Update on Jim's Studies

It is high time that I provided an update on my studies here at the University of Cape Town. For those who need a reminder, I am enrolled in the Master’s of Philosophy in Education (with a concentration in Higher Education) which is comprised of four courses and a thesis. I took two courses last semester and am finishing up the other two courses during this semester: Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, and Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education. My professors are once again fabulous, and I am enjoying getting to know my South African classmates.

A mid-class break for tea and biscuits is a must in South Africa! Tea-time has been religiously observed in every one of my classes (I have no problem joining the locals in this ritual!). There is always a tray of goodies waiting for us, with all the fixings: real tea cups and tea spoons, a carafe of hot water, instant coffee, tea - both regular black tea and rooibos tea (or ‘red bush’ tea; South Africa is the only place where this type of tea is grown), milk and sugar, and of course biscuits.

‘Biscuits’ in South Africa are what we Americans might place in the ‘cookie’ category. Many of South Africa’s biscuits are great for dipping, while most American cookies are not conducive to such action. Some similar cookies in the States might be animal crackers, graham crackers, Nilla Wafers, and those butter ring cookies made by Salerno that we all put on our fingers when we were young.

Upon completion of these courses I plan to turn to the thesis full-throttle. I have already begun to do some thinking/writing on what I’d like to pursue…but from my current vantage point, it is a rather daunting task! Nevertheless, I am very excited to get into it more fully when the time comes.


This is the entrance to the building where my classes meet each week.

My sister is engaged!

Welcome to the family, Craig!!

Loads of fruit and veg!

One of our friends from church has begun to buy fruits and vegetables from a wholesale market here in Cape Town (the same place where many grocery stores get theirs, too). Because she has to buy in large quantities, she pulled together four friends to make it work, including us. Our most recent box of fruit and veg (South Africans commonly shorten ‘vegetable’ to ‘veg’… Americans say 'veggies' - why?) consisted of the following:

19 onions
5 avo-s
14 peaches
28 bananas
14 pears
3 ½ pounds of carrots
3 ¼ pounds of grapes

Any tips on how to use it all up?!

(The cost was 70 Rand, or about $9. That's a very good deal, even by South African standards!)

Visit to Knysna and "The Heads"

Knysna is a neat village a few hours east of Cape Town, known mainly for its beautiful forests and oysters. Although we didn’t partake of the seafood, we did enjoy a few hikes in the area as well as the local beaches. (Some of the hikes have been posted below.)

The town of Knysna is situated on a lagoon which is connected to the Indian Ocean by a narrow water passage between two hulking cliffs, known as The Heads. Some years ago the British Navy considered this the most dangerous port in the world…but once safely past these rocky sentinels, the lagoon certainly offered ships a safe and secure harbour.

This boat is sailing between The Heads into the Knysna lagoon

The Heads viewed from across the Knysna lagoon; through the gap you see the Indian Ocean

Hike along Jubilee Creek (in search of gold)

This hike, near to Knysna (see previous post), followed Jubilee Creek to several gold mines that were excavated during a brief gold rush in the 1880’s. Although the gold lasted for less than a decade, we hoped that we’d find the world’s largest nugget in the creek somewhere along our walk. That didn’t happen. But the walk was nice!

Jim is standing in front of a tree fern. And oh wait, what's that gold nugget next to your foot?!