Soweto!

On Sunday there were tours provided for us from the city of Johannesburg that went to different places around the city. I went on the tour of Soweto, which visited Nelson Mandela's house, and showed us various parts of Soweto. We had an excellent tour guide who told us that the name Soweto comes from the abbreviation of South Western Townships.

We visited Vilakazi Street, one of only a few streets in the world where two Nobel prize winners have lived; Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. We were able to see Nelson Mandela's house, which has been turned into a museum, and look inside, where there are photographs, letters written by Mandela, and a few pieces of the original furniture. We also saw the Hector Pieterson memorial, which honours Hector and the people that died during the 1976 Soweto uprising. Hector was one of many school children who were protesting peacefully when the police shot and killed them.

We also visited a place in Orlando, Soweto, where there are old cooling towers which you can take a lift to the top of. They offer various activities, such as free fall, bungee jumping and abseiling, however we just took the lift to the top and look out over Soweto.

After the tour was over, we had to get to the airport, to fly home. The flight was slightly shorter on the way back, and when we landed at Heathrow the pilot announced that we had arrived in Hong Kong!

During my week in South Africa, I met many amazing people who have done incredible things both in their own countries and around world, changing many lives for the better, seen great things, and listened to plenty of inspiring speakers. I had a fantastic time and I am very thankful and grateful that the University of Exeter provided me with this wonderful opportunity.