Friday, July 16, 2010

Masphumelele

We started this morning the same way we left off yesterday, in the township of Masphumelele. The globetrotters loved the kids they saw and Shane has told me that he could arrange to have a band who lived in the township play for us so I had him set it up.
Masphumelele is a community like any other with barber shops, grocery stores, pharmacies, etc. It is just a very very poor community. It was fascinating to see how they could set up a grocery store in what was just the backend of a trailer, or a funeral home in a broken down shack.
It was a really unique morning as the band set up in the middle of the street with their xylophones, African drum and Kudu horn. The band is called Buyambo and they have a very unique sound. As they played people came out in the streets and our kids started doing the Electric Slide to the African beat. Wow! It was amazing to watch as a group of American kids danced to the music in the middle of a township in South Africa early on a Thursday morning. What a sight!
The kids stick out in your mind as the victims of poverty but the amazing thing is how everyone still seemed so happy. It is amazing to see how money is not the root of happiness in many African communities. I guess when you think about it, money is never the root of happiness for anyone anywhere.
























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