On February 23, after 27 hours of travel, I arrived in Gqeberha, South Africa. My immersion into a new environment began instantaneously. I arrived during “load shedding,” which is when electricity and other utilities are temporarily switched off to reduce the demand on the power grid. Outdated infrastructure and limited access to resources have led to the implementation of load shedding to mitigate these shortcomings. Of course, as a privileged U.S. citizen, arriving during an outage was shocking. But my greasy, hungry and sleep-deprived self was likely just as shocking for my host family…I was led to sleep my first night with the help of a flashlight.
I woke in the morning to a clearer image of my new life. My hosts are an elderly woman, Maria, and her son, Greg. Maria is originally from Cyprus but immigrated to South Africa nearly 50 years ago with her family. She is a unique, charismatic blend of the Mediterranean and the southernmost African country. However, I quickly discovered that her experience is not unusual. South Africa, or at least Gqeberha, is a diverse place. During the “Scramble for Africa” in the late 19th century, many colonial European powers established themselves throughout the continent. This laid a generational foundation that can be felt today.
