Greetings from chilly Joburg! I (Thatcher) am writing this update Sunday night after our first two days together as a group. Saturday morning went amazingly smooth at the airport as all of our students safely arrived (2 were not on the group flight and found us quickly at the airport). We exchanged our currency and headed to the Shoestrings backpacker hostel which is quite near to the airport.
Saturday afternoon found us sharing a quick lunch at the hostel and then heading to a nearby park for some "ice breaker" games, a bit of frisbee, and a few meetings covering basic safety guidelines and general logistics of the program.
Last night we held our first evening discussion and ate a delicious meal of spaghetti, salad, brownies, and ice cream! Everyone was tired and stuffed so we called it an early night and turned in around 9.
Today we headed to the Apartheid Museum and spent a few hours learning about the struggles that South Africa faced and the resistance movements and ultimate end of the oppressive system. I think that each of our students learned a great deal and we had a wonderful chat over lunch back at the hostel as we de-briefed the morning in its entirety.
This afternoon we made our first group shopping run as we split into our cooking teams. Your lovely children are currently preparing a delicious curry, rice, and vegetable dinner while the others are engaged in a heated card game of "spoons."
The group is forming tremendously quick and we feel lucky to have such an intelligent, inquisitive, and compassionate bunch. All are happy, healthy, and learning by the moment!
Cheers from South Africa,
Thatcher and the BSA Group 09
A Windsor Mountain International Student Travel Program. For more details go to www.WindsorMountain.org.
Windsor Mountain Website Information
Bridge Southern Africa is a Windsor Mountain Student Travel Program. For more details on our WMST programs or our International Summer Camp, go to www.WindsorMountain.org.
Blog Archive
Phone Call Schedule and Mail Stop Information
The Bridge Southern Africa campers will be calling home on these dates and times (Eastern Standard Time). Please make sure you are available to receive the calls - we don't want you to miss the chance to hear from them! Call times cannot be rescheduled.
July 4 between 10am and 12pm (quick check in call after arriving)
July 18 between 11am and 1pm
August 2 between 11am and 1pm (quick check in call before departing)
You can send mail to the Bridge Southern Africa group at:
Windsor Mountain Student Travel
c/o Karma Backpackers
P.O. Box 354
Kestell 9860
South Africa
The last day for mail pick up is July 23, please make sure your mail will arrive by then to ensure delivery. Families may send flat letters to the program particiants. Place student's name in the bottom right corner of the envelope. Please do not send packages or money.
July 4 between 10am and 12pm (quick check in call after arriving)
July 18 between 11am and 1pm
August 2 between 11am and 1pm (quick check in call before departing)
You can send mail to the Bridge Southern Africa group at:
Windsor Mountain Student Travel
c/o Karma Backpackers
P.O. Box 354
Kestell 9860
South Africa
The last day for mail pick up is July 23, please make sure your mail will arrive by then to ensure delivery. Families may send flat letters to the program particiants. Place student's name in the bottom right corner of the envelope. Please do not send packages or money.
Southern Africa Map
What Time Is It In Southern Africa
Meet Your Leaders
Sarah Foster
Sarah loves encountering and connecting new people, places, and ideas around the world, and she is thrilled to be leading her seventh Windsor Mountain travel program this summer. Sarah graduated from Brown University with a degree in literature with honors in creative writing in 2001, and from the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre in 2002. Since then, she has been teaching, performing, and traveling. She toured with a mask and puppet show across the United States in 2003, and then moved to Portland, Oregon, where she teaches physical theatre, playwriting and stilt walking all over town and, as Co-Artistic Director of the Nomadic Theatre Co, creates original shows and performs them around the Pacific Northwest. Sarah is an active member of Clowns Without Borders-USA, through which she has traveled several times to Haiti and to Southern Africa. Besides traveling and theatre, some of Sarah’s other favorite things in the world include biking around Portland, playing the trombone, ice cream, partner acrobatics, and jumping in the ocean. (New England Traveling Theatre `02 and `03, European Traveling Theatre `04 and `05, California Traveling Theater `06, Bridge Southern Africa `07).
Thatcher Glode
Thatcher currently lives in Jackson, Wyoming where he is a youth counselor in a group home for high school students. After growing up in the beautiful mountains of Colorado, Thatcher attended Colorado College in Colorado Springs. During his junior year he had the amazing opportunity to study abroad on Semester at Sea, visiting 16 different countries (including South Africa) over a span of 8 months. It was on this program that Thatcher fell in love with travel and education. He had the chance to hear Castro speak in Cuba, go on a safari in Tanzania, visit the Taj Mahal in India, and climb Mt. Fuji in Japan. This program has forever impacted Thatcher's life and greatly opened his eyes to the vast world around him. Thatcher is writing this biography from an internet cafe in Prague after visiting several countries in Europe and eagerly looking forward to leading Bridge South Africa 2009. When not traveling or working, Thatcher can be found fly-fishing the Snake River under the Tetons in Jackson, or skiing in the back country on Teton Pass. (Bridge Hawaii ’06 and ’07, Bridge South Africa ’08).
Sarah loves encountering and connecting new people, places, and ideas around the world, and she is thrilled to be leading her seventh Windsor Mountain travel program this summer. Sarah graduated from Brown University with a degree in literature with honors in creative writing in 2001, and from the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre in 2002. Since then, she has been teaching, performing, and traveling. She toured with a mask and puppet show across the United States in 2003, and then moved to Portland, Oregon, where she teaches physical theatre, playwriting and stilt walking all over town and, as Co-Artistic Director of the Nomadic Theatre Co, creates original shows and performs them around the Pacific Northwest. Sarah is an active member of Clowns Without Borders-USA, through which she has traveled several times to Haiti and to Southern Africa. Besides traveling and theatre, some of Sarah’s other favorite things in the world include biking around Portland, playing the trombone, ice cream, partner acrobatics, and jumping in the ocean. (New England Traveling Theatre `02 and `03, European Traveling Theatre `04 and `05, California Traveling Theater `06, Bridge Southern Africa `07).
Thatcher Glode
Thatcher currently lives in Jackson, Wyoming where he is a youth counselor in a group home for high school students. After growing up in the beautiful mountains of Colorado, Thatcher attended Colorado College in Colorado Springs. During his junior year he had the amazing opportunity to study abroad on Semester at Sea, visiting 16 different countries (including South Africa) over a span of 8 months. It was on this program that Thatcher fell in love with travel and education. He had the chance to hear Castro speak in Cuba, go on a safari in Tanzania, visit the Taj Mahal in India, and climb Mt. Fuji in Japan. This program has forever impacted Thatcher's life and greatly opened his eyes to the vast world around him. Thatcher is writing this biography from an internet cafe in Prague after visiting several countries in Europe and eagerly looking forward to leading Bridge South Africa 2009. When not traveling or working, Thatcher can be found fly-fishing the Snake River under the Tetons in Jackson, or skiing in the back country on Teton Pass. (Bridge Hawaii ’06 and ’07, Bridge South Africa ’08).
Followers
Bridge China
Bridge Peru
Bridge Puerto Rico
New England Adventure
You can also check out our website www.WindsorMountain.org for details on our
International Summer Camp and Student Travel Programs.