Acclimating to South Africa ...

Numerous times the other interns and I have raved about what a fun and truly educational experience working with Lawyers for Human Rights has been thus far. Though it can be challenging and at times mentally and emotionally draining, I love the fact that as interns, we are interacting with our clients, and working together with all the staff to come up with solutions to the wide-ranging problems that our office faces each day.

This past week, I have been working closely with our office legal assistant/secretary, Tando, who has been working with refugees for 7 years now. She is studying to be a lawyer herself with dreams of eventually moving to the UK. The fact that she speaks five languages — Xhosa, Swahili, Zulu, French, and English — is a huge asset to LHR. That and the fact that she has a personality that is full of life and joyfulness (she is the one on the phone and in the group picture below, laughing with her mouth gaping wide open). To gain hands-on experience, I have been sitting in her seat in the front office as she mentors me on the different solutions and approaches to issues: from filling out affidavits for clients with lost permits to writing ‘border transit’ letters for those wanting to return to their home countries. The issues are multifaceted and can be complex, but extremely fascinating. At times, Tando leaves the office to run errands and leaves me on my own with a room full of clients, often times nervously baffled as they ask me questions I don’t know the answer to. “This is how you learn!” she would say—usually with a huge smile and a burst of laughter that ricochets throughout the office. Yesterday, Tando taught Andy and I the different clicks in Xhosa and Zulu. It was hilarious … I swear, all the clicks sound the same! I tried but failed miserably, the only thing spewing out of my mouth not clicks and clucks but wads of saliva flying in all directions. The office is always filled with laughter—which I love.

I really enjoy the work I am doing; it gives me reassurance that a career in law—public interest and refugee/immigrant rights in particular—is something I can see myself doing in the future. Maybe it's the excitement of being in a new country and the fact that I have been getting at least 8 hours of sleep each night (way, way more than I get during the school year!) but I wake up each morning psyched about going to work. This feeling of complacency, of passion and excitement, I believe, is something we should all strive for in our life’s work, in whatever we end up doing. Perhaps I am on the way to finding mine.

What’s more, life in South Africa has been what everyone I talked to described it to be: absolutely amazing. Fear of safety was my primary concern my first week here, but I have quickly acclimated to life here and have become comfortable walking around on my own—though not late at night. The weather is beautiful (reminds me of California on sunny days), the people are extremely friendly, and the food is relatively cheap! I live in a flat with two other roommates, both medical students from England, here to shadow doctors as part of their residency program. I have my own room (small but simple and nice) and the place is fully furnished with a bathroom, kitchen, and a spacious living room. The great thing is that the building is connected to a backpacker’s hostel where I have the option of being in the mix of drunkenness (especially during this time of European soccer frenzy) or the option of retreating to my room to relax when tired. It’s truly the best of both worlds.

Last weekend, I went to the beach with Melissa (an intern from my office) and Brent (an intern from the Human Rights Commission). The tides were strong, which presented a perfect opportunity for surfing. I must admit though, that surfing is one of the hardest things I have ever done. Snowboarding I picked rather quickly, but paddling wildly to catch a wave and then positioning myself atop the board without plunging into the water is not easy! How people do it and make it look so effortless is beyond me. Maybe I’ll get some pointers this weekend from watching the ‘Mr. Price Pro’ International Surf competition, which we are all eagerly anticipating. My goal by the end of the summer: to be able to surf ... without constantly crashing into the water.

Today however, we are celebrating my birthday by going out to a South African restaurant, then to a rugby game (which is very popular in South Africa), and then followed by an excursion to a Congolese Club, escorted by the one and only, Tando. “You just wait and see,” she cautioned with laughter. We are all excited. A bit nervous, but yes, excited (I think. haha). We’ll see how this goes.