"It's raining, it's pouring"/South Africa National Holidays

It is Wednesday morning here in South Africa and I am experiencing my first morning rain. We are currently at the end of our rainy season. Since I have been here, it seems to always rain in the afternoons, so a morning rain is quite nice. December-March is their rainy season. From April-November, it is dry and does not rain at all. When it does rain, it comes with lots of thunder and lightning. I was told by our relocation advisor, that the Gauteng province (where we live) has the most lightning strikes then anywhere in the world. This was not a comforting piece of information, although it is good to know, so that precautions can be taken when lightning occurs....

Yesterday, I ventured out for the 2nd time alone driving. All went well except for hitting a curb quite hard on my left hand side. No damage done, except for my ego :) :) I did take the highway for the first time on my own, which was a little scary, since I was going at a more faster pace , driving on the other side of the road. I seem to pray a lot more when I drive. I drove to BSF on my own and then to meet Stan for lunch near his work.

The girls both did a fun run at school for St. Patricks Day, yesterday. They all wore different colored "animal" T-shirts and competed against each other. Christina ran 3 miles and beat all of the 5th grade girls and some of the boys. I think all that ice skating has paid off and increased the strength in her legs. I am sure that her long legs also helped. Each child rec'd a nice metal on a red ribbon.

This Friday , March 20th the kids have off from school for "Human Rights Day weekend". For those that are interested in the South African holidays, see South African National Holidays below: You will notice that the dates are written differently here in South Africa, and in many other parts of the world. The month is always in the middle, the day on the left and the year on the right. Today's date would be written: 18 March 2009.

South African National Holidays

When Apartheid ended and the African National Congress under Nelson Mandela came into power in South Africa in 1994, the national holidays were changed to days that would be meaningful to all South Africans.

21 March: Human Rights Day On this day in 1960 the police killed 69 people at Sharpeville who were participating in a protest against the pass laws. Many were shot in the back. The carnage made world headlines. Four days later the government banned black political organizations, many leaders were arrested or went into exile. During the Apartheid era there were human rights abuses by all sides; Human Rights Day is but one step to ensure that the people of South Africa are aware of their human rights and to ensure that such abuses never again occur.
27 April: Freedom Day This was the day in 1994 when the first democratic election was held in South Africa, i.e. an election when all adults could vote irrespective of their race, and the day in 1997 when the new constitution took effect.

1 May: Worker's Day Many countries around the world commemorate the contribution made by workers to society on May Day (America doesn't celebrate this holiday because of its communist origins). It has traditionally been a day to protest for better wages and working conditions. Given the role that trade unions played in the fight for freedom, it is unsurprising that South Africa commemorates this day.

16 June: Youth Day On June 1976 students in Soweto rioted in protest against the introduction of Afrikaans as the language of instruction of half their school curriculum, sparking eight months of violent uprisings across the country. Youth Day is a national holiday in honour of all the young people who lost their lives in the struggle against Apartheid and Bantu Education.

9 August: National Women's Day On this day in 1956 some 20,000 women marched to the Union [government] Buildings in Pretoria to protest against a law requiring black women to carry passes. This day is celebrated as a reminder of the contribution made by women to society, the achievements that have been made for women's rights, and to acknowledge the difficulties and prejudices many women still face.

24 September: Heritage Day Nelson Mandela coined the phrase "rainbow nation" to describe South Africa's diverse cultures, customs, traditions, histories, and languages. This day is a celebration of that diversity.

16 December: Day of Reconciliation Afrikaners traditionally celebrated 16 December as the Day of the Vow, remembering the day in 1838 when a group of Voortrekkers defeated a Zulu army at the Battle of Blood River, while ANC activists commemorated it as the day in 1961 when the ANC started to arm its soldiers to overthrow Apartheid. In the new South Africa's it's a day of reconciliation, a day to focus on overcoming the conflicts of the past and building a new nation.

Last weekend I signed up for a quilting class at the Bernina sewing store. I am making a Colorwash, queen size "Trip around the World" quilt. A perfect pattern name, since I made a trip "almost" around the world to get here :) I have not made a quilt in 11 years since Christina was born. I used to be an intermediate quilter, and I am amazed at how much I remember. I will take a picture of it when I finish the quilt and include it on this blog.