.  He has a perpetually grumpy face (which is why he is named Buttercup, after the grumpy orange cat in the Hunger Games series). When Emily visited in September, she started calling him 'Butt Butt' and that name has really stuck.  It is not at all unusual for me to come home and find that Butt Butt has snuck in my open window and is taking a nap on my kitchen table.  He also scared the living daylight out of me one time when he was hiding under my bed.  I could sense that something else was breathing in the room, and I have to admit that I had nearly had a heart attack until I realized it was just the cat.  

Butt Butt lounges on the bed.  Typical cat.

There are also two cats who look a lot alike.  I can't even tell them apart unless they're sitting next to each other.  Thus their names are Fish and Chips.  In early December, I noticed a miniature version of Fish and Chips, who has been named Tartar Sauce, or Saucy for short.  None of these cats are super friendly.  They're happy to eat any tuna I want to give them, but they don't let me get closer than a couple of feet away.  But even if I can't pet them, they're cute to look at.

Tartar Sauce on the right and Fish (I think it's Fish?) on the left.

One of my biggest fears in coming here was that I would feel isolated and lonely.  I am an extrovert, and I hate being alone.  To be perfectly honest, there are occasional times when I do feel a little lonely.  But thanks to these awesome people (and critters) those times are few and far between.  I'm so happy that I have good friends here who have made South Africa feel more like a home than I thought possible.