Installment #3

Picture the sea, an island in the distance, a plateau all around you, and the city way, way below you. You are standing on top of Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa and it is a wonderful, spectacular sight. I had an amazing weekend in Cape Town, which is so different from the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg. It is hard to imagine that the two cities are even in the same country. While in Cape Town, I also had the opportunity to visit Robben Island to see where Mandela spent almost two decades of his life as a political prisoner. One of the most touching parts of the journey was when the tour guide described the limestone quarry where the political prisoners were made to work. They had no protective masks so they suffered from terrible bronchial problems from all of the limestone dust. And because limestone is very light (almost white) in color, the stone brilliantly reflected the sun. To this day, many of the political prisoners who worked in that quarry have trouble seeing and are extremely sensitive to light. However, the tour guide explained that the cave used in the limestone quarry not only shielded the workers from the heat and the back-breaking work, but was also called the University because it was in this cave that the literate taught the illiterate and the political prisoners reformed thieves and murderers into individuals with a purpose to better their country.

The tour on Robben Island was divided into 2 parts. Part I – we were on a bus going around the island, Part II was actually visiting the prison guided by a former political prisoner on the island. It was truly a moving and touching experience – definitely worth the very uncomfortable boat ride to and from the island.

On July 1, the U.S. Consulate in Joburg officially opened. We celebrated the 4^th of July with a catered American BBQ. I posted some pictures of the event, the Marines, and the colors.

I am doing very well on my internship – I have two projects that I am currently working on. A market research project on the Franchising industry in South Africa, and an International Market Check, which is a study on how feasible it is to bring a specific product to the South African market. The company interested in entering the market pays the Foreign Commercial Service to perform this market study All in all, my projects are very interesting and everyday I am learning a lot. This week, I will be go to Mozambique for a week to work with the U.S. Embassy in Maputo. Specifically, I will be helping the Economic section of the Embassy with their International Trade Conference. This will be a good chance to use my Portuguese skills and to get some sun and hot weather while I am in Africa….Plus to learn of course!

Lastly, I got to visit the Oprah Winfrey School for Girls. The Consulate has a 6-week program with 50 tenth-grade girls about Women as leaders. Each week we pick American, South African, and African women to highlight who have been leaders in their respective fields. I went to the workshop on Women in Business and we had the girls develop mini business plans and then do a commercial to “pitch” the idea to us. On July 25, I will lead a discussion on Women in the Arts & Literature – I picked Judith Jamison from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and writer, Ama Ata Aidoo, from Ghana. I included pictures of some of the girls. They are wonderful students.

My internship is almost over and I have so much left to do. 10 weeks is entirely too short, but I am so glad and thankful for the experiences that I have had so far. I look forward to Mozambique and the rest of my visit in Joburg.