Excursions

The program officially begins in Johannesburg on January 15. Since a lot of the orientation and group-building activities occur during the first days, late arrival can detract from these aspects of the program. The first few weeks of the semester will be orientation to the program in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Windhoek. This time has several purposes: 1) to begin developing a living-learning community; 2) to become familiar with some basic information about the two countries; and 3) to become familiar with the coursework and the program's methodology.

You will find that the programming is intense and that the schedule is very full, so rest when you can on the flight to South Africa.

During the first week of the program students will be in Johannesburg, and then travel on to Cape Town. The travel seminar in South Africa provides students with a chance to fit their educational experiences in Namibia into the larger context of Southern Africa. Students will again have the opportunity to incorporate real life experience with academic work, experiencing how the issues raised in the classroom, as well as in meetings and visits, relate to the lives of South Africans.

In the past, the daily itinerary in Johannesburg has included visits with speakers who were active in the liberation struggle, as well as the Freedom Park Monument, and the Apartheid Museum. Students interact with the community of Soweto to gain some experience with Johannesburg’s largest former Black township. In addition to program activities you will have some free time. 

The schedule in South Africa is very full, which leaves little time for free time. In Jo’burg, students find they have the least amount of free time, as they go through orientation sessions and academic programming. In Cape Town, students will have at least one free day, during which students usually climb the infamous Table Mountain, visit the Waterfront, or relax on the beautiful Camps Bay beach among other activities.

• Luderitz: this coastal town in Namibia, situated about 800 kilometers south of Windhoek, was the entry point for European colonizers to Namibia. The biggest concentration camp during the German- Namibia genocide  was in Luderitz.  During this programming,  we focus our learning  on racial identity in Namibia, the genocide chapter of the 21st century. 

• Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Etosha: important programming takes place in these coastal towns.  

  • Swakopmund is a stronghold of Namibia's tourism. The second biggest concentration camp during the German-Namibia genocide was also in Swakopmund.  Here we learn more about monuments and the legacy of the 1904-1908 genocide.  

  • Walvis Bay is the biggest port in Namibia.  Here, we learn  more about foreign investment in Namibia, export processing,  housing matters for local population,  diversity and human rights violations for minority groups.  

• Etosha National Park: In addition to seeing various species of wild animals, including the Big 5, we visit the park to learn about wildlife conservation in Namibia  and how this is a biggest contributor to the country's Gross Domestic  Product  (GDP). Here, we also learn about land politics in Namibia and how the park affects the indigenous communities such as the San. 

• Namib desert: we will visit an environmental trust (NaDeeT), situated in the Namib desert to learn about the environmental challenges and its effects on biodiversity,  recycling as a new environmental sustainable activity in Namibia,  scarcity of water resources,  climate change,  solar energy resources,  etc.