FIRST BLOG FROM OUR SAQ 2013 TEAM

Saturday 26th January  - Highlights of our first week!

We arrived safely and grateful that no luggage missing and there were no delays.

We are staying with David and Jean Padbury's family. They have a beautiful home, in  'A Place of a 1000 Hills' near Hillcrest which is about half an hour from Durban. Tim is sleeping in a caravan, the girls are in the house and Jim and Jan in guest cottage next to the pool! 

Sunday:  We went to David and Jean's Church in Waterfall.  We will be taking part in services next Sunday and also leading the Sunday School. In the afternoon we spent time getting to know the Padbury family, sharing stories and playing games.

Monday:  We visited Phezulu, where we learnt about Zulu culture, watched Zulu dancers and visited traditional Zulu homes.  This also included a Croc and Snake experience, where we found out a lot about crocodiles and snakes and had the opportunity to hold a large Burmese Python and a Brown House snake - all part of our introduction to Africa!

Tuesday: We went to Durban beach (sounds like a hard life we are having!) however it was learning how to lead the activities we will be running with young people over the next few weeks. We were pushed hard, learning the activities such as Jockey's in the surf, how to fill a container (which had lots of holes) with water, constructing a chariot from parts provided - all part of team building exercises.

Wednesday: We spent most of the day preparing for a school camp with Waterfall College and recovering from the sunburn on the beach! Bruce (David's son) took us Rock climbing and abseiling.  This was great fun but also an opportunity to develop our skills by literally stepping out and overcoming  our fears.

Thursday and Friday: Waterfall College Camp at Annerley with 20 students from year 8 and 12. The camp was an opportunity for the year 12 prefects to learn leadership skills and for the year 8's  to get to know the prefects and help them overcome fears as they have just moved up to the school. Tim, Jo and Natalie led 3 activities. One of the  favourites was throwing cheese puffs at the prefect's faces covered with shaving foam! A great time was had on the camp grounds and beach. Everyone LOVED Jean's cooking, particularly  'Sloppy Joe's'. Not much sleep was had by us, mainly because the prefects decided they would wake up all the grade 8's at 5am for a gruelling workout on the beach and someone needed to supervise them (Tim drew the short straw!)

We arrived home in the afternoon exhausted, but had to plan the Sunday School. Tim, Jo and Natalie were invited to the first 20 something's fellowship group at the Christ Church Waterfall. We did our first bible study led by Pastor Dorian and his wife Yvonne. The team then celebrated surviving their first week with a ridiculously cheap meal at Nando's.

Saturday: We had a lay in which we all appreciated! Then it was off to the range to do some Clay Pigeon Shooting. Jim was the dark horse with a shotgun! Then in the evening it was off to our first Braai (SA BBQ) experience and a great time for fellowship.