Premier Hotel Pretoria

... lump in my gut, mental tissue automatically wrapping itself around the psychological wound I’m trying to deny. Denial is the world’s longest riv**, and it’s running right through me right now. I’ve been violated. I’m hoping th**e won’t be collat**al damage, but that might be impossible. Ev**y confrontation leaves an IOU wh**e something was taken without p**mission ...

... not what breaks them. It is living as a discarded human being that takes their spirit. Statistics tell us that a great number of the very same people who have rejected them are also infected but they choose not to know. Otherwise they too will be vulnerable to being thrown out like the trash. Fear and denial are feeding the pandemic. Rivoningo works towards reviving the health of persons with HIV/AIDS to a level where they ...

... places even had air con in the rooms. My rommie and i didn't use it, except for one night the hut was really stuffy, I also wasn't as impressed with that one place, (our last night). It was all very cute but i had a couple ants on the bed and i couldn't relax. I went to bed sweating but wearing pants, socks, and a long sleeve shirt. I did manage to get some sleep. All the other places were great and it was very relaxing ...

... in South Africa. The weather during the week was just about the same day to day. Cold enough in the morning to leave frost on cars and then a nice warm sun in the afternoon. The skies were cloudless just about all of the time but a haze at times because of the grass fires. We would typically see a grass fire during our drive after work about every other day. During the week the subject of rugby came up time and again. Mike had taken Jim and Jane to ...

... this way, when they lose the case report, I will have a copy!!! Upon leaving I had to ask to be 'let out' as the antiquated security doors had self-closed from the sentry post outside the gate. This was to stop people gaining access to the police station in times gone by. Now it involves a senior officer rolling his eyes, hoisting himself up 15 feet to fit through a gap on the ceiling without setting off his gun and pulling a leaver. 'Wait there', he ...

Leaving Cape Town behind, we headed to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope (the southwestern most point of Africa). I wish I could upload these pictures...but the drive was most easily compared to driving along Route 1. The diversity of the landscape that we saw in one day was UNREAL and simply breathtaking. Right outside ...

... some of the other exchange students and I rented a car. Our beautiful set of wheels is an early 1980 model Volkswagen Jetta, which still remembers the Cold War with its "Made in West Germany" stamp on the engine. I decided to take the car one evening to go to an orchid society meeting in Johannesburg. The only problem is that I don't have a lot of experience driving a standard. The way I looked at it, the only way to learn is to ...

... then we are hoping to go to an internet cafe on the weekend, so e-mail is limited. That being said thanks to everyone for all the kind words. A special thanks to Dave for passing on the messege to everyone that I had arrived safely! I hope all of you are well. This weekend we are heading to Soweto (with someone who works at the Village). I will write again soonn. Mum- I"m safe and fine, my birthday is April 3rd :) Lots of love, Kate ps- not to brag but it's ridiculously hot here right now

... for our first challenge for the MHMF. We decided we would try to identify 100 species of birds by the time we finish the trip. With the huge diversity of the wildlife at the Kruger National Park, by the time we left there we had identified 113 species! Our idea now is to continue to identify as many species as we can while we're away and see how many we can manage. It will depend a little on the availability of identification books in the different countries. We listed ...

Last night was not pretty. Not only did I have to learn QUITE a bit of a language that includes three clicks (Xhosa), but I got a friendly little reminder that I live in a prison. At 2 a.m. Let me paint the picture: I have just spent upwards of 4 hours deciphering a textbook that has very little English. (NB: When it DOES have English, it's written in this linguistic code. Do any of you know what the reflexive morpheme or the personal copulative are? If so, please let me know.) So I ...