In the Spirit of Ubuntu

Ubuntu is an African philosophy, which focuses on people’s relations with each other. Archbishop Desmond Tutu explained Ubuntu in the following way:

“One of the sayings in our country is Ubuntu – the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can't exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can't be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality – Ubuntu – you are known for your generosity.

We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole World. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.”

Nelson Mandela described Ubuntu as follows:

“A traveler through a country would stop at a village and he didn't have to ask for food or for water. Once he stops, the people give him food, entertain him. That is one aspect of Ubuntu, but it will have various aspects. Ubuntu does not mean that people should not enrich themselves. The question therefore is: Are you going to do so in order to enable the community around you to be able to improve?”

I feel a lot more settled down.  My initial anxiety and self-doubt seem to have mostly disappeared.  I guess all this comes with getting to know your surroundings, being a lot more comfortable with the people around you and allowing yourself to “go local”.

Ali and I took the time last weekend to really experience Durban.  We had spent so much energy on apartment-hunting that we had not made any time to do the typical touristy things – sightseeing, photo-taking etc.  On Saturday we walked through most of the downtown area, visiting the Workshop (a mall, which used to be a train station), City Hall, the Old Court House and the Junction (tourist information centre). 

The city is actually quite beautiful, perfectly capturing the local heritage and culture.  The mixture of European, Indian and African influences shape Durban into a rich and fascinating world-class city.

At the Junction, Ali and I were also able to pick up a whole bunch of brochures (probably about 143!) offering various things to do in and around the city.  We estimated that if we do a weekend trip every other weekend, it will take us to about mid-January (and that is also the must-see and must-do ones!).

On Saturday night we went for dinner with Kathleen and Sean.  I met Kathleen through one of the previous interns at Lawyers for Human Rights.  Kathleen is originally from Vancouver, but she has been living in South Africa since 2006.  Her boyfriend Sean is from South Africa.  We had dinner on Florida Road, which is one of the trendiest nightspots in Durban.  We had a great time and the food was delicious!

Sean explained that Durban has the reputation of being a sleepy city.  Because the sun rises really EARLY in the morning (around 5:30) and sets pretty EARLY (around 6:30) and because people in Durban are really active (surfing, biking, running) everyone goes to bed EARLY (9pm or so).  Although there is more nightlife on the weekends, the streets are usually pretty quiet after 8pm.  I had noticed this right when I arrived, but assumed it was because of the season.  Aha!  Now it made sense!  I could definitely get used to this lifestyle.  Now if I can only get out of bed at 6am to go for a run, we would be in business!

On Sunday Ali and I went on a tour of the Moses Mabhida Stadium.  It was built specifically for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and took four years to build.  During the World Cup, it hosted five group games, one second round game and the semi-final between Spain and Germany. 

The stadium is beautiful and now offers a number of activities including ADVENTURE WALK, BIG SWING and SKYCAR.  Ali and I have vowed to do the Adventure Walk, which is basically climbing the 550 steps to the top of the stadium.  So stay tuned for that!!!

I also went on a bike ride with Sean and Kathleen along the coast.  They seemed very eager to show me around and make suggestions for places I must see while in Durban.  Sean seemed to be friends with everyone along the way.  People were happy, smiling and talking to each other.  Sean explained to me that this is how he understands the “Spirit of Ubuntu”.  It is about feeling comfortable to talk to complete strangers because everyone is your brother.  Obviously just like anywhere in the world there are dangers in describing the attitude of people in such simplistic terms.  Yet the more I get to know the people around me the more I feel like I am a part of a whole.  After all, this is the reason I decided to go overseas in the first place!