We left for the rugby game at about noon, arriving just before it started at 12:30pm. There were already lots of people there since it was the first game of the season and there was another game happening beforehand. We were there to watch the main game though. Cath and Li's brother Innocent is on the first team for his high school St. Stithian's (or Saints). He's not their brother by birth (as you'll notice he looks a bit different from them!). He is actually their helper's (maid's) son. When he was very young (about 1 year old), he was staying with his grandparents, and he got very sick. Cath and Li's mother and father took him in, got him healthy, and raised him. He has lived with them as part of their family ever since and his birth mother continues to work for their family. He is now one of the top high school rugby players in South Africa, being scouted for provincial teams as well as the national team. He was supposed to play in the Junior Olympics in Australia this year but unfortunately he got injured. I don't really know anything about rugby but I thought he played well yesterday and others (who actually know things about rugby) said the same. Cath and Li couldn't be more proud of their little brother.
It was a lot of fun to see a high school sports game in South Africa compared to a Canadian high school sports game (not that big a deal) and compared to an American high school sports game (from what I've heard, probably a lot more similar to the South African game). Both teams had a cheering section from their school all dressed in their uniforms. Their spirit was great! And of course, what is a sports game without snacks? We had biltong (South African beef jerky) to snack on during the game.
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| Innocent kicking the ball for a penalty |
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| Saints spirit section |
After the game was over, we headed over to Cath and Li's grandmother's house for a couple drinks and some dinner. We had some delicious chicken, salad, and bread. I've never had chicken spiced like that before. I think it was cinnamon-y but I'm not the best at discriminating flavours. We also got to talk to her about some really interesting things, particularly what it was like during the apartheid. Particularly, she remembered the sirens at 9pm signalling the curfew for the black people and how everyone would be running around at that time trying to get home or to a bus. She described how an Indian man got very drunk at a party one night and they had to take him home to sleep it off but they couldn't let their neighbours see them helping this man. She later went to his wedding and she was one of the only white people there. Her father warned her that she "would be killed" if she went to the wedding. She also described coming to America during that time and being shocked (but not offended, just surprised) at seeing a mixed race couple. Her stories made it apparent that there were many people uncomfortable with the apartheid when it was happening but also that there are still many racist people here (as there are everywhere I suppose).
EDIT: I forgot to mention one of Oma's stories. Well I didn't forget the story, I forgot the name of the lady and therefore couldn't write about it. Anyway, a few years ago, Oma saw Miriam Makeba (South African singer and activist, also known as Mama Africa) at one of the nearby shopping centres. She went up to her and said "You're Miriam Makeba", Miriam Makeba said "yes", she asked "Can' I kiss you?", and Miriam Makeba said "yes". As Oma was telling this story she started to cry. She was so moved by the sacrifices this lady had made for her country, her rights, and her music.
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