Hanging with the kids in a house in Masaka. My group consisted of Jess, Mindie, Peter, and Danielle.
Here comes dinner... Matooke!!!
Look Mom! I'm in two hemispheres at once!
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Rural Visit
"Lubuto kyoto--- alukyabira enku ya'kowa." Roughly translated to English: The fireplace is like a stomach, and you must always be collecting fuel for it to eat.
We saw that firsthand this past weekend when my small group visited Masaka with our cornerstone friend Annette. We didn't observe much collecting of firewood, but there was constant laboring over the fire in order to prepare our delectable dishes of roasted fish in g-nut sauce, matooke, rice, chicken, etc.
I was able to help pluck the chicken- thanks Dad and Mom for giving me the opportunity to learn how to do that last summer! I felt like a pro, even though the young children who I was working with could do it as well as I.
We passed over the Equator on the way to Masaka- I have some pictures from the weekend that I will put up a bit later when I am able to find my camera in my big basket of stuff and upload them on the computer.
As I came back to Muyenga (the district of Kampala where the FH guesthouse is), I was overwhelmed by the volume of stuff that I have here, even though it is "only" two drawers and a large basket of things that I had brought from the States. What bounty. I have more than 2 changes of clothes, I have books, I have a computer, and a camera.
And yet the people that I visited this weekend were rich in other ways. A small plantation filled with banana, papaya, mango, coffee, jackfruit ( a delicious new edible for me!), yams, sweet potatoes, avocados, and a few other things that I don't remember. A richness of culture and oral tradition. Rich relationships with neighbors who stop in just to say hello. A rich sense of community in the "center", where everyone goes to visit the beauty salon, buy their meat, and watch football matches [soccer games] in the small theatre. We watched Manchester United play some other team last night, and Manchester won! Yay! I enjoyed watching it with such a lively crowd, but I nearly fell asleep on my wooden bench because of the heat.
It was a rainy weekend, which inhibited some of our activities, but we were able to enjoy the sound of the rain on the tin roof, do some reading, have some deep conversations among ourselves, and observe our hosts. There were seven children living in the house, but it was difficult to really connect with any of them, because of cultural and linguistic barriers.
This morning we went to church, and enjoyed some good shouting preaching, in Lugandan, so we didn't understand much, but it was a fascinating cultural experience. After our noon meal we took a walk through the village, observing brick-making kilns and the well where the women draw water.
Real life starts again tomorrow as we go back to classes! I just finished my homework ;-)
We saw that firsthand this past weekend when my small group visited Masaka with our cornerstone friend Annette. We didn't observe much collecting of firewood, but there was constant laboring over the fire in order to prepare our delectable dishes of roasted fish in g-nut sauce, matooke, rice, chicken, etc.
I was able to help pluck the chicken- thanks Dad and Mom for giving me the opportunity to learn how to do that last summer! I felt like a pro, even though the young children who I was working with could do it as well as I.
We passed over the Equator on the way to Masaka- I have some pictures from the weekend that I will put up a bit later when I am able to find my camera in my big basket of stuff and upload them on the computer.
As I came back to Muyenga (the district of Kampala where the FH guesthouse is), I was overwhelmed by the volume of stuff that I have here, even though it is "only" two drawers and a large basket of things that I had brought from the States. What bounty. I have more than 2 changes of clothes, I have books, I have a computer, and a camera.
And yet the people that I visited this weekend were rich in other ways. A small plantation filled with banana, papaya, mango, coffee, jackfruit ( a delicious new edible for me!), yams, sweet potatoes, avocados, and a few other things that I don't remember. A richness of culture and oral tradition. Rich relationships with neighbors who stop in just to say hello. A rich sense of community in the "center", where everyone goes to visit the beauty salon, buy their meat, and watch football matches [soccer games] in the small theatre. We watched Manchester United play some other team last night, and Manchester won! Yay! I enjoyed watching it with such a lively crowd, but I nearly fell asleep on my wooden bench because of the heat.
It was a rainy weekend, which inhibited some of our activities, but we were able to enjoy the sound of the rain on the tin roof, do some reading, have some deep conversations among ourselves, and observe our hosts. There were seven children living in the house, but it was difficult to really connect with any of them, because of cultural and linguistic barriers.
This morning we went to church, and enjoyed some good shouting preaching, in Lugandan, so we didn't understand much, but it was a fascinating cultural experience. After our noon meal we took a walk through the village, observing brick-making kilns and the well where the women draw water.
Real life starts again tomorrow as we go back to classes! I just finished my homework ;-)
Monday, January 19, 2009
Kigwe! (Hello!)
This is the first time that I've had wireless internet connection here at my beautiful Ugandan home, so I'm excited that I can actually blog for the very first time!
I've been here a week. It feels like I just arrived, and yet it feels like I've been here a long time. My group of 20 is very fun- I really enjoy living in a community of this size.
I've gotten past jetlag pretty quickly, after a few exceptionally long days ;-)
I can't get over the shock of moving into the middle of summer! I'm enjoying the sun and 80 degree weather, upset that I have tan lines, and can't believe that I'm sweating in January.
I'm enjoying the transportation system (matutus) and the convenience of a 2 hour lunch break with enough time to check out the awesome local restaurants.
I visited a babies home, played volleyball with kids at an orphanage', played soccer with neighborhood kids and been interrupted by a herd of cattle, run through the streets and dodged goats in the path.
I have enjoyed journaling and spending time alone with God, and playing games, laughing, and worshiping with my fellow Go-Ed students.
And I've done all of this in one week! I have many more weeks to go. Well, my group is going to have a time of worship together, so I must stop blogging.
Amor y Paz a todos.
I've been here a week. It feels like I just arrived, and yet it feels like I've been here a long time. My group of 20 is very fun- I really enjoy living in a community of this size.
I've gotten past jetlag pretty quickly, after a few exceptionally long days ;-)
I can't get over the shock of moving into the middle of summer! I'm enjoying the sun and 80 degree weather, upset that I have tan lines, and can't believe that I'm sweating in January.
I'm enjoying the transportation system (matutus) and the convenience of a 2 hour lunch break with enough time to check out the awesome local restaurants.
I visited a babies home, played volleyball with kids at an orphanage', played soccer with neighborhood kids and been interrupted by a herd of cattle, run through the streets and dodged goats in the path.
I have enjoyed journaling and spending time alone with God, and playing games, laughing, and worshiping with my fellow Go-Ed students.
And I've done all of this in one week! I have many more weeks to go. Well, my group is going to have a time of worship together, so I must stop blogging.
Amor y Paz a todos.
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