A Few Things I've Noticed So Far...

So I've only been here about 3 to 4 full days now and have taken a lot in. The first, and most obvious, thing I have noticed is that they drive on the left side of the road and have the steering wheel on the right side of the car. I know this is similar to Europe, nonetheless, it's still always funny to get in the car and feel like I'm driving down the wrong side of the road. They also love their car horns. They honk for just about every reason in the book. They enjoy honking to say hi and also just because they can. You can here a beep beep at any time of the day.

Second, the currency here makes your wallet feel much fatter. One United States dollar amounts to 10.8 Rand and is going up! So, need less to say, my money goes a long way here. Makes me even more happy I picked South Africa as my study abroad destination. Yes, you're probably thinking that the price for a shirt is equally matched in rand to account for the exchange rate and you would be correct. It is a little cheaper but around the same for clothing. However, groceries is a different story. You can supply yourself with enough groceries for a week or two on about $20, r200 (200 rand). Of course, were not eating steaks and walleye every night but were also not starving ourselves. With rand being the currency here, it makes looking at prices for groceries and clothing funny and kind of scary considering I have the U.S. dollar in mind. For example, eggs may be r30 so I'll double take thinking its $30 but then smile realizing that it is actually less than $3. Finally, it also is nice on the liquor end of the spectrum. A 6 pack being around $4. 

Next, NMMU (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University) has a wildlife reserve on campus. They allow students to enter at their own risk to view the zebras and other animals. Obviously, I will be taking my chances and going over the fence (watch out for snakes, though)! The overall campus is very nice and has many tropical and jungle plants all around. 

Finally, the last thing I've noticed here is that time isn't really a huge deal to many. In America, we love to be early or rush things. Here, they are very relaxed and tend to start late. We refer to it as African time. Everything seems to be done at a slower, more relaxed pace. Of course, class won't be delayed 45 minutes but no one is in a rush to start either. Services like cabs and ordering food seem to take a little longer as well. I enjoy the relaxed pace but also find myself wanting to get on with my day. Must be the American in me. Lastly, the 8 hour difference in time compared to Minnesota is interesting. I'll be up starting the next day as my friends back home will be laying down and ending theirs.

A picture of Rand, the South African currency. So much cooler looking than American currency. Not a big surprise, though, they have lions on their's!