So I just returned from Murchison Falls. WOW... It was fantastic. I met some awesome people and I saw some AMAZING sights.
For those of you who are unaware I am not one to be speechless but really I don't know how to put the over all place into words. I can tell you some random things but the moral of the story is... I am very glad that God has an incredible imagination. How anyone could say that 2781 species of antelope all could live in the same place by evolution and each is the MOST adapted? That is just tom foolery. I am not here to argue with you though... that's your business not mine.
So I arrived at the Red Chili, the hotel/tour company I went with on Monday evening. The place made me dizzy. I walked in and it was mzungus from wall to wall. They were all eating and drinking and what have you... There was only one way in which this was slightly like my daily life of late... only about 5% of them were speaking my language in conversation amongst themselves.
I promptly retreated to my living quarters; shared with 17 people from Sweden who were leaving the hotel at 4 AM. That was AWESOME... then when I did wake up for real I wondered around awkwardly until the vans were preparing to leave for Murchison. We then left and in the bus load of 14 people the role call went as follows: 4 Germans (the two daughters had spent a year in Kumi doing missions work at a hospital and teaching a bible study), 2 French, 1 Norwegian (Doing humanitarian work mostly in Gulu, the area most hit by LRA), 1 Washington DC (doing AIDs testing in Mbale area), 5 Texans (their church partners with a feeding program, like an orphanage without the beds just the food, in Jinja), and one Iowan (I think you know about this guys shenanigans). The fellow who drove our tour van was Medi, he grew up in Jinja, has been driving these tours and does guiding of the Murchison falls tours for four years.
We there were 8 of us that hung out quite a bit of the time. Sarah from Norway, Thorston from DC, the Texans and I. We had a good time. My tent mate was Roger. He is the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Archer City, Texas. We had some very good discussions at night.
We had some interesting encounters with tsi tsi flies. They hurt when they bite, not that I know first hand but that is the word on the street from the female type people who did get bitten. Medi told us that they don't cause African Sleeping Sickeness anymore. Thorston, Mr CDC himself confirmed that it had been 3 years since the last reported case.
I can't really describe seeing giraffes, elephants, antelopes, lions, etc. it was awesome but words can't really describe it.
The last day we went to the actual falls. It was fantastic. The falls are on the Nile. The river goes through a 7 meter hole. It therefore gets a bit excited as it does this. The water produces a rainbow or two. It was gorgeous.
We then came home. I think this is the lamest blog post in the history of the world.
In other news in the taxi to Mbale from Kampala I slept for part of the journey, and when I woke up the three ladies in the back seat were singing hymns in Luganda. It was pretty awesome.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
To Katakwi and Beyond!
This weekend I went to Katakwi. That was an adventure. On Sunday I we went to a church about an hour from Katakwi by motorcycle. Robert drove us on the town PAG's motorcycle. There were 3 of us on it. That was cozy. When we returned to Katakwi we attempted to find a car going back to Soroti but there were none. So I rode a motorcycle for another 2 hours to Soroti. That was MOST fun. All this while I had about 10 kilos on my back. I was very tired and very dirty when I got back to Soroti, and Mbale. I then took a taxi to Mbale.
When I reached Kumi (just over half way back to Mbale) the farm manager got on my taki. That was quite the coincidence; of all the taxis going by she happens to find the one I'm in... ok no one else finds that interesting. I'll keep moving.
When we were about 15 kilometers outside of Kumi we came upon an accident. You see the remnants of many accidents as you move around, but this one was pretty fresh. We went by just in time to see a yong man's body being tossed into the back of a truck. That was ... abrasive to the mind... The farm manager had heard that the driver of the taxi had attempted to dodge a pot hole and the man was riding a bicycle and had also swerved and the two had collided. It is almost surprising that it does not happen more often. Sad day...
So about Katakwi...
This is the very edge of the Ateso area. This is relevant for a number of reasons. When the Lord's Resistance Army were doing the insurgency thing; this was the area that was hit. The LRA came from the north so there were more problems and things farther north but they got to Katakwi. They also border the Karamajong. In the past the Karamoja (and still some but it was worse in the past) would do cattle raids. I have mentioned previously that the Karamajong believe(d) that all the cows belong to them. Therefore if someone else has a cow they stole it from the Karamajong. So they would come and take all the cows, other animals, and what ever else they might desire and leave the people with nothing.
Robert (the student I was visiting) had to move because the place he lived was overrung by Karamajong. George William (resident of Kapalebyong, and I visited him a couple of weeks back) also spoke of losing all he had to the Karamoja. This is kind of a problem.... But they deal with it and move on.
In other news... Sara and I went to one of the lecturer's wife's schools this morning (Michael Nangi's wife Phoebe). That was interesting. She teaches P1... I think its P1... Anyways... Her students are ages 6-11. That would be fun... if she did not have 157 students in her class. That is just insane.
So we road bodas there. It was quite a ways... up a hill... a very bad road. I got a little nervous a few times. On a very steep portion my boda driver killed his motorcycle. Then it started to roll backwards. That was exhilarating, but we got there safe and sound. We then had breakfast at the guest house at the school.
The school was founded by Jews. There are still Jews there. Quite a few of them. They have an African Rabi and everything. When we were in the guest house -wow the biggest bumblebee (at least it looked like a bumblebee) EVER just took a vagabondage through my room- it was all decorated with Star of David's, all the door posts had scripture scrolls, and the people there wore yamakas. That was interesting to see. Then we greeted all the children in each of the classes.
That was interesting. You said good morning, and they all replied in unison "Good morning madam/sir" that was rather funny. We then sat in Phoebe's class for a while. She does have one other teacher helper person, but still that would be crazy.
Other facts about the school. They had 103 of the 157 students there today, and on Friday they had 98. Pheobe explained that it is difficult to get students there every day since they don't serve food there. They are there from 8 AM to 1 PM or 5 PM (I didn't really understood who stayed how long) and they get breaks for meals and for "break tea" but they didn't serve any. She also mentioned that students were more plentiful during mango season, because then they were more likely to find some mangoes to eat during the day.
I am leaving this afternoon to go to Kampala, and then Murchison Falls. This is the biggest game park in Uganda. I will be there until Thursday.
When I reached Kumi (just over half way back to Mbale) the farm manager got on my taki. That was quite the coincidence; of all the taxis going by she happens to find the one I'm in... ok no one else finds that interesting. I'll keep moving.
When we were about 15 kilometers outside of Kumi we came upon an accident. You see the remnants of many accidents as you move around, but this one was pretty fresh. We went by just in time to see a yong man's body being tossed into the back of a truck. That was ... abrasive to the mind... The farm manager had heard that the driver of the taxi had attempted to dodge a pot hole and the man was riding a bicycle and had also swerved and the two had collided. It is almost surprising that it does not happen more often. Sad day...
So about Katakwi...
This is the very edge of the Ateso area. This is relevant for a number of reasons. When the Lord's Resistance Army were doing the insurgency thing; this was the area that was hit. The LRA came from the north so there were more problems and things farther north but they got to Katakwi. They also border the Karamajong. In the past the Karamoja (and still some but it was worse in the past) would do cattle raids. I have mentioned previously that the Karamajong believe(d) that all the cows belong to them. Therefore if someone else has a cow they stole it from the Karamajong. So they would come and take all the cows, other animals, and what ever else they might desire and leave the people with nothing.
Robert (the student I was visiting) had to move because the place he lived was overrung by Karamajong. George William (resident of Kapalebyong, and I visited him a couple of weeks back) also spoke of losing all he had to the Karamoja. This is kind of a problem.... But they deal with it and move on.
In other news... Sara and I went to one of the lecturer's wife's schools this morning (Michael Nangi's wife Phoebe). That was interesting. She teaches P1... I think its P1... Anyways... Her students are ages 6-11. That would be fun... if she did not have 157 students in her class. That is just insane.
So we road bodas there. It was quite a ways... up a hill... a very bad road. I got a little nervous a few times. On a very steep portion my boda driver killed his motorcycle. Then it started to roll backwards. That was exhilarating, but we got there safe and sound. We then had breakfast at the guest house at the school.
The school was founded by Jews. There are still Jews there. Quite a few of them. They have an African Rabi and everything. When we were in the guest house -wow the biggest bumblebee (at least it looked like a bumblebee) EVER just took a vagabondage through my room- it was all decorated with Star of David's, all the door posts had scripture scrolls, and the people there wore yamakas. That was interesting to see. Then we greeted all the children in each of the classes.
That was interesting. You said good morning, and they all replied in unison "Good morning madam/sir" that was rather funny. We then sat in Phoebe's class for a while. She does have one other teacher helper person, but still that would be crazy.
Other facts about the school. They had 103 of the 157 students there today, and on Friday they had 98. Pheobe explained that it is difficult to get students there every day since they don't serve food there. They are there from 8 AM to 1 PM or 5 PM (I didn't really understood who stayed how long) and they get breaks for meals and for "break tea" but they didn't serve any. She also mentioned that students were more plentiful during mango season, because then they were more likely to find some mangoes to eat during the day.
I am leaving this afternoon to go to Kampala, and then Murchison Falls. This is the biggest game park in Uganda. I will be there until Thursday.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Soroti Adventure
So I just got back from Soroti from a weekend with Emmanuel Okwalinga. The most common name is Emmanuel (Emma for short). There are I think 4 in our compound... at least... and there are only like 50 people, right now there are only like 10 people and only 1 is Emma, but when the students are here there is a plethora.
So I was in Soroti town. I got there on Saturday morning. I met Emma and ate breakfast and walked around town a little bit. We then went to the guest house where I'd be staying. I stayed at the guest house which belongs to the Soroti Town PAG church. I after we had lunch we went to a wedding introduction. That was a VERY interesting experience.
We were supposed to leave at noon to arrive at one, when the deal was supposed to start. I we actually left at two, and arrived at 3. The deal did not start until about 6. The delay was due to waiting for the groom and his team to arrive. Noce that it was supposed to start at 1 and conclude at 6, and when it starts at 6 it creates a problem. It is dark long before 11, and since we are out in the village there is no electricity.
So the groom and his people arrive, about 100 of them. They then have to pay a fine to the bride's family for being late. (This money just goes on top of the dowry I suppose.) Once the fine is settled the groom's team leader, or spokesman for the evening is allowed to cut the ribbon and enter the place. Each of the groom's team is marked with a ribbon as they enter.
After they are all seated, the Master of Ceremonies gives an overview of the programme. They also make it known that it will be shortened due to the delay of the groom. Then the bride's family welcomes everyone and does introductions. They introduce all the family, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc... Then a half hour later the groom's family does the same thing. Then the clan spokesman for each family give the official okay to the wedding. Then the LC 1 (the lowest local government official) gives his welcome and okays it all. Then we are about an hour into the ceremony. Then we have the introduction of the bride.
This is not just here is So Andso. That would be too easy. The whole idea is that the groom's family has come to get someone and the host's are not sure who, so they have to find this woman, and make sure that they have come to the proper location. SO... it is done in this way... The MC says that they have sent the "Auntie" out to find the woman that the groom is looking for. The auntie then brings out like 8 or so young girls. They kneel waiting to be chosen. The groom's team comes out and inspects them looking for Ikakiror (which is Ateso for name). Not finding her there they send the girls away with the auntie. Before they leave the auntie says that they will have to hire drivers to bring them home blah blah... so the groom has to pay them each some money to leave. Then they bring out some older ones... same thing they inspect and pay, then they leave. Then they bring out the old ladies, same thing... then they brought out like 20 girls of the proper age category. They then select her from this group... and the villagers rejoice.
Then all the girls go back inside, and then like 10 men from the groom's side get up and go up to a table and walk around it. Then one of them (they hide who does it) puts an envelope on the table. This envelope holds the dowry money. The men go back and sit down. The women come back out and then they walk around the table repeatedly. Then the bride takes the envelope. This mean she accepts. If she doesn't take the envelope it means the fellow is out of luck.
Then the women go back inside, and then come back out (all of this is going to music, so it is half walked/half danced... so they have a song for each portion which slows things down considerably). They then must find the groom in the group of the groom's family. Then when they do the villagers rejoice. Then they introduce each other. Then a preacher gives a short sermon.
Then the villagers rejoice and every one eats. By this time it was dark. This made eating an adventure, because I couldn't see what I was eating, I was also eating with my hands. This made the bits of liver that I found an interesting surprise from time to time...
Then we went back to town and got up to preach the next morning. Then after church we went to this pork place with the pastor and elders. It was good. There were 6 of us, and they brought us out a huge tray of pork with Irish potatoes and onions and what not, all cooked up together. No silverwear and no individual plates. It was very tastey. I was not a big fan of the pieces that were near the outside of the pig. They had a small amount of meat then a layer of fat followed by the skin, that was... special...
We then went to a crusade that was under a mango tree. The mango tree was home to about 54654984 bats. That was... special... The crusade was interesting. I gave my testimony and greeted everyone in Ateso. That was funness. There was a Minister of Parliament there. He talked a little. Had them play his favorite song and forced me to come out and dance with him. That too was... special...
I then came back to Mbale on Monday. I arrived and found that I had lost my key to my room. This was not good. There was not a spare. Luckily I had my laptop with me and stuff, so I had things to do, just to clean clothes to wear. Then yesterday we were going to break the lock but just before we did that the taxi driver called me and said he had found them. On Monday Emma (the cook Emma), and I had gone to town and talked to the taxi people. They had found the driver but he had said that it was not there. I was very relieved because to break the lock and replace it, it woulce have cost about 35 dollars. I am glad I did not have to pay that.
So I was in Soroti town. I got there on Saturday morning. I met Emma and ate breakfast and walked around town a little bit. We then went to the guest house where I'd be staying. I stayed at the guest house which belongs to the Soroti Town PAG church. I after we had lunch we went to a wedding introduction. That was a VERY interesting experience.
We were supposed to leave at noon to arrive at one, when the deal was supposed to start. I we actually left at two, and arrived at 3. The deal did not start until about 6. The delay was due to waiting for the groom and his team to arrive. Noce that it was supposed to start at 1 and conclude at 6, and when it starts at 6 it creates a problem. It is dark long before 11, and since we are out in the village there is no electricity.
So the groom and his people arrive, about 100 of them. They then have to pay a fine to the bride's family for being late. (This money just goes on top of the dowry I suppose.) Once the fine is settled the groom's team leader, or spokesman for the evening is allowed to cut the ribbon and enter the place. Each of the groom's team is marked with a ribbon as they enter.
After they are all seated, the Master of Ceremonies gives an overview of the programme. They also make it known that it will be shortened due to the delay of the groom. Then the bride's family welcomes everyone and does introductions. They introduce all the family, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc... Then a half hour later the groom's family does the same thing. Then the clan spokesman for each family give the official okay to the wedding. Then the LC 1 (the lowest local government official) gives his welcome and okays it all. Then we are about an hour into the ceremony. Then we have the introduction of the bride.
This is not just here is So Andso. That would be too easy. The whole idea is that the groom's family has come to get someone and the host's are not sure who, so they have to find this woman, and make sure that they have come to the proper location. SO... it is done in this way... The MC says that they have sent the "Auntie" out to find the woman that the groom is looking for. The auntie then brings out like 8 or so young girls. They kneel waiting to be chosen. The groom's team comes out and inspects them looking for Ikakiror (which is Ateso for name). Not finding her there they send the girls away with the auntie. Before they leave the auntie says that they will have to hire drivers to bring them home blah blah... so the groom has to pay them each some money to leave. Then they bring out some older ones... same thing they inspect and pay, then they leave. Then they bring out the old ladies, same thing... then they brought out like 20 girls of the proper age category. They then select her from this group... and the villagers rejoice.
Then all the girls go back inside, and then like 10 men from the groom's side get up and go up to a table and walk around it. Then one of them (they hide who does it) puts an envelope on the table. This envelope holds the dowry money. The men go back and sit down. The women come back out and then they walk around the table repeatedly. Then the bride takes the envelope. This mean she accepts. If she doesn't take the envelope it means the fellow is out of luck.
Then the women go back inside, and then come back out (all of this is going to music, so it is half walked/half danced... so they have a song for each portion which slows things down considerably). They then must find the groom in the group of the groom's family. Then when they do the villagers rejoice. Then they introduce each other. Then a preacher gives a short sermon.
Then the villagers rejoice and every one eats. By this time it was dark. This made eating an adventure, because I couldn't see what I was eating, I was also eating with my hands. This made the bits of liver that I found an interesting surprise from time to time...
Then we went back to town and got up to preach the next morning. Then after church we went to this pork place with the pastor and elders. It was good. There were 6 of us, and they brought us out a huge tray of pork with Irish potatoes and onions and what not, all cooked up together. No silverwear and no individual plates. It was very tastey. I was not a big fan of the pieces that were near the outside of the pig. They had a small amount of meat then a layer of fat followed by the skin, that was... special...
We then went to a crusade that was under a mango tree. The mango tree was home to about 54654984 bats. That was... special... The crusade was interesting. I gave my testimony and greeted everyone in Ateso. That was funness. There was a Minister of Parliament there. He talked a little. Had them play his favorite song and forced me to come out and dance with him. That too was... special...
I then came back to Mbale on Monday. I arrived and found that I had lost my key to my room. This was not good. There was not a spare. Luckily I had my laptop with me and stuff, so I had things to do, just to clean clothes to wear. Then yesterday we were going to break the lock but just before we did that the taxi driver called me and said he had found them. On Monday Emma (the cook Emma), and I had gone to town and talked to the taxi people. They had found the driver but he had said that it was not there. I was very relieved because to break the lock and replace it, it woulce have cost about 35 dollars. I am glad I did not have to pay that.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Mountains and Stuff
So today I climbed the big hill outside of Mbale. I did this with 4 Americans from the group I met in Kampala last weekend. This was a good time. Let me start with yesterday though, I feel that is a better place to start.
Yesterday was Thursday, my least busy day of the week, and Julius Okelany calls and tells me that I should come to Nabumali where he and that team is doing a mission. They are doing door to door evangelism and then a crusade. I decided to go, but it was difficult to get out of the compound because the students are finishing their exams and the 2nd year students were leaving. So I finally got out of here and made it there in time for part of the crusade. So Julius sees me arrive and comes over and greets me and says that he wants me to come up front and greet everyone and say something. I said that I didn't need to speak and that he was going to do a great job without me. Then he tried to get Grace (an American) to do it and she also declined. Roughly 3 minutes later as I was talking to some people he says, "and here is my friend David who wants to share something with you all."
I really didn't know I had anything to share... so I had to come up with something quickly... That was fun. Thanks for that one Julius.
Then I came back home. Today he calls me again and says that they are all coming to town and I should meet them there. He then lets me know when they get to town, and again it takes me a while to get out of the compound because I am also saying goodbye to all of the students. I finally reach town and meet up with them and find out that they are planning on going to climb the hill/mountain/rock... thing...
So Julius and I rush to the school, I change clothes and eat quickly since Mary had already prepared my lunch. We then went to Nabumali Center, about 30 minutes from Mbale Town. We get there and I then... have to eat lunch again. It was okay, I got to serve myself so I could actually take a small amount. We then hung out there for a while, and finally left for the hill at about 4:30 ish.
Meanwhile I met one of the missions team from Kamapala whose name is Ivan. He is a pretty cool cat (with a little bit of this, and a little bit of that)(that outburst will only amuse those persons from SW Iowa, who participated in, or know the song/dance thing from 4H Junior camp). I was talking to him and found he was from Amuria district, and that is when I showed him my Ateso skills. He was then in shock and awe. That was fun.
Then we went to the hill, and started climbing. Since we were near to it the climb was a steep one. It was very tiring, we had a local guide who lived on the top so his pace was FAST. So we nearly were running up this ginormous hill. There were waterfalls, and cliffs and what have you. It was very pretty. I took many pictures. When we were nearing the top it got a bit sketchy. We got to a place where the only way up was ladders (or rock climbing, since we had no rope we took the ladder). The first ladder was about 20ish feet and was made of metal. We asked and found that it was installed in the 1960s. This didn't really make me feel better, but when two old ladies climbed the ladder, one with a bunch of something on her head.... I couldn't let her out do me. So I went up.
Ivan would ask how I was doing (most of the time in Ateso) and he would respond that he was not doing well. "Teso land" is very flat and he was not a fan of the hill.
The next two ladders were made of wood. They were both more secure and more nerve wracking all at the same time. I did enjoy it when I made it to the top though. The view was awesome, and it was just fun to see. The whole climb, up and down, the children were running along beside us like it was flat. We decided that going to and from school that way would make you pretty used to it.
The way back down was harder. My legs had worked hard enough going up that they were confused working the other direction going back down. All the rocks were much slipperier going down than up. I was a bit nervous more than once.
We made it down safe and sound. We then got back to Nabumali, and I stayed there a few minutes and then reached the school, where Mary was waiting for me.
She was not happy to see how dirty my jeans were though. She wanted to know if I'd been fighting... she was only kidding but it was still funny.
Emma had prepared my supper, which was my second chicken. I no longer have animals in Uganda, but they were tasty. On a related subject, when I eat rice with my hands I almost always wind up with some in my sinuses which is precisely where I do not like my rice to be.
Bed time, I leave for Soroti early in the morning.
Love you, I think... I guess I don't really know who you are... anybody could read this... but since your creepin on me and showing at least a passing interest in my adventures... sure I will love you...
Yesterday was Thursday, my least busy day of the week, and Julius Okelany calls and tells me that I should come to Nabumali where he and that team is doing a mission. They are doing door to door evangelism and then a crusade. I decided to go, but it was difficult to get out of the compound because the students are finishing their exams and the 2nd year students were leaving. So I finally got out of here and made it there in time for part of the crusade. So Julius sees me arrive and comes over and greets me and says that he wants me to come up front and greet everyone and say something. I said that I didn't need to speak and that he was going to do a great job without me. Then he tried to get Grace (an American) to do it and she also declined. Roughly 3 minutes later as I was talking to some people he says, "and here is my friend David who wants to share something with you all."
I really didn't know I had anything to share... so I had to come up with something quickly... That was fun. Thanks for that one Julius.
Then I came back home. Today he calls me again and says that they are all coming to town and I should meet them there. He then lets me know when they get to town, and again it takes me a while to get out of the compound because I am also saying goodbye to all of the students. I finally reach town and meet up with them and find out that they are planning on going to climb the hill/mountain/rock... thing...
So Julius and I rush to the school, I change clothes and eat quickly since Mary had already prepared my lunch. We then went to Nabumali Center, about 30 minutes from Mbale Town. We get there and I then... have to eat lunch again. It was okay, I got to serve myself so I could actually take a small amount. We then hung out there for a while, and finally left for the hill at about 4:30 ish.
Meanwhile I met one of the missions team from Kamapala whose name is Ivan. He is a pretty cool cat (with a little bit of this, and a little bit of that)(that outburst will only amuse those persons from SW Iowa, who participated in, or know the song/dance thing from 4H Junior camp). I was talking to him and found he was from Amuria district, and that is when I showed him my Ateso skills. He was then in shock and awe. That was fun.
Then we went to the hill, and started climbing. Since we were near to it the climb was a steep one. It was very tiring, we had a local guide who lived on the top so his pace was FAST. So we nearly were running up this ginormous hill. There were waterfalls, and cliffs and what have you. It was very pretty. I took many pictures. When we were nearing the top it got a bit sketchy. We got to a place where the only way up was ladders (or rock climbing, since we had no rope we took the ladder). The first ladder was about 20ish feet and was made of metal. We asked and found that it was installed in the 1960s. This didn't really make me feel better, but when two old ladies climbed the ladder, one with a bunch of something on her head.... I couldn't let her out do me. So I went up.
Ivan would ask how I was doing (most of the time in Ateso) and he would respond that he was not doing well. "Teso land" is very flat and he was not a fan of the hill.
The next two ladders were made of wood. They were both more secure and more nerve wracking all at the same time. I did enjoy it when I made it to the top though. The view was awesome, and it was just fun to see. The whole climb, up and down, the children were running along beside us like it was flat. We decided that going to and from school that way would make you pretty used to it.
The way back down was harder. My legs had worked hard enough going up that they were confused working the other direction going back down. All the rocks were much slipperier going down than up. I was a bit nervous more than once.
We made it down safe and sound. We then got back to Nabumali, and I stayed there a few minutes and then reached the school, where Mary was waiting for me.
She was not happy to see how dirty my jeans were though. She wanted to know if I'd been fighting... she was only kidding but it was still funny.
Emma had prepared my supper, which was my second chicken. I no longer have animals in Uganda, but they were tasty. On a related subject, when I eat rice with my hands I almost always wind up with some in my sinuses which is precisely where I do not like my rice to be.
Bed time, I leave for Soroti early in the morning.
Love you, I think... I guess I don't really know who you are... anybody could read this... but since your creepin on me and showing at least a passing interest in my adventures... sure I will love you...
Monday, July 19, 2010
Admitting is the first step.
So, this weekend in Kampala I have found out that I infact have a problem. I know that you have known I have many problems for a very long time, BUT this one is new to me. (If you would like to report other problems that you are aware of but I am, just get the proper forms and return them to my secretary, signed in triplicate, notarized, and filed 3 months prior to the date you would like action to be taken.) ... I digress...
So there I was in Kampala walking down the street, and I was ensnared by an aroma that happened to waft across my path. This aroma happened to be that wonderful smell that ocurs on the premises of coffee shops. This aroma has always been a favorite of mine. In fact when I needed to be productive at school I would leave my apartment and go to a coffee shop. This means that the last couple of weeks of school I was in at Cafe Diem more often than my apartment. This also means that my coffee drink intake was high.
So as I was walking and this aroma captured me, I'm not sure what happened next... its kind of a blur, but the next thing I remember is sitting in the coffee shop ordering an iced mocha. Yes I got ice, coffee, and chocolate all at the same magical moment. It was lovely. (For those concerned about my healthy I made sure that the ice was boiled, or the water was boiled before taking on the form of crystalline wonderfulness.)
So Julius also had one of these. He was not a big fan. In fact he thought I was crazy for being so excited about it, but excited I was.
Then we continued to journey around Kampala. It was good we went all over the place and saw many things, bought things we didn't need because, well... it seemed like a good idea at the time.
In other news Kampala is MUCH more western than Mbale,or the rest of Uganda that I have been. There are some places that you would guess that you are in the US. Large shopping centers complete with escalators and shoe stores that have new shoes of assorted varieties, looking much like the US stores. (In one of these stores there was a coffee shop, I accidentally got more coffee there. Julius was lost and I found that place so I got more to pass the time until he was found.)
So I was just talking to Julius about how much like the US Kampala is as we were going to have our lunch. He ordered because... that is what he likes to do... So the food comes. Matooke, rice, and casava with a red sauce over it. I thought that it was peices of soya (similar to tofu but with more texture), then I asked him about half way through the plate what kind of sauce it was. (Reminder: We were just talking about how western things in Kampala can be.) He said it was "uva" or something like that, and I asked what that was. (For you Spanish speakers, or non Spanish speakers, I thought... this is not grapes (uvas = grapes.) He said oh, its intestines...
OH... uh... alright... it really tasted pretty good. The texture seemed much stranger as I finished eating. Note to self... Self, don't ask what you're eating until you have finished eating it.
Then I went back to the hotel I was staying at, I was very tired... I went to bed... failed to sleep, tried to read, tried to sleep, played on my computer, tried to sleep, called my parents, tried to sleep... The last time I looked at the clock it was just after 5 AM. I then got up at 6:30 to get ready for church.
The moral of this story is that after 2 months without coffee, DO NOT take coffee drinks with a total of 4 shots of espresso in the afternoon. You will not be very able to sleep. Looking back I would say it was probably worth it... they were amazing...
So the reason to go to Kampala was to work on importing soybeans right? Right. So that failed... Contrary to my previous conversations with the people, now I don't just need the papers, but a research plan submitted to a research institute and then approved by them. They need to oversee the research. The crop needs to be grown for 2 season before the seeds can be increased.
This is precisely what the school not equipped/willing to do.
Then I preached at a church just outside of Kampala on Sunday. Walked back to town, where Julius had a meeting at 3. At about 5:45 the meeting started. Julius and I then gave an orientation to Mbale. There is a mission here this week with door to door evangelism and a crusade every evening. There are about 12-15 mzungus from the US that are taking part in this. We told them what it was like here... It is good that one of my spiritual gifts is doing things not according to a plan, because plans are generally not what people go by. Example: the people were supposed to leave for Mbale at 9:00 AM. Julius called me at 5:00 PM. They were just leaving Mbale.
After the meeting I went to the taxi park to get a taxi to Mbale. The taxi did not leave until about 8:00. I got to Mbale at 12:30. I was very tired, remember how I got 1.5 hours of sleep the night before.
Then yesterday we made no bake cookies. That was fun. People were quite confused with what it was (it doesn't look all that appetizing), but after trying it they liked it very much. Boniface was not all that excited about it. He asked if he was going to get diabetes from it. Note: he had about 1 ounce of cookie.
NOW, I must go get ready for my discipleship class. I'm glad that you have made it through this post. I should have perhaps built in an intermission, but that would have had to happen at a tense moment, and since rambling is never tense, there is no place for it. I suppose we'll have to just live with the narcolepsy inducing nature that my blog is famous for.
So there I was in Kampala walking down the street, and I was ensnared by an aroma that happened to waft across my path. This aroma happened to be that wonderful smell that ocurs on the premises of coffee shops. This aroma has always been a favorite of mine. In fact when I needed to be productive at school I would leave my apartment and go to a coffee shop. This means that the last couple of weeks of school I was in at Cafe Diem more often than my apartment. This also means that my coffee drink intake was high.
So as I was walking and this aroma captured me, I'm not sure what happened next... its kind of a blur, but the next thing I remember is sitting in the coffee shop ordering an iced mocha. Yes I got ice, coffee, and chocolate all at the same magical moment. It was lovely. (For those concerned about my healthy I made sure that the ice was boiled, or the water was boiled before taking on the form of crystalline wonderfulness.)
So Julius also had one of these. He was not a big fan. In fact he thought I was crazy for being so excited about it, but excited I was.
Then we continued to journey around Kampala. It was good we went all over the place and saw many things, bought things we didn't need because, well... it seemed like a good idea at the time.
In other news Kampala is MUCH more western than Mbale,or the rest of Uganda that I have been. There are some places that you would guess that you are in the US. Large shopping centers complete with escalators and shoe stores that have new shoes of assorted varieties, looking much like the US stores. (In one of these stores there was a coffee shop, I accidentally got more coffee there. Julius was lost and I found that place so I got more to pass the time until he was found.)
So I was just talking to Julius about how much like the US Kampala is as we were going to have our lunch. He ordered because... that is what he likes to do... So the food comes. Matooke, rice, and casava with a red sauce over it. I thought that it was peices of soya (similar to tofu but with more texture), then I asked him about half way through the plate what kind of sauce it was. (Reminder: We were just talking about how western things in Kampala can be.) He said it was "uva" or something like that, and I asked what that was. (For you Spanish speakers, or non Spanish speakers, I thought... this is not grapes (uvas = grapes.) He said oh, its intestines...
OH... uh... alright... it really tasted pretty good. The texture seemed much stranger as I finished eating. Note to self... Self, don't ask what you're eating until you have finished eating it.
Then I went back to the hotel I was staying at, I was very tired... I went to bed... failed to sleep, tried to read, tried to sleep, played on my computer, tried to sleep, called my parents, tried to sleep... The last time I looked at the clock it was just after 5 AM. I then got up at 6:30 to get ready for church.
The moral of this story is that after 2 months without coffee, DO NOT take coffee drinks with a total of 4 shots of espresso in the afternoon. You will not be very able to sleep. Looking back I would say it was probably worth it... they were amazing...
So the reason to go to Kampala was to work on importing soybeans right? Right. So that failed... Contrary to my previous conversations with the people, now I don't just need the papers, but a research plan submitted to a research institute and then approved by them. They need to oversee the research. The crop needs to be grown for 2 season before the seeds can be increased.
This is precisely what the school not equipped/willing to do.
Then I preached at a church just outside of Kampala on Sunday. Walked back to town, where Julius had a meeting at 3. At about 5:45 the meeting started. Julius and I then gave an orientation to Mbale. There is a mission here this week with door to door evangelism and a crusade every evening. There are about 12-15 mzungus from the US that are taking part in this. We told them what it was like here... It is good that one of my spiritual gifts is doing things not according to a plan, because plans are generally not what people go by. Example: the people were supposed to leave for Mbale at 9:00 AM. Julius called me at 5:00 PM. They were just leaving Mbale.
After the meeting I went to the taxi park to get a taxi to Mbale. The taxi did not leave until about 8:00. I got to Mbale at 12:30. I was very tired, remember how I got 1.5 hours of sleep the night before.
Then yesterday we made no bake cookies. That was fun. People were quite confused with what it was (it doesn't look all that appetizing), but after trying it they liked it very much. Boniface was not all that excited about it. He asked if he was going to get diabetes from it. Note: he had about 1 ounce of cookie.
NOW, I must go get ready for my discipleship class. I'm glad that you have made it through this post. I should have perhaps built in an intermission, but that would have had to happen at a tense moment, and since rambling is never tense, there is no place for it. I suppose we'll have to just live with the narcolepsy inducing nature that my blog is famous for.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
A Weekend in The Village
For the record I was going to post this on Monday morning, but the internet was down until about now. So I am doing it now.
On Friday I made Chapati with Mary. That was a good time. Directly following that I packed up and shipped off to the home of George William. We left right at 11:00 AM. We then took a bus to Soroti. From Soroti we took a truck to Oditel Trading Center. This is in the Kapelebyong sub county. Then we took a motorcycle to George's house. We arrived there at roughly 7:30 PM. That a long journey, at the end of which I was rather hungry since we didn't lunch in that time.
George's home has 2 sets of houses. His parents live about 100 yards from his place. Each set of buildings has about 4-6 structures. His guest house is located where his parents stay. That is where Julius and I stayed. We shared a mosquito net. It was exciting, and in other news I believe that the mosquito net was actually more useful for keeping out the frogs. When we woke up on Saturday we had 5 frogs, and 6 on Sunday morning. They were just hopping around our house. I think they were Julius's guests.
During our nights together Julius gave me intensive Ateso lessons. I am quite sure that if I spent more time in the village I would be quite proficient by time I left. I have many more phrases now than I did when I left.
Then on Saturday Julius biked into Oditel to... well now that I mention it I have no idea what he did, but he returned at about noon. Meanwhile, back at the ranch... I hope someone in my audience knows the childrens book that just ADHD'd its way into this blog post... ANYWAY... While Julius was pedaling to town and back, George William and I walked around Apedu village.
About villages: So a village is a distinct portion of land. Apedu is 2 KMx4 KM. There are multiple villages in a parish, a number of parishes in a subcounty, and so on up to districts. This division of land would put itself analogous to either a township or a section. The village is not a group of families living together, it is like our rural, country, sort of idea. There are houses and then another down the path another KM or what ever.
We walked around, and he greeted all of the neighbors and things, he also checked his crops. Then we returned to his house, and prepared for our Saturday "Programme." We ate prior to leaving. We then walked to GW's sister's house, but she was not there. We then went to see if she was at the neighbor's house, but alas she was not there either. Then we were out of time and went to the location for our preaching. Then we ate again, the exact same thing we had eaten an hour before. Chicken soup and atapa (sp?)(Casava flour and millet flour in a large sticky brown lump)(It is mystifyingly chewy and gritty all at the same time)(The chewy is similar to like bread dough, and then as if there were sand in the bread dough). I do like those things though, so it is OKAY.
Then after eating we waited for the people to arrive. They had announced it to begin at 2. We arrived at 3:30 and we were the first ones there. We waited until about 4:15. We started with about 20 people, we had about 50 by the end. It was my first church service held under a tree. It was nice.
Then we went back to GW's place, we ate and talked, then went to bed. Bed occurs early in the village. Since there is no electricity, there is not a lot to do after dark.
On Sunday we got up, ate plain rice for breakfast, and then journeyed into Oditel. This was more challenging than we had planned. The motorcycle that dropped us off was supposed to pick us up. He was there in time to have breakfast with us, that went perfectly. He left with GW. Julius and I waited.... and waited... and an hour later GW calls. The motorcycle broke down just outside of Oditel. They had sent bicycles to get us, and we should start walking. (Note that the only motorcycle in the town was now broken down.)
We got to church just in time for me to preach. I did so. Then we were escorted to the elder's house who lived right outside the church. We ate chicken and rice, and then were about to leave after a good time of fellowship, then he said we should stop and greet the pastor on our way out of town.
If I had known that I was going to be forced to eat a second lunch, I would have more firmly resisted the amount of food the host forced on me in the first lunch. So 1 minute 23 seconds after eating copious amounts of chicken and rice, I sat down to just as much beef and rice. Then a bottle of coke. (The soda is in glass bottles, so those older readers will more likely understand this. As I was drinking the aforementioned coke the carbonation got all caught up with me and forced a backup of soda to come out my nose. This was not amazing.)
Then we road the motorcycle down cow infested roads to Amuria, a journey of roughly 40 minutes.
We then took a car to Soroti, then a taxi to Mbale. OH WAIT!!!!
HOW COULD I FORGET!
As I was about to leave on Sunday morning GW's mother gave me a chicken because she had wanted to cook it for me but had failed to do so because of a lack of time. Then GW's wife said that she had one tied up in the house for me, so as I left, I left with 2 chickens, and all of the journey I just told you about, the 2 chickens were with us.
So that was my weekend. PS today we ate one of the chickens. She was nice.
On Friday I believe I am going to go to Kampala to go back to the Ministry of Agriculture (So here is a confession; when I was writing, and when I say, Ministry of Agriculture I almost always nearly say/write Ministry of Magic. I know, I am a nerd.). I may stay there with Julius (A different one than I spent my weekend with.).
On Friday I made Chapati with Mary. That was a good time. Directly following that I packed up and shipped off to the home of George William. We left right at 11:00 AM. We then took a bus to Soroti. From Soroti we took a truck to Oditel Trading Center. This is in the Kapelebyong sub county. Then we took a motorcycle to George's house. We arrived there at roughly 7:30 PM. That a long journey, at the end of which I was rather hungry since we didn't lunch in that time.
George's home has 2 sets of houses. His parents live about 100 yards from his place. Each set of buildings has about 4-6 structures. His guest house is located where his parents stay. That is where Julius and I stayed. We shared a mosquito net. It was exciting, and in other news I believe that the mosquito net was actually more useful for keeping out the frogs. When we woke up on Saturday we had 5 frogs, and 6 on Sunday morning. They were just hopping around our house. I think they were Julius's guests.
During our nights together Julius gave me intensive Ateso lessons. I am quite sure that if I spent more time in the village I would be quite proficient by time I left. I have many more phrases now than I did when I left.
Then on Saturday Julius biked into Oditel to... well now that I mention it I have no idea what he did, but he returned at about noon. Meanwhile, back at the ranch... I hope someone in my audience knows the childrens book that just ADHD'd its way into this blog post... ANYWAY... While Julius was pedaling to town and back, George William and I walked around Apedu village.
About villages: So a village is a distinct portion of land. Apedu is 2 KMx4 KM. There are multiple villages in a parish, a number of parishes in a subcounty, and so on up to districts. This division of land would put itself analogous to either a township or a section. The village is not a group of families living together, it is like our rural, country, sort of idea. There are houses and then another down the path another KM or what ever.
We walked around, and he greeted all of the neighbors and things, he also checked his crops. Then we returned to his house, and prepared for our Saturday "Programme." We ate prior to leaving. We then walked to GW's sister's house, but she was not there. We then went to see if she was at the neighbor's house, but alas she was not there either. Then we were out of time and went to the location for our preaching. Then we ate again, the exact same thing we had eaten an hour before. Chicken soup and atapa (sp?)(Casava flour and millet flour in a large sticky brown lump)(It is mystifyingly chewy and gritty all at the same time)(The chewy is similar to like bread dough, and then as if there were sand in the bread dough). I do like those things though, so it is OKAY.
Then after eating we waited for the people to arrive. They had announced it to begin at 2. We arrived at 3:30 and we were the first ones there. We waited until about 4:15. We started with about 20 people, we had about 50 by the end. It was my first church service held under a tree. It was nice.
Then we went back to GW's place, we ate and talked, then went to bed. Bed occurs early in the village. Since there is no electricity, there is not a lot to do after dark.
On Sunday we got up, ate plain rice for breakfast, and then journeyed into Oditel. This was more challenging than we had planned. The motorcycle that dropped us off was supposed to pick us up. He was there in time to have breakfast with us, that went perfectly. He left with GW. Julius and I waited.... and waited... and an hour later GW calls. The motorcycle broke down just outside of Oditel. They had sent bicycles to get us, and we should start walking. (Note that the only motorcycle in the town was now broken down.)
We got to church just in time for me to preach. I did so. Then we were escorted to the elder's house who lived right outside the church. We ate chicken and rice, and then were about to leave after a good time of fellowship, then he said we should stop and greet the pastor on our way out of town.
If I had known that I was going to be forced to eat a second lunch, I would have more firmly resisted the amount of food the host forced on me in the first lunch. So 1 minute 23 seconds after eating copious amounts of chicken and rice, I sat down to just as much beef and rice. Then a bottle of coke. (The soda is in glass bottles, so those older readers will more likely understand this. As I was drinking the aforementioned coke the carbonation got all caught up with me and forced a backup of soda to come out my nose. This was not amazing.)
Then we road the motorcycle down cow infested roads to Amuria, a journey of roughly 40 minutes.
We then took a car to Soroti, then a taxi to Mbale. OH WAIT!!!!
HOW COULD I FORGET!
As I was about to leave on Sunday morning GW's mother gave me a chicken because she had wanted to cook it for me but had failed to do so because of a lack of time. Then GW's wife said that she had one tied up in the house for me, so as I left, I left with 2 chickens, and all of the journey I just told you about, the 2 chickens were with us.
So that was my weekend. PS today we ate one of the chickens. She was nice.
On Friday I believe I am going to go to Kampala to go back to the Ministry of Agriculture (So here is a confession; when I was writing, and when I say, Ministry of Agriculture I almost always nearly say/write Ministry of Magic. I know, I am a nerd.). I may stay there with Julius (A different one than I spent my weekend with.).
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
This, That, and Copius Ramblings
So, I apologize that you I have gone almost a whole week without talking to you all. I know that you are all waiting on the edge of your seat. This sounds uncomfortable, so I suggest that you stop doing that.
I have been slightly busy this week. On Sunday I did not go anywhere, well not to any far off village. I went to church with Daniel, Absalom/Solomon, and George William. We went to a suburb/section of Mbale (I'm not sure what you would call it. Probably suburb...), called Namakwekwe (Nah-mah-kway-kway). I only share this with you because it is very fun to say. Give it a try. Yeah I thought that you would enjoy that nearly as much as I do. So George William... (Forthwith referred to as GW, because its a long name(s) to type, although typing this disclaimer is likely more lengthy than just writing out George William, I'm not even sure I'll say it again, but I've written this now so I'm going to keep it, it makes for a good dramatic commercial sort of break in this mediocre story.) GW received a tract from this church so he wanted to check it out, and we went with him because we could.
So we show up at this church about 15 minutes or less before the service started, and the door was shut. Then a woman came to a side door of the building we were lead to and says, "What church are you looking for?"
GW responds that we had come to fellowship, and she then says she'll open the door. She opens the door, and the pastor comes to greet us. The fact that he came to greet us was normal, the fact that he was wearing a towel... well that was slightly less than normal...
We should have just left then, but alas, we stayed. We waited, and people began to arrive in 20 minutes or so. (Mind you people usually start singing and praising before the service is scheduled to start.) We then thought that it was going to be a very good service because we started by singing hymns, and not many churches have hymn books. I enjoyed the hymns much.
Then we went to the prayer portion. We had the usual general prayer, and then the worship leader gave us specific things to pray about, the list was so long we divided the congregation. This is not normal. This took about 20 minutes. GW "I was too tired to even pray any more."
Then we went to praise and worship and sang for another 15-20 minutes.
Then came the worst part of the service. The previous week they had distributed tracts to the members and had recorded how many each took. They then had to report back on each of the tracts. The member had to stand up, say how many they took, then explain why the person was not at church if they were not. I feel this is a good way to increase evangelical activity; public humiliation. Then we took 20 minutes to review last week's lesson. Then we left before the sermon after 2 hours of church.
The students have not stopped talking about this church. They said it was the prime example of how not to run a service.
Then I felt rather sick on Sunday afternoon. I think I had a fever, the reason I believe this: I used a blanket for a nap, and I was cold all day. I was better on Monday.
We then started "Spiritual Emphasis." I taught Monday night. Then today I taught in the chapel at 10 AM and 7:30 PM. I also taught my discipleship classes at 2 and 5 PM. My throat is a bit tired. I have the same schedule tomorrow as I did today. My larynx is not appreciative of my 4 speaking engagements per day.
This weekend I am traveling with GW (I have in fact typed GW quite a few times) and Julius to Amuria. This is... in Uganda. I will be there from Friday to Sunday (or Monday). We will be doing teaching on Saturday and on Sunday. I am excited for this. This will be the first time that I'll be sleeping in the "village." I don't know if I'll be grass thatched hutting it or if there will be a permanent structure there, but I am stoked either way.
In other news, I am also starting to meet with Sam tomorrow for one on one discipleship trainingness. Mostly because I am not very busy this week.
Ok, it is my bed time... I just looked over at my bed and saw a cockroach scampering across my headboard. I think I'm going roach hunting prior to going to bed. I lied previously...
OK... Love you all. God bless!
I have been slightly busy this week. On Sunday I did not go anywhere, well not to any far off village. I went to church with Daniel, Absalom/Solomon, and George William. We went to a suburb/section of Mbale (I'm not sure what you would call it. Probably suburb...), called Namakwekwe (Nah-mah-kway-kway). I only share this with you because it is very fun to say. Give it a try. Yeah I thought that you would enjoy that nearly as much as I do. So George William... (Forthwith referred to as GW, because its a long name(s) to type, although typing this disclaimer is likely more lengthy than just writing out George William, I'm not even sure I'll say it again, but I've written this now so I'm going to keep it, it makes for a good dramatic commercial sort of break in this mediocre story.) GW received a tract from this church so he wanted to check it out, and we went with him because we could.
So we show up at this church about 15 minutes or less before the service started, and the door was shut. Then a woman came to a side door of the building we were lead to and says, "What church are you looking for?"
GW responds that we had come to fellowship, and she then says she'll open the door. She opens the door, and the pastor comes to greet us. The fact that he came to greet us was normal, the fact that he was wearing a towel... well that was slightly less than normal...
We should have just left then, but alas, we stayed. We waited, and people began to arrive in 20 minutes or so. (Mind you people usually start singing and praising before the service is scheduled to start.) We then thought that it was going to be a very good service because we started by singing hymns, and not many churches have hymn books. I enjoyed the hymns much.
Then we went to the prayer portion. We had the usual general prayer, and then the worship leader gave us specific things to pray about, the list was so long we divided the congregation. This is not normal. This took about 20 minutes. GW "I was too tired to even pray any more."
Then we went to praise and worship and sang for another 15-20 minutes.
Then came the worst part of the service. The previous week they had distributed tracts to the members and had recorded how many each took. They then had to report back on each of the tracts. The member had to stand up, say how many they took, then explain why the person was not at church if they were not. I feel this is a good way to increase evangelical activity; public humiliation. Then we took 20 minutes to review last week's lesson. Then we left before the sermon after 2 hours of church.
The students have not stopped talking about this church. They said it was the prime example of how not to run a service.
Then I felt rather sick on Sunday afternoon. I think I had a fever, the reason I believe this: I used a blanket for a nap, and I was cold all day. I was better on Monday.
We then started "Spiritual Emphasis." I taught Monday night. Then today I taught in the chapel at 10 AM and 7:30 PM. I also taught my discipleship classes at 2 and 5 PM. My throat is a bit tired. I have the same schedule tomorrow as I did today. My larynx is not appreciative of my 4 speaking engagements per day.
This weekend I am traveling with GW (I have in fact typed GW quite a few times) and Julius to Amuria. This is... in Uganda. I will be there from Friday to Sunday (or Monday). We will be doing teaching on Saturday and on Sunday. I am excited for this. This will be the first time that I'll be sleeping in the "village." I don't know if I'll be grass thatched hutting it or if there will be a permanent structure there, but I am stoked either way.
In other news, I am also starting to meet with Sam tomorrow for one on one discipleship trainingness. Mostly because I am not very busy this week.
Ok, it is my bed time... I just looked over at my bed and saw a cockroach scampering across my headboard. I think I'm going roach hunting prior to going to bed. I lied previously...
OK... Love you all. God bless!
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