Into Africa

A friend of mine from university is an international student from Cape Town and though she is working in New York over the summer, her mother was there to greet me at the airport. They treated me to a meal of lamb chops, quinoa salad, and roasted vegetables before sending me to my host, an aunt of theirs who lives in a neighborhood on the Atlantic called Sea Point.

I loved Cape Town. I loved that I could see the mountains from every part of the city, I loved being within driving distance of two oceans, and I loved that I could watch paragliders fly off the Lion's Head from the front lot of my building. I may have also eaten my way through Cape Town. The grocery stores had excellent pastries and I took advantage of the delicious lamb and curries available in the city.

One highlight was the opportunity to tour a wheelchair factory and speak with mechanical engineers who design durable and inexpensive equipment. Cape Town is not the most accessible city and conditions are all the worse for the residents of Cape Town's shantytowns, or townships. Moreover, Cape Town reminded me of the influence a parent's education has on the healthcare that his or her children will receive. Parents with more medical knowledge are often slow at, or do a poor job of finding good healthcare for children with disabilities. For example, in Brazil I spoke with rehabilitation centers that had to teach children to communicate for the first time at 4 or 5. The rehabilitation center I spoke to in South Africa encountered children who didn't learn to communicate until they were several years older, often because parents did not understand that the children with disabilities were ever capable of communicating.

Despite the struggles, I found South Africa to be a beautiful and fascinating county that I would love to return to. Attached are some photos from a safari I took in a game park outside of Cape Town, thanks to an awesome birthday present from my parents!