Hello from the first week!

Dear parents and friends,

I'm writing to send a quick note as your daughters are spending the afternoon in class. This morning they went rock climbing, mountain biking, or did a team-building activity involving a large cabbage and a kayak. They are sweaty, dirty and enjoying life! It is HOT here!

We've enjoyed this first week as a wonderful, busy and exciting time to get to know each other and start building our community. The girls have been rock climbing several times - and every single one of them has made it to the top of at least one climb (yes, YOUR daughter has been climbing hard!). They went backpacking this weekend for 9 dusty miles through a stunning river gorge and spent the night either under the stars or inside a tent. We cooked over an open fire and hiked back the next morning.

Tomorrow we go to a township high school and the girls are busy preparing songs and dance routines to perform before the school. They'll be teaching classes about how they stay postive in their worlds and they'll try to form connections between some very different cultures. Afterwards, we'll enjoy a lunch of spicy peri-peri chicken before rappeling next to a 150 foot waterfall - a great last day in Boven!

The safari truck arrives tomorrow night and we'll all head to Kruger Park Friday morning to see elephant, giraffes and zebras for the weekend. We're going to stargaze with a prominant astronomer and we'll do an evening game drive. At the beginning of next week, I'll fly home and the girls will continue south - I'll bring back photos, videos and all sorts of fun!

Expect to get a phone call from your daughter this weekend - and from this point forward! She has lots of things she'll want to share!

And if you are sending a package to Cape Town - please rememeber to put the city - Cape Town - in the address!

Thanks for all of your support and we'll be in touch soon!

All the best,

Gennifre