World Cup fever is spreading through South Africa with just two days left until kickoff! So Thanda is getting in the soccer spirit!
A slew of pre-Cup activities got underway at Thanda After-School yesterday with a parade through Umtwalume. Well, actually, Umtwalume’s quite expansive, so the parade only went up and down one road. But it was no less spectacular than it would have been if we’d covered every sugarcane-filled hill and each goat-laden trail in the community!
Thanda’s World Cup walkers!
The parade started on Thanda’s basketball courts. Lani, one of our middle school teachers, got everyone excited and ready by leading the group in songs, cheers, and dances.
Thanda’s group of World Cup paraders getting excited!
Siya, a Thanda-graduate-turned-sewing-entrepreneur, and Melusi, Thanda’s basketball coach, show off their South Africa spirit!
Lani leads some of the younger kids in a song about South Africa.
These Thanda staff members and volunteers are ready for the World Cup!
Then the parade moved through town! Thanda’s kids and staff members walked down the road, past the local high school, and up the hill to the nearest tuck shop (a small store that sells things like sugar, tea, candy, and bread), then turned around and headed back to Thanda.
Staff members Lani, Amanda, and Khanisyle lead the way.
Up the hill, past the huts, to the tuck shop!
Three high school Thanda students pose with their sign.
Vuvuzelas were blaring, vocal chords reached full-pitch capacity, and everyone tired their legs out dancing and jumping to the self-made beats.
Two students give a high-spirited vuvuzela concert in front of the high school. (Vuvuzelas are trumpet-like noisemakers. You practically hear a vuvuzela blast once every five minutes in South Africa these days! They will undoubtedly be the cause of immeasurable hearing loss during the World Cup!)
Soccer balls tot he forehead was clearly the fashion statement of the day for all the paraders.
Bafana Bafana is the name of South Africa’s national soccer team. It means “boys boys” in Zulu.
Thanda’s staff and kids made South Africa’s World Cup spirit shine in Umtwalume. As they chanted over and over (in Zulu and in English): “Feel it, it is here!!”
It is here indeed!
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