Enjoy.
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009
Note: I’m still posting music, don’t think I’ve completely switched up the format on you! Just scroll to the bottom if you’re looking for the pay-off: a jackin’ house mix from the Johannesburg DJ Spoek.
This spring I’ll be studying at the University of Cape Town. When I’m there, I’ll keep a blog of some sort about how amazing it is. If my laptop gets stolen (fingers crossed), I’ll just have to write about that too (though I’m not sure how, I wouldn’t have a laptop).
In the meantime, I’m taking this opportunity to complain about the bureaucracy and logistics of planning my visit. This afternoon I’ve tasked myself with buying a plane ticket. Between attempting to use Frequent Flier miles, trying to keep my flight under 48 hours long, and scheduling the flight around the feasibility of getting World Cup tickets, I’m exhausted just thinking about it. /rant
Underneath all the complaining, I’m incredibly excited. Before choosing South Africa, I knew a little about its history. Nelson Mandela, apartheid, social change, and of course the imperialism/colonialism that kicked it all off. That was reason enough to go – why visit a relatively static nation to study political science? I wanted to see something in the middle of some real change.
When I dug a little deeper, I found even more reasons to go. Cape Town is home to the Cape Malays, the Muslim population located on Signal Hill. The Cape Malays quarter of the hill is Bo-Kaap, and it is gorgeous. How gorgeous? Scroll back up.
Not only is it a beautiful area, it is an incredible chance to learn all about a particular Muslim population. Since taking Prof. Homerin’s “Muhammad & The Quran,” I have been looking for a chance to learn more and be exposed to all of it firsthand.
More of my bubbling excitement in a little while. In the meantime, check out this jackin’ house mix from Spoek, a Johannesburg DJ.
Saturday, October 31st, 2009
Updating the look of the blog, hoping to start posting again at some point. Expect a post a week or so, about anything and everything, but hopefully at least one new track a week.
Sorry to have let things slide for so long, it’s been an incredibly busy semester. At the very least this will be the home of my South Africa experiences, full of pictures, stories, and (god willing) local music and flavor.
All the best, EM