GreyDoveTravels

  The Tutu Travel Seminar exposed me to the complexity, courage, and compassion of the late Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu and touched my heart in countless and important ways. The trip, which took me over 17,000 miles in eight short days, was without doubt one of the most important spiritual encounters that I have ever experienced. In speaking to those who served him as chaplains and staff, and in being witness to the incredibly dedicated work of the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation and their powerful Truth to Power exhibition I do not believe that I would ever have fully understood the depth of the "Arch's" commitment to a most courageous leadership in the struggle against apartheid and leadership of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission (TRC).   Tutu’s commitment to the theology of  ubuntu, and his insistence that God loves all and that it is only God to whom we are accountable  flowed from his disciplined prayer life. A prayer life that led him t...

During our last full day in South Africa, we will visit Robben Island.  Robben Island has been used as prison and a place where people were isolated, banished and exiled to for nearly 400 years. It was also used as a post office, a grazing ground, a mental hospital and an outpost.  Initially the island was inhabited by a variety of wildlife, including birds, penguins, seals and tortoises. Its name  "robben"  is derived from the Dutch, meaning a seal. It also had a plentiful supply of fresh water available from a number of springs. Batolomeu Dias, the Portuguese explorer, 'discovered' the island in 1488 when he anchored his ship in Table Bay.    During apartheid many Black people were kept on Robben Island as political prisoners. Former President Nelson Mandela was kept there for 18 of the 27 years he served in prison before the end of apartheid. The prison is internationally notorious for its harsh conditions and when the political prisoners of the apa...

Much of our time will be spent in Hermanus,  a town on the southern coast of the  Western Cape  province of  South Africa . It is known for  Southern Right whale  watching during the southern winter to spring seasons.  Hermanus lies along  Walker Bay  on the south coast of the  Western Cape . It is located about 115 km southeast of  Cape Town  and  is 40 km from  Gansbaai , a spot where people can dive among the  great white sharks .  It is also notable that Hermanus still boasts a historic railway station building without a railway line. The founders of the town decided not to lay any tracks as this would have made Hermanus more commercial and felt that Hermanus needed to stay a small fisherman's village. To this day the locals still refer to it as "the village." While in Hermanus We will be meeting with several South African leaders who worked closely with Archbishop Tutu, or are involved with th...