Volunteering at the CWBR in South Africa – an experience for a lifetime
In October/November 2019 I went on my biggest adventure so far – six weeks volunteering at the Cape Winelands Biosphere Reserve in South Africa. After I finished school in Germany I wanted to see something completely different and get out of my comfort zone – preferably while helping in a social or ecological project. Luckily I found the CWBR, because it combined all of my wishes and made my experience even better than I could imagine.
During my stay I mainly worked in two projects, both at the farm in Franschhoek. The first one was the creation of a huge vegetable garden that we built to supply the school for children from the township with fresh vegetables. I was allowed to design the garden by myself and be creative, which I loved. I also learned a lot about permaculture and plants, because I planted most of the seeds by myself and had to think about how to put the vegetables together so everything grows. My second project was to design a new sign for the farm, which was printed at the end of my stay. I loved this project too, because I love being creative and seeing the big sign with my design on it in the end was amazing! In both projects I learned to work independently and had lots of freedom regarding the organisation of my work-time, which I loved. Whenever I had a question Mark and the others helped me out and taught me lots of things, not only about permaculture, but also about the country and the life down there. I really got to experience the culture and thanks to the CWBR and especially Mark, the CEO, I was able to experience things, that you normally wouldn’t be able to do, for example meetings of the organisation and outings with a school class from the township or visiting a nature reserve. Not to mention the incredible road trip we went on for one week all together with a few other volunteers, where we got to see many different parts of the Western Cape and made memories that will last forever. But also during the daily life at the farm there was always enough free-time for short trips, for example to Cape Town, Stellenbosch or Somerset West. Even the days at the farm felt like vacation, because the Franschhoek Valley surrounded by the mountains is so beautiful. The village itself is also very cute and I loved strolling through the streets and visiting the market on Sundays.
I can‘t tell you the one big highlight of my time in South Africa, because there are so many ones and thinking about my stay makes me smile and feel incredibly grateful. I‘m going to try to name the Big Five of all my experiences – to pick up the African expressions here ;-)
These are excluding the work at the farm and the daily life in Franschhoek, because that would be way too much. Ziplining in the mountains and paragliding at the coast of the Garden Route are definitely two of my Big Five, because both were absolutely breathtaking experiences. I left my comfort zone completely and it was absolutely worth it! Then seeing all the animals living free in nature is also one of my Big Five experiences. Being so close to giraffes, elephants, zebras, lions, monkeys and seeing them live their best life in nature was amazing. The Road trip itself also belongs to my Big Five. Driving miles and miles through breathtaking landscape and camping in nature was incredible. Then one place in my Big Five goes to the trip to the De Hoop Nature Reserve. It was another wonderful experience with lots of animals and camping involved – and a flat tyre in the middle of nowhere that makes it even more special ;-) The last one of my Big Five is Cape Town, where I‘ve been several times during my stay. This city is just so beautiful and diverse, it definitely has a place in my heart. Being on top of the Table Mountain and visiting different districts was amazing.
These are just a few of my experiences, naming all would be way too much to mention here.
But I want to point out a few of my lessons about South Africa and its culture, because for me getting to know new cultures is one of the best things while traveling. The first thing I noticed is that everything is way more relaxed and time doesn‘t matter as much as in Germany for example, where people are always in a hurry. Life in general is more spontaneous. At the beginning that was strange for me, but I really enjoyed not always having a plan and just taking it as it comes, because I always had an exact plan until I finished school. This trip to South Africa was completely out of my comfort zone and that was exactly what I needed after so many years of school without any big changes. I feel like I have grown as a person and become a bit more of an adult during this adventure, because it was my first ever big solo trip and the most far away from home I have ever been. This sounds a bit scary and it was at the beginning, but I can say that South Africa felt like home really fast and has a special place in my heart now. The people are so kind and open-minded. I had my first nice conversation at the airport after I just landed and no matter where I went the following weeks, everyone was super friendly and always up for a talk. Talking about the people I have to mention the CWBR family of course, especially Mark, Celine, Bevan and the other volunteers, who made me feel welcome from the first day on.
Another thing I have learned about South Africa is that it is a very diverse country regarding many aspects. The landscape is extremely diverse from desert over forest to mountains and the coast – South Africa has it all. It‘s the same with the people who live there, they come from all countries, ethnic groups and skin colors, it feels very multicultural. Due to its history you can still feel the difference between black and white sometimes and there‘s still a big gap between rich and poor, but that‘s changing more and more. You can feel that the South African society is very passionate about solving these problems and growing together, which creates a very special spirit. Seeing the really poor people in the townships also made me appreciate what I have even more. I also learned that most of the stereotypes you always hear as a European about South Africa are not true. It‘s not dangerous at all, when you avoid certain areas, like you do in Europe, too. You can also drink the water nearly everywhere and eat the food without getting health issues. In general I didn’t have any of the problems I was worried about a bit before. People in Europe are way to scared of Africa, also thanks to media. But I know now that it‘s absolutely no problem to travel to South Africa and I will definitely come back one day.
This country and especially the CWBR family have a special place in my heart now. They made me grow as a person and become more brave and confident. Every time I‘m in a tricky situation now I think „Come on! You traveled to South Africa all by yourself, now you can do this, too!“
So to sum it up:
Was I a bit scared traveling alone to South Africa? Yes of course, I didn’t know what to expect and didn’t have any experience traveling alone
But would I recommend going to South Africa as a volunteer at CWBR? Yes, definitely! It was the most amazing experience in my life so far and sometimes I still can‘t believe that I really experienced all this. I‘m forever grateful that the CWBR family made my trip to South Africa become an experience that I will never forget.
