It has been a while since I have been on here. I keep promising myself that I will find time to sit down and write about what I am doing now...
Until then I can be contacted at jennyinafrica@gmail.com
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Monday, August 4, 2008
IT'S OVER!
I haven't blogged for a while now. I have been busy re-entering CANADIAN LIFE...
All the speeches have been spoken...all the papers have be filed....and all the THANK-YOU's have been given...
Now I am back home.
What is next?!
All the speeches have been spoken...all the papers have be filed....and all the THANK-YOU's have been given...
Now I am back home.
What is next?!
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
A muzungu Auntie!
Before I came to Uganda I would email to Dr. Tusu and ask him a lot of questions about what I should expect in Uganda, was there anything I had to bring from home that I couldn’t get in Uganda, school set up and so on….from these e-mails I met my FAVORITE Ugandan! Maureen. At the time, before Tusu’s retirement, Maureen was his secretary. Maureen is such a kind hearted friendly woman. This year in Uganda she helped me a lot and without her warm hugs I don’t know what would have happened to me. I am going to miss her very much when I head back to Canada…but I am hoping that one day she visits Canada, so I can show her my home.
A couple of months into my visit I found out that Maureen was pregnant with her third baby. She was hoping that this would be her little boy so she could “close that chapter of the book!!”
Last week when I called her I found that she was in the hospital and in Labour…I was so excited, but I was so nervous…I hate to see people in pain and when it’s a friend I get really defensive and protective!!
I had been to Mulago hospital a couple of times during my “Ugandan occupancy” and was quite impressed with the structure…Maureen was in the private ward which meant a little cleaner and a little better care! I found Maureen surrounded by a circle of her lady friends…(In Ugandan the men don’t really appear until its time to pay the bill!).
Maureen is such an amazing woman…unlike myself, she is very tough to read…she kept her composure the entire time…one had to believe that she was in a great deal of pain, but by looking and speaking to her, one could be fooled…
3 days later…. that little bundle had not arrived…I went to the hospital to see her and a few very interesting things were going on!
Quite common for North America, but quite new for Uganda is YOGA…especially in the expecting ward. The nurse told Maureen about the Yoga ball and I said I would show her what to do…it was hilarious…Maureen sat on it for a while and after a while her cousin Helen wanted to try it out and asked me to show her some techniques…
Sidebar: We are not in private rooms here!!! One open area with 4 beds divided by curtains (much like home) with a little hallway in the middle.
In the corridor there was about 6 people who became our audience…
I laid on the ball (so I looked like a see-saw) and then walked my hands on the floor till the ball was positioned almost on my toes and then I showed her how to do push-ups…then I sat on the ball and showed her how to do crunches. The audience watched as this white lady rolled around on an oversized ball. Then it was Helens turn…Helen is…a bit…bigger than me…okay much bigger than me…she is a Ugandan lady! She mimics me and gets the ball to her thighs and then looses her balance and flops to the floor. Maureen and her mom were laughing hysterically, but the faces of the people in the corridor…I bet we made their week!
Finally on the morning of May 5th Dwayne David my little muddugavu nephew was born! What a cute and peaceful baby. I held him and we moved him around and not one peep from him. Maureen told me everyone told her that he is fair skinned because she looked at me too much!
I am a proud Auntie…but even more I am grateful that Maureen is my friend and gave me the chance to be hers and share with me many happy moments.
A couple of months into my visit I found out that Maureen was pregnant with her third baby. She was hoping that this would be her little boy so she could “close that chapter of the book!!”
Last week when I called her I found that she was in the hospital and in Labour…I was so excited, but I was so nervous…I hate to see people in pain and when it’s a friend I get really defensive and protective!!
I had been to Mulago hospital a couple of times during my “Ugandan occupancy” and was quite impressed with the structure…Maureen was in the private ward which meant a little cleaner and a little better care! I found Maureen surrounded by a circle of her lady friends…(In Ugandan the men don’t really appear until its time to pay the bill!).
Maureen is such an amazing woman…unlike myself, she is very tough to read…she kept her composure the entire time…one had to believe that she was in a great deal of pain, but by looking and speaking to her, one could be fooled…
3 days later…. that little bundle had not arrived…I went to the hospital to see her and a few very interesting things were going on!
Quite common for North America, but quite new for Uganda is YOGA…especially in the expecting ward. The nurse told Maureen about the Yoga ball and I said I would show her what to do…it was hilarious…Maureen sat on it for a while and after a while her cousin Helen wanted to try it out and asked me to show her some techniques…
Sidebar: We are not in private rooms here!!! One open area with 4 beds divided by curtains (much like home) with a little hallway in the middle.
In the corridor there was about 6 people who became our audience…
I laid on the ball (so I looked like a see-saw) and then walked my hands on the floor till the ball was positioned almost on my toes and then I showed her how to do push-ups…then I sat on the ball and showed her how to do crunches. The audience watched as this white lady rolled around on an oversized ball. Then it was Helens turn…Helen is…a bit…bigger than me…okay much bigger than me…she is a Ugandan lady! She mimics me and gets the ball to her thighs and then looses her balance and flops to the floor. Maureen and her mom were laughing hysterically, but the faces of the people in the corridor…I bet we made their week!
Finally on the morning of May 5th Dwayne David my little muddugavu nephew was born! What a cute and peaceful baby. I held him and we moved him around and not one peep from him. Maureen told me everyone told her that he is fair skinned because she looked at me too much!
I am a proud Auntie…but even more I am grateful that Maureen is my friend and gave me the chance to be hers and share with me many happy moments.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
The land of 1000 rolling hills...
I have returned from my wonderful journey to Rwanda. The capital of Rwanda is Kigali and is 575 Km southwest of Kampala, Uganda. The bus ride took around 8 hours and was very scenic, especially after the equator in Uganda as the vegetation changed and the terrain became more mountainous.
Upon entering Kigali I was amazed at the cleanliness and organization. The roads were paved; there were crosswalks that people actually respected, there were flower gardens and water sprinklers and people walking around with brooms and garbage bags. It is very obvious to see that Rwandans care deeply about the appearance of their country.
I arrive on Sunday the 6th of April. The second week of April is reserved for the national week of mourning in which Monday is a public holiday and then the rest of the week people began work later and finishes work earlier. Contrary to American popularization Rwanda was plagued with genocides. Beginning early in history and increasing. There were genocides in 87, 90, 92, 94, and 97. Millions of people were murdered over the years and the results of those genocides are very evident as the population of Rwanda is quite small.
The country as I said is very beautiful, but as for tourism there is not that much to see. There is of course the genocide memorials, which are sad to view, but necessary if one wants to understand their history deeper, and then they have gorilla trekking; however, that is at least $600 and in my opinion sad because it destroys their habitat.
I did a complete tour of the country. Starting in the north and traveling south to Ntarama and Nyamata to see the genocide memorials, then south again to Butare which is the educational center of Rwanda-it houses the national museum and national university, from there I did a day trip into Burundi to see a completely different country that is still recovering from its numerous genocides and wars, then west to Cyangugu, a town used mainly for trading between Rwanda and D.R. Congo, and then North to Kibyue on Lake Kivu. A stunningly beautiful town situated on a lake and hugged by rolling hills. It was in this town that the largest numbers of Tutsi were killed…almost 90% of the killings took place in this town. It was hard for me to believe that such a small isolated beauty witnessed such horrors.
A little over a week later I arrived back in Kigali. I wanted to spend half the day at the genocide museum since I had heard that it was quite amazing. I spent three hours there that Monday and shed a lot of tears. The museum is spectacular and is quite honest in its depictions. Every year thousands of saviors visit the memorial to remember their loved ones that were killed in the genocides. There are films that visitors can watch about the survivors who tell their stories, there is a room devoted to the victims of the genocides and you can view their pictures that were donated by their family member. Also there were pictures of children that were murdered and for me that was one of the hardest things, it gave a small story about some of the children telling what kind of food, drink, activity, sport, that they liked and at the bottom explained how they were killed. Maybe you could guess if you used your most vivid imagination.
In the other memorials that I visited you can still view the clothing that the victims were wearing. The clothing is a very important momentums and the United Nations used the clothing to identify the remains back in 1994. During the killings people used to flock to churches because they believed that such murder could never take place in the house of god, but sadly the murderers waited and butchered everyone that was inside. Some of the family members never went to the churches and hid in trenches, woods, gardens, toilets, etc…so after the 100 days of killings and after things settled down when the United Nations came in the began to exhume the bodies from mass graves, fields, churches, schools, and so on they use to remove the clothing and number them and their accompanying body then they would place the clothing outside on the street and the survivors would come and look at the clothing. If the survivors would recognize the clothing they would know that their family member was killed and there were free to take the body and give it a proper burial. The clothing can still be seen hanging in the churches today. It is terrifying.
While I was in museum I learned about a different weapon that was used to kill. I understand that rape is used as a weapon of war, but in Rwanda they used it on a whole new level that still makes me stick to my stomach. Murderers with HIV and AIDS raped women to infect them and left them to die a slow and painful death. Because of the way the international community treated the genocide the women were not able to get anti retroviral drugs in time and therefore cant be helped.
Rwanda today appears to be at peace with Hutu’s and Tutsi’s living peacefully together, however, in my opinion if such a hatred was conditioned for hundreds of years then there has to be an underlying hatred still alive today. I think the government is very competent and working hard to recover from the past and its important for the world to know what happened and help Rwanda spread their words of “NEVER AGAIN”.
I will be uploading photos as soon as I can get a good enough connection.
I also attended a Rotary meeting in Rwanda at Hotel de Milles Collines…(otherwise known as Hotel Rwanda!)
Thursday, March 27, 2008
March in Uganda
I see that I am not getting as many replies and comments on my blogs…perhaps I haven’t tickled your interests lately? Sorry about that! I’ll try harder.
March can be summarized as Easter, rain, boredom, and rain…and a little errrrrrrrrr!
Let me just recap a little, so no one is lost:
This year we started classes in March. The entire school was on strike almost the entire month of February and then needed some time to prepare for classes…so we began in March. I was under the impression (as I was so many times here) that our class fieldwork would last 3 weeks (as it did in the years before) and this year our class was going to Rwanda. I was so excited thinking we would have almost one month in Rwanda…after moving to Uganda I have heard so many wonderful things about Rwanda and how hard they have worked to pull together after the genocide. For the first time since August I thought, “Wow I am really going to learn something”. The arguments started and the complaints of the travel feaing classmates could be heard echoing from the walls and before I could blink we were only going for four (4) days. (Ok…for those of you geographically impaired...Rwanda is about an 8 hour bus ride South-southeast…) Therefore I am counting one day of travel and two days for Ugandan confusion aka what do we do now? I was so letdown and didn’t see any point in going for that short time (for the money it was going to cost). They chose the dates and I stayed home. Those four days I never went to class, because there were no classes, and I caught up on reading and cleaning! On that Friday, I went to the University to see one of my good friends who works for my host father. After I finished my visit I was walking to the bus when I heard someone yell, “Hey you are walking the wrong way…classes are this way” I looked around and saw a car full of my classmates heading to another building. I just continued walking…a little more hastily and with my blood starting to bubble. I called my American Classmate and explained. After about 6 phone calls we found out that the class had NEVER gone to Rwanda and they were attending lectures for those four days. I NEVER RECEIVED ONE PHONE CALL OR EMAIL…and every classmate has a class list. To make matters even worse on the following Monday when I got to class NO one spoke to me. NO one apologized; NO one asked me where I was.
The competition here for grades and good students is brutal and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was bloodshed over this in the past.
There is a Japanese girl who is a student at Makerere, but she is here on exchange for her undergraduate degree. We have become friends and complaint buddies. She experiences the same problems, obstacles, confusion, and sexism as me. After I explained the situation to her she said “lets go to Rwanda for longer and do everything that your class was suppose to do and MORE!” Therefore, I have suggested that we travel there and spend time so that we are there during the anniversary of the genocide on April 14th, 2008. I have read some great books written about the genocide and while I was at Penn State University I even had the privilege of meeting one of the United Nations Forensic Anthropologists and asked her some questions. I want to visit the sites that she spoke of. I am also going to find and attend a Rotary meeting to get more questions that I have answered! We are scheduled to be in Rwanda from the 9th to the 18th of April.
So… on the school front…no progress…I am still a white, FEMALE, scholarship recipient! (or…as I assured its understood…a colonizing, no-rights, rich, threat…If that seems harsh…you are welcome to come visit and see for yourself)
Next…Easter…
I assumed that Easter would be a big celebration in Uganda as Christmas was. There were no classes from Thursday to Tuesday, so I expected to rest. On Thursday I came back from town and when I walked up the stairs the Sudanese neighbours were preparing their foods for their weekend feast. They had huge pail fulls of onions, okra, and carrots among other vegetables. Then…as my eyes left the vegetables and focused back onto my path I noticed their meat of choice. Sadly, her four feet were tied to the second story railing this poor, beautiful goat. (It reminded me of the Bugs Bunny cartoon when they would put a pig on the spit…all that was missing was the apple in the mouth) I bent down beside her and patted her face and told her how sorry I was. (yes…I am an animal lover)
The next morning I woke up and opened my door, curtains, and windows to let in the warm breeze and I could hear this loud obnoxious noise. A second of concentration later my eyes finally caught up with my ears and I almost vomited. They had murdered that poor goat in the courtyard. Then, they decapitated, and allowed their eight-year-old son to take an iron pole and repeatedly beat the head of the animal. I thought about how much I wanted to become a vegetarian again.
All day the family cooked like busy bees and I was busy cleaning the apartment. A couple hours later I started smelling a very strange smell. I was unable to place the aroma; however, I was witness to the goat murder and the psychology of the whole thing was a rot in my stomach. I decided that I had to get out of the apartment for the day. As I left the courtyard I saw about 30 large fish heads being stewed.
I returned very late AFTER they were finished feasting.
The rain…
I would assume that it is the rainy season, but who knows anymore. Global warming is a huge problem…and its sad…maybe if Al Gore would have won Florida we would be doing something about it rather than dying and killing in Iraq. (Yes…I am feisty today!) Anyway…Its been raining and raining here. I am not sure how clean my apartment can get. I have been reading a lot (thanks to John and the books that he sends me). It rains so hard sometimes that the floor in my bedroom has become a swimming pool. This might not be understood at home, but try to think about it for a minute. Uganda is so incredibly dirty and dusty…not to be mean…just that there is a lot of dust in the air. When you walk on the street and a car drives by you can literally chew the air. Now, one would think that with all the rain (12-15 hour downpours 5 times a week) that the dust would settle…NO…it doesn’t…it’s an anomaly…it doesn’t really matter, but it’s a head scratcher!
Let me just say a little more about school (aka the not so educational-educational institution)
I really want to know my grades from last semester. I am an overachiever that has had the love from education ripped out from beneath me. Last night in class the teacher comes in and starts talking about grades and how some people never handed in their papers. (I’m like..phew…I handed my in!) Then he proceeds to say how the papers that he received where just regurgitated class lectures and some people based just on their paper would have failed. I’m starting to sweat…THEN…looks at me and says that my paper went beyond the class lectures and had been researched and well thought out!!! I didn’t look around, but I can bet my life that those classmates were squirming. THEN he proceeds to read the list of the papers he NEVER received. Guess what? My name was on the list…and my group was on the list. Therefore, he complemented me on my paper that he read, but never received. AND…therefore, could not be graded.
Oh…and just to put the cherry on the top on the 15 layer cake…students from the program who just graduated, from the 2 year program, JUST received their grades from the first semester, a month before they graduated- after completing 4 semesters!!!
So…I rest my case.
Comments please?
March can be summarized as Easter, rain, boredom, and rain…and a little errrrrrrrrr!
Let me just recap a little, so no one is lost:
This year we started classes in March. The entire school was on strike almost the entire month of February and then needed some time to prepare for classes…so we began in March. I was under the impression (as I was so many times here) that our class fieldwork would last 3 weeks (as it did in the years before) and this year our class was going to Rwanda. I was so excited thinking we would have almost one month in Rwanda…after moving to Uganda I have heard so many wonderful things about Rwanda and how hard they have worked to pull together after the genocide. For the first time since August I thought, “Wow I am really going to learn something”. The arguments started and the complaints of the travel feaing classmates could be heard echoing from the walls and before I could blink we were only going for four (4) days. (Ok…for those of you geographically impaired...Rwanda is about an 8 hour bus ride South-southeast…) Therefore I am counting one day of travel and two days for Ugandan confusion aka what do we do now? I was so letdown and didn’t see any point in going for that short time (for the money it was going to cost). They chose the dates and I stayed home. Those four days I never went to class, because there were no classes, and I caught up on reading and cleaning! On that Friday, I went to the University to see one of my good friends who works for my host father. After I finished my visit I was walking to the bus when I heard someone yell, “Hey you are walking the wrong way…classes are this way” I looked around and saw a car full of my classmates heading to another building. I just continued walking…a little more hastily and with my blood starting to bubble. I called my American Classmate and explained. After about 6 phone calls we found out that the class had NEVER gone to Rwanda and they were attending lectures for those four days. I NEVER RECEIVED ONE PHONE CALL OR EMAIL…and every classmate has a class list. To make matters even worse on the following Monday when I got to class NO one spoke to me. NO one apologized; NO one asked me where I was.
The competition here for grades and good students is brutal and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was bloodshed over this in the past.
There is a Japanese girl who is a student at Makerere, but she is here on exchange for her undergraduate degree. We have become friends and complaint buddies. She experiences the same problems, obstacles, confusion, and sexism as me. After I explained the situation to her she said “lets go to Rwanda for longer and do everything that your class was suppose to do and MORE!” Therefore, I have suggested that we travel there and spend time so that we are there during the anniversary of the genocide on April 14th, 2008. I have read some great books written about the genocide and while I was at Penn State University I even had the privilege of meeting one of the United Nations Forensic Anthropologists and asked her some questions. I want to visit the sites that she spoke of. I am also going to find and attend a Rotary meeting to get more questions that I have answered! We are scheduled to be in Rwanda from the 9th to the 18th of April.
So… on the school front…no progress…I am still a white, FEMALE, scholarship recipient! (or…as I assured its understood…a colonizing, no-rights, rich, threat…If that seems harsh…you are welcome to come visit and see for yourself)
Next…Easter…
I assumed that Easter would be a big celebration in Uganda as Christmas was. There were no classes from Thursday to Tuesday, so I expected to rest. On Thursday I came back from town and when I walked up the stairs the Sudanese neighbours were preparing their foods for their weekend feast. They had huge pail fulls of onions, okra, and carrots among other vegetables. Then…as my eyes left the vegetables and focused back onto my path I noticed their meat of choice. Sadly, her four feet were tied to the second story railing this poor, beautiful goat. (It reminded me of the Bugs Bunny cartoon when they would put a pig on the spit…all that was missing was the apple in the mouth) I bent down beside her and patted her face and told her how sorry I was. (yes…I am an animal lover)
The next morning I woke up and opened my door, curtains, and windows to let in the warm breeze and I could hear this loud obnoxious noise. A second of concentration later my eyes finally caught up with my ears and I almost vomited. They had murdered that poor goat in the courtyard. Then, they decapitated, and allowed their eight-year-old son to take an iron pole and repeatedly beat the head of the animal. I thought about how much I wanted to become a vegetarian again.
All day the family cooked like busy bees and I was busy cleaning the apartment. A couple hours later I started smelling a very strange smell. I was unable to place the aroma; however, I was witness to the goat murder and the psychology of the whole thing was a rot in my stomach. I decided that I had to get out of the apartment for the day. As I left the courtyard I saw about 30 large fish heads being stewed.
I returned very late AFTER they were finished feasting.
The rain…
I would assume that it is the rainy season, but who knows anymore. Global warming is a huge problem…and its sad…maybe if Al Gore would have won Florida we would be doing something about it rather than dying and killing in Iraq. (Yes…I am feisty today!) Anyway…Its been raining and raining here. I am not sure how clean my apartment can get. I have been reading a lot (thanks to John and the books that he sends me). It rains so hard sometimes that the floor in my bedroom has become a swimming pool. This might not be understood at home, but try to think about it for a minute. Uganda is so incredibly dirty and dusty…not to be mean…just that there is a lot of dust in the air. When you walk on the street and a car drives by you can literally chew the air. Now, one would think that with all the rain (12-15 hour downpours 5 times a week) that the dust would settle…NO…it doesn’t…it’s an anomaly…it doesn’t really matter, but it’s a head scratcher!
Let me just say a little more about school (aka the not so educational-educational institution)
I really want to know my grades from last semester. I am an overachiever that has had the love from education ripped out from beneath me. Last night in class the teacher comes in and starts talking about grades and how some people never handed in their papers. (I’m like..phew…I handed my in!) Then he proceeds to say how the papers that he received where just regurgitated class lectures and some people based just on their paper would have failed. I’m starting to sweat…THEN…looks at me and says that my paper went beyond the class lectures and had been researched and well thought out!!! I didn’t look around, but I can bet my life that those classmates were squirming. THEN he proceeds to read the list of the papers he NEVER received. Guess what? My name was on the list…and my group was on the list. Therefore, he complemented me on my paper that he read, but never received. AND…therefore, could not be graded.
Oh…and just to put the cherry on the top on the 15 layer cake…students from the program who just graduated, from the 2 year program, JUST received their grades from the first semester, a month before they graduated- after completing 4 semesters!!!
So…I rest my case.
Comments please?
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Another meeting...
March 17, 2008
Rotary Mengo
Speaker: Rotarian Stephen Mwanje
Attendance: 39
Today’s meeting was a little different because our president was in Northern Uganda working on prospective Rotary projects, so we had a substitute!
The meeting started as usual with the four-way test, introductions, and a salute to the president of Uganda. Followed by announcements:
The final report is being written about “home of champions” project in Iganga and that a provisional club that is sponsored by the club will be holding a meeting a new hotel in town, Imperial Royale, on Friday’s at 6pm.
Then a Rotarian summarized the February edition of the Rotarian, but paying special attention to polio facts. He stressed how important it was to support and continue to support the 4 pandemic areas: Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India.
Guest speaker Rtn. Mwanje spoke about literacy and explained that after to water, literacy is the most important. He asked Rotarians if they understood the meaning of literacy and then explained that of the 60% of countries that are illiterate 50% of them are in Sub-Sahara Africa and of those most are women and children.
Mr. Mwanje told a story to explain that literacy leads to poverty. He explained that in his village people sign things without understanding what is written and people take their property, land, and animals.
He went on to talk about an election that was held and how over 50% of the votes were voided because the voters did not understand what they had to do. People were crossing out all of the boxes except for one thinking that they couldn’t place an X beside the name of the person that they wanted.
Ugandan Rotarians were urged to help think of ways to educate, but more importantly the speaker urged the importance of planning. He said, “Planning helps us to focus, to appreciate, to inform members, and to iron out failures.”
Mr. Mwanje’s speech was short, but his words were clear and concise. Too many Ugandans are illiterate and there is no time like the present to start to end this problem.
After the speech there was a time for questions and comments. I will share one of the questions. “Can someone be illiterate if they can’t speak the language: for example; if I were to go to China and I cant speak Chinese does that mean I am illiterate?”
The speaker did not really answer the question…but again this is an all to common problem here in Uganda. A majority of people are too quick to find excuses and point out why problems exist or find someone to blame the problem on. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter that Ugandan’s are illiterate. The national language is English…that means people should be able to read and write in English. Let’s stop finding people to blame and excuses for the problems and lets work on solving it.
Isn’t part of a solution admitting that a problem exists in the first place?
Rotary Mengo
Speaker: Rotarian Stephen Mwanje
Attendance: 39
Today’s meeting was a little different because our president was in Northern Uganda working on prospective Rotary projects, so we had a substitute!
The meeting started as usual with the four-way test, introductions, and a salute to the president of Uganda. Followed by announcements:
The final report is being written about “home of champions” project in Iganga and that a provisional club that is sponsored by the club will be holding a meeting a new hotel in town, Imperial Royale, on Friday’s at 6pm.
Then a Rotarian summarized the February edition of the Rotarian, but paying special attention to polio facts. He stressed how important it was to support and continue to support the 4 pandemic areas: Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India.
Guest speaker Rtn. Mwanje spoke about literacy and explained that after to water, literacy is the most important. He asked Rotarians if they understood the meaning of literacy and then explained that of the 60% of countries that are illiterate 50% of them are in Sub-Sahara Africa and of those most are women and children.
Mr. Mwanje told a story to explain that literacy leads to poverty. He explained that in his village people sign things without understanding what is written and people take their property, land, and animals.
He went on to talk about an election that was held and how over 50% of the votes were voided because the voters did not understand what they had to do. People were crossing out all of the boxes except for one thinking that they couldn’t place an X beside the name of the person that they wanted.
Ugandan Rotarians were urged to help think of ways to educate, but more importantly the speaker urged the importance of planning. He said, “Planning helps us to focus, to appreciate, to inform members, and to iron out failures.”
Mr. Mwanje’s speech was short, but his words were clear and concise. Too many Ugandans are illiterate and there is no time like the present to start to end this problem.
After the speech there was a time for questions and comments. I will share one of the questions. “Can someone be illiterate if they can’t speak the language: for example; if I were to go to China and I cant speak Chinese does that mean I am illiterate?”
The speaker did not really answer the question…but again this is an all to common problem here in Uganda. A majority of people are too quick to find excuses and point out why problems exist or find someone to blame the problem on. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter that Ugandan’s are illiterate. The national language is English…that means people should be able to read and write in English. Let’s stop finding people to blame and excuses for the problems and lets work on solving it.
Isn’t part of a solution admitting that a problem exists in the first place?
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Rotary Mondays...
It has been a while since I wrote all about a meeting so I am going to write about my Rotary Mondays so everyone can get a feel for what exactly takes place in the meetings here.
Rotary Club: Mengo (Located a 10 minute bus ride from my house)
Est. January 7th 1988
From 1:00pm -2:00pm (working lunch)
Attendance: 38
The afternoon meeting starts off with a shirt prayer and the four-way test. The president will appoint a different Rotarian every week to lead the two.
Next are introductions of visiting Rotarians, Rotaractors, Interactors and guests. (There are usually many introductions because there are 25 clubs in the city of Kampala).
Following will be announcements and this Monday was my turn to talk about my experience in Egypt and the projects that Egyptian Rotarians were involved in.
Usually the meeting is then directed to the guest speaker who has around 35 minutes of talk time, however, this meeting was a little different and time was divided between a guest speaker and a club assembly (exclusive to Mengo club members).
The guest speaker (a Mengo Rotarian) spoke about land policy and Uganda’s lack of one. The Ugandan government has a huge problem with allocating and distributing land. Unfortunately corruption, money, and greed, are fuel to this ever-expanding problem.
The problems as discussed by the speaker are that everyone sells land when “legally” the only body allowed to do so is the land commission. Apparently 680 acres were set aside for mentally and physically challenged Ugandans, but when you visit the area everyone there BUT the mentally/physically challenged have land titles, even children as young as six years old, of that 680 acres there are 150 that remain.
From my understanding of the speech Ugandan citizens and Ugandan parliament are at a loss. No one knows how land should be given out or distributed, what the process is, what the laws are according to constitution or the land commission.
The speaker also mentioned external organizations and people as the problem (this is not uncommon in Uganda and I hear it all to often in class and in public). The speaker used China as country to blame, stating that Ugandans feel pressured and have to give into the demands of China and their search for minerals.
The speaker concluded by saying that a firm law or amendment needs to be made in the constitution and needs to be followed. Once everyone knows that is there only one law or rule things should even out. As for now there is just too much confusion to understand the facts.
After the speaker was the final toast to Rotary International.
At lunchtime Rotary meetings there is usually a buffet lunch and they range from $5-20 a meal.
During the club assembly (which takes place once a month)
1) Achievements of the club:
20th birthday celebration of the club
Increased fellowship (meeting)
More lively fellowships
Better speakers
Sponsoring of a new club
Strong work in Rotary Community Core (RCC) projects
2) Problems:
Club participation
Poor participation during in country trainings
3) Reports:
Research is being done on Microfinance and scholarships
4) RCC
Buyuki water project is almost complete: Three (3) wells are being constructed and each contains a pump.
There was some confusion about a wheelchair volunteer project, but it will be cleared up at next weeks meeting?
Then the last thing that was discussed was the president asking why Mengo club members are not going to other Rotary meetings in the city. As I mentioned there are 25 clubs in Kampala and the president asks for Mengo members to participate in one other meeting every week to learn about what the other clubs are doing.
There is a club meeting everyday of the week…usually one every lunch and every evening. The president says that finding a club to attend is no excuse!!!
Rotary Club: Mengo (Located a 10 minute bus ride from my house)
Est. January 7th 1988
From 1:00pm -2:00pm (working lunch)
Attendance: 38
The afternoon meeting starts off with a shirt prayer and the four-way test. The president will appoint a different Rotarian every week to lead the two.
Next are introductions of visiting Rotarians, Rotaractors, Interactors and guests. (There are usually many introductions because there are 25 clubs in the city of Kampala).
Following will be announcements and this Monday was my turn to talk about my experience in Egypt and the projects that Egyptian Rotarians were involved in.
Usually the meeting is then directed to the guest speaker who has around 35 minutes of talk time, however, this meeting was a little different and time was divided between a guest speaker and a club assembly (exclusive to Mengo club members).
The guest speaker (a Mengo Rotarian) spoke about land policy and Uganda’s lack of one. The Ugandan government has a huge problem with allocating and distributing land. Unfortunately corruption, money, and greed, are fuel to this ever-expanding problem.
The problems as discussed by the speaker are that everyone sells land when “legally” the only body allowed to do so is the land commission. Apparently 680 acres were set aside for mentally and physically challenged Ugandans, but when you visit the area everyone there BUT the mentally/physically challenged have land titles, even children as young as six years old, of that 680 acres there are 150 that remain.
From my understanding of the speech Ugandan citizens and Ugandan parliament are at a loss. No one knows how land should be given out or distributed, what the process is, what the laws are according to constitution or the land commission.
The speaker also mentioned external organizations and people as the problem (this is not uncommon in Uganda and I hear it all to often in class and in public). The speaker used China as country to blame, stating that Ugandans feel pressured and have to give into the demands of China and their search for minerals.
The speaker concluded by saying that a firm law or amendment needs to be made in the constitution and needs to be followed. Once everyone knows that is there only one law or rule things should even out. As for now there is just too much confusion to understand the facts.
After the speaker was the final toast to Rotary International.
At lunchtime Rotary meetings there is usually a buffet lunch and they range from $5-20 a meal.
During the club assembly (which takes place once a month)
1) Achievements of the club:
20th birthday celebration of the club
Increased fellowship (meeting)
More lively fellowships
Better speakers
Sponsoring of a new club
Strong work in Rotary Community Core (RCC) projects
2) Problems:
Club participation
Poor participation during in country trainings
3) Reports:
Research is being done on Microfinance and scholarships
4) RCC
Buyuki water project is almost complete: Three (3) wells are being constructed and each contains a pump.
There was some confusion about a wheelchair volunteer project, but it will be cleared up at next weeks meeting?
Then the last thing that was discussed was the president asking why Mengo club members are not going to other Rotary meetings in the city. As I mentioned there are 25 clubs in Kampala and the president asks for Mengo members to participate in one other meeting every week to learn about what the other clubs are doing.
There is a club meeting everyday of the week…usually one every lunch and every evening. The president says that finding a club to attend is no excuse!!!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Egypt-land of sand, police check points, and true hospitality!
I bet some of you are wondering where I have disappeared to, right?
Since University is on “winter break” I decided to explore a little to see a different culture and get an idea of what Rotary is doing in the rest of Africa! So, I skipped off to Egypt!
My tour of Egypt started in Alexandria, a beautiful city on the Mediterranean coast. I received a very warm Egyptian welcome by two extremely kind Rotarians, Alex and Dalia, and their three-month-old baby, Joe!
When I first arrived they gave me a tour of their beautiful home and explained where the shower and washing machine were located and also informed me that there was wireless in my bedroom. I can’t imagine that anyone was ever so ecstatic as I was. All I could think about was HOT water! It was wonderful…
Dalia spoiled me with amazing food and warm hospitality and makes the thought of going back to Uganda, so much more difficult.
I attended a Rotary meeting and was taken to a wonderful clinic that the Egypt Rotary operates and has fully stocked with brand new, high quality medical equipment. A service that is provided to Egyptians living in the slum areas. The clinic can treat just about anything from small to larger operations, eye care clinic, dentistry, and beyond that has a computer room, children’s classrooms, sewing rooms, meeting rooms, and a pharmacy. It was easy to see that this project receives a lot of TLC from Rotary and is one that they are very proud of.
I was also taken care of by Rotarian Raggie, his wife, and daughter, Ingy. Ingy is a few years younger than me and is very active in Rotaract. She was so generous with her time and took me around to many sights in Alexandria (and to Starbucks…I know its not Egyptian, but oh how nice after months without it!)
A very special thanks to Dr. Raggaie, the very first Rotarian to respond to my e-mail and welcome me to Egypt/
After spending a week in Alex with my wonderful hosts, new friends and an exceptional Rotary I headed to Cairo to pick up my friend Amber and view some of the other sights that Egypt offers.
We started by taking the sleeping train to Luxor where we spent days exploring tombs and temples and walking along the Nile. Luxor is a historical importance to Egypt, but too overrun with tourists and pushy money hungry locals, for my liking. . The Nile River, creates the East and West bank, divides the city of Luxor. Locals say that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, so life is on the East bank and death belongs on the West bank... and that is where we find all the tombs of the pharos. It was very interesting places, but the obnoxious and hassling touts made it just about unbearable.
Next we headed by bus to Hurghada through the Eastern desert and Red Sea Mountains to the Red Sea Coast. After over-nighting there we took a two-hour ferry across the sea to Dahab where Egyptian culture seems to be lost somehow, and money and partying come into the spotlight. It was nice to be on the Red Sea, but depressing at the same time. It is winter and too cold for me to dive (and many of the fish and coral life are more numerous in the summer).
Next we explored Sinai where we took a desert safari and climbed though, in, over, and around boulders! The Land Rover we were in got stuck in sand…that was pretty exciting!
The last stop was Cairo…now my advice for anyone who travels to Egypt…spend more time in Cairo and Alexandria then anywhere else. I was very lucky and two of my new friends from Alexandria came to visit me in Cairo. Amber had already gone back home so it was nice to have someone to chat with! Rotarian Mostafa, an extremely welcoming and friendly individual is a true give to Rotary. He showed me some wonderful sights in Cairo such as the pyramids: the ones at Memphis (which were the original pyramids…later replicated by the ones at Giza), dinner on the Nile, a huge market. I have forgotten the spelling! Islamic Cairo, among other things…
Egypt was a wonderful place, but the Egyptians are what made it! I was warmly welcomed, treated with care and kindness, and hospitality that is truly for the record books.
Thank you to all Rotarians, Rotaractors, and Interactors that made my Egyptian voyage a blast!
Since University is on “winter break” I decided to explore a little to see a different culture and get an idea of what Rotary is doing in the rest of Africa! So, I skipped off to Egypt!
My tour of Egypt started in Alexandria, a beautiful city on the Mediterranean coast. I received a very warm Egyptian welcome by two extremely kind Rotarians, Alex and Dalia, and their three-month-old baby, Joe!
When I first arrived they gave me a tour of their beautiful home and explained where the shower and washing machine were located and also informed me that there was wireless in my bedroom. I can’t imagine that anyone was ever so ecstatic as I was. All I could think about was HOT water! It was wonderful…
Dalia spoiled me with amazing food and warm hospitality and makes the thought of going back to Uganda, so much more difficult.
I attended a Rotary meeting and was taken to a wonderful clinic that the Egypt Rotary operates and has fully stocked with brand new, high quality medical equipment. A service that is provided to Egyptians living in the slum areas. The clinic can treat just about anything from small to larger operations, eye care clinic, dentistry, and beyond that has a computer room, children’s classrooms, sewing rooms, meeting rooms, and a pharmacy. It was easy to see that this project receives a lot of TLC from Rotary and is one that they are very proud of.
I was also taken care of by Rotarian Raggie, his wife, and daughter, Ingy. Ingy is a few years younger than me and is very active in Rotaract. She was so generous with her time and took me around to many sights in Alexandria (and to Starbucks…I know its not Egyptian, but oh how nice after months without it!)
A very special thanks to Dr. Raggaie, the very first Rotarian to respond to my e-mail and welcome me to Egypt/
After spending a week in Alex with my wonderful hosts, new friends and an exceptional Rotary I headed to Cairo to pick up my friend Amber and view some of the other sights that Egypt offers.
We started by taking the sleeping train to Luxor where we spent days exploring tombs and temples and walking along the Nile. Luxor is a historical importance to Egypt, but too overrun with tourists and pushy money hungry locals, for my liking. . The Nile River, creates the East and West bank, divides the city of Luxor. Locals say that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, so life is on the East bank and death belongs on the West bank... and that is where we find all the tombs of the pharos. It was very interesting places, but the obnoxious and hassling touts made it just about unbearable.
Next we headed by bus to Hurghada through the Eastern desert and Red Sea Mountains to the Red Sea Coast. After over-nighting there we took a two-hour ferry across the sea to Dahab where Egyptian culture seems to be lost somehow, and money and partying come into the spotlight. It was nice to be on the Red Sea, but depressing at the same time. It is winter and too cold for me to dive (and many of the fish and coral life are more numerous in the summer).
Next we explored Sinai where we took a desert safari and climbed though, in, over, and around boulders! The Land Rover we were in got stuck in sand…that was pretty exciting!
The last stop was Cairo…now my advice for anyone who travels to Egypt…spend more time in Cairo and Alexandria then anywhere else. I was very lucky and two of my new friends from Alexandria came to visit me in Cairo. Amber had already gone back home so it was nice to have someone to chat with! Rotarian Mostafa, an extremely welcoming and friendly individual is a true give to Rotary. He showed me some wonderful sights in Cairo such as the pyramids: the ones at Memphis (which were the original pyramids…later replicated by the ones at Giza), dinner on the Nile, a huge market. I have forgotten the spelling! Islamic Cairo, among other things…
Egypt was a wonderful place, but the Egyptians are what made it! I was warmly welcomed, treated with care and kindness, and hospitality that is truly for the record books.
Thank you to all Rotarians, Rotaractors, and Interactors that made my Egyptian voyage a blast!
Friday, January 11, 2008
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Pictures from Christmas
I hope you enjoy...these are just a few of Josh's visit to Uganda. I hope you all love our African X-mas tree!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Kenya
I am sure that many of you have been seeing Kenya on the news lately. On December 26th Kenya held elections that resulted in all out chaos. Many have been killed and the death toll is still rising.
The chaos is a result of Kenyans who feel they were cheated and lied to. During the voting on the 26th it appeared as if the opposition leader was leading the election. After a long four days of counting votes and in the middle of the night Kibaki was sworn in. It appears that in some areas of Kenya there were more ballots than people and to everyone’s discontent they were all in favor of Kibaki Everyone wonders where these voters came from!
As no one can be really sure, but from what I have read and heard is that the newly sworn in President of Kenya is actually here in Uganda, staying at one of the most expensive hotels with his family. I imagine it is in fear of his life…but what about the lives of his citizens…his people…for the 300 that have been killed already and for the numbers that will be killed in the upcoming days or months…or however long this saga drags on. A president should be someone who is willing to stand on the front line, fight, protect, and make positive decisions for all his countrymen and women. Not escape and watch from afar.
Because Kenya is the closest port for shipping many of the goods that Uganda receives come via Kenya. (To take a bus from Kampala to the capital city of Nairobi it only takes 8 hours). One of the most important and much needed commodities is petrol. In Uganda, like Canada, petrol is purchased by the liter. In Uganda one liter of petrol sells for around $1.40 USD but now, after only four days of problems, one liter costs an average of $5.00.
One of the positive outcomes is that there are not as many cars on the roads, but it makes transport very difficult. (Especially now for us Muzungu who are getting even more exploited, first we are white and then there is a fuel shortage!)
The airport has to redirect all the flights from the Entebbe airport to Nairobi to refuel and then carry onto their original destinations.
There is much talk about this conflict in Kenya now and its very difficult to know the truth in the details. It is being said that the votes will have to be recounted, that the president should step down, that the elections should be redone. As for now only time will tell, but it find it horribly sad that once again people are dying for standing up in what they believe in and what is rightfully there’s…in Kenya’s case…a president chosen by the people!
The chaos is a result of Kenyans who feel they were cheated and lied to. During the voting on the 26th it appeared as if the opposition leader was leading the election. After a long four days of counting votes and in the middle of the night Kibaki was sworn in. It appears that in some areas of Kenya there were more ballots than people and to everyone’s discontent they were all in favor of Kibaki Everyone wonders where these voters came from!
As no one can be really sure, but from what I have read and heard is that the newly sworn in President of Kenya is actually here in Uganda, staying at one of the most expensive hotels with his family. I imagine it is in fear of his life…but what about the lives of his citizens…his people…for the 300 that have been killed already and for the numbers that will be killed in the upcoming days or months…or however long this saga drags on. A president should be someone who is willing to stand on the front line, fight, protect, and make positive decisions for all his countrymen and women. Not escape and watch from afar.
Because Kenya is the closest port for shipping many of the goods that Uganda receives come via Kenya. (To take a bus from Kampala to the capital city of Nairobi it only takes 8 hours). One of the most important and much needed commodities is petrol. In Uganda, like Canada, petrol is purchased by the liter. In Uganda one liter of petrol sells for around $1.40 USD but now, after only four days of problems, one liter costs an average of $5.00.
One of the positive outcomes is that there are not as many cars on the roads, but it makes transport very difficult. (Especially now for us Muzungu who are getting even more exploited, first we are white and then there is a fuel shortage!)
The airport has to redirect all the flights from the Entebbe airport to Nairobi to refuel and then carry onto their original destinations.
There is much talk about this conflict in Kenya now and its very difficult to know the truth in the details. It is being said that the votes will have to be recounted, that the president should step down, that the elections should be redone. As for now only time will tell, but it find it horribly sad that once again people are dying for standing up in what they believe in and what is rightfully there’s…in Kenya’s case…a president chosen by the people!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Happy Holiday
Happy Holidays!
In the past month a lot has happened. I finished school at the beginning of December and wrote exams for one complete week, Monday to Saturday without fail. It was very tiring and, in my opinion, a complete waste of time. I need challenge and push in my education and here I feel I get neither. I am not trying to be deliberately negative, it’s just that when a student perusing a Masters degree is asked, on a final exam, to define prejudice and give exams of how to put an end to it, I continue wondering how informative this “education” really is. Oh well…I might need therapy and start my Master’s all over when I get home.
Josh arrived on Dec 17th very tired, very white, and a little annoyed. Air Canada had lost his luggage. Because I had warned him of this, he did pack on extra pair of clothes. It was almost one week before he got his suitcase. (For those of you at home who may think it’s not a big deal…it is…in Uganda we don’t have washers and dryers we have our hands).
I was very excited and my emotions went though a rollercoaster waiting for him to walk out those doors!
There have been several things that I have been waiting to see here in Uganda, but I wanted to wait for Josh to arrive. It’s not the same when you have seen something once and show the other around. It’s nice to experience new things at the same time.
When people live and experience new lifestyles things about those individuals change. The change is not something that can be explained or, sometimes, even recognized, but it’s a change that can end lifelong friendships and relationships. As people age their hobbies and interests transform, but add a drastic variable into the equation and somehow even the most familiar can become a stranger. I have tried with all my might in the past four months to tell Josh about my new life and environment. He listened and tried to understand, but as he admitted to me after only several days after his arrival, there was absolutely no way he could have “understood” without coming here. This trip widened Josh’s understanding and acceptance of difference and culture. I am very happy that I was able to be the one to see him and guide him on his first trip abroad.
On December 19th Josh and I traveled 7 hours to Northwestern Uganda to Murchison Falls for a Safari. We were very lucky and were able to have a game drive, hike, and boat cruise to view the animals. It was so amazing to see animals in their natural habitat without bars and signs that read, “do not feed the animals”. One of the best things about the safari was that we were able to see two lion mothers, each with their three cubs, eating a cobb (a little like a deer) that they had just hunted.
One thing that I never noticed from watching animal planet is that hippos are extremely personable animals. They will actually make eye contact with people. I guess maybe it is their way of saying “ as long as you stay in your boat and leave me alone, I will reciprocate!” We must have seen over one hundred hippos in the Nile that day and their grandeur is absolutely amazing. It truly does take seeing them up close to realize their power.
One thing that has constantly annoyed me beyond belief is the desperate need for money and the willingness to lie and cheat me to get it. I take motorcycle taxis (Bodas) to get around. They are fast and get me where I need to go. Just because I am white they charge me double and sometimes even triple the price. I now know the price and argue till my ears bleed, but the whole situation angers me tremendously. It takes much energy to deal with these men 3-4-5 times a day, just so I can get where I am going. The first few times Josh experienced it was new to him, so it wasn’t really a big deal, but continued annoying me. One night after a long day I expressed my anger and dislike for this daily and constant struggle. He listened but didn’t say too much. The next day, every time it happened, Josh laughed. He looked at me and smiled…then laughed. I think if now I am to pretend that Josh is standing along side me and laughing…I might just be able to cope.
I think I introduced Josh to many new things! I was a good ambassador!! We had our days kept busy, but many of the evenings we just stayed in and watched movies. He has been so tired from work that the rest here did him a world of good. He enjoyed the sunshine a tremendous amount, He was only here for 17 days, but he got a GREAT tan! He didn’t look the same when he left that was for sure.
Josh is going to write a blog here after he gets home. I am anxious to read it. The day after Josh arrived, the little water “heater” that I have broke and the water only ran for 2-3 days. One day we had to buy bottles of mineral water to pour into a bucket, so we could have a “bath”. The water I heated in my teakettle and poured it into a small basin. Thanks to Josh coming all the way to Uganda I was able to share these annoyances with him and he brought a little light to the whole situation.
I think I can say that Josh had a great time. Lets wait and read his blog to see what he really thought! I can’t even explain in words how extremely wonderful and important it was for Josh to make the journey here. I have lived and traveled extensively in developing countries for 6 years, so I understand the cultural difference and the marks that it leaves on the heart. Now…finally, after such a long time, Josh can relate (exhale…smile…lots of tears)
In the past month a lot has happened. I finished school at the beginning of December and wrote exams for one complete week, Monday to Saturday without fail. It was very tiring and, in my opinion, a complete waste of time. I need challenge and push in my education and here I feel I get neither. I am not trying to be deliberately negative, it’s just that when a student perusing a Masters degree is asked, on a final exam, to define prejudice and give exams of how to put an end to it, I continue wondering how informative this “education” really is. Oh well…I might need therapy and start my Master’s all over when I get home.
Josh arrived on Dec 17th very tired, very white, and a little annoyed. Air Canada had lost his luggage. Because I had warned him of this, he did pack on extra pair of clothes. It was almost one week before he got his suitcase. (For those of you at home who may think it’s not a big deal…it is…in Uganda we don’t have washers and dryers we have our hands).
I was very excited and my emotions went though a rollercoaster waiting for him to walk out those doors!
There have been several things that I have been waiting to see here in Uganda, but I wanted to wait for Josh to arrive. It’s not the same when you have seen something once and show the other around. It’s nice to experience new things at the same time.
When people live and experience new lifestyles things about those individuals change. The change is not something that can be explained or, sometimes, even recognized, but it’s a change that can end lifelong friendships and relationships. As people age their hobbies and interests transform, but add a drastic variable into the equation and somehow even the most familiar can become a stranger. I have tried with all my might in the past four months to tell Josh about my new life and environment. He listened and tried to understand, but as he admitted to me after only several days after his arrival, there was absolutely no way he could have “understood” without coming here. This trip widened Josh’s understanding and acceptance of difference and culture. I am very happy that I was able to be the one to see him and guide him on his first trip abroad.
On December 19th Josh and I traveled 7 hours to Northwestern Uganda to Murchison Falls for a Safari. We were very lucky and were able to have a game drive, hike, and boat cruise to view the animals. It was so amazing to see animals in their natural habitat without bars and signs that read, “do not feed the animals”. One of the best things about the safari was that we were able to see two lion mothers, each with their three cubs, eating a cobb (a little like a deer) that they had just hunted.
One thing that I never noticed from watching animal planet is that hippos are extremely personable animals. They will actually make eye contact with people. I guess maybe it is their way of saying “ as long as you stay in your boat and leave me alone, I will reciprocate!” We must have seen over one hundred hippos in the Nile that day and their grandeur is absolutely amazing. It truly does take seeing them up close to realize their power.
One thing that has constantly annoyed me beyond belief is the desperate need for money and the willingness to lie and cheat me to get it. I take motorcycle taxis (Bodas) to get around. They are fast and get me where I need to go. Just because I am white they charge me double and sometimes even triple the price. I now know the price and argue till my ears bleed, but the whole situation angers me tremendously. It takes much energy to deal with these men 3-4-5 times a day, just so I can get where I am going. The first few times Josh experienced it was new to him, so it wasn’t really a big deal, but continued annoying me. One night after a long day I expressed my anger and dislike for this daily and constant struggle. He listened but didn’t say too much. The next day, every time it happened, Josh laughed. He looked at me and smiled…then laughed. I think if now I am to pretend that Josh is standing along side me and laughing…I might just be able to cope.
I think I introduced Josh to many new things! I was a good ambassador!! We had our days kept busy, but many of the evenings we just stayed in and watched movies. He has been so tired from work that the rest here did him a world of good. He enjoyed the sunshine a tremendous amount, He was only here for 17 days, but he got a GREAT tan! He didn’t look the same when he left that was for sure.
Josh is going to write a blog here after he gets home. I am anxious to read it. The day after Josh arrived, the little water “heater” that I have broke and the water only ran for 2-3 days. One day we had to buy bottles of mineral water to pour into a bucket, so we could have a “bath”. The water I heated in my teakettle and poured it into a small basin. Thanks to Josh coming all the way to Uganda I was able to share these annoyances with him and he brought a little light to the whole situation.
I think I can say that Josh had a great time. Lets wait and read his blog to see what he really thought! I can’t even explain in words how extremely wonderful and important it was for Josh to make the journey here. I have lived and traveled extensively in developing countries for 6 years, so I understand the cultural difference and the marks that it leaves on the heart. Now…finally, after such a long time, Josh can relate (exhale…smile…lots of tears)
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Registering for classes…is this blog too late? Maybe not!
When registering for classes at Penn State while living in Media, PA I would sit in my bed with my laptop and chose the classes that I wanted and needed to take (according to my diploma) and clicked submit. Then three times in the course of the semester I had to go to the bursar’s office and pay my tuition. That was it…over and done with.
Let me discuss UGANDAN STYLE!!!
Firstly, I was accepted to the Makerere University…OH NO SORRY….I wasn’t really accepted, I just got an “acceptance letter” and wasn’t really accepted until after I registered at the end of September. (Wow…how this could have all turned out really bad). I forge on. I had to first go to the centrally located Senate building to get my student number then preceded to walk for about 8 min to the main building were I had to get the account number of the university. I then had to find a bank and open an account, so I could pay the tuition by bank draft. (That took a week in itself). The bank was able to “transfer” the money to the schools account. Okay…great…. but no, they weren’t set up to do that YET. I was told to wait one week and then return. I waited one week. That turned into two. I finally got the bank draft and went to the Main building where I gave them my back draft and they gave me a receipt. I then had to return to the senate building where I was to fill out forms, paste my picture, and copies of my diploma from PSU, and my transcript from high school, PAUSE……..MY WHAAAAAT???? Sidebar…I was informed that scans would be enough. WRONG…so after being told to ‘GO HOME TO CANADA “ and get them, I pleaded, but that didn’t work, so I tried tears and that didn’t even work.
Discouraged I went home for the day and well gave myself a week off.
I return with my documents (except those copies) and a gentleman wearing a pink shirt tells me he was so sorry about what had happened last week that he will admit me “provisionally” until I can get the copies they need to see. He gives me MORE forms and directs me.
I now go for another walk to get a signature…then walk another 10 min to another building to get a stamp onto of the signature. Then walk to another building to get another signature…and then to another building to quadruple check that I did in fact pay the tuition and then get that stamp on top of that last signature.
Then I was suppose to take all the forms and get my student I.D. card…BUT they were done taking pictures for the day, so I retuned yet again to get the card. Which was hilarious because they had to “adjust” the colour 50 times because I was SO white!
I finally registered the last week of September.
Or…actually…I just thought I did.
Today Kate asked me to help her finish registering and I took her to all the rooms that she needed to have stamps and signatures. When I went into the room the lady recognized me (why wouldn’t she? She has only stamped and signed and seen me 50 times). She hands Kate these forms and tells her to register…I barked “What I never did that”…ERRRRRR more forms to fill out. Kate then didn’t want to wait, so she fills it out and takes it to the appropriate office as she then asks “after all this am I registered?” No, she then shows us a books that we have to sign”.
Just as we are about to walk out she says “DON’T FORGET TO REGISTER FOR AN EXAM PERMIT”. I almost dropped dead. Today is Wednesday and exams start MONDAY.
Just writing this blog as exhausted me…and the thought of having to do it again next month makes me want to…I love Uganda!!
Let me discuss UGANDAN STYLE!!!
Firstly, I was accepted to the Makerere University…OH NO SORRY….I wasn’t really accepted, I just got an “acceptance letter” and wasn’t really accepted until after I registered at the end of September. (Wow…how this could have all turned out really bad). I forge on. I had to first go to the centrally located Senate building to get my student number then preceded to walk for about 8 min to the main building were I had to get the account number of the university. I then had to find a bank and open an account, so I could pay the tuition by bank draft. (That took a week in itself). The bank was able to “transfer” the money to the schools account. Okay…great…. but no, they weren’t set up to do that YET. I was told to wait one week and then return. I waited one week. That turned into two. I finally got the bank draft and went to the Main building where I gave them my back draft and they gave me a receipt. I then had to return to the senate building where I was to fill out forms, paste my picture, and copies of my diploma from PSU, and my transcript from high school, PAUSE……..MY WHAAAAAT???? Sidebar…I was informed that scans would be enough. WRONG…so after being told to ‘GO HOME TO CANADA “ and get them, I pleaded, but that didn’t work, so I tried tears and that didn’t even work.
Discouraged I went home for the day and well gave myself a week off.
I return with my documents (except those copies) and a gentleman wearing a pink shirt tells me he was so sorry about what had happened last week that he will admit me “provisionally” until I can get the copies they need to see. He gives me MORE forms and directs me.
I now go for another walk to get a signature…then walk another 10 min to another building to get a stamp onto of the signature. Then walk to another building to get another signature…and then to another building to quadruple check that I did in fact pay the tuition and then get that stamp on top of that last signature.
Then I was suppose to take all the forms and get my student I.D. card…BUT they were done taking pictures for the day, so I retuned yet again to get the card. Which was hilarious because they had to “adjust” the colour 50 times because I was SO white!
I finally registered the last week of September.
Or…actually…I just thought I did.
Today Kate asked me to help her finish registering and I took her to all the rooms that she needed to have stamps and signatures. When I went into the room the lady recognized me (why wouldn’t she? She has only stamped and signed and seen me 50 times). She hands Kate these forms and tells her to register…I barked “What I never did that”…ERRRRRR more forms to fill out. Kate then didn’t want to wait, so she fills it out and takes it to the appropriate office as she then asks “after all this am I registered?” No, she then shows us a books that we have to sign”.
Just as we are about to walk out she says “DON’T FORGET TO REGISTER FOR AN EXAM PERMIT”. I almost dropped dead. Today is Wednesday and exams start MONDAY.
Just writing this blog as exhausted me…and the thought of having to do it again next month makes me want to…I love Uganda!!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Life after CHOGM!!
Hello all! Sorry for the delay…I have been told that I am making people bored (wink wink Maureen) because I am not posting new topics. The internet has been so extremely slow and I just cant be bothered to spend 45 minutes to open google.
Not a lot of news to write about, so I will tell you all about illness #3 because I find it really funny. Actually, when I told Josh about it I laughed the whole time…he didn't find it as humourous as I did!
It must have been two weeks ago now. I started getting these “bites” late at night and I woke up, turned on the light (I had electricity that night!!) and scanned my room for a mosquito. I couldn’t find anything so I went back to bed…and again I was itchy. I thought then, that there must be something in my bed. Anyway, I finally feel asleep. When I woke up in the morning…HOLY COW…I had these…ummm…let me call them mutations…all over my ENTIRE body. There were weltches about the size of saucers or pancakes, bright red, and about ½ an inch thick. They were very hot and very very very itchy.
I called Daddy Tusu and he told me come to his office, so his brother (a Doctor) could look at me. Dr. Alex told me to go to the hospital and get a shot…
Like a good little Muzungu I went to the hospital…yes, let me admit I was freaking out…just a little bit!
I get to the hospital and it was very early, so there was not that many people and I got to see the Doctor right away. When the Dr. called me, he entered his office and sat down. AS SOON AS I WALKED INTO THE EXAM ROOM I LIFTED UP MY T-SHIRT TO HIM THE HUGE WELT ON MY STOMACH. The look on the Dr’s face was priceless, a little fear mixed with disgust he immediately slammed the door shut and asked me what I had eaten. He told me I was having an anaphylactic reaction to something and I need to get an immunization.
Off I go to the nurse’s station where I had a very unpleasant experience from Illness #2 where I was lucky to have received my first ever needle in the bum!!! Love it…I recommend it…incase you ever get bored…you might just want to get one!
Before I continue…I need you to understand something. In Uganda, at the hospital I went to anyway, they use needles that have the diameter much the same as a nail…good lord, you feel that needle for 2 weeks after…
Ok…I continue…
I sit down on the Doctors table/bed…whatever you call it. The nurse says, “This is going straight into the vein”…OK! SO? I’m a humanitarian…NOT a Doctor…I DIDN’T have any idea why that we would be any different…She was very gentle…but how gentle can one be when they are stabbing you with a …nail…. as she injected the medicine I said “Oh my! That really really hurts” so she takes the needle out and that left a huge cavern in the vein, and started to massage my hand a little…that is when I could feel that medicine go up my arm, I started to get VERY HOT, then VERY Nauseous, then I told the nurse “Please give me a bucket, I am going to vomit” which to her probably sounded something like “ MMMMMERRRMERRRRMERRR” and then I passed right out…cold!!!
I have no idea how long I was laying there, but I was woken up to Miss…. then I think she said Muzungu…. Anyway when I woke up I felt much better… I went home on a Boda Boda (Motorcycle Taxi) and went to sleep for the entire day. The spots went away in the reverse order of the way they came, but they took a whole week to go away. It was the strangest thing. I think the Doctor was shocked at the way they appeared on my white skin. My friends told me that when they get spots like that they do not turn pink!!!
As of late in a nutshell…CHOGM is OVER thank the lord. School is coming to an end and my final coursework papers are due. Exams are on the week of the 10th. Josh arrives on the 17th!
Just a little observation…IF you read the blog a month ago about CHOGM you will understand this. My apartment is across the street from a major tourist attraction and they put street lights down my street, which is a really wonderful idea, because at night there is petty crime caused by the darkness and the lights would make the area safer…HOWEVER the lights worked for…lets count…two days before CHOGM…the four days of CHOGM…and two days after CHOGM…now the lamps sit there unlit!!! How wonderful! God Bless the Queen who helped prevent petty crime for a whole EIGHT days!!!
Have a great day…especially those of you in -20 weather…I send you my wishes from the comfortable +30!!!!!
Not a lot of news to write about, so I will tell you all about illness #3 because I find it really funny. Actually, when I told Josh about it I laughed the whole time…he didn't find it as humourous as I did!
It must have been two weeks ago now. I started getting these “bites” late at night and I woke up, turned on the light (I had electricity that night!!) and scanned my room for a mosquito. I couldn’t find anything so I went back to bed…and again I was itchy. I thought then, that there must be something in my bed. Anyway, I finally feel asleep. When I woke up in the morning…HOLY COW…I had these…ummm…let me call them mutations…all over my ENTIRE body. There were weltches about the size of saucers or pancakes, bright red, and about ½ an inch thick. They were very hot and very very very itchy.
I called Daddy Tusu and he told me come to his office, so his brother (a Doctor) could look at me. Dr. Alex told me to go to the hospital and get a shot…
Like a good little Muzungu I went to the hospital…yes, let me admit I was freaking out…just a little bit!
I get to the hospital and it was very early, so there was not that many people and I got to see the Doctor right away. When the Dr. called me, he entered his office and sat down. AS SOON AS I WALKED INTO THE EXAM ROOM I LIFTED UP MY T-SHIRT TO HIM THE HUGE WELT ON MY STOMACH. The look on the Dr’s face was priceless, a little fear mixed with disgust he immediately slammed the door shut and asked me what I had eaten. He told me I was having an anaphylactic reaction to something and I need to get an immunization.
Off I go to the nurse’s station where I had a very unpleasant experience from Illness #2 where I was lucky to have received my first ever needle in the bum!!! Love it…I recommend it…incase you ever get bored…you might just want to get one!
Before I continue…I need you to understand something. In Uganda, at the hospital I went to anyway, they use needles that have the diameter much the same as a nail…good lord, you feel that needle for 2 weeks after…
Ok…I continue…
I sit down on the Doctors table/bed…whatever you call it. The nurse says, “This is going straight into the vein”…OK! SO? I’m a humanitarian…NOT a Doctor…I DIDN’T have any idea why that we would be any different…She was very gentle…but how gentle can one be when they are stabbing you with a …nail…. as she injected the medicine I said “Oh my! That really really hurts” so she takes the needle out and that left a huge cavern in the vein, and started to massage my hand a little…that is when I could feel that medicine go up my arm, I started to get VERY HOT, then VERY Nauseous, then I told the nurse “Please give me a bucket, I am going to vomit” which to her probably sounded something like “ MMMMMERRRMERRRRMERRR” and then I passed right out…cold!!!
I have no idea how long I was laying there, but I was woken up to Miss…. then I think she said Muzungu…. Anyway when I woke up I felt much better… I went home on a Boda Boda (Motorcycle Taxi) and went to sleep for the entire day. The spots went away in the reverse order of the way they came, but they took a whole week to go away. It was the strangest thing. I think the Doctor was shocked at the way they appeared on my white skin. My friends told me that when they get spots like that they do not turn pink!!!
As of late in a nutshell…CHOGM is OVER thank the lord. School is coming to an end and my final coursework papers are due. Exams are on the week of the 10th. Josh arrives on the 17th!
Just a little observation…IF you read the blog a month ago about CHOGM you will understand this. My apartment is across the street from a major tourist attraction and they put street lights down my street, which is a really wonderful idea, because at night there is petty crime caused by the darkness and the lights would make the area safer…HOWEVER the lights worked for…lets count…two days before CHOGM…the four days of CHOGM…and two days after CHOGM…now the lamps sit there unlit!!! How wonderful! God Bless the Queen who helped prevent petty crime for a whole EIGHT days!!!
Have a great day…especially those of you in -20 weather…I send you my wishes from the comfortable +30!!!!!
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Who determines size?
Do you wake up in the morning and turn on the tap to fill up your coffee maker?
Before you go to work do you turn on the shower and let the water flow for a minute until the water gets the right temperature?
Do you get in your car to go to work? Could you, get in a car, if you needed to go somewhere?
When you want to make dinner do you open the refrigerator? Pull something out and proceed to cook it in your electric oven? Or into the microwave that is also electric? Do you appreciate that there is food to pull out of the refrigerator? Or if you couldn’t afford to buy food that your government in some shape or form could offer help?
Do you read a book when you are bored? Do you utilize the quality educational institutions that are in your area? Have you ever seen their incredible libraries, WITH books? Do you take it for granted that pedestrians are given the right of way? Do you read these questions and shrug while thinking that you don’t need to worry because, you and your family, doesn’t have to worry about these things?
A few facts to think about…
HALF of the population of Africa is BELOW the poverty line. BUT, Africa only accounts for 10% of the WORLD’S POLULATION. That works out to Africa accounting for only 5%..Read that…FIVE percent of the world’s poverty.
If you want to call yourself lucky or privileged perhaps you have every right.
As I have lived in developing countries before I am sensitive to the fact that I have more than others…but as I live in Uganda I am faced with reality and I am appreciative that I am able to experience this and understand what is really and truly needed to live a comfortable and pain free life, so in MY life, I can work hard to develop and implement programs and policies that will eliminate extreme poverty…
To lead a comfortable and pain free life in my opinion means having the THREE “basic” life requirements…FOOD, SHELTER, MEDICINE…
The Haven…the escape from Kampala…
My sanity was returned to me last week!
One of the members of my Rotary club here is a retired German ambassador to Uganda and he learned that I was interested in rain water harvesting and invited me to visit a friend of his who is living near Jinja, 2 hours drive east of Kampala (For those who regularly turn in, Jinja is where I got my first Jigger!!!)
As we entered the gates to “The Haven” I was in awe of this beautiful little “resort”. A younger German ex-patriot has built his wonderfully designed resort to be completely eco-friendly.
The WHOLE place has about eight independent bungalows that are round and have views of the Nile River. All the electricity comes from solar power and the water is all harvested rainwater. Picture this…a round one story building with a wonderful papyrus roof, but built into the very top (out of sight) is a empty concrete swimming pool in the shape of a funnel…that water runs down and is conserved into a huge 10 000 gallon tank. This water is then filtered in the holding tank and is pumped into smaller tanks when needed.
He has a well and a generator ONLY for back up.
I am so impressed by this mans creativity…he is a electrician with a Masters degree and obviously a lot of talent and resourcefulness. It’s wonderful that he has constructed this in Ugandan without destroying or using up any of Uganda’s resources.
Please take a moment to check out his website www.thehaven-uganda.com
Now.,, there is no way I can describe this view, so have a look for yourself.
A day away from Kampala has done a world of good. I feel refreshed and de-stressed.
I want to head out to the village and spend a month on a project…I think it would be great for me to get out of Kampala.
One of the members of my Rotary club here is a retired German ambassador to Uganda and he learned that I was interested in rain water harvesting and invited me to visit a friend of his who is living near Jinja, 2 hours drive east of Kampala (For those who regularly turn in, Jinja is where I got my first Jigger!!!)
As we entered the gates to “The Haven” I was in awe of this beautiful little “resort”. A younger German ex-patriot has built his wonderfully designed resort to be completely eco-friendly.
The WHOLE place has about eight independent bungalows that are round and have views of the Nile River. All the electricity comes from solar power and the water is all harvested rainwater. Picture this…a round one story building with a wonderful papyrus roof, but built into the very top (out of sight) is a empty concrete swimming pool in the shape of a funnel…that water runs down and is conserved into a huge 10 000 gallon tank. This water is then filtered in the holding tank and is pumped into smaller tanks when needed.
He has a well and a generator ONLY for back up.
I am so impressed by this mans creativity…he is a electrician with a Masters degree and obviously a lot of talent and resourcefulness. It’s wonderful that he has constructed this in Ugandan without destroying or using up any of Uganda’s resources.
Please take a moment to check out his website www.thehaven-uganda.com
Now.,, there is no way I can describe this view, so have a look for yourself.
A day away from Kampala has done a world of good. I feel refreshed and de-stressed.
I want to head out to the village and spend a month on a project…I think it would be great for me to get out of Kampala.
Friday, October 26, 2007
Adjustments aren't always easy...
Customs and culture are etched and engraved into a person’s personality to the extent that when someone sees another acting or speaking differently one can believe the other is crazy or mad. That is the beauty of travel it opens ones eyes to the variation that different lands can possess.
I have traveled to many places and experienced many cultures very different from my own, but those cultures have always, in one way or another, been in line with my morals and values. Uganda is teaching me that far off lands and lifestyles are very habitable even if they are not in line with “my morals” and lately I am finding that I am awe of what I am learning outside the classroom.
Class discussions have taught me some very interesting and drastically different lifestyles compared to North America. I am intrigued to listen, but as well trying to train myself NOT to shake my head in discontentment.
While discussing the meaning “GENDER” the class was separated into groups, the guys and the girls, and we were given the task “To write down as many roles that we believed the opposite sex should be responsible for”.
The women (Ugandan, Canadian, and Pilipino) talked about; equality, love, respect, security…
The men, who were all Ugandan, wrote:
Collect firewood
Bear children and I am not talking 2 or 3.
Comfort
Sexually please their partner
Remain beautiful
Collect water
Hide the husband if police sought him
Cook
Clean/laundry (all done by hand)
Make extra money by making crafts
Churn Butter
Educate and teach children morals
I couldn’t help it, but I interrupted and said the teacher asked us to describe a wife not a workhorse.
In the capital people are more “institutionally educated”, but, there is still that level of engraved cultural ideology, however, people are more modern that those still living in the villages. There is a this lady in my class that comes from a clan far north and was explaining to me that in her clan, by the time women reach 35 years old they are worn out from a life of hard-labor and multiple childbirths that she begs her husband to take another wife to sexually satisfy him because she cant “take care” of him anymore. The women will even work hard and use all her saving to pay the dowry for the new wife.
Lately, I am quite aggravated by the quality of life and the respect that local people show towards others (and not only me as a foreigner, but locals) and I am unsure of how to process these “scenarios” or situations, but I need to realize that everyday is a learning experience and that is the whole reason I am here. As I struggle to remain positive in negative situations I grow in ways I never imagined and learn patience of a whole new light.
I have traveled to many places and experienced many cultures very different from my own, but those cultures have always, in one way or another, been in line with my morals and values. Uganda is teaching me that far off lands and lifestyles are very habitable even if they are not in line with “my morals” and lately I am finding that I am awe of what I am learning outside the classroom.
Class discussions have taught me some very interesting and drastically different lifestyles compared to North America. I am intrigued to listen, but as well trying to train myself NOT to shake my head in discontentment.
While discussing the meaning “GENDER” the class was separated into groups, the guys and the girls, and we were given the task “To write down as many roles that we believed the opposite sex should be responsible for”.
The women (Ugandan, Canadian, and Pilipino) talked about; equality, love, respect, security…
The men, who were all Ugandan, wrote:
Collect firewood
Bear children and I am not talking 2 or 3.
Comfort
Sexually please their partner
Remain beautiful
Collect water
Hide the husband if police sought him
Cook
Clean/laundry (all done by hand)
Make extra money by making crafts
Churn Butter
Educate and teach children morals
I couldn’t help it, but I interrupted and said the teacher asked us to describe a wife not a workhorse.
In the capital people are more “institutionally educated”, but, there is still that level of engraved cultural ideology, however, people are more modern that those still living in the villages. There is a this lady in my class that comes from a clan far north and was explaining to me that in her clan, by the time women reach 35 years old they are worn out from a life of hard-labor and multiple childbirths that she begs her husband to take another wife to sexually satisfy him because she cant “take care” of him anymore. The women will even work hard and use all her saving to pay the dowry for the new wife.
Lately, I am quite aggravated by the quality of life and the respect that local people show towards others (and not only me as a foreigner, but locals) and I am unsure of how to process these “scenarios” or situations, but I need to realize that everyday is a learning experience and that is the whole reason I am here. As I struggle to remain positive in negative situations I grow in ways I never imagined and learn patience of a whole new light.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Josh...
I wasn't going to post anything today because I wanted to make sure that everyone had read last weeks post, however, I received a phone call last night that changed my mind.
I have received some e-mails asking about Josh, so I wanted to blog about him today.
I received my first phone call of 2 weeks last night at 3:30 a.m. I was so excited to hear that phone ring!
Josh is in Wainwright, Alberta training with very limited access to outside communication. Two weeks ago he was transferred to a new platoon, a platoon that is deploying to Afghanistan at the end of January 2008.
Last night he told me that he has filled out all the necessary documents and has been given his travel dates for his R & R (Rest from Afghanistan)...this is getting all too real. He seems in good spirits and happy with situation, thus far. He will be coming to Uganda for the second time from May 13th to June 5th. I hope to use 10 days to that to go somewhere A-M-A-Z-I-N-G...somewhere that has NO sand.
I asked him if he was "at peace" in his heart and I thought he was going to choke...I guess an army wife should know better...I worry so much about his situation, if he is eating, if he is healthy, if he is sleeping enough.
January is a while away...but all too close for my fragile heart. Please send all your positive thoughts and prayers.
I often hear people tell me that I am brave to go all the places that I go, but this is absolutely nothing. I have a husband that has enough strength and courage to last someone 50 lifetimes...and I hope he realizes how honored, proud, and supportive I am to him and his career.
I love you sweetheart.
I have received some e-mails asking about Josh, so I wanted to blog about him today.
I received my first phone call of 2 weeks last night at 3:30 a.m. I was so excited to hear that phone ring!
Josh is in Wainwright, Alberta training with very limited access to outside communication. Two weeks ago he was transferred to a new platoon, a platoon that is deploying to Afghanistan at the end of January 2008.
Last night he told me that he has filled out all the necessary documents and has been given his travel dates for his R & R (Rest from Afghanistan)...this is getting all too real. He seems in good spirits and happy with situation, thus far. He will be coming to Uganda for the second time from May 13th to June 5th. I hope to use 10 days to that to go somewhere A-M-A-Z-I-N-G...somewhere that has NO sand.
I asked him if he was "at peace" in his heart and I thought he was going to choke...I guess an army wife should know better...I worry so much about his situation, if he is eating, if he is healthy, if he is sleeping enough.
January is a while away...but all too close for my fragile heart. Please send all your positive thoughts and prayers.
I often hear people tell me that I am brave to go all the places that I go, but this is absolutely nothing. I have a husband that has enough strength and courage to last someone 50 lifetimes...and I hope he realizes how honored, proud, and supportive I am to him and his career.
I love you sweetheart.
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