Coming Home

I suppose it’s time to put some sort of closure on this blog...considering I’ve been back in the US for nearly three weeks already!

Once I was back from Gulu I only had five days left in Uganda and I did everything I could to make the most of it...I wanted to soak in as much of Africa as possible! I can’t begin to think about how many chapatti I ate in those last five days!!! =P

Speaking of Ugandan food, the one night that I was back in Kampala between Rwanda and Gulu I was invited to dinner with the other volunteers at Mukisa. The cook at Mukisa, Annette, had all of us to her house. I always loved the food she made for us at work but it didn’t even compare to what she had for us at that night! There was a huge spread of nearly every traditional Ugandan dish you could think of; matoke, rice, beans, posho, g-nut sauce, chicken, chips, pea pies (kind of like a pot pie), Irish, cabbage, delicious fresh juice and a huge fruit salad for dessert. We found it quite funny that Annette had included chopped carrots in the fruit salad...not something people in the US or Germany do but she assured us it was normal! Of course we all enjoyed the food but more than anything we enjoyed the company and the fact that she was so incredibly generous in opening her home to us and feeding us. Here’s someone who doesn’t have a whole lot to spare yet she went above and beyond to thank us for our time at Mukisa and to wish us all safe journeys. That’s pretty incredible if you ask me!

Once I was back from Gulu I spent a lot of time hanging out with the friends I had made while I was there; Ugandans, Americans, Canadians, and of course, Germans! I also spent a significant amount of time at craft markets around the city. I realized with five days to go that even after more than two months in Uganda I had very few souvenirs picked out for family and friends; I needed to get busy!

When I left Michigan in May, I was prepared to go. I was excited about being in Africa and I knew that when I got back home in August my life would still be here, waiting for me.

However, I was anything but prepared to leave Uganda. I literally had no idea how hard it would be. I realized as my time there got closer and closer to the end that there’s a good chance I’ll never make it back to Uganda, and even if I do, it would never be the same; many of my friends were volunteers who left just a week after I did. Once I was gone, the life I had lived for two and a half months would be over.

My plane was scheduled to leave at nine a.m. Monday morning, the 15^th. That meant Sunday was my last day in the city. I had invited some of the girls to dinner Sunday night to say our final goodbyes. On my way to dinner I was on a boda and I was thinking that I needed to clear all the numbers and texts off my phone so that the next AIM person would have a “new” phone. It was just a simple thought and it was something I knew I needed to do but suddenly as I was riding through Kampala for nearly the last time that simple thought really got to me. Before I knew it I had tears streaming down my face and I felt like the world was just going to end right then and there. Dramatic, I know, but it was the idea of it all. It’s not that the phone was important to me, but it was my connection to all the people I had become friends with...and in a matter of a few hours it would be empty.  

I managed to pull myself together before getting to the restaurant for dinner. We ate at the food court in Garden City and had a great time. I spent most of the rest of the night packing and mentally ignoring the fact that soon I would be gone. I had arranged for a private hire to pick me the next morning and he got there at 6:30. We chatted on the way to the airport but I was really in no mood to make small talk, I felt like I was on the verge of tears the whole time.

I just wasn’t ready to leave, I wanted more of Africa!

Thankfully all forty-five hours of travel went smoothly for me. (Yep, forty-five hours from when I left my home in Lungujja until I got back home in Hastings!) The forty-five hours was due in large part to a twenty hour layover in London. Now, a twenty hour layover has a lot of potential to be awful, but it turned out to be fantastic!
I had wanted to go out and see the city rather than sit in the airport for twenty hours but I was really low on cash and didn’t exactly know the best way to get around. I had mentioned this to a Ugandan friend of mine who spent sixteen years growing up in London and he had the perfect solution. He called a friend of his who still lived in London and arranged for him to meet me at the airport to show me around the city. When I got to Heathrow I used a pay phone to call his friend, we met up at the arrivals area then I got my own personal tour of the fabulous city! We went past Harrods, a bunch of other great stores, and Hyde Park. We drove through the gardens of Buckingham Palace and past the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. We walked all along Southbank where the London Eye and the National Theater are located. After Southbank we drove to Covent Garden and walked all around there and Soho, just taking everything in. In one of the squares there was a huge countdown to the Olympics, I thought that was really cool! We ended the night in Piccadilly, where we walked all around the “Times Square” of London, had dinner in China Town, and got juice at an Old English Pub. I felt so lucky; I basically had a private tour of the city and it didn’t cost me a thing!

By the time I was back at the airport I was completely exhausted so I slept on the floor for a few hours until one of the benches opened up. I never thought I’d be so thankful to sleep on an airport bench but it sure beat the floor! After that things moved pretty quickly; my plane for Chicago left Heathrow at noon on Tuesday, I landed in Chicago with a short layover and soon enough I was walking off the plane in Grand Rapids. As much as I didn’t want to be home, by this time I couldn’t wait to see my mom! The entire time I was walking from the plane to the arrivals area I felt like I couldn’t move fast enough! I don’t think I stopped talking from the moment I saw her until I finally crawled into bed at three a.m.! The poor lady had to sit at the kitchen table and look at every single picture I had taken, all the crafts I had bought, and listen to all the Ugandan music I had downloaded. Somehow showing her everything was comforting, if I couldn’t be there anymore I was at least going to talk about it as much as possible! The next few days went by in a blur. I was very jet-lagged and very emotional...like I said before; I just wanted to be in Africa!

I had to leave for Cross Country camp on Saturday and it was only then that I finally accepted the fact that I was really home.

Even though I still wish I was in Kampala, I think it's important to say that as hard as its been to come home, I wouldn't change a thing! The saddness is there because I had an incredible summer. I was blessed beyond what I could have imagined. One of many reasons I went to Africa this summer was to see if long term mission work as a physical therapist is something I can see myself doing in the future. Well, I left with more questions about that particular subject than I went with, but I’m perfectly ok with that! I realized that in one way or another, though not on purpose, I had planned my whole life out in my head. Now, thankfully, that’s all gone to pieces! I have no idea if long term mission work is something I’ll do in the future, and the great thing is that I don’t have to know!! I discovered a new peace that comes from letting go of the plans I’d made and the expectations I thought I had to fulfill and instead trust that God will take my life where He wants it to go.

I had one of the greatest summers of my life and I’m excited to see what's in store for me next! I want to say thank you to EVERYONE who supported me this summer with money, thoughts, and prayers! I probably won’t get a chance to personally contact all of you who have been so supportive but if you’d like to see more pictures or hear more stories feel free to email me (molly_michelle12@hotmail.com) and we can figure something out!

All my love, from good old Michigan,

Molly

Gulu Town!

 

About thirty hours after arriving back in Kampala from Rwanda I was on a bus yet again. This time the destination was Gulu, a town in northern Uganda. I first heard of Gulu when I went to a screening of a documentary done by the organization Invisible Children on the war in Gulu sometime this past school year.

Gulu (or Gulu Town as the locals call it) has come a long way since the documentary was filmed and I really enjoyed spending the weekend there with my friends.

I went with another AIM volunteer, Carolyn and two of our Ugandan friends, Tony and Jacob. Tony and Jacob were both in the Invisible Children documentary and are still working closely with Invisible Children. They both grew up in Gulu and are now going to University in Kampala. Carolyn met Tony while he was on tour with Invisible Children in Texas just a few weeks before she came to Uganda. I met him here at the Fourth of July Party that Carolyn invited us both to.

We spent most of the day Saturday traveling; leaving Kampala at eleven and arriving around five. As soon as we were off the bus we headed right for the best coffee shop in Gulu; the Coffee Hut. Tony and I were lucky enough to meet the owner of the Coffee Hut when he was in Kampala a few weeks ago with a friend of mine from Spring Arbor. Since we knew the owner we spent a lot of time there throughout the weekend. After having some tea and using the free internet Tony took us to the guesthouse Carolyn and I would be staying at for the weekend. We settled into the room then went to the lobby area with a friend of Tony’s, Innocent, and an Invisible Children volunteer from London, Lizzy. Carolyn and I attempted to teach the rest of the crew how to play phase ten and we ended up playing for most of the evening.

Jacob and his girlfriend who was also with us in Gulu eventually came by and we decided it was time to eat. We walked through Gulu (that’s something nice about Gulu…you don’t have to take bodas everywhere!) to a little hole in the wall restaurant that Jacob really likes. It took me about two seconds of looking at the menu to realize I had no idea what anything was! The different tribes of Uganda all have different foods they eat. I’ve gotten used to Matoke, Rice, Beans, Kasava, and other things common in Kampala but that wasn’t on the menu in Gulu! We had Tony go through the menu with us to explain everything and I ended up ordering “chicken pasted and rice”. It was chicken in g-nut and simsim sauce. Innocent had Lapena which is made of peas and kind of looks like pea soup and Tony had something called Boo (pronounced Boa) which was some sort of greens made into a creamy sauce. I liked the Lapena when I tried it but I was definitely not a fan of the Boo!  

 

After dinner we had some friendly arm wrestling competitions with the guys at the table next to us. I’m not sure how it started but it sure was fun to watch!

Sunday Tony took Carolyn. Lizzy and me to his village where his family lives. It’s called Laleah and isn’t too far outside Gulu. We spent a large part of the afternoon just hanging out at Tony’s house. We listened to lots of great Ugandan music and just had a good time. Everyone in Gulu has an Acholi name in addition to their given name so after arriving Tony’s aunt came in and wanted to give Carolyn, Lizzy, and me each an Acholi name. I was given the name Lakica (pronounced Lakisa or Lakicha depending on who you’re talking to!) which means having grace. For the rest of the weekend I was Lakica to Tony’s family. Lunch was served sometime in the afternoon; rice, posho, beans, and boo that actually tasted good!

After we ate we spent the rest of the time with all of his cousins; there were somewhere between fifteen and twenty of them!  They were all really friendly and by the time we left I had about a thousand pictures of them on my camera! At one point we even had a dance party with the kids; Tony brought his laptop outside and played Waka Waka, Ashawo, and some other songs that the kids would know. It was absolutely adorable watching them dance!

We had dinner at the coffee hut later in the evening and to our surprise it was on the house!

On Monday Tony took Carolyn and me to the Invisible Children offices for a tour. We were able to learn about the many different programs that Invisible Children is working on and meet a lot of the people who work there. One of the programs sponsored by IC is called mend. It’s a group of 17 girls who were formerly abducted by the Lord’s Resistance Army. They are employed by IC to make bags which are sold online and in the U.S. during IC tours. After visiting the main offices we headed across town to the mend offices. We weren’t fortunate enough to meet the women who make the bags because they were all in a meeting while we were there but we did get a tour of the place and were able to buy some of the bags. One of the cool things about the mend program is that it provides a lifelong career for the women involved. Rather than teaching them tailoring skills and sending them on their way, mend provides steady work for them. The bags are all really well made and are super cool…if you’re interested in purchasing one you can find them at .

Believe it or not we had dinner at the coffee hut again; the menu there is just too good! On our way back to the guesthouse one of the corners we passed had a huge puddle and there were a bunch of frogs in it. We couldn’t see the frogs because it was dark out but they were SO loud! I couldn’t get over how loud they were so I convinced Tony to use his light to find one because I figured if it was that loud it must be a massive frog.

Wrong.

 It was a very normal sized frog. It was still really cool to see though because we could watch their throat bubble up really huge every time they made the noise! The rest of the way back to the guesthouse Tony was trying to imitate the frogs; Carolyn and I couldn’t stop laughing because he didn’t sound like a frog at all….he just sounded like he was growling or something!

Our bus left at seven on Tuesday so we were up before the sun.  I was lucky and got a window seat so I was able to sleep most of the morning. We made it back to Kampala before one and we all headed our separate ways.

I’m really grateful to Tony for taking such good care of Carolyn and me and for showing us what life is like in Gulu Town!

I've a feeling we're not in Kampala anymore...

Take a guess as to where I was last Sunday around one a.m.

In bed?

Nope, I was boarding a bus headed for Rwanda! We decided a night bus would be the best option so that it would be morning when we arrived in Rwanda and we’d have all day to explore the city. I went with two of my friends who are here with the German Red Cross; Britta and Sophia. I couldn’t have asked for better people to travel with, we had a blast! Britta and I got to the bus station around 12:15 and were expecting Sophia at 12:30.  Well, 12:30 came and went and there was still no Sophia. Turns out the boda driver who was supposed to bring her had gotten a flat tire so she had to find another. Britta and I were trying to convince the driver of our bus to wait because she was on her way just as she pulled up! Relieved, we all boarded the bus and headed out of the city we currently call home. We tried sleeping on the way but had varying levels of success. We got to the border sometime in the early morning, maybe six? I was sleeping when Sophia woke me up saying we had to go, hurry up, you need your passport, and a bunch of other things that are not so relaxing to wake up to! We laughed about it later but I was so confused at the time as to what was going on! I soon learned why she was rushing me though; the line at the border was long and wasn’t moving very quickly! We made it through just fine though and then it was time for “no man’s land”. There was a stretch of road between Uganda and Rwanda that we had to walk across, maybe a five minute walk, and it was a bit eerie. It was early so it wasn’t very light out and the road is sort of in a valley so it was very foggy. I was informed during our walk across that if someone kills someone in no man’s land and then stays there they can never get in trouble. Comforting.

On the other side we had to go through some more lines then we got back on the bus that would take us to Kigali. We got to the taxi park in Kigali and that’s when I thought, “I've a feeling we're not in Kampala anymore…” The taxis were all parked in lines and there was actually room to walk between them. Everything was so neat and organized, it was a different world from the taxi parks in Uganda! The next shock came when we went to the road for bodas. In Kampala you can have two passengers on a boda and you don’t have to wear a helmet but in Rwanda there can only be one passenger and they have to wear a helmet. It may not sound like a big difference but after two months of riding around Kampala it was a big change. Britta wasn’t a big fan of the helmets…the drivers all carry an extra so you just have to wear whatever they give you and most of the time they’re pretty big. After the first ride Sophia was saying that she thought Britta was talking to the driver the whole ride because her head was moving around so much but it turns out the helmet just wouldn’t stay still! As we spent time in Kigali we noticed more and more differences between Rwanda and Uganda. One of the hardest to get used to was the fact that in Rwanda pedestrians have the right of way. We would be waiting to cross the street and cars would actually stop and wave us across. One time the boda I was on stopped to let someone cross and for a second I thought there must be something wrong with the bike because why else would we stop!? In Rwanda there are also dust bins everywhere which means there’s almost no trash on the streets. The only things you see on the ground are bottle caps and airtime cards. It may seem like Rwanda is a lot nicer than Uganda but to be honest I would still choose Kampala over Kigali any day!

Our first stop after arriving was to exchange our Ugandan shillings. After that we headed to a cute little café in the mall. We sat outside and ordered coffee and breakfast. We all looked exhausted but somehow we felt pretty good! We had quite a time trying to figure out how much we had spent on breakfast in shillings…it had obviously been a while since any of us had done a simple math problem!  When we finally figured it out we were really surprised at how expensive it was. That became a common experience for the rest of the trip…Rwanda is just a very expensive country compared to Uganda. For a while it kind of put a damper on things because we were concerned about spending too much but finally we realized there was nothing we could do about it so we just relaxed!

We got a room at a guesthouse pretty near the center of the city and we all loved it! There was a little porch with a table and chairs, a very small living room with a couch, chairs, and a tv, a big bedroom, and then some stairs that led up to our bathroom. It was perfect for the three of us! We rested for a while and cleaned up then we went to the Genocide Memorial. It was something I really wasn’t prepared for. I can’t figure out why but the genocide in Rwanda is something I’ve never learned much about in school. The memorial took over an hour to go through and gave a lot of information about the history leading up to the genocide as well as what happened during and after. I found that I couldn’t wrap my mind around what had happened. One of the craziest things about it is that it wasn’t even that long ago. All of the people we pass on the street or talk to in the restaurants experienced it and have somehow managed to continue their lives. The people of Rwanda must have an incredible strength to be where they are today. 

            The mood was heavy after the memorial as we were all trying to process everything. We decided to go across the city for dinner at a place recommended in the guidebook Sophia had and I think the long boda ride was needed, we all needed time to think. We were able to lighten the mood at the restaurant but I know that I’ll never forget what the people of Rwanda had to go through. I don’t remember the name of the restaurant but each table had its own little bungalow/porch area and the food was great! The view of the city was amazing too and since we were there past dark we got to see what it looked like all lit up! Rwanda is even hillier than Uganda so we could see all these hills covered with lights that seemed to be dancing, it was so beautiful. Our plan was to go back to our room and watch a movie but while we were trying to decide which one to watch we realized none of us would be able to stay awake for it anyways so we just went to bed!

Tuesday morning we were all up before the alarm since we had gone to sleep so early. We had breakfast at the guesthouse then hired a taxi for the day. We wanted to see two commonly visited memorial sites outside of Kigali and taking bodas would have been too expensive. The first site we visited had been a church that over four thousand people hid in during the genocide. The people thought they would be safe in churches since churches had been safe places in earlier years during other attacks. Just looking at the building was upsetting; the brick building had obvious signs of an attack in places where bullets or grenades had hit. Inside the church the clothes of all the victims were piled on the seats. Not only were there four thousand people inside the church but there were over ten thousand in the area around the building who had wanted to get in but couldn’t find the space. I thought that seeing all the clothing was overwhelming but then the guide took us outside. Two mass graves had been constructed as a resting place for those who had lost their lives in and around the church. One of the graves has been left open so that the genocide could never be denied. There are stairs leading down into it with a narrow aisle lined on each side be more human skulls than I could count. I’m not even going to try to put into words the thoughts and feelings that came over me as I literally stood among the victims of the genocide.

The second memorial site was also a church and was similar to the first in many ways. One of the things that this site highlighted was that the people really believed they would be ok. They had brought with them suitcases of belongings and enough food to last a week or so thinking that after hiding in the church for some time they would be able to return home. There were even school books that had been brought by the children since it was near to exam time when the genocide occurred. Our guide told us they brought them to study so they would be prepared for their exams. We had enough courage at the second site to ask our guide about his personal account of the genocide and he willingly told us his story. We sat in the memorial garden as he talked with us about where he had spent time hiding and what had happened to his family. He also talked about the need for forgiveness in order to move on. He said any retaliation would make him as bad as the people who killed his family. Hearing his story made everything even more personal and I’m so thankful he was willing to share. He ended up showing us pictures of his wife and his new son who is almost two years old, a beautiful example of the strength I mentioned earlier.

Once we were back in Kigali we visited the Hotel Des Milles Collines. It’s the hotel that was made famous by the movie Hotel Rwanda.

As we were unwinding from the memorial sites we decided to try and do some shopping around Kigali. We figured there must be somewhere that prices are lower so we set out in search of such a place. At one point we thought we’d hit gold when we entered an area that looked an awful lot like the Owino Market in Kampala (a huge secondhand market where the prices are super low) but soon enough we realized the venders still wanted way too much money for everything. Discouraged, we headed further down the street but found the same thing in every shop we went in. In the end we hit up a supermarket and bought some chocolate…success!

On Wednesday we got a taxi across Rwanda to a little town called Gisyeni. It’s right on Lake Kivu and it’s a beautiful little town. We were the first ones in the taxi so we sat in the back row. When we finally hit the road the driver turned some music on and to our pleasant surprise it was something we all knew and liked. We all started singing...quietly at first, but it was such a good song so eventually we were really singing and dancing to it and then we realized that nearly everyone in the taxi was turned around staring at us. We were just three mizungos having our own little party in the back, they must have thought we were crazy! We definitely had a blast though. =]

About an hour away from Gisyeni the taxi stopped and we decided to get off because someone had too much tea at breakfast and really needed to find a bathroom (oops!). We thought it would be easy to find another taxi or bus to take us the rest of the way but for the next half hour I felt like I was on The Amazing Race! We kept going from one bus or taxi to the next and they were either full or leaving in three hours or going to the wrong place. We wound up in a very full taxi but made it to Gisyeni soon enough.

Once in Gisyeni Sophia had a plan: Serena Hotel.

Enough said?

There are multiple Serena Hotels around East Africa and they are very fancy. There’s no way we could ever afford to spend the night at the Serena but that didn’t mean we couldn’t spend the day there! We got our swim suits and headed for the Serena. We spent the day lying on the beach, it was fantastic! We ordered lattes (it was getting to be evening so a hot drink was perfect) took lots of pictures, and had fun watching people on jet-skis out in the lake. Once it got to be dark out we headed for the pool. We swam for a bit but the water was pretty cold so we changed back to our normal clothes and got a table at the hotel restaurant. We took our time ordering because we wanted to spend as much time there as possible! Since they’re both from Germany and I’m obviously not our conversation was all about cultural differences between the two places. It was really interesting and pretty hilarious at times. We even talked about German and American names…apparently Michelle isn’t a very good name in Germany, who knew?! Another thing we talked about was how I kept calling our trip vacation and they kept calling it holiday. We were trying to figure out if there was a difference or not and eventually I decided it sounds a lot cooler to call it a holiday so I’ve been saying that instead! I really love that I’ve been able to learn so much about not only Ugandan culture but German culture as well!

That night once we finally stopped pretending we were guests at the Serena we went back to our guesthouse and watched Sometimes in April, a movie about the genocide. The next day was our last day in Rwanda. We made the trip across the country back to Kigali (no “Amazing Race” adventures this time!). We had planned on eating at a place some other AIM girls told us about called Heaven but when we got there it was closed. Imagine that, we couldn’t get into heaven! The gatekeeper told us about another place called The New Cactus so we went there instead. It was the last thing we were going to spend money on so we went all out. We each ordered a small pizza…I ordered one called the Africana; it had bacon, pineapple, and banana! I really wasn’t sure if I would like it or not but it turned out to be delicious! While we were eating our pizza we were looking over the menu and noticed frog legs. There was only a moment of hesitation before we called the waiter over and ordered them. Sophia and I had always wanted to try them…Britta not so much. When they came they looked so gross but thankfully they tasted great. They really do taste like chicken (maybe fishy chicken...) but there was a ton of garlic on them so that heped. Sophia and I really liked them but once Britta thought about the fact that she was eating a frog she couldn’t do it. I think the staff at the restaurant got quite a kick out of our excitement and disgust over the frog legs!

After lunch it was time to go to the taxi park to catch our bus home. Britta bought a bottle of water and soon realized it was leaking out the bottom. I swear she should be my dad’s daughter…instead of complaining about it she decided to make a game of it and squirt water on strangers without them knowing where it came from! She made me think she should be related to my dad again later when we were at the border and she started singing “I’m so excited….and I think I like it”!

We made it back to Kampala around four a.m.  We all really loved the “holiday” but we were so happy to be back in Kampala. There’s just something about this place…

Highlights!

July 18^th:

            Dinner at Wandegaya…I wish I had pictures because I’m finding it impossible to describe Wandegaya! Maybe it’s like a fair or carnival; there are people everywhere and food vendors everywhere, lots of “chicken guys”. This is some guy who has a grill and is making chicken and chapatti and cabbage and a whole assortment of other things. There are so many of them though I don’t know how they possibly all make a living off it. Thankfully on this day I went to Wandegaya for dinner with an expert; Sophia. She’s with the German Red Cross and has lived in Kampala since last fall. Julie (another AIMer) and Sophia’s sister Johanna were there as well. We inched our way through the area looking for Neon, the chicken guy Sophia knows. He was so happy to see us and got us a table right away. Really he just serves food but he was happy to go get drinks for us from another guy. We all got some soda and ordered chapatti with gravy and chicken and cabbage. The chapatti with gravy came first and it was delicious! The chicken with cabbage was great too but I always prefer chapatti! Before we started eating Neon brought around a basin and hot water so we could all wash our hands (I think this is so funny because it makes it sound like a fancy place and really it’s the furthest thing from fancy you can imagine!!). While we were eating the chicken we all put the bones right on the table when we were done with them…it looked kind of gross but it was fun to just be messy and not have it matter at all! After dinner we washed our hands again, thanked Neon for the spectacular dinner (which cost each of us about two dollars!) and headed off to Jam Session at the National Theater! =]

July 19^th:

            Nando’s is a popular restaurant downtown that’s comparable to something between fast food and pizza hut. On Tuesday nights the pizza is buy one get one free so of course Britta, Sophia, Johanna, Julie and I decided to go! The place was packed, apparently that’s where everyone in Kampala eats on Tuesdays, but we got a nice table outside. Germans like their pizza a little different from what I’m used to (tuna and corn on a pizza??) but we managed to get something everyone liked! After dinner we walked up to the National Theater for Percussion Discussion. Every Tuesday at National Theater a percussion group performs from 8-10 for only 5,000 shillings.  We met some of our Ugandan friends there and completely enjoyed the show. The group is the same one that performs in the movie The Last King of Scotland (which I still really want to see because people here talk about it all the time!!). I was lucky because this particular night they had a group of about ten dancers visiting who performed for a while. They were so good! It is absolutely crazy how fast these people can move their hips! Towards the end of the show they tell the audience to feel free to dance…ha! I’m way too shy for that but eventually I did because Ugandans can be very convincing! Most of the friends we’ve made here are part of one of the dance groups Tabu Flo or Keiga. They’re the ones who lead the dancing at the end so of course they insisted we all join! Once I was up there I had a blast…we all got an old beat up tea kettle or tin can or some other metal object and a stick so we were all making lots of noise and dancing and enjoying ourselves.

July 20^th:

            HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAROLYN!!! =]

We celebrated Carolyn and Rachel’s birthdays (both AIM girls) at Steer’s with a bunch of Carolyn’s friends from Dwelling Places where she works. Julie and I were lucky enough to sit by two of the funniest Ugandan’s I’ve met. Also, we had ice cream and French fries for dinner so it was truly a great celebration!

After dinner Julie called Michael, one of our favorite boda drivers and I called Derrick. It can be really difficult to explain where you are sometimes so when Michael got there before Derrick I asked him to call Derrick to make sure he had understood me. Michael and Derrick definitely know each other because we all use them so much and Michael always jokes about how Derrick is such a slow driver (which is kind of true but I’d rather go slow than get in an accident so I never mind!). So anyways, Michael was on the phone with Derrick, speaking Lugandan of course, and Julie and I couldn’t help but laugh because the one Lugandan word we understood was “hurry up!” and he just kept saying it over and over. Michael is such a nice guy though because he insisted on waiting with me until Derrick was there!

            Another random highlight of this day was that a newbie to Kampala was there and he had REAL gum with him!!! The gum here tastes good but it lasts about two minutes so it was such a treat to have gum from back home!

July 21^st:

            This was about the third day in a row that we had no power so my cell phone was completely dead…not a huge problem but I decided to head into town to find a place to charge it. I ended up at Garden City (surprise surprise) at a Starbucks look-alike called Bancafe. I ordered an avocado smoothie (delicious!) and settled into the big comfy chair to catch up on my journaling. It was such a great evening!! I decided to buy dinner for one of the mothers sitting on the street with her child (sausage rolls and a huge piece of cake for dessert!) and it was seriously one of the highlights of my entire trip here to give it to them. I sat down and talked for a minute then asked if it was ok to give them some dinner. As I was walking away I had tears streaming down my face. I can’t really explain it but I felt like I was made for that moment in time. I’m not saying I did anything special, I’ve seen plenty of other people give food to the people sitting there,  I guess it was just something I’ll never forget.

            A bit later I was walking along the sidewalk and was completely shocked to see someone from Spring Arbor walking along in the other direction. I had known Pilgrim was in Uganda but he’s been staying up in Gulu so I never expected to see him in Kampala. He was with some friends from Gulu so we all hung out for the evening; it was such a good time!! We were at a cute little restaurant called Boda Boda for a while and they had a fabulous live band! They played covers of all sorts of great songs. It was really fun to hang out with someone from home and this upcoming weekend I’m headed to Gulu for a few days so we’ll get to hang out again!

July 23^rd:

            Not quite happy birthday Sophia…but this was the day of her birthday party. She had it at a friend’s house and the party was complete with a Rolex stand (eggs, tomatoes, cabbage, onion, and green pepper all rolled up in a chapatti), chicken, chips, and lots of friends! I went to the party with the girls from the guesthouse (Marie, Britta, and Sophie) but our boda driver ran out of gas before reaching the place. Thankfully we were within walking distance so it wasn’t a problem!

July 24^th:

            Crazy things happened at church on this day! We were about 45 minutes into the service and were about to sing a song when the projector way up on the ceiling started sparking. It was really like someone had lit about ten sparklers on it. All the people sitting directly under it jumped up and were trying to move to the sides. Then the sparking stopped and the thing just caught on fire! The band was still playing but I don’t think a single person was singing! We were all just sitting there waiting for something to happen when all of a sudden the entire projector started shaking and moving. People really freaked out at that point and were trying to get out the doors (way too many people and not enough doors lead to a bit of chaos though!) but it turns out there was someone in the ceiling above the projector who had pulled it upwards so they could use a fire extinguisher on it. It was like it was snowing in church for a minute because of all the fire extinguisher stuff falling. Once the fire was out the projector was lowered to the ground where they were able to detach it and take it out of the sanctuary. Of course everyone cheered and once the seats were cleaned up the service went on as usual with a few extra (funny!) references to fire and hell…

July 25^th:

            Cristiana, this one’s for you!

ETHIOPIAN FOOD! =]

Julie, Amanda, Sophia and I went to The Space for dinner. The tables are all outside and surrounded by candles! I love the outdoor restaurants here! Julie and I ordered from the Ethiopian menu and it was delicious! I had enjera which is like bread but is different in so many ways! First of all, it looks like a blanket! It’s flat and spongy and tastes a little bit like sourdough bread. I had some sort of lentil sauce that I dipped it in, very tasty. I decided that sometime this year Cristiana and I either need to find an Ethiopian restaurant near Spring Arbor or attempt to make some Ethiopian food ourselves!

July 28^th:

            This wasn’t technically my last day at Mukisa but it was the last day the kids were there. The whole week it was hard knowing that it was my last week but it all came together when I was saying goodbye at the end of the day. Each day at Mukisa there’s a different group of kids, some are there once or twice a week and a couple are there every day. I was in the music therapy room which is the nap room in the afternoons saying goodbye to each of the kids and I couldn’t take it. I mean think about it, the chances are huge that I’ll never see these kids again. I think it made it even harder that they’re kids…they can’t say goodbye back.

I guess I just feel so incredibly blessed that I got to spend the time with them that I did. I wish it was longer but I’ll take what I’ve been given! Something I’ve learned here is that even though they’re kids and even though most of them don’t have a lot of communication they all still have huge personalities and have so much to offer the world!

Some of the guys from Tabu Flo dance group came to Mukisa for a dance party with the kids. It was really cool of them to come and the kids loved it!

Badru loved dancing with Antonio!

This is Cedric wearing Antonio's shoes..so funny!

Marie and Britta have been teaching some of the mother's English so during the final week they had cake and soda for them to celebrate all they had learned! 

This is me working with Faridah (a therapist) and Halima.

This was during a birthday party for Meddy, Halima, and Jovia! We all got cake and each of them got a present from Mukisa! =]

July 29^th:

            This was the last official day at Mukisa. It was just staff members and volunteers though, no moms and no kids. We had a meeting in the morning then lunch. All of us volunteers decided we wanted to do something to say thank you to the staff at Mukisa so we hired a catering service to come for lunch. We all ate way more than necessary and enjoyed our final lunch together. After lunch we had another meeting of sorts but really it was to say our goodbyes. There were five of us volunteers who were at Mukisa every day, one who worked at a sister project to Mukisa, and one staff member who was leaving as well. The tradition at Mukisa is that on someone’s last day they choose their favorite song and everyone sings it for them while they dance. How embarrassing! We all got lucky though because they let the six volunteers dance together! We stood in the middle and each picked a different and actually had a lot of fun dancing and singing! Most of us picked a song from music therapy and I couldn’t’ decide which my favorite was. I ended up choosing Head and Shoulders Knees and Toes because Britta and Sophie and I always love it when they play it during therapy. They always make the school kids stand up for the song and they get the first head and shoulders right but after that they never know what to do so they usually just go back and forth from head to shoulders with an occasional toe touch thrown in. We always just find it so hilarious and adorable so when I chose that song we dedicated it to them and danced just like they do! The staff got quite a kick out of it!

After the dancing we each got a Mukisa certificate and a handmade gift made by the moms. We said our goodbyes to the staff then headed home. There were lots of tears but it was a happy goodbye, I’ve learned so much from the staff members at Mukisa and I’ll never forget them!

I couldn’t bear sitting at home after such an emotional day so I decided to wander though Kampala. I headed into town on a taxi and walked through the endless shops surrounding the taxi park. I eventually ended up at Green Shops, my favorite thrift store here. After that I went to a craft market to buy more souvenirs for friends and family back home. It sounds like a simple thing to do but there are so many choices of things to buy I usually end up standing there staring at everything!

Faridah and Idah the physiotherapists 

James and Sulaiti the Occupational Therapists

Anne and Grace the teachers

July 30^th:

            I was up early because Carolyn and I had made plans to go to Jinja for the day. We met at Shoprite (a grocery store) at nine and got a coaster bus to Jinja. I was excited because I was able to sleep almost the whole way there! Sleeping makes long bus rides so much more bearable! =]

Once we arrived in Jinja we headed right for the source of the Nile. We both thought it was so cool to actually be at the source of the Nile River! We took our tourist pictures and went to a restaurant right on the river for lunch. I thought about ordering fish because...well I mean we were at the Nile! But they serve fish with the heads still on here so I played it safe and had chicken. We walked back to town after lunch and met another AIM girl who works outside of Jinja. She works at Good Sheppard’s Fold Orphanage and has been here about eight months. We had the coolest boda ride out to the orphanage! We fit all three of us on the boda which is pretty cool in itself but it was also just really fun to ride a boda through the country when I’m so used to riding around downtown Kampala! We had to get off and walk for a bit because we took the old bridge over the Nile and bodas aren’t allowed to drive over it anymore. Once we crossed the river it seemed like we were just surrounded by sugar cane for miles…very pretty!

I was so glad we got to visit the orphanage, it was pretty incredible. GSF has about 77 children living there. Not all are “true orphans” but they all have some reason for being there. The compound is huge and really feels like its own village. The kids were scattered around the compound either playing volleyball or soccer or studying or really doing whatever they felt like doing on a Saturday afternoon! The kids live about eight to a house with one house mom. We got to meet most of the house moms and I was blown away with how great they were. I think it must take a really special person to do what they do. Unfortunately we didn’t get to spend much time at the orphanage because we wanted to be back in Kampala before dark but like I said before, I’m so glad I got to visit!

This obviously doesn’t catch me up to present day but on the 31^st I left for “holiday” in Rwanda so that will all be in a separate post!

Field Trip!

What do you get when you pile 15 adults, 20 children, three wheelchairs, and a whole lot of craziness and fun into a taxi and a van?? Field trip, Mukisa style!

Last Thursday I was lucky enough to make a trip into town with the school children and vocational students from Mukisa. One of the volunteers at Mukisa had some sponsorship money that was used to fund the outing. I went to Mukisa early Thursday morning to help get the kids ready to go. The taxi was a bit late so we were all outside waiting when it pulled in. The kids were so excited they actually cheered as it drove down the hill into the compound! Talk about enthusiasm! They piled in with huge smiles on their faces. One of the little boys jumped in and smooshed his face up against the window and started waving at us, it was so cute!

The destination was Centenary Park, a great little playground in downtown Kampala. There was a bouncing castle, trampolines, swings, a teeter totter, and all the other usual playground stuff. The kids played for two hours straight and the heat barely slowed them down. Most of the kids enjoyed an added surprise; face painting! The way they paint faces over here is so cool; forget about rainbows and hearts on your cheek, they do all sorts of cool designs! It was amusing that when some of them got their face painted they were so proud of it and excited yet others didn’t even bother to look at it, they just went right on playing! There was music playing in the background; songs like head and shoulders, if you’re happy and you know it, and how much is that doggy in the window. At one point though they were playing Rudolph…we were a little confused about that one! The music was fun and the kids had a great time dancing to it when they weren’t too busy playing with the other things. We were served lunch in the park from the restaurant located there. We had chips (French fries), chicken, and soda. It was a great treat and it was fun to see the kids enjoying it so much! Even though they live in Kampala this was a new place for a lot of them.

After lunch it was time to go back to Mukisa and by then we were all tired anyways! It took forty minutes to get back because of all the traffic and I couldn’t keep my eyes open! One of the boys sitting behind me kept tapping me on the shoulder every so often and then would just smile at me; I guess he didn’t think I should be sleeping!

 I’ll be the first to admit, the day was exhausting…but it was so worth it! Seeing the kids running around and enjoying themselves was such a blessing and I’m really glad I was able to join in on all the fun!

No Power? No Problem!!

Fourth of July negatives: no fireworks

Dance Party!

Fourth of July positives: I was invited to a Fourth of July party by a team of four girls working through AIM in Kampala for the month. I was able to meet them on Saturday when Carolyn had us all over for lunch. Carolyn treated us to a delicious lunch followed by homemade chocolate chip cookies! We had a really great conversation while we ate and made the cookies; I really wish they were in Kampala longer than a month! They’re all around my age and they work at Dwelling Places, a ministry working with street children. For a short time I was actually supposed to be part of the team...then Mukisa asked for a volunteer! Anyways, the girls are awesome and they seem to get along really well! On Saturday they told me they were having a Fourth of July party and they wanted me to go. They said there’d be food and that the American Embassy would have fireworks that we’d be able to see from their guesthouse! I was planning on getting there around five but the girls I work with at Dawn and I decided to go thrift store shopping after work so I didn’t get to the party until about six or six thirty.  I wasn’t sure exactly where the girls lived so my boda driver stopped to ask some other drivers where the guesthouse was when I saw two of the girls walking down the road in our direction. I told my driver that he could just drop me there so I could walk with them to their house. Turns out they were headed to the market to get more food…one of the girls said “You know how in America if you invite 20 people to something 15 show up? Well, in Uganda if you invite 20 people to something 30 will show up!!” We picked up some rice and soda then headed to the party! They were right; there were a lot of people there! Most everyone was from dwelling places; either staff members or kids/teens that are in the program. In addition to not having enough food the area had also lost power so they served ice cream first instead of after dinner and we had candles everywhere! There was such a great atmosphere at the party; music, food, cards, dancing, and lots of laughter!

As crazy as it was for a while when I arrived (trying to get food for over thirty people prepared without power is difficult!!) it all turned out perfectly. Everyone had enough to eat and somehow there were even a few leftovers. When we were done eating some of the guys started doing card tricks and after leaving me completely impressed with all their tricks they actually showed me how to do them!! (Funny thing though, for one of the tricks he asked me to shuffle the cards, when I did the look on his face was priceless! He had expected me to shuffle them like the Ugandans do, which means just cutting the deck a few times, so when I did it the “normal” way it completely ruined his trick…it was quite hilarious!) When they were out of card tricks they tried to teach us this really strange way to whistle. It sounds really cool but looks so weird! I literally tried to get it until I was lightheaded! I got it once for about two seconds but then couldn’t get it again the whole night. We kept thinking the fireworks were coming but eventually we got tired of waiting so we all headed home.

So, needless to say, even though I didn’t get to see any fireworks I still had a fantastic Fourth of July! The positives definitely outweighed the negatives! =]

Jessica, Me, Carolyn! Happy Fourth!

Thank you Dawn, Louise, Bridgett, and Jessica for hosting a wonderful party!

This has nothing to do with the Fourth of July but....

Me, Britta, and Sophia at dinner.  

Tuesday night some of the girls and I went out for dinner. There’s this really great place called City Annex in downtown Kampala. Its part of a hotel has a big menu and pretty low prices. The catch is that before you order you have to pick out like at least three different things you might want because it’s very unlikely they’ll actually have what you ask for! The plan was to go to the cinema after dinner because on Tuesdays the tickets are half price. That didn’t happen (surprise surprise…TIA!!!!) We didn’t get done eating in time to make it to the movie so we decided we’d go for some tea instead. We went to this really nice café on top of the mall but when we tried to order tea they said they weren’t serving any hot drinks because their machine was down. We contemplated getting soda but we all had our hearts set on some African tea! We decided to go to Java’s because they simply never let you down. I may have mentioned Java’s before but it’s this really cute, really yummy, really expensive coffee shop at the mall. Apparently if I ever want some chocolate cake, that’s the place to go…though I haven’t confirmed this claim yet. Sure enough, Java’s didn’t disappoint! The tea was delicious and we got a table outside which was really nice. After the tea we called it a night and headed home. Maybe next week we’ll actually make it to the movies!!!

JAVVVVVAS!

Good thing bananas are only 250 shillings...

I don't always do things in moderation.
Example:
My first week here I ate pineapple every day. (lots of it.)
For a few weeks after that it was mangoes. Now...banana bread.

I've made banana bread four times in one week! At first I followed a recipe and measured everything but that didn't last long!

This is basically how I make it now:

two cups flour (give or take..)
one cup sugar (never less!!)
as many bananas as I happen to have at the moment
a spoonfull of vanilla flavor
lots of cinnamon
some baking soda and baking powder
either two eggs or some vanilla flavored milk if I don't have eggs
1/3 cup butter

And if I have any I'll sometimes add honey, peanut butter, or walnuts.

Florence has this little circle cake pan I use...I put it in the oven for about forty minutes and just like that spending the evening at home goes from mediocre to delicious!! =]

And since this banana bread phase is sure to run out, feel free to send some recipes my way!!

Mukisa

Mukisa means blessing in Lugandan…and that means Mukisa is the perfect name for the place I get to work while I’m here!

I’ve mentioned Mukisa a few times but I’d like to talk about it more…considering I spend four days a week there! I work at Mukisa Tuesday through Friday from 9 to 4. It’s only a ten minute walk from home but Florence leaves at the same time as me so I usually ride with her. We get there just in time for breakfast. Each day there’s bread and butter, porridge, bananas, and tea or coffee. At first I stayed away from the porridge because it looks pretty gross but Marie convinced me to try it and now I have it every day! I only like it if I add sugar though, and recently I discovered that if you put some instant coffee mix in it you get coffee flavored porridge…delicious!! =]

The living room

I can eat breakfast anywhere but I like to have it in the living room. There are always some mothers having breakfast with their kids in the living room and sometimes I’m also joined by the German volunteers. 

I love that each day starts off in such a calm way…everyone is relaxed and greeting each other; “Good morning, how are you? I’m fine thank you, how are you? I’m fine!” I hear that about a hundred times every morning! Breakfast usually lasts until about 9:45, but that means some days 9:30, some days 10! After breakfast is music therapy…one of my favorite parts of the day!

Most of the caretakers (not all of them because some of them have a tailoring class they go to) and all of the children go to the music room. There are three or four drums that the moms, caretakers, or therapists play and then we sing songs! Most of the songs are in Lugandan and the rest are in English. Though I like when they sing English ones so I can join in, I have to admit the Lugandan ones sound so much better!! Music lasts anywhere from twenty to forty five minutes. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays after music I work with the therapists. Tuesdays I’m with either Idah or Farieda, the physiotherapists, and on Wednesdays I’m with either Sulaiti or James, the occupational therapists. I’ve loved the time I’ve spent with the therapists and I feel like I’m learning a lot. I’ve been able to help with lots of passive stretching on the kids who have cp and then different sitting exercises for some others. They use an exercise ball quite a bit to help the kids who aren’t able to hold their head up or sit on their own and I’ve helped with that a few times. I’ve also learned how to use the standing frame. Time in the standing frame allows the child to weight bear which is good for them in a lot of different ways. It can be really difficult to get the kids into the frame since it’s usually pretty uncomfortable for them. It can really break my heart when they scream and cry but I have to know that we’re doing what’s best for them in the long run. One of the most exciting things I’ve been able to do with the therapists is help one of the little boys to walk. He has hydrocephalus and has a lot of trouble walking but he’s definitely learning and getting better!

Therapy lasts until lunch time which is around one. After lunch on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays I help with the autism class. Brita, Marie, and Sophie also help with the class most afternoons and sometimes we’re joined by the teachers; Anne and Grace. Anne and Grace are really fun to work with…they’re those people who complement each other perfectly. Anne is quite sarcastic with a dry sense of humor and Grace is just a sweetheart who loves to laugh! There are four boys in the class; Hamzah, Cedric, Dalton, and Moses. They’re all around the same age and even though there are only four of them they can be quite a handful sometimes!! Something I love is how unique they each are; they all have such different personalities.

Hamzah is a stinker but he is so loveable! He’s very affectionate and is usually pretty easy to please.

Cedric is the quiet one…one of his favorite things to do is just sit and stare at my watch!! I guess he likes to see the numbers changing or something? He also follows directions pretty well which is so helpful!









Dalton also follows directions well but he’s not quiet like Cedric. I think that of all four of them Dalton has the longest attention span...he’s great during story time and he can sit and watch a movie really well (unless it’s raining really hard outside, then he just wants to look out the window!)











Then finally there’s Moses. Ah, what to say about Moses… 

Moses's smile...drool and all!!

Moses is the crazy one! He’s loud and hyper and rarely follows directions. I always tell him he’s lucky he’s cute…and he really is cute!! He’s got an adorable smile and he usually smiles really big right before he tries to run away or throw something or whatever else he does!! Even though he’s hard to work with he really is a great kid and the more time he spends at Mukisa the happier and better behaved he gets.

The rest of my time at Mukisa (Wednesday’s after lunch and Thursday and Friday mornings) are spent in the vocational classroom. There are about six or seven kids who go to vocational class but they aren’t all in there at once. Some go four days a week, others only one. There are three that are there every day and I’ve gotten to know them pretty well. Peter, Jackie, and Sarah.

They’re all around 20 years old and they’re a lot of fun! Peter and Jackie will sit there are talk to each other in Lugandan the whole time. One time I asked Sulaiti what they were saying because he happened to be in the room and he said they were arguing about who was older and more mature. Peter was telling Jackie that he was older and she was saying that he was wrong. How cute is that?! All the volunteers talk about how Jackie and Peter are in love, I don’t know if they really are but they are definitely great friends.

Sarah is really quiet and she’s great at making necklaces. That’s one of the activities for the vocational class. There are quite a few different activities that they can learn to do; making necklaces, bracelets, earrings, table mats, rugs, envelopes, and folders. The things they make are sold to Mukisa so they can earn some money.

While I’m in the class I help in whatever way the kids need. Sometimes they need constant supervision and other times they don’t really need help at all. If I’m not helping them directly there are a few different things I do. So far there’s been a lot of organizing to do in the classroom with all the supplies they have; I’m good at organizing so that’s been fun! Also, when they make necklaces or bracelets I finish them for the kids. They get all the beads on then I’ll tie it if they aren’t able to. After that the ends have to be melted so they don’t come undone. It’s pretty simple work but I really enjoy it and I think the kids do too.

I mentioned lunch briefly…like I said, it’s around one. Lunch consists of a few different things; there’s always rice…always! There are also always beans, they’re quite good! Sometimes there is g-nut sauce; sometimes not…we always get excited when they have it though because it makes everything taste even better! Then there will be one of the following; matoke, sweet potatoes (yellow ones, not orange), Irish potatoes (which I guess are just normal potatoes), or posho. I don’t know how to describe posho, it looks like mashed potatoes but it’s just maize flour and water so there’s not a whole lot of taste to it. It’s not good by itself but with the beans it’s not so bad. Then for a vegetable there will either be cabbage (so good!!), eggplant, or “greens” (still not sure what exactly the greens are). Basically, lunch is simple but always filling and tasty! The volunteers; Marie, Brita, Ellen, Sophie, and I, all eat together. We fill up our plates then go outside to eat. There’s a big sandbox at Mukisa with walls that are just the right height for sitting. I quite enjoy having lunch in the sandbox every day!! It’s been fun getting to know the girls and it’s nice to have a little break. Even though lunch is filling we sometimes get lucky and get other snacks during the day. One of the moms, Mama Marie, will bring little bags of g-nuts and roasted maize (which tastes just like corn nuts back home!!) that she sells for 500 schillings.

This is Marie, her mom is the one who brings in the snacks!

Then once in a while we are able to have mangoes from the tree that’s in the yard, that’s always SUCH a good treat! And if there aren’t g-nuts or mangoes Annette, the cook, always has muffins you can buy for 500 schillings. I will never go hungry at Mukisa!

I feel so blessed to have been placed at Mukisa; it’s a foundation that’s really making a difference in a lot of lives. Please pray for Mukisa…that it continues to grow and reach more and more children. Pray for the staff who give and give and give to make everything run smoothly.

And please pray for me. =] I have been blessed more than I even realize since I’ve been here and I want to be a good steward of those blessings.

All my love,

Molly