When my plane landed in Cape Town, all I could think to myself was “Wow, my dream of coming to Africa is finally here.” Ever since I was 10 years old, all I wanted to ... read more
"Alive. That is the word that comes to mind when thinking on my experience as a VAC intern in Cape Town South Africa. Every day was one of adventure, learning and life changing experiences. The ... read more
Bundled up at home in the Oregon rain, it's hard to imagine that only a week ago I was basking in the sun in the front yard of the Milton house. Cape Town is an ... read more
"I had an amzing time during my stay in South Africa. I interned at the Athone School for the blind in Bellville and was able to work with the skills department. I was able to ... read more
"From the day I landed in South Africa, until the time I reluctantly got on my return flight home, my world changed. The amount of amazing opportunities and experiences I had while I was living ... read more
"During my time in South Africa I had many wonderful experience. I did my internship at a school in Bellville. I met some wonderful people at the school. They helped me to learn and grow ... read more
"Pursuing a marketing internship at Gary’s Surf School in Cape Town, South Africa was just as cool as it sounds. When signing up, I envisioned working at the beach in summer time, surfing some waves ... read more
Isabelle Dinkela
Genre of Internship: Refugees
Dates of Participation:
December 2012 - February 2013
"Before I arrived in Cape Town, I had no idea about the city or the people but VAC gave me a warm welcome here and made sure that I had all the help I needed. ... read more
Markus Hierzberger
Genre of Internship: Education
Dates of Participation:
December 2012 - March 2013
"I came to South Africa with the main goal to improve my English, but also to meet a completely different culture and a lifestyle which isn't similar as back in Austria. To reach my first ... read more
"Upon reflection of my time in Cape Town, I realize there is so much I want to share yet so much I cannot put into words. Do I write about my drive to work every ... read more
"Having left Cape Town over two weeks ago I’d say this testimonial can be deemed tardy at best. However, in defense of being called lazy, I find the timing fitting for what I want to ... read more
Anna Klebine
Genre of Internship: Human Rights
Dates of Participation:
November 2012 - February 2013
"My time in Cape Town, although way too short at 6 weeks, was incredible. I'm at home in the cold in Chicago, still processing everything that I experienced over that month and a half, and ... read more
Precious Acker
Genre of Internship: Human Rights
Dates of Participation:
November 2012 - February 2013
"My experience in Cape Town exceeded my expectations, South Africa has truly become my second home. The spirit in Cape Town makes you feel welcomed and and the diverse group of people you meet through ... read more
Abby Ferguson
Genre of Internship: Child Welfare
Dates of Participation:
October 2012 - December 2012
"Coming to Cape Town I had no idea what to expect. I knew nothing about Cape Town, or Africa for that matter, when I left. I chose to go there more for my internship than ... read more
Will Stevens
Genre of Internship: Criminal Justice
Dates of Participation:
October 2012 - January 2013
"I came to South Africa under the misapprehension that I would leave the country with more answers about myself than questions. What instead happened was a complete reshuffling of how I see myself in the ... read more
Stephanie Marz
Dates of Participation: Between May 2010 & July 2010
"I had never been to Africa, only Europe, so I wanted something totally new, and that was part of my drive for searching here. VACorps was the first thing I noticed when I decided I wanted to go to South Africa during summer 2010. Working in Cape Town through VACorps was the most amazing experience of my life. From the very beginning, VACorps was very quick to respond to e-mails and extremely helpful. They always answered any questions I had. The staff is amazing!
I was in for such a pleasant surprise when I got to Cape Town. I flew in on a beautiful day in May, and the whole ride to my new Milton home from the airport, I am pretty sure my jaw was on the floor with amazement of how beautiful all of the mountains were…I had no idea! Even after being there for 2.5 months, I still felt like Table Mountain looked fake and painted when I would get off at the minibus station. The view of the 12 Apostles from Camp’s Bay or Lion’s Head, the view from Boomslang Caves, and the views from the top of Table Mountain were just unreal. I would sit at the top of Devil’s Peak or Lion’s Head, relaxing, talking, and looking at the view with interns, only to look down at my watch and realize way over an hour had gone by. There’s always something to do in Cape Town and there’s an amazing view from anywhere. Hiking the mountains, Old Biscuit Mill on Saturday mornings, Camp’s Bay, Cape of Good Hope, Simon’s Town, going to a few World Cup games, braais at Andrew and Ivy’s in Nyanga, Garden Route, all of the amazing food everywhere, and hanging out with my Milton crew in the bright orange house were just a few of my favorite things. The whole list is too long!
I worked with a registered dietitian that works for Philani and Etafeni in the townships of Nyanga and Khayelitsha. Philani and Etafeni are organizations with different segments to them. Both have a creshe (day care center), clinic, and then have an area that teaches HIV positive mothers how to because self-sufficient by teaching them skills such as weaving or making jewelry. Part of the week I would sit in with the dietitian and doctor at the clinic. Many of these kids are malnourished, sometimes because of lack of food and other times because they have diseases like TB and HIV that wear down on the body. I would sit in and observe and listen to her recommendations to these township women for feeding their children. They are provided lots of supplements by the government so I was able to learn a lot about the government as well as the medical/nutritional purposes of these supplements. I learned a lot about HIV/AIDS and nutritional effects on the body that I wouldn’t have easily been able to do in the US. The other part of my job was to help out in the creshe kitchen to help prepare food for the children and observing and taking note of the portion sizes. I would then report back to the dietitian I was working under. Part of this was to also make sure that too much wasn’t being prepared, then thrown out, because these organizations are under very tight budgets and need as little waste as possible. The other part was to see if the kids were getting too much or too little of certain foods and what the different servings of each were.
I would recommend VACorps and the city of Cape Town to anyone, and I would gladly talk to anyone about it. My fellow interns were great, and I have made many great friendships that I know will last. It was absolutely the most amazing experience and I hope to make it back to Cape Town one day!"
-Stephanie Marz, pictured second from left, participated in a nutrition internship with VACorps from May-July of 2010.
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