Alex Gehman, Pitt in South Africa Summer 2024
Having to be independent in any context, but especially in a new place, was a big challenge for me during my time in South Africa. Before coming to college, I didn’t have a job or freedom to go places, so I felt very stuck, like I couldn’t do anything I wanted to without needing someone else involved. Living in Pittsburgh, 5 hours away from home, has given me that freedom I was looking for. I have a job, I can go places whenever using the buses, I can exist outside of my house. As good of a change as this was, I still never felt fully confident being an adult. This was on my mind all the time before leaving the US, wondering how it would change being in a different country on a different continent where I only had a limited number of people I could reach out to for help.
I first felt that confidence during my layover in London on the way to Johannesburg. Not only was this my first time on a plane, it was my first time out of the country, off of the continent, and I was completely alone. I was excited to explore the city and exhausted from the long flight, but texting my family that I’d landed made it really sink in that I was completely by myself. Thankfully, I’d forget that worry while running around the city checking off the random places I wanted to visit in my handful of hours there before returning to the airport. Once I finally got to sit down and eat dinner before my next flight, I was able to reflect on how difficult what I’d just done was- navigating public transit in a new place, figuring out social cues of a new country, making sure I was safe; a lot of this was stuff I do on a normal basis in Pittsburgh, but the context of a new country forced me to relearn it.
After my second flight, this time from London to Johannesburg, I was filled with excitement for the upcoming program, but also relief to be done traveling. The first couple of days there were spent getting used to the country and the routine of the program, but at the end of our week in the city I was getting antsy because there wasn’t much to do within walking distance of our B and B. I could Uber places, but I wasn’t yet comfortable with the area to be able to, so I ended up staying in most nights. At the end of that first week, we flew to Cape Town which was such a much needed change.
I hadn’t done much research on South Africa before coming to the country, so I wasn’t sure what to expect of Cape Town. I would soon learn that it was a lot more like home than I’d expected. While more like downtown than Oakland or where I live in Squirrel Hill, there was so much to do within an easily accessible distance. Our program guide, Jonathan, gave us a tour of some of the places we could go during our time there such as the Company Gardens, a multi-cultural food court called Eastern Food Bazaar, and local museums. By the end of it, I knew I’d love it there. The middle two weeks of the program were incredibly busy, with outings and/or class nearly every day. Towards the end we finally got days off to do whatever we wanted. Some of the time I spent just hanging out with my classmates. I ended up getting food poisoning one day and while I of course felt awful, I greatly appreciated my classmates and chaperones who helped take care of me by bringing me food and checking on me. Being sick in a new place, especially when I hadn’t been that sick in a long time, was scary, but knowing I had people to help me out was a nice change of pace from being stuck alone when I’d been sick at home. Being taken care of doesn’t seem like it’d make me feel confident in my feeling like an adult, but it reminded me that being mature doesn’t mean you have to always do things for yourself, you can rely on your support system when you need to.
The final week was when I really got to do my own thing. Some people from the program had to leave early so there weren’t any excursions officially planned, and class time just became project work time. Outside of class, we had sunrise to sunset to do whatever we pleased. Sometimes that took the form of spending time with my classmates- such as hiking a mountain, which I still can’t believe I did- but I spent a lot of time by myself. I ended up dedicating my week to going to as many of the local museums as I could because I love museums and am considering going into museum work as a career. I ended up going to four over the course of three days which was exhausting but something I’m grateful for doing. Most of the museum trips I’ve gone on in my life have been with other people. I do genuinely enjoy getting to experience them with others, but experiencing them alone is something completely different. I was able to go at my own pace without having to wait for someone else to catch up, or to catch up to someone else. I could process information at a pace that worked for me. I could spend longer at pieces and exhibits that interested me. Similar to my time in London, my ability to navigate an unfamiliar place greatly surprised me. Not only was I able to fend for myself, I could do more than the bare minimum and actually have a good time instead of spending every day inside my hotel room. Together, my experiences in London and Cape Town made me feel more confident about the stage of my life that I’m in.
As for advice, starting small helps. For example, the first excursion I did during that final week was to go back to the Eastern Food Bazaar before going to whatever museum I went to that day. Not only was it a nice treat to get to eat great food, it was also a familiar place where I knew what to expect. From there, going to other places by myself felt less daunting. Figuring out what makes you feel confident is an important part of this process because otherwise you don’t know what to pursue. Finally, enjoy yourself and the opportunities you can take advantage of in your area! If there’s a local music scene, great restaurants, tourist attractions, do whatever interests you even if it makes you nervous or unsure. Most likely you’ll end up having a great time.
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