My Winter School And 2010 FIFA World Cup

Universiteit Stellenbosch University international student ka nih angin May 11, 2010-a tanin chawlhkar khat chhung zawng Winter School kaiin, Cape Town, South Africa (SA)-ah ka zuk zin leh a. Africa khawmualpui chhim tawp, Indian Ocean leh Atlantic Ocean karcheh hmun tih takah thlasik ruah a sur nileng zankhua zak zak a, tun tum ka zin chu a vawt takzet a ni. Chutih laiin, ka thlen ni atanga chhiara thla khat hnu chiah chiaha tan tur, khawvel ennawm hmuhnawm ber mai, 2010 FIFA World Cup thlengtu tur an nih avang erawh chuan an inpuahchah mup mup mai a, an nghakhlel boruak erawh a 'lum' tha vat vat khawp thung!

Hetiang boruak kara ka kal chhan ber ka MPhil atana 'Research Workshop' zuk neih pawh hi rual pawl lo kan ang lek lek a, a inhmeh lo deuh tut tein ka hria! Amaherawhchu, ka cham chhung hian theih ang tawkin a ram mite boruak tawn hi hip pui ve thain ka hria a, kan university campus thlalak thenkhat bakah, South Africa 2010 FIFA World Cup kaihhnawih ka hmuh phak chin thil leh hmun thlalakte ka han tarlang a ni e.

Ka thlenna In JJ Guest House hi a hmel enin a tlawm naa, a hmunhma hi a nuamin a mawi ve khawp mai. Ka tan a remchan lehna chu a neitunu hi kan university Environment and Sustainable Science department-a course coordinator a ni a, ruah sur hnuaiah pawh hul phialin a car nuam takah nitin a rualin ka kalin ka haw thei a ni.

Ka thlen In bul hnai maiah hian SA-a supermarket lar tak ve SPAR a awm a, mamawh chikim lam theihna a ni. Ei leh In tur, a chikim piah lam thleng a awm! A hmunhma pawh hi mawi veh vawh tak a ni.

Stellenbosch Town leh kan university campus timawitu pakhat chu, a bul vela tlang, ruam leh tuipuite bakah hetiang architectural design hi a ni.

Helai hmun hi zirlaiten notice leh information an duh apiang an tarna hmun a ni. An hmang zalen khawp a, an thil tar tam tak phei chu keima mimal ngaihdan phei chuan 'censor' phawt ngai chite an niin ka hria.

University campus car parking lot pakhat. University campus hi a him khawp mai. Student, faculty leh staff zawng zawngin electronic (staff/student) card kan nei vek a. Campus luhna leh chhuahna gate, building kawngkhar leh tukverh reng reng hi heng electronic card chauh hmanga hawn leh khar theih an ni hlawm. Eng sen vet vet awmna hmaah kan card kha kan han lek kang zeuh a, gate/kawngkhar-ah kan lutin kan chhuak mai. Card nei lo tan a theih ve loh.

University building thenkhat hi chu hun rei tak tawha sak te a ni hlawm. Hei hi class kan neihna thin ‘Industrial Psychology Building’ a ni a, kun 1913 daih tawha sak ni mahse an enkawl hnum tha a, a la thar mawi tha khawp mai.

Stellenbosch Town hrim hrim hi SA mingo (white) chenkhawmna a nih angin kan university zirlai zingah pawh hian mingo an tam ber a, 67.6% an ni. A bak zawng hi mihang (black), thlahpawlh (coloured) leh Indian community te an ni. Mingo zirlai bitna hmun a nih avang leh architectural design avangte hian Europe ram khawimaw laia university pakhat emaw tih ve mai theih a ni.

Stellenbosch Town leh university campus chhung kawngsir zawng zawngah hian Oak thing phun a ni a, a mawi khawp mai. Kan university hian symbol atan Oak thing hnah a hmang a ni.

Kan hmuh ang hian university official colour chu maroon a ni a, building chung leh kawng zawng zawng hi maroon colour hnawih vek a ni. Zirlaiten thirsakawr (‘bike’ an ti mai) an hmang uar khawp bawk.

Hei hi student centre ‘NEELSIE’ a ni a. He building hi lei hnuai lam nen thlengin chhawng tam tak a ni. A chhungah hian restaurant changkang tak tak tam tak, bar, coffee shops, bank, post office, ATM, air ticket booking office, pool table, thuamhnaw zawrhna tam tak, stationery, bookshops leh zirlaite mamawh chikim zawrhna a awm. Mizoram thingtlang khuain a neih loh thil tam tak hemi inchhung maiah hian a awm kim vek a ni. Hmun dang aiin thil man a tlawm zawk lehnghal!

University parking area dang leh chu. A tir atanga an thil ruahman hmang reng rengah hian an ngaihtuah thui chikim tih a hriat. Duhthala hman tur hmun a awm.

Johannesburg (Jo’berg) International Airport! SA port of entry ber a nih avangin, 2010 FIFA World Cup chhim tur mipui tam berten SA leilung an rah hmasak ber tur chu he hmun hi a ni.

Jo’berg Airport hi, 2010 FIFA World Cup an thlen dawn avang hian, namen loa runway leh terminal building te zauh belha tihchangtlun a ni a. Nikum January thlaa ka zin lai ai khan a lo ‘huau’-in a lo changkang daih mai.

Jo’berg Airport terminal chhunga Boarding Gate 11A innghahkhawmna leh chawlhna hmun. A zau tha hem hem khawp a ni.

2010 FIFA World Cup mascot Zakumi chu. SA internet country code ‘za’ tih leh African ram tam tak tawnga number sawm sawina ‘kumi’ tih atanga phuah a ni.

Football design hrang hrang leh 2010 World Cup khel tur ram hrang hrang thuamhnaw leh chhinchhiahna te chu hetah hian an zuar chikim khawp mai.

Jo’berg hi 2010 FIFA World Cup match dang bakah opening leh final match te khelhna hmun tur a ni a, Host City title pek a ni a, an stadium mipui 88, 460 len theihna pawh hi Soccer City tih a ni. He thlalak hi stadium hmun ni loin Airport chhung a ni e.

South Africa atanga Lusaka, Zambia pana ka rawn haw hian khua a la thiang tha chuang vak lo a. Chhum tam hle mahse, chhumte tihbuai theih loh piaha sangah kan South African Airways pilot hian min thlawhpui daih thung a, chhumte chu kan chhuk en thei tawh a ni. Nun kawng hi chhuk chhoin chhum chhah takin khawhmuh a tihfiah loh chang awm thin mah se, Isua Krista nen chuan harsa loin kan paltlang thei thin a ni. Harsatnate chu ‘hmelma’ an ni tawh ngai lo a, min chawikangtu ‘ban (pillar)’ nghet tak an chang tawh zawk thin.

Tichuan Nu berin fate nen Airport-ah min lo hmuak a. A hahdam thlak thin ngei mai. Fel leh thuawih taka an lo awm avangin lawman atan kan fate pawh shopping kan neih pui a.

A hlimawm thin ngawt mai.

Kan Transport Officer Pu Coster Kazila pawh Airport-a ka nupui fanaute rawn phur thlengtu, kan thian tha, hnathawk tha leh rinawm a ni a, a duhzawng tak chaw eipui hi a phu a ni.

Stellenbosch University, City of Cape Town

Lucky enough to be accepted as one of the postgraduate students of the prestigious Stellenbosch University in Cape Town, time for me to visit my new university has finally arrived. The course, in fact, is a Postgraduate Diploma in HIV/AIDS Management (PDM), the only one of its kind started since 2001 under the joint venture of Stellenbosch University, UNAIDS and Africa Centre for HIV/AIDS Management. It is a full-time, one year and online study programme designed for professionals in the work place, so that each can make a difference in the areas of prevention and management of HIV/AIDS. Students of this programme are all expected to be computer literate so that they will be able to have access to their study materials and submit their assignments through the Web CT (website computer tools) of the university. Thanks to technology, new knowledge and information I gained from my research in rural Zambia will be sent through the Web CT and will actually be part of the huge database collected and stored by the university's IT department. Let's now have a tour of the place.

Table Mountain as seen from Signal Hill. Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain overlooking the city of Cape Town. Its top can be accessed either by hiking or using a cable car (rope way). It forms part of the Table Mountain National Park. It is flanked by Devil's Peak to the east and Lion's Head to the west.

This is the way to the famous university town called Stellenbosch. The distance from Cape Town centre to Stellenbosch is approximately 50 km. The documented history of Stellenbosch dates back to 1679 and it was quickly identified as as an area which had real potential for agriculture. The soil proved to be very fertile and the climate was conducive for producing vegetables to sustain ships passing by the Cape of Good Hope enroute to the other Dutch colonies in the East. Stellenbosch saw its hills and valleys planted with vines by the end of the 17th century. Up to this time it has been a hub for the flourishing wine industry and is called 'The Wine Capital of South Africa'

This is a bird's eye view of Stellenbosch town and its surrounding mountains. The photo was taken from the window of the 7th floor of one of the university's residences where I was accomodated during my stay. The population in Stellenbosch is 65,000 of which 22, 269 are students. Today this buzzing University town is also lovingly known as the Town of Oaks or "Eikestad". The reason for this is obvious when you stroll down the oak lined streets.

These are two of Stellenbosch University's buildings. The foundations for Stellenbosch's heritage as an educational centre were laid in 1859 when a theological seminary was established. In 1918 a university was founded and to this day the University of Stellenbosch remains an internationally recognised educational institution and one of the leading universities of the African continent.

Far away beyond an oil tanker is Robben Island. Robben Island is an island in Table Bay, about seven kilometres off the coast of Cape Town.It is of particular note as it was here that former South African President and Nobel Laureate Nelson Mandela was imprisoned during the apartheid era from April 1964 to April 1984. From 1836 to 1931 the island was also used as a leper colony.

Youngsters of JL Zwane Centre performing one of their dance and song items during our visit to the centre. JL Zwane is one of the 11 centres which has affiliation with Stellenbosch University’s ‘Africa Centre for HIV/AIDS Management’. In this centre orphans of AIDS found refuge and are being cared for until they are developed with certain skills and prepared to face the world on their own.

AIDS orphans having their midday meal time at JL Zwane Centre. Statistic shows that in South Africa, about one in five adults are HIV positive. South Africa also currently has 1.2 million AIDS orphans. The HIV prevalence rate among pregnant women is 30.2%. Average life expectancy in South Africa is now 54 years – without AIDS, it is estimated that it would be 64. Hospitals are struggling to cope with the number of HIV-related patients that they have to care for and AIDS account for 60-70% of medical expenditure in South African hospitals.

The sign says it’s Kloof road. This road neither has special significance nor is an important landmark. But it just got my attention and hence is being posted here. Besides its natural beauty, maybe at that time I was just curious of where to this country road leads.

Lion's Head which is to the west of the Table Mountain forms an important landmark and looks so magnificent when viewed from the Signal Hill. There is a trekking route leading up to the summit and I just wonder how many people might have already been to the top, and of course, to what level the surge of adrenaline be at their moments of achievement.

A view of Cape Town and the Atlantic Ocean from Signal Hill. Signal Hill is a landmark flat-topped hill located in Cape Town, next to Lion's Head and Table Mountain. Signal flags were used to communicate weather warnings as well as anchoring instructions to visiting ships in order to ensure that they prepared adequately for stormy weather while in the bay. Similarly, ships could use flags to signal for assistance, for example, during a storm.

Another view of Cape Town. This picture was taken from a hilly and winding road leading to the Signal Hill. You can actually see part of the road already taken by us on our journey uphill towards the Signal Hill.

'Camps Bay' with its idyllic beaches spanning all across the coastal area. We have to journey downhill in order to get there. On both sides of the road are planted flowers of diverse variety with well-planned residential area lining the road.

'South Africa 2010' is on the way! Here is one of the many newly constructed stadia for the game. The location is just ideal, very close to the Atlantic Ocean and the historic Robben Island is not far away. Of course, the stadium is yet far from completion, but the organisers are hopeful that they will be able to do the final touches on time. The picture is taken from Signal Hill. Let me be specific. This stadium is called the Green Point Stadium and its capacity is a crowd of 70,000. It is situated between the Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean.

Even at this age, the heart of Cape Town still resonates with a historical atmosphere and cultural appeal. The city reflects over three centuries of occupation, including Dutch, Georgian and Victorian architecture.

The Table Mountain stands out prominently even from the centre of Cape Town. It attracts more of my attention than what all the architectural beauty of the town does.

The Lion's Head also stands out from behind the trees as tall as that of the city's skyscrapers.

The light posts, the pine trees and the Lion's Head all seem to compete for 'who' is the tallest.

A mix of natural and technological wonder can still be beautiful.

One afternoon at the beach. Sea, Sun and Sand are all gifts from God.

The popular Mariner's Wharf. Only seafoods are served here. It is just by the Atlantic Ocean and it's no wonder they have varieties of seafood.

Hope that you enjoy your virtual tour of Stellenbosch and Cape Town. Have a nice day.