The Ups and Downs of Durban (or really anywhere)

So, 5 days of settling into Durban, and there have been some ups, and some definite downs.

I will start with an up thing – our Caribbean work out video. Well, not actually. We live about a 10 minute walk from the beach-side Casino here in Durban. We were told by a previous intern about the free fitness classes offered there every evening. So, we decided on Monday to go see what they were like. Well, I don’t think I have worked out that hard since Michelle’s old step classes at UVic. I was dying! And then when the instructor started making us do squats, I though she and Michelle would very much be kindred spirits. Anyways, the best part about this workout is that the classes are actually held on the lawn between the casino and the ocean. Beautiful. Ellie commented that it felt like we were in one of those Caribbean workout videos. Now, hopefully by going to those classes we will look like we belong in the Caribbean work-out videos by the end of our time in Durban. Here’s hoping. (This was a picture from yoga day, but you get the idea)

Ok, now downer. I decided not to start work until Wednesday in order to take some time to look for a different apartment. The apartment that was arranged for us prior to arriving definitely leaves a few things to be desired, but probably the strangest thing is the window between Ellie’s room and mine. Although there are curtain’s it’s a little strange. The great part about it is the view, which is amazing. Anyways, looking for an apartment has proven much more difficult than we thought and Tuesday evening I had had it. Ellie had also had a rough day at work. We were dedicated to the new work-out regime, so off to Zumba. It was terrible. That instructor was nothing like Michelle and was terrible at giving instructions. It was like we were supposed to read her mind. We left after half an hour. Ergh. At home, I was feeling sorry for myself and I could tell Ellie was too. It was just one of those days. So – up side – we went over to Zak’s (which may become a regular spot for us) and had beer and brownies. It made things a bit better.

Ok, the real reason I am here – the Legal Resources Centre. I started work yesterday and I have to say it was pretty quiet around the office. It made me a bit concerned. I met everybody who was there yesterday, and then hung out in the library for today. I really could have been sitting at Dal in the basement, or at Blakes in the library. Anyways, I sat down with one of the junior attorneys, Willene, who went through her current cases with me. This made me much more excited. Some great, interesting, wonderful cases, or at least in the sense of law-geek great, interesting, wonderful cases. In actuality, many of them are extremely upsetting and show just how wrong things can sometimes be. There are a few health related cases that I am particularly excited about working on.

Everybody left a bit early from work to head out to a colleagues house for a birthday/going away party. Although not everyone was at work, it seems that everyone was at Kamala’s party. I really enjoyed myself and it was nice to get to meet everyone in a more social setting. Also, Kamala’s mom definitely out did herself in the food – yum yum yum. I love lasagna, but it made me miss my mom.

So today was a bit better. Started doing some research at work in regards to interpretations in the Special Pensions Act. The Act was set up in order to recognize that many people that fought for a non-racial, democratic government in South Africa, gave up a great deal in order to support the cause. One of these things was access to any type of pension in order to support them as they aged. The Special Pensions are supposed to be provided for those individuals who worked for a banned organization for a minimum period of time as well as meeting some other criteria. In the administrative application of the Act, a number of these criteria have been interpreted in ways that have excluded a number of potentially deserving individuals, as well as limiting the amount of support received by others. The piece of the puzzle I am working on is looking into the traditional, as well as some not so traditional, tools of legislative interpretation in order to determine if the administrative branch tasked with managing the Special Pension system failed to interpret the criteria in the proper manner. Anyways, enough legal talk. I think I will quite enjoy the projects here. Because LRC is often looking for true test cases, it feels like we are working on the kinds of cases that you might have to read during law school, and I am enjoying that.