In Africa

I've just come back from two weeks in South Africa visiting a friend, and if you had asked me one month ago, I would have never guessed I'd be saying that!

Before arriving, my idea of South Africa was pretty limited, based mostly on movies like The Lion King and Invictus. News about the country is scarce in Europe, and it's often difficult for people to distinguish between South Africa and its neighbors, such as Mozambique or Namibia. Additionally, it's often only the negative news that receives extensive coverage, leading to an overall negative bias. In short, when I told my mum I was leaving, she was quite worried, imagining an almost tribal setting. ⛺

Empirical knowledge is a key theme of this blog, so I had to experience South Africa personally. What I found was a country that is actually growing. After my Interrail trip in Europe, which I found stagnant from both economic and demographic perspectives, I got the feeling that South Africa, in contrast, is a young and entrepreneurial country where ideas become a reality. You can feel this energy in the simple fact that it's much more common for waiters, or anyone really, to smile and ask you how you are. You can see it in the amount of construction going up, and quickly too. Moreover, I found it particularly fascinating to see the human desire to be useful in action: I saw homeless people managing traffic at intersections when the traffic lights were broken and filling potholes with whatever they could find. No one pays them, yet they still do it. Why? My only conclusion is just for the sake of it.

A recurring theme of my blog is also my belief that friendships and human relationships are among the most interesting things in life. That still holds true. I had the opportunity to stay in a house where there was a constant flow of friends coming in and out, and as I’m an only child, this was quite strange for me at first. After a while, however, one's social batteries adapt to the new reality, and I got used to it much more quickly than I expected.

On this note, a huge thank you to Sveva, who hosted, guided, and welcomed me so warmly. Meeting her and all her friends in Johannesburg reminded me that people are fundamentally the same everywhere, and the joy of being together is universal.

I'll end with a quote shared by my South African friend Yusuf: "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."