Transitions

This morning, we all woke up for a 7:30 AM breakfast, and then readied our rooms for departure. We were trying to clear out the fridge, which led to the breakfast being a delicious, if a bit unusual, selection of leftover birthday cake and cereal. We swept our rooms since there seemed to be sand everywhere and we made sure we had everything we had brought with us. We put together the donation bags, which held the sleeping bags, sheets, and pillows that we have been using for the last two weeks. After completing the finishing touches, we brought our suitcases out to the bus and left Noordhoek for the last time at 9:15 AM. We had a 30 minute bus ride into Cape Town, and then did a little bit of walking around in a public garden.

We arrived at Good Hope Seminary High School, an all-girls high school. There, we were welcomed by about 30 school representatives. After meeting and talking to the students for about 15 minutes, we stepped on stage and watched the rest of the 11th and 12th graders file in. We had a great first performance, the crowd especially liked Kimani’s cockroach dancing [World Rhythm Ensemble set], and “Emlanjeni”. We even had a few audience members join us singing and dancing.

After the performance, we had an extra special treat; we got to sit in on a class! I went to an Afrikaans class where the teacher taught us how to say “good day” and some English words that are different here in South Africa than they are in the U.S., like using the word “robot” instead of “traffic light.” Other choir members attended the Life Orientation class (which teaches practical skills that people will need later in life) and an English class. After the classes, we went back to the auditorium, where we performed a great concert for the 9th and 10th graders. We were then served a lunch of chicken, samosas, muffins, and biscuits. Delicious!

Our second bus trip took us to the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront where we had some free time to walk around and grab some dinner. By 5 o’clock, everyone was back on the bus, and we we off to our next concert! We arrived to a light meal of pizza, as our dinner had been rather early. Our snack was followed by a rehears with the Cape Town Male Voice Choir. Everyone got into their performance clothing and then had some quiet time to focus our energy before the concert. We watched Cape Town Youth Choir and The Male Voice Choir perform for about 20 minutes each, and then it was our turn! Our set included May I be an Instrument of Peace, Shall We Dream, Peze Cafe, and our own arrangement of Jamaican Folk Songs. At the end of our set, we were joined by The Male Voice Choir for our second joint performance of “Paul McCartney Medley”. After our performance, we were joined by both choirs to sing Ukuthula and Emlanjeni, both of which were amazing. At the end, we split up to go to our respective host families or the hostel “Big Blue Backpackers,” where the staff and 12 choir members stayed. Although today was very full with it’s 3 performances, it was still super fun!

Brooks

-- Quote of the Day: “Thank you so much for coming to our school, we loved your performance!” said a 10th grader after the performance at the Good Hope Seminary High School. Singer of the Day: Aaliyah, for always being prepared and expressive during performances. We are so proud of you!

Shoutouts: Leora, thank you for your enthusiasm during performances!

Rose, we are so grateful for your helpfulness distributing and sorting the scarves.