Revolution – one K-Way tent at a time

We all know the feeling, you wake up, covered in sweat, back aching from a floor mattress. You struggle to find the zip for the tent flap, and eventually let in that nice cool breeze…

Usually, you walk out into a beautiful Cape campsite, but some of our fellow students have found themselves walking out into the scenic grounds of the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) or the University of Cape Town (UCT). While camping isn’t for everyone, it has been quite interesting for those of us who love camping to see the latest version of it, a phenomena commonly named “encampment”.

Columbia University has caused a bit of a trend, even reaching the tip of Africa nogal. As an experienced camper of 12 years, I thought I’d give some sage advice to these encampers or whatever these fledgling ground-huggers are called.

The weather

Every good maddie knows that to keep your campers happy, you have to keep them dry. A camp in mid-May comes with its weather challenges, and as the temperature drops, so does morale. It’s very important to make sure the nice Wits management turns off the university’s sprinklers, just saying. Such surprises never make channies very happy…

Wet tents mean wet belongings means grumpy kids who’ll call their parents while grumpy and sick. Or in this case, local or international news stations.

The not so happy campers of machaneh east campus made their complaints known. In a JacarandaFM article they wrote, “We’re really hoping that Wits will respond because it’s getting really cold, and we don’t want to stay here every night, but we’ll stay here every night, and it’s going to lead to people getting sick, and we don’t want that.”

We get it. It’s tough being a revolutionary, but being a cold revolutionary may just be too much of a challenge for some. So, just a hint to the encampers: it’s never a bad idea to watch the weather and if it’s winter, cabins might work better, and you can save the tents for summer machaneh.

Food

You may think that ideology or activity rosters are the most vital thing on camp, but you’re wrong – it’s always food. We totally understand that. No matter how x-factor and educational the peulot (activities) are, a camper’s memory of the day will be their gross veg curry meal. Keep campers fed well, and they’ll behave well. Not rocket science!

However, even the most spoilt kugels among us would never expect their maddies, or in this case the university management, to hand deliver their meals to their campsite. I mean, come on, you’re meant to at least appear to be like revolutionaries, not northern-suburb brats. We did notice, however, that the Woolies shopping bags were delivered to make sure students were well fed and energised.

When catering for camp, it’s important to cater for all dietary requirements. From the vegans and the gluten frees to the banana allergens, there’s always something new these days. However, as good camp co-ordinators do, we check this all out beforehand. A reminder if you’re sending meals to your kids on the frontline of campus tents, be sure to take note of the allergies of the encampers you’re supplying. This has been a problem in some Ivy League hotspots. In the Daily Bruin, University of California, Los Angeles’ student newspaper, the following was printed, “Due to a student having a severe banana allergy within the encampment [in Columbia], all food is vetted for bananas before entering the food supply. On Friday, counter protesters were seen waving bananas in the air after hearing about the student’s allergy.”

As Bobba always says, a revolution can’t happen on an empty stomach.

Programming

Programming makes or breaks the camping experience. And a campfire will often raise spirits and get bonding going. To ensure a successful campfire, it’s important not to forget to have plenty of Blitz, a few rounds of wood, and a guitar to bring the vibes. It’s cool to hang around and sing songs for a bit, but as soon as you hear your second reiteration of Wonderwall by Oasis, it gets old.

It’s important to ensure that your schedule is jam-packed with educational and insightful activities. And it’s essential to have a clear ideological vision about what you want to teach. Think about ways to protest things that can be tangibly achieved, just saying. Is protesting for “sincere reflection” by the university truly the definition of an impactful and sincere cause?

Health

Even before the pandemic, us campers knew that flu spreads and spreads fast in a tight space. Luckily, we have our sick bay and doctors to quarantine the ill, acting as a comfortable retreat for sickly campers. If your campsite isn’t as advanced, we recommend trying to maintain good levels of hygiene to ensure you don’t get sick. Those at UCT’s machaneh upper campus faced some bad luck, getting an outbreak of COVID-19. How retro! So always remember, pack some extra masks, sanitiser, and get your mom to stash some extra Panados.

All in all, it’s wise to understand that camping isn’t for everyone. You have to make sure that you’re adequately prepared. Go down to your local Cape Union Mart for all your equipment needs, and it will surely keep you warm and dry. Don’t forget to pre-order and pre-approve your marquee.

It’s often best to save camping for December and in the meantime, constructive conversation and critical thinking is a great alternative.