June 27: Airport Hotel
If you have reserved and paid for a hotel room, one of your leaders will meet you at the hotel and stay overnight with the group. We will send you an email one week prior to departure with details about the hotel reservation and instructions on how to meet your leader.
June 28: Departure Day, New York to Cape Town
In support of program and student safety, all details regarding specific travel and accommodations are available in the parent/guardian digital locker under Essential Information.
June 29 – July 5: Cape Town
Travel to Cape Town and spend the first weekend getting to know your peers, group leaders, and the staff at Resilient and Victorious United Football Club. Stretch your legs on a hike up Table Mountain, visit nearby museums like the District 6 Museum for an introduction to the history of apartheid, and prepare for your week of soccer camp. Begin the week with a full-day orientation to RV United’s program, including their teaching philosophy, curriculum, the history of the program, and their vision for the future of the club. Then, volunteer alongside their staff to host a soccer camp for girls aged 10 – 14 in the nearby township of Khayelitsha. In the late afternoons, return to Cape Town for different cultural activities. Go surfing with a surf-therapy nonprofit, explore the downtown, play soccer and frisbee in the park, or take a street art tour to learn how art is being used to tell the complex histories of different neighborhoods in the city. Spend the evenings preparing your lessons and drills for the next day of camp, and begin brainstorming ideas for your independent project.
July 6: !Kwha ttu Heritage Center
Travel north to the !Kwha ttu Heritage Center. The center is dedicated to the cultural preservation of the San, or Bushmen, people, who are among the last living hunter-gatherer communities in the world. Learn how San youth are being empowered to share their stories and culture to the world in their own words. Stay in tents on their campus and head out for hikes with local guides, learn about traditional herbal remedies, and enjoy a braii, or barbeque, under the stars. The next day, head south to hike in the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, stopping to visit harbor towns and historic villages along the way. Visit Simon’s Town to see hundreds of African penguins on Boulders Beach, and hike along trails overlooking False Bay, keeping an eye out for wildlife. Return to Cape Town in the evening.
July 7 – 12: Cape Town
Spend the week volunteering with RV United in some of their other community initiatives. Spend an afternoon tutoring players after school in Enligh, math, or science. Learn how to make “Ragballs”, or soccer balls made from recycled plastic, that are sold by girls to provide additional income to their families. Explore Khayelitsha with a local guide and gain an understanding of what life is like for many of the players who attended camp the previous week. Continue to explore the history of South Africa and apartheid as you visit Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was once held, and the former Olympic soccer stadium in Cape Town to learn about Mandela’s enduring vision for peace and unity through sport. Hear about other leaders who forged a new post-apartheid path for South Africa, and interact with nonprofits and organizers who are on their way to becoming the next generation of community-builders in Cape Town. Weave these experiences into action and reflection as you continue to hone your independent project and prepare to present in Kruger. At the end of the week, host a small-sided soccer tournament and celebrate your time with the players and coaches at RV United.
July 13 – 17: Kruger National Park
On July 13, fly with your group from Cape Town to Phalaborwa. Drive to nearby Kruger National Park and stay on campus at the Southern Africa Wildlife College. Go on early-morning bush walks with conservationists to scout for wildlife, and learn about initiatives underway to mitigate community-wildlife conflict. Visit rehabilitation centers for cheetahs and elephants, and learn about the ongoing work of the naturalist guides at the university. At the end of your stay in Kruger, go on an overnight safari deep into the park and scout for the “Big 5” – lions, elephants, rhinos, leopards, and buffalo, with professional guides. Reflect on your time with RV United and present your independent project to the group. Engage in thoughtful discussion about the issues you are passionate about in your own community, and enjoy a celebratory meal as a group on your final evening in South Africa.
July 18: Travel Day, Kruger National Park to Johannesburg
Enjoy a final morning in Kruger, then travel to the airport in Johannesburg for your overnight journey home.
July 19: Return Day, Johannesburg to New York
In support of program and student safety, all details regarding specific travel and accommodations are available in the parent/guardian digital locker under Essential Information.