1. Driving in the car with a friend, I remind her, "Put your purse under the chair" so she doesn't fall victim to the familiar "smash and grab" tactic where someone breaks the car window and reaches in either to grab your hair/face/etc or just the bag if possible. This is so familiar that you stay alert at all times when driving, knowing exactly where are the beggars and sellers who surround your car at robots (stoplights) and keep your car in first gear to pull away if necessary.
2. Deciding I can't stay at a friends house for the night since the car is parked outside. Andrea: "Do you think my car will get stolen?" Friend: "Hopefully not." An unsatisfactory answer when I was fishing for, "No. I don't think so." (In the US, I'd only settle for "Preposterous! Why would you worry about that?!?") At which point, I decide it isn't worth the risk despite extreme fatigue and the chance for a delicious breakfast. Note: This thought also occurs on a regular basis where ever the car is parked: at the movies, in a shopping mall, out for dinner, and so on.
4. Going to the movies, a friend left the cinema to go get sweets (candy) before the movie started. The lights went down while he was gone, but he never came back to his spot. Given that the cinema was quite dark, in the States I'd assume he couldn't find us, had sat somewhere else, turned his phone off for the movie and I'd find him after the movie without giving it another thought. But TIA. So we got nervous that he'd disappeared so we went searching: Up and down the aisles of the cinema, around the mall, in the boys and girls bathroom, even call in back-ups to help us look... My heart was racing. I was sure he'd been kidnapped and mugged and who knows what else. I missed the most of the movie and was exhausted with worry by the time he finally emerged from the pitch-black cinema wondering why I was walking down the aisle.
4. Insisting to my friend, recently arrived from Canada, that she can't walk the 2 blocks home at 10 p.m. because it is unsafe. The group of South Africans I was with agreed wholeheartedly and barricaded her route out of the house. I drove her home and agreed with her as she decided outloud, "This is going to get real old, real fast."
These experiences were all in the last week! Scattered in between were even more discussions of related topics such as (but not limited to): corrupt cops, non-observance of traffic laws, a missing CT scanner from the hospital, the reality of revenge/hate rape even on campus and the fact that Johannesburg is a more dangerous place to live than most countries currently engaged in war (such as the DRC.) You get the picture. Crime is a way of life here and, as a result, fear becomes the way of life for the rest of us.
But let's not be so dreary. After all, it is reality and there isn't a damn thing you can do about it. . Which bring me to experience #5:
5. Going to a "We got robbed but they didn't take the stereo so the party is still on" party. And, yes, they really did get robbed. Its a German and an American couple who live in a decent (American embassy provided) home of which the entrances all take more 3 locked and guarded gates/doors. So they are fairly certain it was someone who was familiar with the house (they'd had a plumber there, a furniture delivery, etc.) and now have taken to leading things like deliveries through a maze of doors to the back to reveal the least amount of the house's interior as possible... doing so out of a level of distrust for which they feel guilty. However, despite all this, their persistent sense of humor about the situation provide solid evidence that they've been in SA long enough to adapt and survive the only way we know how. To laugh... and to hold a clever thieves and incompetent cops party to make that easier. I did my part by going as the McDonalds Hamburglar (I, too, really needed the laugh!!)
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Note to certain friends at home: If I could have found one, I'd have worn a B&W stripped sweat suit like the real Hamburglar. My excuse is limited timed and costume resources and even very few clothes here in SA. I remain loyal to our success as Awesome Ninjas who could rip the face off of those Sexy Ninjas any day!
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