Ready for Takeoff

I'm almost ready! Tomorrow I depart for South Africa for the first time.

It's a strange feeling because I've been thinking about this trip for so long that it has started to feel almost like a fever dream. For months I've been researching museums, booking workshops, comparing safari lodges, studying maps, and revising itineraries. What began as a bucket-list idea and a grant proposal slowly became a stack of reservations, confirmations, and spreadsheets. Now, somehow, it's real.

The timing couldn't be more hectic. School ended yesterday, bringing year thirty-two of teaching to a close, and the past few weeks have been a blur of final exams, grading, award ceremonies, and all the other loose ends that come with the close of school. In between those responsibilities, I've been getting ready for three weeks in South Africa.

Packing has been its own challenge. Everything needs to fit into a small carry-on suitcase and a backpack, despite the fact that this trip includes a pretty wide range of activities. One day I'll be standing in front of contemporary artwork at Zeitz MOCAA in Cape Town. A few days later I'll be on an open vehicle in Kruger before sunrise hoping to spot wildlife. Then there are beading workshops, cultural villages, botanical gardens, and enough walking to justify bringing comfortable shoes.

The final details have occupied much of my final day today: building this website (LOL), downloading an international eSIM, charging camera batteries, checking passports, finding adapters, and remembering that June is winter in the Southern Hemisphere. A winter jacket feels completely out of place sitting next to sunscreen, but apparently both are necessary. My Dad even loaned me his jaunty Stetson safari hat!

Tomorrow will be a long one. I'll fly from Richmond to Atlanta and after a long layover, at night I'll board a fourteen-hour flight to Cape Town. If all goes according to plan, I'll arrive on June 7—my birthday (six-seven!!!).

It doesn't even seem real yet. Mostly I'm looking forward to finally seeing the places I've spent months reading about. As an art teacher, there is only so much that books, websites, and documentaries can teach. At some point, you need to stand in front of the artwork, experience the landscape, talk with people, and see things for yourself.

That's the goal.

My next post will be from South Africa. I hope you'll follow along!

-Coach