Right, I know my holiday in South Africa was a few months ago, but I just got the pictures recently and haven't got round to putting them on here. They're in the right order of how they happened, starting in Cape Town and ending in Durban at God's Golden Acre, the orphanage where my brother Dan worked for 7 months. 

On a boat to see some seals. Before the sunburn! 

Me eating a most disgustingly beautiful ice cream sundae, next to the ocean and a white beach and glorious sunshine - the one that made me look something like the next photo. 

Me sunburnt on the wine tour...who drinks wine at 10am?  

Later on in the wine tour, me and Dan infront of some AMAZING scenery. 

This is at the orphanage now where Dan worked. This is 3 of the lads doing gumboot dancing (notice the welly boots) 

5am - we went for a gorgeous sunrise walk, through all the snake infested grass. This must have the only time on the whole holiday where I was a bit cold! 

Me and Xolo (pronounced with a click of the tongue) at GGA, outside the clinic. 

This is me yesterday in a huge rain, thunder and lightning storm. I thought it looked fun, and I was right! I went out in the back yard and within minutes I was completely drenched through, but thoroughly enjoyed myself and aren't any worse for wear today! I also at one point sat on the shed roof to watch it all, we've got a cracking view of a huge portion of sky from my shed roof!
 

Long live Bob Geldof

Last night I watched a documentary about the lead up to Live Aid, that absolutely mint concert that I would have loved to have been at on July 13th 1985 (I wasn't even alive then!) Bob Geldof is my hero. He is the most amazing man, and one of the most important men on this planet. Yeh, he's rude, he swears, people are scared of him. But to be honest, he has got more done for poverty that anyone. HE GETS THINGS DONE. He can talk anybody into doing anything, and if it takes being rude and swearing to do that, then go for it. If only there were more Christians with the guts he's got, with the anger he's got towards the poverty in this world. He has spent years working against it. Man, I wish I were more like him. I wish everyone was. If more people did half the stuff he did, instead of sitting around just letting him (and Bono) do the dirty work, this world would be so much better off.

We are doing this course at Church called the Forty Days of Purpose. Ok, so I haven't been reading the book we're meant to (exams have kind of got in the way!) but I've been to the Bible studies and the Church services. 2 out of 3 isn't bad. And the theme of this past week was about worship. About giving yourself as a living sacrifice to God. About giving everything you've got into worshipping Him. And from that of course, leads onto this whole poverty thing. Love one another. "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:40) What am I doing for them? Nothing. Yet. I will be soon. For now I'm doing exams which I'm not sure how are going to help me in life. I pray I'll find a way they can. Who knows what I'll be doing next year? Or in 20 years? I have no clue. But I pray I'll be helping those who need it.

I wish I was going to Live 8. That would be absolutely fantastically brilliantly wonderfully amazing. But I didn't get tickets. Instead I'll be sat in a house in Cwmbran in Wales, not doing a lot really. Shame. If its on the tv live, I'll be glued to the tv all day. Except maybe when Maria Carey is on. I know someone who got tickets. He'll be there, I'll be jealous.

Long live Bobg Geldof. Or atleast people with his guts, anger, courage and love.

I booked my gap year flights yesterday. I am now £999.40 in debt to my parents. Hmmm. However, this £999.40 gets me from Newcastle to London, London to New York City for a week, NYC to Miami, Miami to Bogota, 6 months later Bogota to Miami to London to Newcastle. And I've paid the taxes. And I've got insurance which covers me for everything including hostage. Which might be useful in Colombia, because obviously I'm gonna get kidnapped or something (so people keep telling me!) So I'm gonna have a great week with a lovely friend of mine, which will be lovely, and I might get to stay for the weekend in NYC before going to Philadelphia to stay with my lovely friend. Qujite exciting really!

I'm technically skipping English right now. It is the last lesson though, and it was a 'drop in' lesson where we could go if we wanted. I didn't want. So I went to the library, sat for half an hour revising homeostasis for biology, and now am in the common room here. Listening to lots of people talk, listen to music and theres a group of lads next to me playing a facinating and rather fun game called '10 point ball'. They actually use rolled up balls of paper, and throw them across the room towards a rather suspect hole in the corner of a desk. Whoever gets their ball nearest the hole gets the point. Its a good game. A lot of fun.

This keyboard isn't the best ever. It's quite frustrating.

Today, as I leave school tomorrow, is the last CU of this year. So we're gonna have a party. I've bought a cake (Sainsbury's special) and play some games. Should be fun! I can't believe I leave school tomorrow. I'll be finished! I do have 6 exams after that though, but my days of going to lessons will be over. Shame! Quite sad actually. We're having an assembly tomorrow morning, our leavers assembly. The posters for it say 'Year 13 - You've All Been Framed'. Is that supposed to be an incentive to go? I think they're gonna show our rather embarrassing year 9 pictures with some sort of caption under it. Funny I guess!

Our new car arrives today.

Anyway, as much fun as this has been, I'm going now.

Just a small donation....?!?!?

Before my brother went to South Africa, he visited a guitar shop that is down the street from me and was chatting to the guy, Morris, who owns the shop. They got on the topic of South Africa, and he offered Daniel a few guitars, for free, to donate to the orphanage. He kept his word, except it ended up being 13 guitars plus cases, all a donation. Pretty amazing stuff. I must point out this guy is not a Christian, this was no word from the Lord. Daniel sent us a photo from South Africa of him and the kids with the guitars. We gave a copy of the photo to Morris, who put it up in his shop. The rep of the company Morris buys his guitars from was in the shop the other day and saw the photo. He asked 'would Daniel like some more guitars?' Morris replied, 'I dont know, I'll ask him because he's back in town.' So Daniel went into the shop this morning and was asked if he needed more guitars. The answer was no, because he's not there anymore and they dont need more guitars. However, he did point out that I was going to Colombia to do similar work in a few months. 'So,' Morris asks, 'would I like some guitars donated?' 'Yes, of course.' I've never even met Morris and he's going to donate some guitars, plus maybe some other instruments!! How insane is that. He has such a heart, I wish he were a man of God! I couldn't believe it when Daniel told me that this afternoon after I got home from work.