HAPPY NEW YEAR’S TO ALL FROM CAPE TOWN!!!!
-Dan
Month: December 2003
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Topic: Craving the hostel culture
After a week of amazing home hospitality by my friends Kelly and Avra from camp, I decided I needed to get back into the backpacking world. So, I got dropped off at a place on Long Street this morning, one of the main streets in the city center of Cape Town.
In my dorm was an Englishman, which was clear from his awful sunburn on his pasty white body, and from the fact he was still hungover at 1pm. Anyways, James and I hit it off, and decided to head up Table Mountain today.
This mountain is the entire skyline of Cape Town. We took a cable car up, and spent 2 hours just wandering the top, gazing out at the Atlantic Ocean to the east, where the sky and sea looked reversed. Above the horizon was nothing but blue, below were white clouds covering the shimmering water. It was pretty.
As we walked to the other side, we had an amazing view of Robben Island, Lion’s Head, the city bowl as the city is known as, and the Waterfront. Around 6pm the clouds started to pour in, and I mean pour. James and I got some Amstel’s from the bar, and watched the clouds roll off the top of the mountain like Niagra Falls, it was really quite an unexpected and amazing site.
Being a completely independent traveler is really what it’s all about for me, and today was just an amazing day. The hostel has a balcony overlooking the street like something you’d see in New Orleans. That’s probably where i’ll be spending my new year’s, along with grilling some meat, and enjoying a few cold ones with some camp friends and whoever else I meet in the next couple of days.
New York Times Article:
I just sent a letter into the NYT, but didn’t here back which means I’m not about to become famous just yet. But last weeks article about how my university, Washington U. in St. Louis has climbed the rankings, and how our chancellor has a plan to be “America’s best university” solely from its fundraising, with no mention whatsoever of its education, is truly disturbing to me. I was excited to see the a spokesperson from Sarah Lawrence threw a jab at Wash U. An article just a few weeks before in the NYT education section asked the question what do you get for $40,000/year. Surprisingly, at Sarah Lawrence you actually get a lot, including a massive effort by advisors to make sure you’re not pissing away your time or money, rather, that you’re taking classes and doing meaningful work. How ’bout that.
Well…it’s almost 11, time to head out of this internet cafe and go explore some Long Street night life.
-Dan
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TOPIC: EDUCATION
“Nothing worthwhile is learned by compulsion.” – John Taylor Gotto, A Different Kind of Teacher (pg. 45)
Should this book become even a microscopic amount successful, I want no credit to be given to the institution that awarded my college diploma, Washington University in St. Louis. I cannot rate the school more or less than any other, but it fills all the requirements of a traditional school that fails to educate many of its students.
Just a few days ago, December 22nd, I received an e-mail informing me that Wash U, as my school is called for short, had made its way to the front page of the New York Times. This is no small matter. Students, and I would assume professors and administrators alike take great pride in things like the US News and World rankings, at #9, individual students felt as though they were now in some way superior to the schools they had moved past. The rankings system has come to represent a sort of, “Whose smarter than who” between college students, when in actuality, and as those who actually read the NYT article will take not of , the school’s status, reputation, and ranking has nothing to do with how well it educates, or how educated its students are. Instead, the article credits the university’s massive endowment and ability to market students with the highest high school marks. The difficult job market facing graduates of the class of 2003 is a perfect environment to find insight about what is coming out of American colleges. Just as we remember the failings of the popular high school kids down the road in life, and the success of the quieter hard working types, we may discover something interesting about those attending “smart schools,” such as Wash U. Ultimately, life continues to reward those who work hard and do what they think is right, versus those following the crowd. So, to all those looking to fork over $100,000+ for college, take a large step back. I wonder if ever a college administration will acknowledge its weaknesses, its failure in many situations to educate. That would be an institution worthy of praise.
“Too many people, uneasily convinced that they must know something because of a degree, diploma, or license, remains so convinced until a brutal divorce, alienation from their children, loss of employment, or periodic fits of meaninglessness manage to tip the precarious mental balance of their incomplete humanity.” – John Taylor Gotto pg. 62
Topic: Montessori schooling
Although there are no systems in life that work for everyone, the Montessori school system works extremely well for some. In Italy, schools use the system up to the ghighest grades, although it is not referred to as Montessori there, since Italy is the origin of the school. Montessori produces students who know what they want to learn, making them super-motivated students, versus students similar to myself. In South Africa, there is a similar problem to the one I encountered in college in the USA. Jobs require degrees, so we study but lack the practical experience that jobs are actually seeking. Like myself, there are students in South Africa who graduate from a university and don’t necessarily want to work in the field they studied. A friend of mine from university, Marla, recently said college is helpful for students to learn what they don’t like as well as what they do. The problem is, college gives you different options about what you can study, not what you can do. After 2 years I decided I hated studying business, but I really don’t know if I would or would not enjoy a business job.
Which brings me to another topic: What are graduate qualified to do?
Qualifications come from real life experience. Until you’ve done something, you’re not qualified to do anything. Woul you accept someone who has read countless books for countless hours about surgery, the stock market, or engineering, to open up your chest, invest your money, or build you house, without having any prior hand on experience?
After 4 years of attending an American university, I received a diploma which is my gateway into most jobs despite the fact the only experience necessary for receiving that diploma was passing enough classes. I could have received a D or a C in 40 classes totallying 120 credits, and I would have myself a degree from Wash U, the #9 ranked college in America. Therefor, my diploma does not represent any sort of qualification to do anything besides be a student, and a mediocre, passive student at that. On the flip side, a 3-year old Montessori student is increaing the qualifications daily through the completion of activities that the student chooses themselves.
Just a few pages in John Taylor Gotto’s book, I’m already inspired by my generalities about educatoinal ills being substantiated by Gatoo, winner of New York State’s Teacher of the Year Award in ’91 and ’92. This book I’m writing, though inspired mostly by horrid experiences inside college classrooms, is mostly a result of being free from the educational system that for my life of 22 years, never dared to challenge me to attempt to write a book, or to pursue an independant project that has landed me for half-a-year in South Africa, with an infinite number of topics to explore each day. The one area where I still lack a great deal of confidence comes from my lack of knowledge of school related topics. My understanding of history is appalling, my comprehension of the most commonly read school books is low, mostly because I completed very few, and my common sense towards the real work of jobs, homes, insurance, medicine, and economics is comedic. However, post-college, I’ve learned tons, reflecting Gatto’s argument that schools are not inherently the best forms of education.
I have a family friend, Stephen S., who once asked me how my first semester of college was going I responded with my gpa, 3.4, which I was quite proud of because so many people I knew struggled at the start of college. This was not the response he was looking for. What had I learned he wanted to know. I didn’t have an intelligent response for him. His suggestion to read a book for class fully before discussion, then again for comprehension was probably good advise, but in the college culture around me, anything for school came second to anything else I could find.
One very interesting thing has occured for me since graduating May of 2003 (actually, my diploma says August 2003, since I failed the only 2 classes I took my last semester, and was forced to do summer school for the first time in my life, a story for another entry). My normal loathing for research has been replaced with a fanatic view that everything in life I encounter can serve my thoughts and writing in some way. I have a building stack of photocopied articles, and take notes on everything. None of this is fueld by school, simply my own curiousities.
Topic: S. Africa update
Just got back from my friend Avra’s temple, where we celebrated Channukah with tons of food, a fish briie (bbq) and potato latkes. We then had a performance by the Cape Minstrals, a singing troupe of “colored” not blacks, of Muslim decent. The group of 9, all part of the same family, came out in white track suite pants, white sneakers, and hot pink and green sparkling coats. There are groups as big as 500, and tons of groups, that will perform on New Year’s. This group sounded like Ricky Ricardo cuban music from I Love Lucy, and they sang, “When the saint’s go marching in” “Glory glory halleluja” “Blueberry Hill,” “Fools Rush in,” the SA national anthem, some songs i didn’t understand in Afrikans. Quite a good time, and Avra’s grandmother, in front of several hundred people, was brought up to dance w/ the group as well.
Today I went to Cape Point, southern most point of Cape Town and where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet. Unfortunately, didn’t see any babboons there, usually there’s tons. On the drive back we passed vineyards, ostrich farms, and on the side of the road a soap stone shop with about 50,000 carvings, from small faces, to massive elephants and giraffes. The road winded down mountains, past Simon’s Town Harbor where houses are plopped along the water and up to the rocky top.
Tom. i visit Robbin Island if the weather stops raining, get some views of the famous Table Mountain, and wander the waterfront, w/ its many many shops.
Happy Channukah and X-Mas to all, New Year’s is up next… can’t wait.
-Dan
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ALIVE AND WELL:
This morning I woke up and decided it would be a nice day to jump off the highest bridge in South Africa. At 600+ feet, it’s the tallest bungy jump in the world. Amazing, so much fun, can’t even begin to describe. Spent 10 hours today on a bus, now i’m in Cape Town, where I’m staying with another friend from camp. Will be here for the next 10 days, checking out their big city here. Will post more soon.
-dan
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Hey all,
Traveling is picking up now. I’m in a rural villiage in Coffee Bay. People here live in clay huts, with thatched rooves, there’s cows, goats, and sheep, roaming the one road that runs through here. The largest industry is this hostel called Coffee Shack that employs locals as cooks and guides.
Today’s guide took a group of us to check out come amazing cliffs by the ocean, which we later jumped off of into the waves, about 30ft. jumps, completely scary, completely amazing. There is one guy who took off his artificial leg and made the jump too, wow. We also visited some caves that used to hide weopons of the freedom fighters during apartheid. Now it just reaks of guano, or bat shit. Our guide reminded us not to look up, “they’ll shit in your mouth and eyes, they don’t care.” This is my second night here, last night i was up till 2a.m. sitting around a camp fire meeting people from S.A., England, all over. This villiage is in an area of S. Africa called the Transkei, and the people are Khoisa (pronounced Koy-sa) which is also there language. On fri. i will be meeting w/ the head chief, how sweet is that?
Tonight is a P party, you dress up as something p, i’m going as a player, and wearing a soccer jersey. Others are going as pirates, plants, phantom, you name it, and there should be drinking and talking all night.
Been writing every day, thoughts about travel, writing, myself, S. Africa, people, hostels, life, education, you name it. A bunch of people have come up to me, and started talking because they thought i’d make it in my book. Pretty cool.
Well…unfortunately internet is expensive. If any of my immediately family is reading this, I NEED $100 IN MY BANK ACCOUNT. There’s no banks here,and they don’t take credit card, so i need to draw money from my ATM no fri.
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Travel Update:
Learned how to play rugby today by playing the rugby 2004 video game on Play Station 2.
Watched a surf video made by musician Jack Johnson, got a good feel for the surf culture, which is huge in this part of the world.
Went to a traditional Zulu site today, where I saw Zulu wedding dancing . Absolutely amazing. Colorful beads flying, tamborine feet stomping and making noise to the beat of the animal skinned drums.
Watched Arsenal win 2-0 and advance to the final 16 of the Champions League.
Learning of the Day: It costs a zulu male 11 cows to marry a zulu female.
Plan of the Day: This book, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig is literally screaming for me to push forward with my ideas for starting some sort of college that holds a mission statement of learning for the sake of learning and self-growth and developing a community of interested people.
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12/08/03 10:57PM
I’m at my friend Giya’s house now, in Belito, a suburb outside of Durban. Her house is really nice, and has a great view of the ocean, which I will be playing in the rest of this week. Her house is also home to geccos. I’ve seen several, just wandering along the walls inside her house, which is half cool, half scary. But, apparently they are useful in taking care of flies, so they’re not a problem here.
During my 7 hour busride today, I came up with a few brief descriptions of the landscape, that I kinda like:
Cleanly shaven mountains
Green like Ireland
In the distance, the mountains become 2-dimensional and blue.
I watch the ridge-lines move like a stocke broker following the DOW.
Rows of identical 4-wall, one-room houses.
So simple, even I could design them.
The diversity of this drive is amazing. At one moment there is a forrest of trees to my left, and what could be an entire golf course to my right.
I spent the night haning out w/ Giya and another friend Dori. I met both of them at summer camp, B’nai B’rith Perlman Camp. If you’re interested in camp jobs, check out the american camping association website for jobs. It’s a great way to meet people from abroad.
At 4:10PM today, I decided I WILL write a book and I WILL create a different kind of college. reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintanance has given me an extra kick of confidence, beyond my youthful and idealistic conficence. The author, Pirsig, calls for the abolishment of grades and diplomas, over 30 years ago, and this book is still a best-seller.
Aspects of my college:
Every student will study abroad
Every student will gain job experience before graduating
Every student will be supported in putting together an independant project. This is an opporutnity to leave a mark on the world.
ex) a musician can perform, a writer can write, a traveler can travel -
Quick update:
It’s 5:40pm here now on Sun. Today i leave for durban, a 7hr. busride. My time in S. Africa has been great so far. I’ve been taking it easy the last 2 days. Went to a flea market today, absolutely massive place, bought some crafts for the family. Not too much to say about jo’burg itself, the city i’m in. Every single house has a huge wall w/ barbed wire in front of it, so i can’t really see what the houses look like, and there’s also no areas that are really safe to walk around. On most street corners, the second you come to a stop there’s a group of people hounding your car, trying to sell you anything from hats, to grapes, to soccer balls. On the side of the roads there are also flea markets where people try to wave you over and buy there crafts, chairs, tires, you name it.
The other day I also drove by one of the townships. These are the places of absolute poverty. We slowed down so i could take pictures, but again, these are not safe places to stop and walk around. In a few weeks I plan on taking a tour of one of the safer ones, which i’m looking forward to despite a comment someone made to me about the poverty of others being a tourist attraction.
Politics: For anyone interested, i’m picking up a little news out here, that probably isn’t well known by most Americans. Zimbabwe, one of the 4 countries that borders S. Africa, has a very very corrupt President, Mugabe. This guy used violence and other measures to steal the last election in a way that should make us count our blessings about how the last US election turned out. In addition, Mugabe has killed off many of his own people, especially white farm owners to be replaced by black owners. Their economy has gone to shit, super inflation, people have no food, money can’t buy anything. So, many Zimbabweans are fleeing to S. Africa, which involves hopping the fence, and then a grueling crossing through any combination of crocodile infested waters, or parts of Kruger Nat’l Park, where they take their chances with the lions there. For those who make it to S. Africa alive, they have no money, and crime is their only option. The world is aware of this problem, the US has just voted to kick Zimbabwe out of the IMF, and right now they’re getting pleanty more shit from the rest of the world.
Idea – Today I came up w/ a gameplan for a new college that I one day hope to start up, based on Outward bound principles. Anyone interested, check out www.elob.org to see what outward bound public schools look like. I’m getting more and more convinced that the only good college did for me was to show me how trapped I was. I really believe strongly in creating a college culture that prioritizes extra curricluar interests over classes and distributions, a college where students pursue the activities that interest them, and use classes to supplement their knowledge so they can better succeed at those activities. Like Outward bound, this college would also have physical fitness components added so students can stay physically and mentally fit, as well as community service components. In the spirit of simple living, this college will have tuition going towards faculty, hopefully no larger than a 10/1 ratio, whereas Outward Bound actually has 5/1. By being financially efficient, you can cut out a lot of the crap that goes into a university, such as a pretty but hell-a expensive campus. Instead, students would live in a hostel setting in a city, so they’d have all the culture opportunities, and pleanty of extra money to use on experiences, rather than buildings.
Rather than spending 4 years focussing on academic development, the school would be focussing on personal and profesional development, chich would stand to benefit students considerably when they exit college. Ideally, small groups w/ a common interest would develop their own course description that meets their personal needs, and professors would then help them put together a calss.
For example, I would like to develop as a writer. Although my mostly empty experience developing as a writer in college has spurred my interest, it has also left me in a hole. Here are some set-backs from college that would possibly be corrected through this new system:
1) People who enjoy writing would be put together to explore their ideas, issue feedback, explore different areas for their ideas
2) Topics that I remember literally 0 about, such as intro to physics, would be replaced by subjects that have direct importance on my interests.
To make some sense out of my particular case, I am currently taking notes on everything I see. Articles I read and enjoy, I cut out. Conversatoins that inspire me to I write down. In college, I lost so much time getting lost searching through purely academic sources, sources which had no place in my life.
Which brings me to another problem I had with college. Its lack of relevancy to the real world. Rather than focussing on obscure topics, focus on the topics of the day. I think not enough people can make sense of a newspaper. For required freshman in my proposed college, first of all, classes would be changed into clubs, and there would be different clubs about reading and evaluating different sections of the newspaper.
My idea is not to eliminte academic learning. It is to use academic learning to support real life scenarios.
IMPORTANT, HELP NEEDED:
So, first, I need to see if any colleges like this exist. If so, I can hopefully learn a little about it, see what kind of feedback they’ve gotten.
The biggest factor for students attending my college, as it is now, is receivign a diploma. How does a school issue a diploma that is as valid in terms of going to graduate school or getting a job as any other school does?
Marketing – This new school will have built into it workshops and avenues for development that guarantee students will have juicy minds and resumes to overcome not attending a brand name university.
Students – the type of studnets i hope to attract are students who proved in high school that they are thinkers and doers. This school would be seeking candidates who have or wish to live exciting and interesting lives, who are excited about the opportunities this school would proved for their development.
Questions:
What will the school structure look like?
How does the faculty ensure studnets get what they want out of the experience?
What sort of things do we feel all students need to get out of this experience?
ex) leadership development, team players, self-directed
Could this college be an Outward Bound college/higher education for ELOB students?
That’s a lot to chew, but hopefully i can get these ideas out there to the powers that be that can actually help me bring this plan to fruition one day.
Cheers for now.
-Dan
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Daily highlights:
1) Went on a game drive.
2) Saw packs of zebras, some giraffes, many species of antelope.
3) Peter, who owns the game park, took me to pet the 3 female lions he has raised because their mothers left them. They were 1 years old, fairly big, and so so loveable. They came right up to us, and through a fence I was able to pet them, as they tried to grab me in a friendly way, although they have massive claws that nearly ripped my shorts off. Leanred that lions actually have a claw in their tail that was probably used as a weapon a long time ago, but now has no practical use. They have a white stripe under their eye that reflect light when they hunt at night. Also, have a black stipe behind their ear so their fellow lions can identify them when hiding during the hunt.
4) Went on 4×4 vehicles along the trails. Found a group of ostriches. We collected an egg because they get eaten by wild animals anyways, and they bring them back to educate the childrent that come to the lodge. As I went close to the ostriches to get a photo taken, they got excited, raised their arms, started moving towards me. I FREAKED OUT, NEARLY GOT KILLED BY OSTRICHES. But luckily they ran away.
5) Went to another game farm. Saw cheetahs up close. Got some amazing pictures that I can’t wait to one day have posted here. Also saw wild dogs. Scary scrappy animals, that don’t bark, but screach like owls. Sharp teeth, and always jumping and biting one another.
