Awe at Victoria Falls

Oops... this has been sitting in my draft folder since we went to Zimbabwe in April. I guess the end of the school year chaos caught up to me more than I thought it had. Here's some words about our awe-inspiring trip to Victoria Falls.

It's not often that I'm without words. I usually have something to say about everything. But our journey to Victoria Town in Zimbabwe has taken my breath away.

The weekend was rather unexpected. Though I've wanted to visit Victoria Falls since I first arrived in Africa in 1999, it has always seemed "too far away" or "too expensive." But when Rob got a complimentary flight (thanks to a complaint about some bad service on a British Airways flight), how could we not take the opportunity to see one of the World's Natural Wonders?

We arrived in Victoria Town, Zimbabwe, on a warm Saturday afternoon just after a short 90-minute flight from Johannesburg. The arrival hall and excruciatingly long customs line reminded me that Africa has many faces and we were staring down an old decrepit one. Meeting up with our driver, who guided us past traditional dancers in loin clothes made from springbok skins, we (Rob and I) were aware that we were definitely back in Africa again!

We arrived and enjoyed a few minutes of rest and relaxation at at The Kingdom Resort before piling back in an air-conditioned bus on our way to the jetty for a cruise down the Zambezi river (thanks for the recommendation Bronny!). At our personal table for four, we enjoyed a water safari while throwing back Zambezi beers on the Zambezi river--now that's a first! Though the beer was crap, the views were magnificent. It was a bird watching paradise with crocs and hippos on or near the banks. But the highlight of this ride was the moment we caught an elephant washing itself in the river. Staring at this majestic creature as it appeared in the distance silhouetted against a setting sun, we knew this was going to be an amazing journey.

The next morning it was time to see what we'd came for--Victoria Falls! A quick 10-minute walk from our hotel, took us on another mini-safari as we walked past hippo and elephant dung, baboons, warthogs, and the wild Zimbabwean drivers.

Victoria Falls was said to be "discovered" in 1855 by the Scottish explorer, David Livingstone (though thousands of Zimbabwean natives would have already been aware of the falls' existence, I'm sure). Livingstone named the falls in honor of Queen Victoria. The falls relish in the fact that they are twice the height of Niagara Falls. Because of it's wide sheer drop (and the crashing sounds that erupt from it) the falls' indigenous name translates to the "cloud that thunders." It erupts from the peaceful river and spews a cloud of water into the air at such fervor that as it returns to the Earth it has created a mini-rainforest ecosystem.

While enjoying a peaceful walk through the national park, we participated in our own mini safari with baboons, birds, and some sort of Springbok-type animals. After viewing the falls from every vantage point, we decided to walk to the Lookout Cafe to enjoy a drink while looking out at the gorge and weaving waterways that carry the now peaceful water away from the falls. Grubbing on nuts and colorful cocktails (virgin for the wee ones), we reminisced about the experience we had and watched some adventurers wing, fly, and bungee across the gorge. It was then that Rob, our expert in frugality, surprised us with his most shocking idea yet, "Let's book a helicopter ride over the falls and see them from above." And so we did.

After lunch, we got picked up and whisked away to The Flight of Angels where we were videotaped listening to security briefings, being weighed-in, and bubbling with excitement before we enjoyed the fly over.

Once the helicopter landed, we were just like the characters in the movies--all bent down, blocking our heads from the powerful blades above. We loaded up on the helicopter and enjoyed the most unbelievably euphoric 8-minutes of our life. The helicopter lead us in a figure-8 pattern so each person could view the falls without obstruction. It was an awe-inspiring excursion.

After the ride, everything seemed a bit of a downer. The afternoon spent in the pool was only made more pleasurable by chats about the amazing birds-eye view we had just enjoyed.

At night, we walked through downtown Victoria Falls City on a quest for items that would suffice for a casual in-room dinner. We ended up at a local supermarket as the only Mzungus (white people) inside. People stopped to stare at us as we gawked at the prices and quality of the food. When we paid for a few sodas and crackers with our unbelievably overused US dollars, we were given the third degree about our time and experience in Zimbabwe. We walked out of the store reflecting on how lovely the Zimbabweans were--so reminiscent of our time in Kenya.

This is not a trip soon forgotten.

One Direction

...by Anouk

I got to celebrate my birthday early this year. My dad worked hard to get tickets to the 1D concert here in Johannesburg. He got four tickets. Since he and Xavier didn't want to go, I got to pick 2 friends to go with me and celebrate my birthday.

It was an outstanding concert!!

We started out by getting on the "party" bus and playing "Heads Up" on my mom's phone. We were SUPER goofy because we were so excited about our first concert. Though we had seen a video about 1D and how girls cry at the concert, I didn't think girls would already be doing it. But they were! On the bus. There were women crying before we even got to the stadium.

Once there, my vegetarian friends and I had no trouble dashing past the braai (South African word for BBQ) and hamburgers. The line to get inside was very, very, very long, but it felt quick because Cliana, Chloe, and I danced, sang, and goofed off 'til we got to security. 

The first person who sang was named Johnny Apple (He won "South Africa's Got Talent" in 2013). He was pretty good. But when he was over all we wanted was One Direction. 

But they were late. So the crowd sang and danced to "The Macarena," did "the wave," and clapped in unison hoping they would come on stage. When they did--it was worth it! We danced and sang and screamed until our voices wore out. The people on the ground threw hats, posters, teddy bears, and even a bra on stage! Harry Styles threw water at the audience and I think the girls probably fainted. (Just in case you don't know their names, they are Liam, Niall, Harry, and Louis. If you know the band well enough, you'd notice I missed one. That's because Zayn left the band.

I'm SO excited that excited my dad got tickets. Me and my buddies where giggling for hours. It was  a very fun night and the firework display was really good, like a 3 D movie! My first concert was worth tiredness on sundae.  

Here are the photos of her adventure!

My Learning Safari

this post was written on 10.27.14 and never published... darn technology!


It’s been over a month since I returned from the Learning2 Africa conference. I have started writing this reflection a dozen or so times, but every time I begin, the pull of my “to-do” list calls me and I end up DOING something instead of writing about what I want to do. But with deadlines looming, I am pushing the to-do list to the back, getting my act together, and sharing (or writing, rather) my thoughts on one of the most motivational professional experiences I’ve ever been part of.

My coffee addiction

Learning 2Africa. Being married to someone whom I consider, a tech visionary means that words and names like “Learning2,” “Kim Cofino,” “PLNs,” “Jeff Utecht,” “COETAIL,” and “Genius Hours” have been part of my dialogue. While braving traffic, through grocery shopping trips, or in moments stolen while watching the kids flop around the in pool, my husband and I often “talk shop.” From unit plans to integration—we push one another to try something new. But, as an elementary classroom teacher who has been working in schools with pre-determined goals that rarely include technology integration and learning “outside the box”, I’ve spent my professional development time (and money) on work that aligned more directly to my job. So attending Learning2Africa was a way for me to put my learning focus first!

Overload. For three days my head was swimming (and not just in amazing Ethiopian coffee thanks to my dear near friend Bezuayehu and the traditional coffee ceremony). I was learning inspired at every turn. The stimulating conversatations shared with like-minded educators from around the globe revitalized my enthusiasm for a profession that I have, in recent years, become rather discontented by. From the TED-type Learning2 Talks to my extended session with Kim Cofino (Developing a Connected Learning Community) and Alex Lancia (Electronic Portfolios), I could feel gurgles of enthusiasm bubbling inside of me as questions were asked and ideas were fleshed out. Touring around the word with Marcello Mongardi by using Google Tour Builder helped me brainstorm some fascinating ways to use the program across curriculum areas in my own classroom. Workshopping with Jeff Fessler was both motivational and moving. Jeff walked me through the journey he and his students went on as they used Comic Life software produce a dual-language graphic novel during a service learning project for Malaria awareness in Bamako.

Conferring. Unconferencing. Reconferencing. Poster Sessions. And any other way in which people could be paired up to discuss and learn-- at every corner I was being inundated with ideas and discussions to challenge my own learning safari. Regularly regrouping with my cohort group helped me reconnect with my Elementary people. During these sessions, we brainstormed strategies to help one another tackle tough agendas with our administrators or dialogued about how we could share authentic learning with parents.

Planning. My plane ride home to South Africa resulted in a 6-page to-do list with next-steps, people to contact, plans, outlines, and scenarios—the contacts from my cohort group and Twitter leads all tripled my PLN within hours. The top three items on my list—convince my Principal and TIC to allow my students and I to create an online portfolio for (at least) one unit of study, build a Facebook presence for my elementary class; and set up voice-activated Google on our classroom desktops.

Final Thoughts. To say that the top three items on my list are all in place and working beautifully would be a massive overstatement.  I’m a teacher—life gets in the way. There are always planning meetings, parent emails, bulletin boards, assemblies, and every day student issues that get in the way of one’s good intentions. But I’m on my way. My 6-page to-do list has now grown to 13 or so pages with registering for and working towards my COETAIL in capital letters across the top. But teaching is not a race. It’s a journey. A safari, rather. One that includes exploration, innovation, and connection.