FINALLY able to post about my life in South Africa!

Okay, so I finally have more than 5 minutes at a computer... so here is a day-to-day update of everything I have done since my arrival.
Just a few things in case you you are unaware of the people I am with...
There are 23 students on this trip, 21 girls and 2 guys. We have two group leaders, Corvell, who is a resident of Cape Town, and also Lansing, and Cheryl who is also from MSU. We have two drivers, Dayle, who is Corvell's son and Johnny a friend of Corvell.

6/30
We arrived at Cape Town right on time. We all got through customs without problems.. I actually think one of the girls got a marriage proposal.
Corvell greeted us at the airport and then drove us to the U.S. embassy aka. McDonalds, to get something to eat. Yes, our first South African meal was from McDonalds haha. We drove through a town called Bellville and are currently staying in a twon called Durbanville, very close to Cape Town. Half of our group is staying at a guest house called Deo Gratia and the other half (including me) is staying at a placed called The Lapa. We had already been assigned beds, we figured this out when we walked in our rooms and had gifts waiting for us :) They had made us soccer jerseys (similar to the South African jerseys) with MSU Study Abroad Cape Town 2010 on the front and our names on the back. They also gave us a bracelet that said South Africa on it and a post card welcoming us. It was very nice to be greeted this way.

7/1
They warned us how cold the nights were going to be. Of course I wasn't listening and learned the hard way haha. So yes, I will be wearing socks to bed from now on. I had a hard time sleeping last night because roosters were crowing all night so I kept waking up.
So we had breakfast at Deo Gratia as a whole group then set out to a mall called Tyger Valley. This mall was huge and really nice. It had a movie theater and a bowling alley. We exchanged money here... it was about 7.5 Rand to 1 U.S. Dollar. We then had lunch at a place called Dros.
After eating, two friends and I walked over to some street vendors and had our 1st bargaining experience. It was really fun!
We went to a place called Spier that had a Cheetah Outreach thing. Some people could pay 100 Rand to pet a Cheetah, I didn't do it this time because it was taking forever and we are going to do it again later with baby cheetahs :) So I went to a close restaurant with some people and had some yummy South African wine. The restaurant was pretty cool, it had a gravel floor (it was outdoor) which for some reason reminded me of Jen.
One of the coolest thing about being here so far is driving around. First of all the view is breathtaking and absolutely stunning. Also you drive on the other side of the street! It was scary the first time being in the car, everything is backwards.

7/2
After breakfast we drove into Cape Town. I still cannot get over this view! We drove down to the Waterfront, which is kind of like a downtown area. We took a ferry over to Robben Island. Robben Island is a very interesting and emotional place with such a unique and deep history. I don't exactly feel like typing everything I learned there right now, so ask me and I will tell you later. Something that most people know about Robben Island is that it was home to a prison where political leaders were imprisioned, this includes Nelson Mandela, the first president when South Africa became a democracy. Our tour guide of the prison was a man named Sparks. He is an ex-political prisoner who was actually held on Robben Island. He took us around the prison and showed us Nelson Mandela's cell. He also showed us his cell where he was held. It was a very emotional place and I just felt numb as I listened to his story. After his tour we took a bus tour of the rest of the island. It was very interesting and I learned a ton.
After Robben Island we went back to the Waterfront to watch the World Cup games and it was jammin! I was very surprised of the shift of mood from just a few hours. It was amazing the vibe out there. So at the Water front they had a big screen set up to watch the game.. it was pretty cool. We had gotten there an hour before the game started and the place was already nuts. Two girls and I were stopped by a news crew. They asked us things like where we were from and who we were cheering for today. At the end they had us say something in a different language and blow a kiss. I have no idea what country this was for but the name of the station was MBC.
This view at the water front was amazing, just like it is everywhere. You could watch the game on the big screen with the mountains in the background and the harbor area right next to you. It was awesome. Dayle took some of us to a bar across the street because it was hard to see, it was a lot of fun. The drinking age is 18 here and it was very strange not getting carded, even though Corvell says they don't really card anyone anyway. We had dinner at a restaurant called Spur. We watched the Uraguay vs. Ghana game at the bar we were at before and then went home.
What a long and interesting day! I learned so much and experienced things that are once in a lifetime opportunities. I am still homesick but am very happy to be here. I am making many new friends and having an awesome time. Everything had just been incredible.

7/3
We went to a very cool Afrikaans Language Monument. South Africa has a very diverse and rich history in the language department and this monument was designed to honor that. I had a camera accident and was very upset but the lovely Erin (her blog is linked to mine) was able to fix it. :)
Next was wine farm time. Yes, wine farm. We stopped at one called Vrede en Lust. It was beautiful. I couldn't believe it. We got to have a free wine tasting at the most beautiful wine farm I had ever seen at the foot of a mountain.. no big deal. We also got to try the #1 wine in the country right now. It has won a lot of awards in SA and even in the US.
After the wine tasting, it was back to the waterfront to watch the Germany vs. Argentina game. We got to go to street vendors beforehand. It was so much fun bargaining! I bought a couple of South Africa scarves and 3 vuvuzelas- which are awesome by the way, I'm obsessed. After some shopping it was time for the fan walk. I have no idea what to compare this too, I have nothing. It was awesome. There was so many people there just celebrating and having an awesome time.
I got a video of the crowds reaction when Germany won. It was so cool. I love the passion of everyone here.