I've visited South Africa four times, each visit a mixture of volunteering, adventure and relaxation. It took me once to fall in love with it, and twice to make it feel like home. There is no place like it.

It's easy to fall in love with its natural beauty, whether it's a hike up Table Mountain, a Sunday night concert in Kirstenbosch Bontanical Garden, or a walk along with waterfront.

What's less obvious is the beauty that lives within its people. In my volunteer work I have the privilege of working in the townships outside of Cape Town with communities devastated by HIV/AIDS, deep in the grips of poverty, and without the security of knowing what the next meal is or where they'll find it.

And you would think it would feel desperate and hopeless, and yet what I experience is a feeling of hope and gratitude and community. Whether it's the NGO dedicated to making even a small difference in the life of one neighbor. Or the widow who takes it upon herself to create a home for another orphan. Or kids finding a way to just be kids in the middle of it all.

In South Africa life is beautful.