Making the voyage to Robben Island was a very memorable experience. Robben Island is the harsh prison where Nelson Mandela, among other anti-apartheid activists, was sentenced for his political involvement during the anti-apartheid struggle.

What was once a prison has now become a famous tourist site where people can tour Section B and other areas escorted by guides—all of whom are former prisoners.

During the tour, we learned about the prison’s history, participated in a question-and-answer session, and were given the opportunity to see the very cell that Nelson Mandela stayed in so many years ago.

On the day of our trip, the Morehouse College and Butler University group took a 30-minute ferry ride to the island. Watching the sun hit the waves of the ocean as we journeyed to the island was an incredible sight. This vision of beauty, however, also made me aware of the irony of the Robben Island trip.

The island was quite beautiful. There were many exotic animals that occupied the place and fed on the natural vegetation. When we arrived, the sun was shining on the tall tree tops, the gardens that Mandela planted during his incarceration were in full bloom, the grass was green, and the young tour guide was vibrant and entertaining, intertwining facts about the island and South Africa’s history with humor.

But after seeing the beauty of the place, it was difficult for me to reconcile this image with the realization of what a horrible place this island was when it was operating as a maximum-security prison.

Now, after much reflection on the trip, I can appreciate Robben Island for what it truly was. What is now a famous tourist attraction was once a place of torture for its inhabitants. Yet, even while inside the prison walls, I saw that there were elements of beauty.

The tour guide told us how the inmates literally built the prison walls and planted all of the beautiful foliage that surrounds it even today. The disheartening fact is that the political prisoners were deprived of viewing all of this beautiful life. Political prisoners were on a 23-hour lock down. They were allowed outside once in the morning and once before bed during the late evening. During this time, they were only permitted outside of the cells to roam about the roofless grassed area inside the prison walls. Never during their sentence were they allowed to view the outstanding wildlife that surrounded them, unless they were on their way to work in the nearby limestone quarry – only a short walk from the prison’s gray walls.

This was a very troubling reality for me to consume on my way to the mainland and as we walked to the hotel. I concentrated less on the beauty of the water, but more so on how liberating it must have been for the released prisoners to make that same journey back to civilization. After many years of incarceration, it must have been a feeling of pure bliss to feel the naked sun on their cheeks, to see the water splash, and to hear the animals calling each other.

Finally, after concentrating on these released prisoners, I allowed myself to appreciate South Africa for what it truly is: a beautiful country with a troubling history but a seemingly promising future.