The Highs and Lows of Durban Life

It has now been over a week since I arrived in Durban and I am still getting my bearings.  There are definitely some things that I am getting used to and others that I have not even begun to explore.  It feels like I have been gone for a long time and yet I have not even completely unpacked my suitcases.   There have definitely been some highs and lows!

Ali arrived last weekend!  I was so excited to have her around.  We had only met each other during our program training in Ottawa so I was looking forward to getting to know her.  We could also finally make some of the more important decisions (such as where to live and which cutlery set to buy).  Of course the first thing we did was going for a walk along the beach and enjoy the beauty of the cost. 

The World Cup of Rugby is on right now and there is a general excitement in the air as South Africa is the defending champion.  Personally, I don’t know anything about rugby and I feel like I am trapped in Invictus.  However the atmosphere is awesome!  Ali happens to know a lot about rugby so I’m learning.  Go Springboks! 

Ali and I also began going to free fitness classes which are offered on the beach behind the SunCoast Casino from 5:30 to 6:30.  On Monday we went to Kickboxing and it was fantastic!  I was sore for days after.  It honestly felt like we were in one of those fitness videos filmed on the beach.  It was awesome!  And no we were not wearing one piece spandex suits with thick white socks and white running shoes!  There is also zumba on tuesdays, bootcamp on wednesdays, yoga on thursdays and kettlebell training on fridays.

Finding a place to live, on the other hand, has proven extremely challenging.  In fact Ali spent two days going through the buildings in North Beach and asking whether they have any available flats.  The problem is that we are very specific as to what we are looking for: furnished two-bedroom in North Beach (which is about a block of buildings along the shore).  We also have a specific budget and some expectations.  It’s not that the place we are in right now is that bad.  The location is great, but the flat itself is not in a great shape.  We were hoping that we would be able to find something better, but in all honesty out of all the places we have seen so far, our flat is my second favourite.  What happened to number 1 you ask.  Well it just so happens that landlords are also picky about how long they are renting out the apartment for.  That particular landlord did not want to sign a lease that is for less than one year.  So that one was a no go.

We definitely hit a low point a couple of nights ago when both Ali and I felt quite defeated.  We had tried so hard to improve our living situation to no avail.  How did we remedy the situation?  Well we went to Zack’s across the street (which is becoming our hangout spot) and ordered dessert and pints of beer.  Yup!  That is what we did!  The waiter looked at us and said, “Are you serious?” and then  laughed!   But you know what brownies and beer definitely made us feel better!

Work has also had its ups and downs.  There are days when I feel like I am helping people and working for a cause.  Then there are days when I feel my hands are completely tied and I am wasting my time.  I listen to people’s tragic stories and yet I know that they would not qualify under the South African definition of a refugee.  The other day I met an asylum seeker from the South Kivu region of the DRC.  He claimed that he was responsible for mediating a land conflict between two families.  One of these families was residing on land that the other family could show was legally theirs.  A member of the family residing on the land was a government soldier.  After the asylum seeker sided with the family that could show the land was legally theirs, the soldier began to harass him and intimidate him.  The asylum seeker claimed that shortly after that the soldier killed his pregnant wife.  As a result he fled.  South Kivu right now is a very turbulent area of Congo, though it is not considered to be in a general state of war.  The man claimed that going to the police would not help him as nobody would stand up to a government soldier. 

I don’t know if his claim was made up or not.  What I do know is that I can understand why this man would want to leave South Kivu and come to South Africa.  In between talking to him and doing research, I spent a lot of time that day and working on his case.  Interviewing someone using a translator can be quite challenging and time-consuming, especially when you are trying to assess the credibility of his story.  At the end of the day we had to tell him that we cannot help him as we do not believe he has grounds for appeal.  I felt like I had wasted my day. 

You know, the weather in Durban is really strange.  You wake up early in the morning and it is beautiful.  The sun is just rising and the wind is calm.  People are running along the beach and there are a few surfers in the water.  You go into work excited and looking forward to the beautiful day ahead.  By the time you leave work however the wind has picked up so much that it makes it difficult to walk down the streets.  Clouds have invaded the sky and it looks like it may rain.  And although it is spring, there are still people wearing jackets and hats.  Once night falls the wind usually calms down.  There are definite highs and lows.