Cape Point... basically the most southern point of Africa.
The baboons were everywhere!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
We helped out with a push-cart race that took place between 13 different communities around Stellenbosch. The event brought together around 1,000 people to cheer on their teams. A trail was marked off and the teams had to see how many laps they could complete within a 45 minute time period. The could have one person riding the cart, one pushing, and one pulling. Unfortunately, many of the carts broke so by the end the teams were just running carrying their carts, but they were still having fun. The picture above is a few kids from one of the teams getting ready for the race.
This was the Kuyasa team, heading to their station, singing and dancing the whole way. :)
All the teams gathered afterwards to hang out and eat lunch together.
The most beautiful soccer field in the world. We got together to play against some guys from Jonkershoek. 
A group of kids playing a game in Jonkershoek, where we returned for another Compassion Day.
Monday, June 21, 2010
This was in the tent before the opening match started. It was still over an hour before it started so there were barely 100 people in there, but it was still ridiculously loud! This will give you a feel for the vuvuzelas and how loud they really are. Then imagine another 500 people showing up and every other one has a vuvuzela! Obviously everyone was very excited.
Stephen with the other "Rasta-man" we met at Table Mountain. This guy was excited to find someone else doin' the dreads! They had a long talk with him as they waited for the rest of the group to come down the mountain.
This video is of one of the game stations where we played the flag game. One team had their bandanas tucked in their pants like a tail and had to run across to the other side without getting their tail pulled. This shows how we started the game to get them pumped up. We would say, "Niyaba sabana?!", which means, "Are you scared of them?" and then they reply, "Hayi, asiba sabi, siyaba funa!!", which means, "No! We're not scared of them! We want them!" Haha.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Saturday: We hiked up Table Mountain today and it was beautiful! Unfortunately, a cloud was sitting over the mountain all day, so when we got to the top we couldn't see anything. This is a great view from the bottom part of the trail behind this little waterfall (or rather water falling).
View of the group hiking up Table Mountain. We had just started so everyone still had a lot of energy!
This is all of the younger kids eating lunch after Kids Games.
Waiting their turn to play soccer. They absolutely love soccer!!!
Praying with the kids after their lesson from the game at this station.
Adorable!!!!!!!!!! :)
Stephen being goofy with one of the kids.
Thursday and Friday, we were back to Kids Games, but much more organized this time! We regrouped and came up with a new plan since things were a little chaotic on Monday and Tuesday. We had the kids split up at different venues with the little kids in their own group. It was much smoother have fewer kids in each group at each station. Here are some pictures from those days:
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
The top picture is from Wednesday when we did the Compassion Day. The bottom picture is the kids listening as we discussed the lesson from the game they played.
The video below is a short clip of the parade we had through Kayamandi to invite kids throughout the township to come join us for Kids Games at Kuyasa.
Kids Games Begins!
We had a truly South African day on Saturday. We had a brai, a South African barbecue, and went to the SA Springbok vs France rugby game. The Springbok team dominated France 42 to 17. On Sunday we attended various churches in Stellenbosch. In the afternoon we went through training for GCG, Global Community Games. We learned about resources available and plans in place for sports ministry worldwide.
Monday was a big day! We began Kids Games with the opening ceremony at Kuyasa. The kids moved through different stations where they had their faces painted, learned the Kids Games' song, committed to participating in Kids Games, and competed in a relay race. It was a rainy day, so we got to put our flexibility to the test. We changed plans multiple times, swept water out of the building we were meeting in, and had fewer kids than expected. But, the kids were all smiles! Most of the children do not speak English, so we got to work closely with the older kids/adults from the community who do speak English. Their excitement and commitment to the programs at Kuyasa are what make it all work. We can plan all of the activities, but without them we cannot communicate the Gospel to the children.
On Tuesday, we headed back to Kuyasa for Kids Games. It rained off and on during the day. We started the morning off by marching through Kayamandi with the children making TONS of noise to attract more kids to Kuyasa. We made an interesting parade! The kids we had with us were great at getting others to join. Once we were back at Kuyasa, we learned how difficult it can be to take a plan from the drawing board and put it into action. The kids gathered into the APEX building, the largest indoor space we have at Kuyasa. They were given a headband of different colors based on their age. The headband was their meal ticket at lunch time and helped us split them up for games. Members of our team and volunteers from Kuyasa led the kids in ice breakers to get them excited. Our drama team from SCAS put on a skit, and we went through a memory verse with the kids. We have a poster for each day with the verse written in Xhosa. The kids chanted along with the Kuyasa volunteer who led them through the verse. The kids broke into their groups, and we attempted to play In and Out. After the game each group talked about including people and how you feel when you're left out. We spent a long time after that playing with the kids while waiting for their food to be ready. After lunch there was a big screen showing of the World Cup game in the APEX building. We faced many obstacles on Tuesday: rain, facilities, miscommunication, TONS of kids, and language barriers. But, at the end of the day, we know that kids were safe and loved.
Every Wednesday is Compassion Day. We will be going to different locations to do acts of compassion-- whatever the people there need from us! Our group went to two locations in and around Stellenbosch. We spent time playing with the kids and also cleaning up around the community. Jason made a buddy in Jonkershoek. This little bundle of energy loved to fly and had no fear. Jason spun him, threw him in the air, and created a swing out of a hula-hoop! The look on this boy's face as he moved through the air was unmistakeably pure joy!
Monday was a big day! We began Kids Games with the opening ceremony at Kuyasa. The kids moved through different stations where they had their faces painted, learned the Kids Games' song, committed to participating in Kids Games, and competed in a relay race. It was a rainy day, so we got to put our flexibility to the test. We changed plans multiple times, swept water out of the building we were meeting in, and had fewer kids than expected. But, the kids were all smiles! Most of the children do not speak English, so we got to work closely with the older kids/adults from the community who do speak English. Their excitement and commitment to the programs at Kuyasa are what make it all work. We can plan all of the activities, but without them we cannot communicate the Gospel to the children.
On Tuesday, we headed back to Kuyasa for Kids Games. It rained off and on during the day. We started the morning off by marching through Kayamandi with the children making TONS of noise to attract more kids to Kuyasa. We made an interesting parade! The kids we had with us were great at getting others to join. Once we were back at Kuyasa, we learned how difficult it can be to take a plan from the drawing board and put it into action. The kids gathered into the APEX building, the largest indoor space we have at Kuyasa. They were given a headband of different colors based on their age. The headband was their meal ticket at lunch time and helped us split them up for games. Members of our team and volunteers from Kuyasa led the kids in ice breakers to get them excited. Our drama team from SCAS put on a skit, and we went through a memory verse with the kids. We have a poster for each day with the verse written in Xhosa. The kids chanted along with the Kuyasa volunteer who led them through the verse. The kids broke into their groups, and we attempted to play In and Out. After the game each group talked about including people and how you feel when you're left out. We spent a long time after that playing with the kids while waiting for their food to be ready. After lunch there was a big screen showing of the World Cup game in the APEX building. We faced many obstacles on Tuesday: rain, facilities, miscommunication, TONS of kids, and language barriers. But, at the end of the day, we know that kids were safe and loved.
Every Wednesday is Compassion Day. We will be going to different locations to do acts of compassion-- whatever the people there need from us! Our group went to two locations in and around Stellenbosch. We spent time playing with the kids and also cleaning up around the community. Jason made a buddy in Jonkershoek. This little bundle of energy loved to fly and had no fear. Jason spun him, threw him in the air, and created a swing out of a hula-hoop! The look on this boy's face as he moved through the air was unmistakeably pure joy!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Hello again. Here's some more updates:
Tuesday, June 8th: We got up and went in to Stellenbosch to buy some things we needed and look around the souvenir markets. Once we got back, we had lunch and then had a big scavenger hunt over the whole town. We were in three groups mixed in with the Brazilians that we had met the night before. Each team had a map with coded coordinates and a list of questions to answer that matched up with each code. The map would then lead us to a place where we would find the answer. The language barrier with the Brazilians made it quite interesting! That evening we had dinner and just relaxed.
Wednesday, June 9th: We did a lot of planning on this day. We all got in different groups, such as memory verse, ice breakers, games, or drama and organized what activities the children would be a part of for each of these stations. The memory verse group had to make huge banners with the verse of the day painted on them, but the catch was that they had to be written in X'hosa so the helpers from Kuyasa had to help translate. Kuyasa is the program/facility in a township called Kayamandi, which is a really poor area where everyone basically lives in tiny shacks. The ice breakers group came up with fun and goofy songs and quick little activities to get the kids settled in and warmed up for the day. The games group organized which games they would use to teach the biblical principles each day of the program and the drama group created skits to go along with the Bible lesson for the day.
Thursday, June 10th: This day was full of every kind of team building game you could possibly think of. It was a day to bond as a team, getting to know each other better as we were challenged to accomplish different tasks. We did things like playing tug-of-war, building catapults from sticks and string, carrying water buckets with a balancing contraption, completing a low ropes course, solving tricky jigsaw puzzles, making our way through a "land mine" maze, and more! It was a very fun and interactive day that helped us prepare for how to communicate with each other in times of struggle or conflict during our programs and outreaches.
Friday, June 11th: This was a big day! The opening of the 2010 Fifa World Cup!! Everywhere we went we could feel the excitement of the country getting ready for the opening match. In the morning, we had a special time of praise and prayer to lift up to God everything we were about to be involved with over the next few weeks. After lunch, we went in to Kayamandi for the first time. All the kids in the street were so excited and blowing their vuvuzelas (horns). When we got to Kuyasa, there were several hundred kids gathered together watching the performance that had been put together by other kids who work with the Kuyasa program. I will try to post a picture later, but it's not working now. Then we went to the big tent that had been set up for the viewings of the games. It was so loud in there with everyone blowing their vuvuzelas at the same time that you couldn't even talk to the person next to you. We did face painting for the kids, who mostly wanted the South African or the Brazilian flag. Watching the opening game there was fun seeing how excited everyone was. We left before the game was over, though, because we were going to a game of our own! We got to watch the France vs. Uruguay game in the new world cup stadium in Cape Town. It was awesome! Again, pictures will come soon.
Tuesday, June 8th: We got up and went in to Stellenbosch to buy some things we needed and look around the souvenir markets. Once we got back, we had lunch and then had a big scavenger hunt over the whole town. We were in three groups mixed in with the Brazilians that we had met the night before. Each team had a map with coded coordinates and a list of questions to answer that matched up with each code. The map would then lead us to a place where we would find the answer. The language barrier with the Brazilians made it quite interesting! That evening we had dinner and just relaxed.
Wednesday, June 9th: We did a lot of planning on this day. We all got in different groups, such as memory verse, ice breakers, games, or drama and organized what activities the children would be a part of for each of these stations. The memory verse group had to make huge banners with the verse of the day painted on them, but the catch was that they had to be written in X'hosa so the helpers from Kuyasa had to help translate. Kuyasa is the program/facility in a township called Kayamandi, which is a really poor area where everyone basically lives in tiny shacks. The ice breakers group came up with fun and goofy songs and quick little activities to get the kids settled in and warmed up for the day. The games group organized which games they would use to teach the biblical principles each day of the program and the drama group created skits to go along with the Bible lesson for the day.
Thursday, June 10th: This day was full of every kind of team building game you could possibly think of. It was a day to bond as a team, getting to know each other better as we were challenged to accomplish different tasks. We did things like playing tug-of-war, building catapults from sticks and string, carrying water buckets with a balancing contraption, completing a low ropes course, solving tricky jigsaw puzzles, making our way through a "land mine" maze, and more! It was a very fun and interactive day that helped us prepare for how to communicate with each other in times of struggle or conflict during our programs and outreaches.
Friday, June 11th: This was a big day! The opening of the 2010 Fifa World Cup!! Everywhere we went we could feel the excitement of the country getting ready for the opening match. In the morning, we had a special time of praise and prayer to lift up to God everything we were about to be involved with over the next few weeks. After lunch, we went in to Kayamandi for the first time. All the kids in the street were so excited and blowing their vuvuzelas (horns). When we got to Kuyasa, there were several hundred kids gathered together watching the performance that had been put together by other kids who work with the Kuyasa program. I will try to post a picture later, but it's not working now. Then we went to the big tent that had been set up for the viewings of the games. It was so loud in there with everyone blowing their vuvuzelas at the same time that you couldn't even talk to the person next to you. We did face painting for the kids, who mostly wanted the South African or the Brazilian flag. Watching the opening game there was fun seeing how excited everyone was. We left before the game was over, though, because we were going to a game of our own! We got to watch the France vs. Uruguay game in the new world cup stadium in Cape Town. It was awesome! Again, pictures will come soon.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Week 1
Hello everyone! Sorry we haven't been able to post for a while. We've had some late nights and limited access to the internet, so we didn't find time until now. Here is a summary of the first couple of days this week and then some other members of the team will post later in more detail.
Sunday: We went to an Afrikaans church service so we actually couldn't understand what they were saying! Casper helped us translate the message, though, so that was helpful. Then we had a nice big lunch with some of Casper's family coming to visit and then relaxed the rest of the day.
Monday: We got up and went to the farm that Casper grew up on and saw where his mom works. Then we headed in to Cape Town and got to see the beautiful coast. We all enjoyed a wonderful lunch of fish and chips that we had been craving. Then we headed in to Stellenbosch and finally to "Die Eiland" (The Island), where we are staying for our time here. Casper and I went back into town for a conference meeting, while everyone else enjoyed having the place all to themselves with a vacant pool table to play some Skittles - a crazy game that is too confusing to explain in text, but is very fun and addicting! That's all for now... we'll try to post soon.
~Ashley~
Sunday: We went to an Afrikaans church service so we actually couldn't understand what they were saying! Casper helped us translate the message, though, so that was helpful. Then we had a nice big lunch with some of Casper's family coming to visit and then relaxed the rest of the day.
Monday: We got up and went to the farm that Casper grew up on and saw where his mom works. Then we headed in to Cape Town and got to see the beautiful coast. We all enjoyed a wonderful lunch of fish and chips that we had been craving. Then we headed in to Stellenbosch and finally to "Die Eiland" (The Island), where we are staying for our time here. Casper and I went back into town for a conference meeting, while everyone else enjoyed having the place all to themselves with a vacant pool table to play some Skittles - a crazy game that is too confusing to explain in text, but is very fun and addicting! That's all for now... we'll try to post soon.
~Ashley~
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Day 1 - Touring the West Coast
Stephen, Jason, and Cullen passed out waiting to get on the plane for the third time in D.C.
Today we all slept in after about 10-12 hours of sleep!! Then we spent the day traveling around the West Coast. Here are some pictures from today.
All of us hanging out by the water at Club Mykonos close to Langebaan: Laura, Adam, Ashley, Stephen, Jason, Cullen, Casper
We hiked up a pretty old and crooked staircase to get a better view and this was the sign in front of it.
View of the beach where we at for lunch in Saldahna.
Can you find us in this picture??? We're all standing at the bottom in front of these famous rocks in Saldaha called the Adam and Eve rocks.
This little guy is a dassie that we saw while at Club Mykonos.
Friday, June 4, 2010
We made it!
Well, we finally made it safely all the way to Cape Town! Once we got our luggage, we left from the aiport to stay with Casper's mom in Velddrif, which is the town he grew up in a few hours away from Cape Town.
The picture attached shows where Velddrif is as well as the others cities we will be going to the next couple of days.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
On our way
We already have some crazy stories to share and we are not even there yet! First of all, on the way to Dallas last night, Casper and I got a flat tire...not to mention the tires on my car are just a few weeks old! But, fortunately we had the tire insurance on them and got it replaced with a new one for free, so that was definitely a blessing.
Then we took off safely from DFW and made it in to Washington, D.C. Unfortunately, our plane leaving D.C. had some complications. We all got on the plane, watched the safety video, and were on the runway when the pilot explained that there was some mechanical problems. We pulled back in to the terminal to get it checked out and ended up being stuck sitting on the plane with no air conditioning for two hours! No fun! Finally, they decided to let us off the plane and gave us all dinner vouchers to eat in the airport. After an hour, we all got back on the plane, watched the safety video again, got to the runway again, and..... the same thing happened. So, we all got off the plane again and got set up to stay in hotels for the night. The plan is to leave tomorrow morning (June 3rd) around 9 a.m.
Our team is doing our best to stay positive, but this situation is definitely frustrating since we are so excited to get there. We really want to pray for all of us to keep positive attitudes and to stay flexible no matter what happens. Things like this happen all the time, but we do not want to let Satan use these frustrating circumstances to destroy our team unity, focus, or passion.
Then we took off safely from DFW and made it in to Washington, D.C. Unfortunately, our plane leaving D.C. had some complications. We all got on the plane, watched the safety video, and were on the runway when the pilot explained that there was some mechanical problems. We pulled back in to the terminal to get it checked out and ended up being stuck sitting on the plane with no air conditioning for two hours! No fun! Finally, they decided to let us off the plane and gave us all dinner vouchers to eat in the airport. After an hour, we all got back on the plane, watched the safety video again, got to the runway again, and..... the same thing happened. So, we all got off the plane again and got set up to stay in hotels for the night. The plan is to leave tomorrow morning (June 3rd) around 9 a.m.
Our team is doing our best to stay positive, but this situation is definitely frustrating since we are so excited to get there. We really want to pray for all of us to keep positive attitudes and to stay flexible no matter what happens. Things like this happen all the time, but we do not want to let Satan use these frustrating circumstances to destroy our team unity, focus, or passion.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Well, we will officially be on a plane to South Africa in ONE week from today!! Our team is busy getting prepared to go, finalizing all of the last minute details. As we finish up this last week in the States, here are a few things you can join us in prayer about:
- Hearts and minds prepared for ministry there
- Safe travel
- Team unity
- Spirit-led decision making
- Physical, mental, and spiritual health
- Hearts and minds prepared for ministry there
- Safe travel
- Team unity
- Spirit-led decision making
- Physical, mental, and spiritual health
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
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