A FEW RANDOM PHOTOS FROM HERE AND THERE

SEXUAL VIOLENCE = SILENCE

Today here at Rhodes University was the 'sexual violence = silence' protest where a whole bunch of people were 'silenced'. The photos here are of my neighbour Nun. The following are photos I took an a piece I wrote on her- her story.

MORE THAN YOU THINK

She’s bubbly, friendly and confident. She loves meeting new people and making friends. Who would have thought that she was raped a few years back? She wasn’t raped by a stranger though; it was by her own cousin. A cousin who had become rather close to her family as he came to live with them for two years while attending school in her home town. No one believed her. How could she even think of blaming her own cousin for raping her? Her father who was a pastor kicked her out of his own church.

People who meet her have no idea about her story and that is not the only story she has to tell. She fell pregnant after being raped. She fell pregnant with her cousins’ child. 16 is a very young age to have a baby, a baby she didn’t want. After having the abortion her mother called her a murderer. Only 16 when her father told her to get out of his house. Only 16 when she was packing her bags to leave home. Luckily, before she made it out of that front door, her Mom told her that she’s not going anywhere. Tears run down her face as she tells me that “for the first time in years my mom actually hugged me and she told me that she loves me. I had been longing for a moment like that, but when it finally happened, it felt rather awkward”.

Her father whom she was close to has now passed away- liver cancer. She and her mother are now on speaking terms but still do not have that close mother daughter relationship most take for granted. She resents going home. She is a totally different person when she does. She is not Nun, that lovely, bubbly, happy person many have come to care for and cherish. She becomes Nungo, the quiet lonely Venda girl from Louis Trichardt.

THALASSA AND OAKLEY PRO

Thalassa Backpackers, in Kasouga (between Port Alfred and Kenton-on-sea), had their grand opening on Friday 1 May. After the unexpected ‘scenic route’ that I took, I ended up in the picturesque setting, with milkwoods and monkeys; the beach was just the cherry on the top. Sand dunes and a long stretch of sand down to the sea is what unveiled itself to me after the fairytale walk through the bushes. Besides the area around the backpackers being mind-blowing, the backpackers itself is rather homely and enjoyable to.














There is a large round fireplace, which everyone sits around at night with a bevvie, chatting away and singing along (if you’re into that) to the guitar. Do not forget the two lovable resident cats!


Saturday morning we went off to Port Alfred for breakfast (pizza and a draft). To my surprise, the Oakley Pro Junior was on at East beach. So off I went. There were quite a few good dudes surfing (Shaun Joubert, Klee Strachan, Thomas Woods).
After sitting, watching and photographing for a couple of hours, I hit the road back with Lp Show and Cat Empire pumping.

RANDOM TRIP DOWN TO PORT ALFRED

We all woke up hung over on Saturday (25 April 09) morning, and after my crazy night I decided that I needed to get out of this town for the day. Called up a few friends and an hour later the 6 of us were on the road. Beach time lasted about an hour and after putting jerseys etc on, we decided that the cold was a bit much and opted for a cold beer. While having the beer, we checked out the pier!

Walking down towards the little waves we had seen in the distance,
they were actually a hell of a lot bigger than we had thought. Giant and powerful, and from being so close, I could really feel the sense of supremacy flowing out of the ocean.

On our way back to Grahamstown, we felt obliged to have a look at the famous Giant Pineapple. If only it were edible...

ARARAT

While on Holiday, I went to a small town called Oudtshoorn as they had a festival on called the KKNK. I went to see an interesting show called Ararat and wrote an article on it. Its in Afrikaans, so good luck, but the photo's that follow are pretty cool.

‘n Regte dorre veld waar almal op hooibale sit. Skielik hoor die gehoor ‘n stem wat sê “in die begin was daar niks”. Die onverwagte stilte wat jou laat wonder wat kom volgende. Die stuk laat jou reg van die begin af vrae laat vra. Gaan hierdie opvoering slegs uit ‘n bybel se oogpunt wees oor die ontslaan van die wêreld, of gaan daar ‘n bietjie dieper gekyk word? Daar is so veel vrae om te vra. Die akteurs bring al die verskillende kwessies na vore.

En dan kom al die vrae: Wat van evolusie? Wat van wetenskap? Waar pas godsdiens in? Wat is ons God? Dwelms? Seks? Musiek?

‘n Opvoering wat draai oor die worstelings tussen die verskillende gelowe van ons gemeenskap. Almal wil die waarheid weet oor hoe ons wêreld geskep is. Al die oogpunte en die uitgebreide reeks van uitvloeisels maak jou kop oop en laat jou dink. Soveel verskillende oogpunte word oopgestel dat daar meer as genoeg plek is om jou eie vertolkings te maak.

Ek dink nie dat daar enige ander show by KKNK wat ook hierdie onderwerp aan raak nie. Die eerste woorde wat opkom is ‘oorsponklik’ en ‘eksklusief’. Die stuk dra ‘n baie diep boodskap en laat die kyker lank na die tyd nog wonder oor die betekenis.