Okay well, where do I start here...
I moved to South Africa with my fiance the beginning of June. let me start off by saying that I feel like this journey and new experience has really benefited both me and Ryan in a real way. Its been good for us to experience this, open our view on life and also make us realize how fortunate we really are.
Okay now down to my experience. South Africa is a beautiful country! and a lot of the people I have met on my travels have been amazing to talk to and relate with. However I have also seen the bad attitudes of both native South Africans and the dutch who colonized this country.. yes this colonization happened years and years ago, but the war still seems to exist till this day, not in a literal sense but in a ancestry way. The two have not forgotten or forgiven for the past. I have seen afrikaans (dutch) have horrible attitudes, and look down on South Africans, but I have also experienced being bumped into on purpose by Africans, because of my skin colour. As I am white, its been assumed I am an afrikaner (dutch). This has led my experience on a day to day basis be rather hard.
The younger generation seem to get on so well together, from what I have seen. Its the older generation that hasn't seemed to let go. I always remember when I was young living in this country, being friends with a lovely African little girl a house down from me. My brothers friend was an afrikaans speaking boy. This boy a couple of days after making friends with the African girl, said he no longer wanted to be friends with me and my Brother... all because we had befriended the African girl. This coming from a child?.. Horrifying to say the least. So sometimes even kids knowing nothing of anything, grow up with there parents horrible view on things! We see that all the time though.. in all walks of live I suppose.
The driving here is has been a whole new experience on its own. I give you one word... DANGEROUS. If your not awake and the driving seat, expect an accident to happen. You need to have your eyes peeled at all times. Not saying that driving in the UK was a breeze, because a lot of people shouldn't be driving lol. But me and my fiance Ryan have had so many near misses from drivers that couldn't possibly have a licence! Its been scary. Every day you drive, your pretty much always going to have to toot your horn at someone, whether its undercutting you, overtaking you (With little or no room to be doing so) or just plan not even paying attention to where they are going!
Another big HUGE surprise to me is that cops here do not pull you over for traffic offences... We were driving one day in a 40 Kilometer an hour road, to be overtaken by a big buckkie going what must have been a 100 Kilometers an hour, almost hitting us as he pulled in in front of us, (we beeped our horn at him like crazy)... This all happened RIGHT BEFORE A POLICE CAR!... you would haha your going to get nicked brother, but no... Cop car didn't do a thing. Why have speed limits you ask? I just dont know.
Red lights?... apparently people don't care. and I could go on.. but I think you get the idea here guys.
Internet is something that just does not work properly here. Basically there is just one company (Telcom) which is run by the government over here. Other companies can then lease lines from telcom. This makes internet very, very expensive. Why? Because we all know governments are greedy and corrupt. So internet is not only slow but at crazy prices. 10 Gig of data cost us £100 ... if thats not robbery, I don't know what is, oh and you need to use this 10 gig in one month and its erased. So for me and Ryan, being internet addicts and used to crazy fast broadband.. we pretty much cried.
Crime is still a very serious issue in South Africa, as much as we like not to talk about it. Stuff that happens down here, just doesn't happen in the UK. Everyone I have talked to, or met.. has experienced crime in some way. Not just in terms of robbery or small crime.. I mean knifes and guns and so on. This thankfully is something we have not experienced since arriving here, which I am thankful for every day. I feel like I have been overly cautious during my stay here. I make sure all the windows are closed every night, I check the bathroom before I shower, I make sure my bag and phone or close to me, and I basically watch my back every hour of every day. I feel its necessary... In Scotland this was something I honestly never worried about. I never even fully locked my house when I left for town most days in Scotland.
Jobs. This was something I honestly wasn't worried about before I left. I felt pretty confident that I would manage to get something, with my qualifications behind me. Boy was I wrong....
There are jobs going.. however the government has a law in place where companies need to employ a certain percentage of Native South Africans, this percentage is something like 97 percent... this means that white South Africans pretty much have no chance. I tried applying for many jobs, and heard nothing back. On one hand I think, well yeah that makes sense government, but on the other hand I think.. well thats a little unfair! Shouldnt the person employed be employed cause they are better for the job? not because of there background? In a way its very racist? is it not?...... I dont know. But getting a job here is near impossible! Just to be clear. I am a South African citizen! I'm not some outsider taking Africans jobs from them. I have a right to work here.... This is the main reason for me returning to Scotland with my fiance. No job, no money, no house, no way to live.
Im not trying to bash South Africa here, but I have to admit... Its very hard not to. There is just so much that doesn't make sense to me and So many faults I have found....
Yes Scotland is no perfect country! and has just as many flaws, but i'm used to those flaws xD
I will try and finish off with the good.. make this post a little less depressing, shall I? lol
I have enjoyed being here, make no mistake :) I have had a chance to get a lovely tan, soak up lots of vitamin C (which lets face it we Scots NEED desperately) I have had the chance to see and spend time with alot of my family that I haven't seen in years, see friends I haven't seen since primary school, and show Ryan my old school, and the country I was born!
We have been given the chance to experience so many new things that we just couldn't in the UK.... Like driving an old volkswagen beetle for example. Its been an amazing experience, and I'm very glad that we came here. Its given me a whole new outlook on life for sure! And lets face it a change is always nice!
So as much as things haven't worked out for us here, its still been amazing! I am now very much looking forward to getting back to the UK.. my home :) I'm looking forward to starting a new! I get to make a fresh start, not many can say they have done that.
Can't wait to get back to my Scotland!
