Some thoughts

These are some of the things I find myself pondering while I stay in South Africa.

• Is it possible to get sick from breathing too much dust and dirt? What about long-term exposure? You can't walk near a road for more than a couple minutes without inhaling at least one dusty cloud. My hair changed from clean and smooth to chunky and sticky from standing outside for 5 minutes.
  
• Why does it seem like every older lady walks with the same hobbling limp? Is it related to the way they sweep the ground or retrieve water--bent at the hips at a perfect 90 degree angle?
• When did the local language start using English words? Numbers, months, and certain words are spoken in English. Today I overheard a conversation about someone's education that was 95% Shangaan with "graduate" and "registration" thrown in.
• How long will it take to eliminate racism (or get close to eliminating racism) in this country compared to the U.S.? We desegregated schools and workplaces, made voting a positive right, and other measures beginning in the 1950s and 1960s. This was followed by decades of institutional racism (housing market, school funding, etc.), affirmative action, race riots and many other events and processes that leave us wherever it is we are today. South Africa only ended apartheid in 1994. The majority of the population here lived as de jure second class citizens for most of their lives. It seems that amazing progress has been made, but when will South Africa become more equal?
• How long will it take to fully develop this country (already the most developed in sub-Saharan Africa)? In some ways it seems so close but in other ways it seems that it will never come.
  
• When will Nando's bring peri peri chicken to Seattle? Or do I have to visit DC to get it?