“Nomadic Notes” a blog post by Sydney Kirchoff

The day awoke with the chime of an alarm playing from the bedside table at the pure hour of 7:15am. Eager to explore Cape Town, the awakening transition was found easy! The girls gathered around the table with Mr. Master and Mrs. Jones to have one last meal in the great city of Cape Town! We left the hotel with our two tour guides that were to show us the townships of Cape Town. We were informed, the townships were apart of the 1923 Urban Areas Act that was enacted on the native Africans in Cape Town during the apartheid. The townships are places the government forced people to live. Fifteen years ago the South African government set up cargo boxes for living quarters, and the people ever since have tried to escape their living situation, attempting to find affluent jobs that lack existence. From the year of 1923, the lives of those in townships have been stricken by poverty. Poverty within townships is hard to combat due to the underlying apartheid roots and lack of education towering over their motivation to find work. As we stepped into the townships, the sense of community was easy to recognize. Despite the difficulty of survival, us girls came into agreement that the people living in the Township of Langa, are warriors. It was fascinating to see people that were living in the worst conditions, come together and manage to find joy in the smallest elements of life that us Americans, surpass every second.

The mud seeped into our leather soled shoes at the same time a child walked barefoot in the cold mud beside us. At this moment, we were exposed to reality. We could have easily avoided the negative

parts of South Africa, and focused on the photogenic cafes and lush scenery. However, we were immersed in a experience that will forever move us. As we left the Township, we drove to the Cape Town international airport where buses swarm, jobs are found, and water flows. Only a short 10 minute drive away from the airport, is the Township of Langa, where money is rare, and hope trickles as happy stories are told. After the township experience, we had a 2 hour flight to the city of Johannesburg to meet our beloved Ursuline family. We have all met our families and feel at home. Thank you for tuning into our adventure, today has been magical, and we have changed.

Friends For Life

How can I even begin to describe what a wonderful time I have had with my two best friends from Brentwood England? The answer is simple. I cannot, but I will do my best. Waiting today at the airport with Mikki and Molly, along with all the other Brentwood students and their hosts, everything that has happened in the past week flashed before my eyes. All the comparing of cultures, the long late night talks, and the laughter that makes your stomach ache because you are laughing so hard, suddenly condensed into one overwhelming realization that they are leaving in a few minutes and you can only get so many more hugs in before they depart. I know it sounds really sad and I am literally crying my eyes out right now, but I want to share how wonderful this experience has been for me.


A particular favorite moment of mine was one night on Wednesday the 30th when Mikki, Molly, Erica (my sister), and I were all laying around in Mikki and Molly’s bedroom after dinner at the country club. It was around 10:00 pm so we were all pretty slap happy from the long day, but that did not keep us from staying up to laugh and talk and just enjoy each others’ company. We laughed so hard that night my abs still hurt. Mikki’s attempts at an American accent still make me laugh when I watch the video and all of our silly comments just bring a smile to my face. It is like we were meant to be together, meant to make each other laugh.


Hosting these two amazing young women from England has been one of the best experiences in my

short, 17 year old, life. Honestly I would not trade anything in the world for this past week. On Sunday night, their last night in our house, Mikki and Molly gave us gifts and cards. In her card Mikki said, “Love ya like a sister and feel like we are best friends already!” Now imagine tears streaming down my cheeks and Mikki and Molly promptly hugging me to death in an attempt to stop me from crying. They are truly two of the kindest, most thoughtful people I know and I sincerely hope the Global Education program at Ursuline continues to bring people like us together. In one of my last hugs with Molly she whispered in my ear, “Don’t you ever change, Katrina. Stay this way forever.” For me, this put the whole week in perspective. Yes we were born in completely different parts of the world, but distance and diversity is not strong enough to prevent true friendship from blooming.





-Katrina Rebholz ‘16

Global Ursuline Family

Having just completed my first year at Ursuline, I am still learning about the school community. What I will take away from this trip to Piedade is a greater sense of the Ursuline global family. From the common foundation of our schools we have fostered a connection that continues to grow. Family is exactly the word to describe the way I felt connected to the Piedade school community. What a powerful thought considering we got into a plane (well, three)  and a day later arrived in the southern hemisphere where they are currently experiencing late fall, speak a different language and have differing cultural norms.

On our last night I made an observation during dinner that at restaurants there doesn't appear to be a lot of turnover at a table during an evening. The table that you choose is likely to only be occupied by you for that night as time is slowed down for conversation and a relaxed enjoyment of the meal.  Here I got to know more about the teachers that took us out for dinner as well as some of the host families. Through a combination of English and Portuguese, and sometimes hand gestures for additional clarification of meaning, we discovered more about each other. What a rare and amazing treat it was to look through the window at life in Ilheus, Bahia Brazil!

Returning to St. Louis now, I bring ideas for sharing the experience with the school community, and within my own classroom. Most important, perhaps, is the global Ursuline family exprience that will continue to grow and connect us across oceans, continents and hemispheres.