Our Overnight Experience

Our Overnight Experience

To gain insight into what the experience of a true volunteer would be the economy team stayed at the Indlovu Project overnight. The experience was quite different from what we expected and allowed us to make better suggestions for improving the living experience for volunteers.

Emily playing with kids in the crèche

Our work day at the Indlovu Project usually ends at 2pm, so it was a strange feeling when the rest of the WPI students left on the bus and we were the only students remaining at the settlement. We were a little puzzled about what we should do at first, but we worked quite a bit on our project since we had plenty of time. At that point of the project we were working on coming up with simple crafts that could be produced in the community, so we worked for a few hours on making a bowl out of recycled magazines. Around 5pm, Buyiswa came upstairs to help us lock the door; it was a strange sensation having to lock the door so early in the evening. We played cards until starting to cook dinner. Compared to cooking in a full-size kitchen, it was a little challenging moving around in the small kitchen, but we were able to find almost all the dishes, pans and utensils that we needed. After cleaning up from dinner we played more cards and then watched a movie before heading to bed. The night we stayed was unusually windy and it howled through the building seemingly all night, shaking the walls and whistling through the windows. It was an early night for the group since there were not the usual late-night outings that are common while staying in the city. We were awoken early by the singing of the children in the creche around 7am so we made a delicious breakfast, and it wasn’t long before everyone else arrived to start the day of work.

Buyiswa locking the door at the end of the day

Suggestions

After staying overnight, our team had quite a few suggestions for the living experience, many of which are outlined in the volunteer program suggestions. One suggestion was to provide complementary earplugs to guests and volunteers to help them fall asleep on the windy and loud nights. Having to stay inside all night was a change from our usual living arrangements so we suggest making this very clear in the volunteer handbooks that are provided. It is really important that volunteers have a very good understanding of what living in Monwabisi Park will be like, including the safety concerns, living and dining arrangements but also understanding the environment of Monwabisi Park. At least in this stage of the project, we also suggest providing transport into Cape Town on some evenings. Although it is unsafe to drive back to Monwabisi Park even just after dark, but most activities at the Indlovu Project end in the late afternoon so there is still a period of a few hours in which a trip could be made. Setting up other evening activities, perhaps visits from community members, even just to enjoy a cup of tea or play a game of cards could help provide more evening activities for the volunteers as well.

Personal Reactions

Kayla preparing dinner

“Staying overnight in the settlement was really eye-opening and quite different from just working at the project during the day. Monwabisi Park becomes different at nightfall, there seems to be more energy, but it’s a fearful type of energy, or maybe it’s just the wind, but it’s easy to see why we shouldn’t be walking around during the night. I think staying with a group of other volunteers would be fun, but I can also see how it would take awhile to get used to living inside in such a small area.” – Kayla

“If I were forced to choose one night in Cape Town to talk about, I would select my overnight stay in Monwabisi Park.  One of the main reasons for my project selection of Cape Town was for the experience of working in an informal settlement.  However the work done in the park does not reflect the nearly genuine experience of staying overnight in the park.  It is something I will never forget.” – James

“Working in the park everyday does not give you a true idea of what living in Monwabisi Park is like. I’ve heard before that being in the park at night is entirely different than during the day, and I couldn’t agree more. The entire atmosphere changes and I’m thrilled that I got to to have that experience. It helped me to gain a better understanding of the park and helped us as a team to write honestly about staying there.” – Emily

Enjoying breakfast in the morning

“Before spending the night in Monwabisi Park, we had interviewed a few volunteers about their experiences sleeping over, so I thought I had a good idea of what to expect.  But to experience it first hand was something else entirely.  I couldn’t believe how loud the wind was, for example.  And I wouldn’t have known about the vibrant atmosphere of singing as the evening rolled around.  When we woke up the next morning and stood outside on our deck, I looked around at all the people doing their morning chores, and for the first time I felt like I had a taste of what it was like to be a part of their community.  It was such a memorable night, and I’m really glad we got a chance to do it. ” – Jen