African Dance...and Other UCT Classes

Since I am here for school (and not just elephants, monkeys, and bungee jumping) I figured I'd write a little about the classes I'm taking concentrating mostly on my new favorite thing: African Dance.

As I already explained, the process of getting classes was a nightmare but it seems to have worked out for the best. The courses are pretty different here than at Northeastern. The classes are huge (one of mine has 500 people) and are only 45 minutes 3 or 4 times a week. We were told that students didn't talk during the lecture but I've seen otherwise. The class is actually very involved with the lectures and sometimes challenge the lecturer in ways that make me feel slightly uncomfortable. Each class has a tutorial as well which is basically a 45 minute session with a group of 15 kids where you discuss what went on in the lecture. I'm actually finding this system really helpful and informative. The tutorials force you to understand and talk about the material in a small group which is a lot better than many of the courses I've taken.

I'm taking 4 classes altogeher: Culture in the 21st Century, Intro to Philosophy, Gender, Sexuality, and Politics: Debates from an African Context, and African Dance. Gender, Sexuality, and Politics is the most interesting class by far.

Now onto African Dance. I was pretty unsure of what this class would actually require when i signed up for it. I expected to be in a classroom with the teacher showing us a couple of moves. When I showed up on the first day I was completely surprise to be in a dance studio with a full drumming band. We danced for 2 hours and I left dripping with sweat. Now after 2 weeks of classes I find myself getting excited every Tuesday and Thursday knowing that I have 2 hours of dancing that night. The thing about African dance is that you cannot have ANY inhibitions. You have to fully let go and "let the energy take over you" as my instructor says. We're going to have to perform in a recital at the end of the semester which is a little nerve racking. Anyway I love African Dance and maybe I'll bring some moves home to the US