Greetings :)

Just to update, Johannesburg is great. Unfortunately, because of work I don't have a lot of time to fully enjoy what the city/country has to offer. Forget doing anything on the weekdays, I come home at 6 and have no energy whatsoever. On the odd night I might go for dinner with friends but those times are few and far between. On the weekends though I've been trying to go out and explore as much as possible...I've been to several important landmarks but not as much as I would've liked to by now.

I live in a flat in the Westdene/Melville area. The neighbourhood is very pretty, very lush and green. It took a while to get used to the giant gates, barbed wire and electric fences though. Unfortunately security is a big issue here. I don't know yet if it's warranted or if it's just paranoia but hopefully I don't find out. I actually have to open and lock three doors every time I leave/enter the house which is a huge deal in itself because I didn't even close our doors in Scarborough, let alone lock them.

Moving on...the weather's great! Just my kind of weather, cold, grey and raining! I really enjoy this type of weather. Everyone around here is moaning and groaning about the lack of sunlight but I love every minute of it :)

The internship is amazing, I'm learning so much. For now, I'm mainly working on IT related projects like web-development and computer training but I think I'll try to branch out a little to try and get the most out of my time here. The organization is called the Human Rights Institute of South Africa. It's a very small NGO but they do great work in human rights training.

Anyway, that's all for now, hopefully I'll have the chance to update this thing more often!

Cuba was awesome, I almost killed Natasha and myself on the jet ski but aside from that, a good time was had by both of us. I loved canoeing and biking/walking through town. Strangely though I didn't enjoy the beach that much - too much bare skin for my liking! and the damn sand was just all over me 24/7.

oh and who knew that I (as a 'black' person) could get a sunburn? before we left my face was a little sensitive and the night after coming home my skin started peeling : first time for everything I guess.

hope I get the chance to come back to Cuba! Now on to packing for South Africa, I'm so excited (an a wee bit nervous) but hopefully everything will work out for the best!