Tell your girlfriend I said Thanks.

Working for a legal services NGO is in some ways different but in most ways similar to working in a law firm.  The LRC has clients and litigates cases on behalf of those clients just as a law firm does.  The only difference is that they don't charge for their services.  Here's a recap of my first week at work.

Suitcase in hand, I say Good-bye to Leonie and Willie at the B&B and jump into my pre-booked private taxi.  Private taxis in South Africa are much more expensive than in Canada and a 20km ride will set you back around $50. 

I arrive at the Legal Resources Centre and take the elevator to the 15th floor.  It's 8:30am and I think "Sweet.  I'm early."   I meet Caroline Msimango, the office administrator, who quickly exclaims, "Oh, you're here, I was starting to worry."  It turns out standard working hours at the LRC (and in Joburg generally) are 8-4. Waking up at 6:00am every day is a constant battle.

Caroline gives me a tour of the office.  There are 3 attorneys, 3 paralegals, 4 candidate attorneys, 2 administrative assistants, and a revolving door of foreign volunteer law students and lawyers like me.  It's much nicer than I expect and my office is quite large. 

I am sharing an office with Nicole, a candidate lawyer from Germany.  We go for lunch and she gives me a tour of the local area.  The LRC is located in the Joburg CBD or Central Business District, the most dense collection of skyscrapers anywhere in Africa.  Towards the end of apartheid, there was significant "white flight" (mass migration of whites from urban areas to the suburbs) from the Joburg CBD to the Sandton CBD.  In the last few years, though, there's been significant gentrification (where the wealthy move into a poor area) and the CBD is starting to grow again.  We go to Gandhi Square (named after Mahatma Gandhi who spent a lot of time in South Africa), which has a collection of shops, restaurants and the CBD's central bus terminal.  After a quick Indian curry lunch, we head back to the office.

I receive my first assignment.  I am to attend a Land Development Board hearing in Limpopo Province, about 4 hours from Joburg.  We leave around noon.  Zeenat (an attorney), Bethuel (a paralegal) and me.  We drive through Mpumalanga Province.  Mpumalanga means East or literally "place where the sun rises".  It is possibly the most beautiful landscape I have seen in my life.  To attempt to describe it with words will not do it justice...so I won't.  Of course, I forget my camera so I'm stuck taking BB photos. 

We arrive in Limpopo.  We are staying at a lodge on a "Game Reserve".  Game reserves are areas of natural land where wildlife is protected (sometimes hunted) and ecosystems are conserved.  It is breathtaking.  As we approach the lodge in early evening, we look up and see dozens of brightly lit wooden cottages cascading down a lush green mountain.  Our headlights frighten away springboks, guinea fowl, peacocks, wildabeests, monkeys and other animals that we are able to see better in pure daylight the following morning.  We enjoy an excellent dinner of traditional South African food and head to bed.

The following morning, we attend the Land Development Board hearing in the conference room of another local game reserve.  The matter involves a mixed commercial-residential development that may affect our client, a 71-year-old local farmer who does not speak English but attends the hearing with her two sons.  I am impressed with the level of order and process undertaken at the heairng.  After a few hours, the matter is adjourned until October.

Back in Joburg, I am asked if I will go on a road trip on Saturday to attend a Land Compensation Community Property Association meeting near Rustenberg in the Northwest Province.  After my wonderful experience from the previous day, I immediately agree.  The experience is ... well ... I was rendered literally speechless. 

We set off at 6:00am and arrive at our destination at 9:00am where our client is waiting for us.  We are 30 minutes ahead of schedule and he tells us that we are just waiting for the government representative at which point we will all drive to the 10:00am hearing together.  9:00am turns to 9:30am turns to 10:00am turns to 10:30am turns to 11:00am.  She finally shows up.  This is my first true experience with African Standard Time, which stipulates that you should be one hour late for everything. 

When we arrive, the people are annoyed (naturally) and the meeting starts.  The Chairperson introduces all of us and gives me, "the attorney from Canada", a particularly warm introduction.  The meeting then proceeds ... entirely in Tswana.  What's Tswana?  It's one of South Africa's 11 official languages.  Surprise of all surprises, I don't understand Tswana.  The meeting lasts for three hours.  Three hours of Tswana.  At various points, people look at me and smile.  I smile back and nod my head as if to say, "Yup.  Oh yeah.  Totally.  Got it."  I am Tswana-fied.  My ears perk up with the sound of an English word - "constitution" - and I am hopeful there will be a language shift.  But there isn't.  The word "constitution" doesn't exist in Tswana.  They say "constitution" 27 times during the three hours.  I keep smiling.

I've noticed a very strong spirit in this country.  They greet each other with 'Brother' and 'Sister'.  They spend their days with huge smiles on their faces.  They dance as they walk down the street.  They laugh often, spontaneously and whole-heartedly.  It's like everybody's in on some inside joke.  And I don't even mind that I'm not in on it.

Today, as I'm waiting to get on the bus to work, I see a guy walking by bopping his head and tapping his chest and leg (a common thing here) to the beat of the song on his iPod (Rihanna's "Who's That Chick").  Like most, he's got a big white toothy grin on his face.  I follow the tapping hand on his chest and see that written in big white block letters on his bright red t-shirt are the words:

"Tell your girlfriend I said Thanks."  

Of course they're always smiling here.