From Alexandra Township. Called Alex, for short, by the locals

Today, we were joined by members of the Alexandra Development Forum (ADF), a community service organization that works to help residents develop skills and find employment. We were also joined by Will and Galit. Will is an American working with students in Johannesburg and Galit is an Isreali woman working with AIDS and poverty initiatives. Thanks to the kind welcome from our new friends as the ADF, we all started the day with a strong sense of community

As an outsider, visiting a township can be pretty difficult to face because of the living conditions that a majority of the residents must endure. Many people in Alex are living in little more than one small room, or shack, with no plumbing. Some have more than 5 family members living in just this one room. Though I had been preparing myself to witness such a level of poverty, what I didn't expect was the overwhelmingly kind spirit of the residents we met. Everyone greeted us with a smile.

We learned the local handshake that all of the young people in the township share. Better yet, all of the kids helped us practice so that by day's end we would have a bit of the local practice down perfect.

As we walked around Alex with our guides we learned about Ubuntu, a South African concept that is difficult to explain, but very simplistically means that ‘all humanity is connected by a universal bond.’

I was surprised by how many people wanted to have their picture taken. I had thought the locals would be a bit stand-offish and wary of a small pack of visitors coming into their neighborhood, but I couldn't have been more mistaken. The love we were greeted with was palpable and, as we toured the winding path between shacks, I felt surprisingly comfortable and incredibly welcome.

NEXT: Go to Soweto!

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