Knowing we are coming home to a world covered in white, I think I will above all remember the colors of South Africa. The colors of the uniforms, the rich red earth, the green foliage, the painted walls of even the most meager shacks, the colorful language, the tile mosaics, and the many colorful people we have met in the past 3 weeks. The blog will continue as we prepare for and finally get to host the South African team in March and April.
Violet Weinberg's cell in the white section of the women's prison.
Original stairwell from the Old Fort jail where prisoners were first brought after arrest.
Nelson Mandela's cell.
Solitary confinement.
Number 4-5 cell blocks.
The smelter at the platinum mines.
Prepped to go down 1.3 kilometers into the platinum mine. Hot, dark, loud. They produce approximately 4 grams of platinum for every ton of "core" rock they remove from the mine.
Children play at preschools that are in desperate need of equipment and basic repairs. In some facilities the windows are broken, in others bathroom facilities do not work at all. In one school we went to, the ceiling in an unused classroom had fallen in and remained hanging to the floor. It is not unheard of for the electricity to be cut off for days at a time while children continue to attend school.
