June 18th, 2011
Friday morning we left for Mbale and Sibi Falls. I didn’t know I was in store for such a magical place when I was leaving. But now, after the long drive back home I know I will miss that place.
Mbale is a pretty big town about 45 minutes or so away from the Sipi falls resort we stayed at. It is a town roughly the size of Jinja, which I couldn’t even begin to know the population of either. Not sure if they keep track of that accurately here. Arriving at Sipi instantly took my breathe away. No kidding, it is like straight out of a movie or something. I only saw the one water fall but I heard there were more above it and the biggest one was below our resort. This was a smaller place with only one dormatory, a few Bandos (basically the perfect little room if you were on a honeymoon) and a cottage to stay in. These were all located right next to the river that ran off the water fall. The sound alone certainly hums you right to sleep. Compared to anything else I have experienced so far, this place definitely sends you straight into paradise. The little huts were extremely cozy and well kept and we actually got to take a hot shower! It never felt so good.
The dining service they provide in the main building is exquisite. Every meal was wonderful. We got there around lunch time and had some delicious cheese and crackers to start and then topped it off with some sort of thin crust pizza. Didn’t know pizza could ever be so inviting. In late afternoon they get you tea or coffee and also some sort of delicious cake. I really don’t know why America doesn’t do tea time! We are all totally missing out. Dinner was almost like a five course meal with some bread and soup to start and other delightful things to drink. All the girls decided to buy their own bottles of wine before we came up so that came in handy for them. The scallop potatoes and beef was to die for. It might not of all tasted as good in America, but here, it was soooo perfect.
The rest of the night was filled with a good time and lots of laughs. I am really thankful for the cool group that we got to go with. I would really love to stay more than one night next time just so we could hike all of the falls more. I definitely want to take another trip to this paradise land in the future.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
June 16th, 2011
June 16, 2011
Yesterday was a wicked hot day as was today. I hope I can get used to the heat here more. The day started off fairly lazy but we soon got to start putting up barb wire around Musana. We only made it to the second post when Haril called and we had to take another trip to Jinja. This time we actually got cleats for the kids but only half of the ones that are required for all the kids. It’s a start. We did get to pick some paint up so we could paint the jerseys. We tried doing that today but the paint doesn’t stick very well to the material. The Musana letter template took forever to cut out because we only had a tiny little razor. Everything does take twice as long here it seems. The two jerseys we did get painted look ok but I am sure they would look better with another layer on em. Maybe we can get them done before the games next week, but we will see.
Today was African Child day and it was interesting. Basically a bunch of different schools and orphanages got together to present a bunch of songs and poems about street children getting left behind by parents. It was an awareness of all the children being neglected here in Iganga. It was a really long presentation so I decided to get a chapter knocked out in my book. Musana kids performed last and it was great to see all of them get to sing in front of everyone.
The poverty of people here is starting to sink in. Riding around behind Bryan as he drives us on the Boda is a fun time and I try to concentrate on us not dying. Once I take my eyes off the crazy traffic and driving that goes on around here I notice the brutal living conditions of most people. Sure there are some that are ok and living comfortably but most are in pretty bad poverty. It is becoming apparent that this country needs a major overhaul to come even close to starting to modernize. There are a ton of homes that don’t have indoor plumbing and only some have electricity running to them. I picture everyone here living as if they are out camping, but permanently. Even the way they do build larger buildings here takes time and a lot more effort than in America. Concrete must be shoveled up a set of what looks like large stairs or landings then put into a wheel barrow to get it to where it needs to be once it has reached the second floor. I know concrete work in America is difficult, but here, it seems close to impossible. Somehow the people here get it done. It is a very hard working country, but to me, not a very smart working country. Even the government has a bunch of corruption which doesn’t help the situation of the people.
There are people who are doing good for this place and it is awesome to see. There is still a long way to go and a lot of work to be done. Helping the children at Musana feels good, but I can’t help thinking of all the other things that need to be done for the people of Uganda. It really makes me appreciate what is in America.
Yesterday was a wicked hot day as was today. I hope I can get used to the heat here more. The day started off fairly lazy but we soon got to start putting up barb wire around Musana. We only made it to the second post when Haril called and we had to take another trip to Jinja. This time we actually got cleats for the kids but only half of the ones that are required for all the kids. It’s a start. We did get to pick some paint up so we could paint the jerseys. We tried doing that today but the paint doesn’t stick very well to the material. The Musana letter template took forever to cut out because we only had a tiny little razor. Everything does take twice as long here it seems. The two jerseys we did get painted look ok but I am sure they would look better with another layer on em. Maybe we can get them done before the games next week, but we will see.
Today was African Child day and it was interesting. Basically a bunch of different schools and orphanages got together to present a bunch of songs and poems about street children getting left behind by parents. It was an awareness of all the children being neglected here in Iganga. It was a really long presentation so I decided to get a chapter knocked out in my book. Musana kids performed last and it was great to see all of them get to sing in front of everyone.
The poverty of people here is starting to sink in. Riding around behind Bryan as he drives us on the Boda is a fun time and I try to concentrate on us not dying. Once I take my eyes off the crazy traffic and driving that goes on around here I notice the brutal living conditions of most people. Sure there are some that are ok and living comfortably but most are in pretty bad poverty. It is becoming apparent that this country needs a major overhaul to come even close to starting to modernize. There are a ton of homes that don’t have indoor plumbing and only some have electricity running to them. I picture everyone here living as if they are out camping, but permanently. Even the way they do build larger buildings here takes time and a lot more effort than in America. Concrete must be shoveled up a set of what looks like large stairs or landings then put into a wheel barrow to get it to where it needs to be once it has reached the second floor. I know concrete work in America is difficult, but here, it seems close to impossible. Somehow the people here get it done. It is a very hard working country, but to me, not a very smart working country. Even the government has a bunch of corruption which doesn’t help the situation of the people.
There are people who are doing good for this place and it is awesome to see. There is still a long way to go and a lot of work to be done. Helping the children at Musana feels good, but I can’t help thinking of all the other things that need to be done for the people of Uganda. It really makes me appreciate what is in America.
June 14th, 2011
June 14, 2011
Most of today was a day of some good ol’ fashioned labor at Musana. We started the day off slow but soon got into smashing rocks with sledge hammers. There is this road in front of the kids dorms that had a bunch of of large rocks just piled up. Our goal was to smash these rocks so that they become smaller and evened out the road better. The hammers that we had weren’t really workin out. They were small and had tiny wooden handles that ended up leavin their mark on our hands. Bryan and I decided to head to town to see if we could purchase a better and larger hammer.
Here in Iganga there isn’t a Walmart where you can go and find everything you need. A good sledge hammer wasn’t easy to find at first. There were a few little shops that had the heads but of course the price on a 10 lb head was outrageous. When the shop owners see two white people trying to buy something they automatically hike the price up because they assume we have a ton of money, which is true compared to most living here, but like everyone else we didn’t want to pay 70,000 shillings for just the hammer head. That’s more than in America so we had a little problem to solve.
Luckily we ran into a shop that had wooden handles that we could of used for the hammer. The owner was a unique individual though. He was Ugandan but when we explained to him what we wanted he ended up helping us out instead of hiking his prices up, which is rare. He told us we should be able to purchase a hammer’s head for around 25 to 30 K and would be able to weld a handle onto it which would make it much stronger. He ended up having his assistant find us a 10 lb head for 45, which was no 25 but better than any white kids could do. Then his assistant went over and got a handle which could be welded to it. We were grateful for this guy helping us out so at the end of it all we had a pretty legit hammer and kicked him an extra 5 K for all the trouble and work him and his assistant went through for us.
We were able to crush up a bunch of rocks by the end of the day, but we still have some to go. Figured we would let our hands rest the next day and get all the numbers painted on the new jerseys for the futbol team. The evening brought much needed rest but as all the volunteers sat in the living room we got to talking about some pretty interesting things. You could say we all know a little bit more about each other, in an odd sort of way. I really like the group we have had while I have been here. I am sure I will get to know everyone quite well. Living with them while in Africa certainly lets you talk about this experience with people that are seeing and going through the same thing. It makes all of this that much better of an experience, despite the rough moments.
Most of today was a day of some good ol’ fashioned labor at Musana. We started the day off slow but soon got into smashing rocks with sledge hammers. There is this road in front of the kids dorms that had a bunch of of large rocks just piled up. Our goal was to smash these rocks so that they become smaller and evened out the road better. The hammers that we had weren’t really workin out. They were small and had tiny wooden handles that ended up leavin their mark on our hands. Bryan and I decided to head to town to see if we could purchase a better and larger hammer.
Here in Iganga there isn’t a Walmart where you can go and find everything you need. A good sledge hammer wasn’t easy to find at first. There were a few little shops that had the heads but of course the price on a 10 lb head was outrageous. When the shop owners see two white people trying to buy something they automatically hike the price up because they assume we have a ton of money, which is true compared to most living here, but like everyone else we didn’t want to pay 70,000 shillings for just the hammer head. That’s more than in America so we had a little problem to solve.
Luckily we ran into a shop that had wooden handles that we could of used for the hammer. The owner was a unique individual though. He was Ugandan but when we explained to him what we wanted he ended up helping us out instead of hiking his prices up, which is rare. He told us we should be able to purchase a hammer’s head for around 25 to 30 K and would be able to weld a handle onto it which would make it much stronger. He ended up having his assistant find us a 10 lb head for 45, which was no 25 but better than any white kids could do. Then his assistant went over and got a handle which could be welded to it. We were grateful for this guy helping us out so at the end of it all we had a pretty legit hammer and kicked him an extra 5 K for all the trouble and work him and his assistant went through for us.
We were able to crush up a bunch of rocks by the end of the day, but we still have some to go. Figured we would let our hands rest the next day and get all the numbers painted on the new jerseys for the futbol team. The evening brought much needed rest but as all the volunteers sat in the living room we got to talking about some pretty interesting things. You could say we all know a little bit more about each other, in an odd sort of way. I really like the group we have had while I have been here. I am sure I will get to know everyone quite well. Living with them while in Africa certainly lets you talk about this experience with people that are seeing and going through the same thing. It makes all of this that much better of an experience, despite the rough moments.
Monday, June 13, 2011
June 13th, 2011
June 13, 2011
Another trip to Jinja today and we actually were productive this time. Sorry for the confusing misspellings, I am still learning words around here. We were able to get the kids uniforms for their soccer team along with some socks. They are going to look super sharp for their games and by friday we are hoping to have all their shoes in. Jinja was long and the taxi rides are becoming long as well. Cramming into a vehicle with a ton of other people really lets your nose experience everyone up close. Smells here are definitely still boggling my mind.
Bryan and I were hungry so he asked a guy at the taxi park in Jinja for a place that sold Rolexes. He led us to a little tiny hole-in-the-wall restaurant that was actually quite amazing and only cost us 3500 shillings for a full meal and a soda. We didn’t find Rolexes but discovered a great new place to eat for cheap. I also tried to hustle this guy on some sunglasses but only brought the price down 3000 shillings, I am gonna have to learn to low-ball everyone here cus apparently I coulda done better.
Once we returned the uniforms to Musana we got to see how excited the kids were to see them. Now all we have to do is paint some numbers on the back of them and put a cool sun on the front. I know once the team is decked out in their cleats and uniforms on game day they will be rockin the field in style.
Turns out taking a shower mid day, while the sun is blazing, is much better than in the morning. The water is closer to warm and didn’t feel like it was giving me hypothermia. I went into our back latrine at night for the first time this evening and what a sight. If you ever wanna see a ton of cockroaches in one area, I know the place. You learn to piss and get outta there as fast as you can. I also got to meet my first animal roommate today. He is a little tiny lizard that decided to wander in and check me out for himself. I have embraced him and hope he grows bigger so he can eat more mosquitos.
I am still amazed at the way people manage to survive here. I don’t think you will ever see a bigger outty belly button on any other child than out in the villages just outside of Iganga. This is definitely from the women just having their children out in the bush and not having the proper tools, or knowledge of how to cut the umbilical cord. I feel bad for all the children that are disfigured or any other person that has a handicap here because I know it is already hard enough to survive.
Bryan and I came across a bum today in Jinja. This was quite the sight as he strolled along in front of us with nothing but ratty and tattered pants that kept falling off every few seconds. When I say falling off I’m talkin basically to his ankles and of course, bums can’t afford underwear. It was interesting seeing him stroll down a busy street with all of himself hanging out for good portions of his journey. I can only hope he finds some better pants someday.
There is so much more I can describe about this place but I know I have time later. Keepin it real here in Iganga, always sweaty, and always on the look out for another boggling experience
Another trip to Jinja today and we actually were productive this time. Sorry for the confusing misspellings, I am still learning words around here. We were able to get the kids uniforms for their soccer team along with some socks. They are going to look super sharp for their games and by friday we are hoping to have all their shoes in. Jinja was long and the taxi rides are becoming long as well. Cramming into a vehicle with a ton of other people really lets your nose experience everyone up close. Smells here are definitely still boggling my mind.
Bryan and I were hungry so he asked a guy at the taxi park in Jinja for a place that sold Rolexes. He led us to a little tiny hole-in-the-wall restaurant that was actually quite amazing and only cost us 3500 shillings for a full meal and a soda. We didn’t find Rolexes but discovered a great new place to eat for cheap. I also tried to hustle this guy on some sunglasses but only brought the price down 3000 shillings, I am gonna have to learn to low-ball everyone here cus apparently I coulda done better.
Once we returned the uniforms to Musana we got to see how excited the kids were to see them. Now all we have to do is paint some numbers on the back of them and put a cool sun on the front. I know once the team is decked out in their cleats and uniforms on game day they will be rockin the field in style.
Turns out taking a shower mid day, while the sun is blazing, is much better than in the morning. The water is closer to warm and didn’t feel like it was giving me hypothermia. I went into our back latrine at night for the first time this evening and what a sight. If you ever wanna see a ton of cockroaches in one area, I know the place. You learn to piss and get outta there as fast as you can. I also got to meet my first animal roommate today. He is a little tiny lizard that decided to wander in and check me out for himself. I have embraced him and hope he grows bigger so he can eat more mosquitos.
I am still amazed at the way people manage to survive here. I don’t think you will ever see a bigger outty belly button on any other child than out in the villages just outside of Iganga. This is definitely from the women just having their children out in the bush and not having the proper tools, or knowledge of how to cut the umbilical cord. I feel bad for all the children that are disfigured or any other person that has a handicap here because I know it is already hard enough to survive.
Bryan and I came across a bum today in Jinja. This was quite the sight as he strolled along in front of us with nothing but ratty and tattered pants that kept falling off every few seconds. When I say falling off I’m talkin basically to his ankles and of course, bums can’t afford underwear. It was interesting seeing him stroll down a busy street with all of himself hanging out for good portions of his journey. I can only hope he finds some better pants someday.
There is so much more I can describe about this place but I know I have time later. Keepin it real here in Iganga, always sweaty, and always on the look out for another boggling experience
June 12th, 2011
June 12, 2011
Sunday brought some much needed rest and I was able to start a book, Matterhorn, which is turning out to be pretty good. I decided not to attend church this morning but will probably go next week.
I did say that there is not a boring day here, but today was touching that line. I am not saying I was bored but I don’t think anything epic happened. It was rather a cold day and I am actually wearing a long sleeve and pants now. Crazy I know, this place has been everything but cold up until now.
I talked to this boy, Emma, today about him getting a visa to get into America so he could get surgery on both of his hips. This kid is a champion for the pain he has and still is enduring. It isn’t a very easy process for men from Uganda to get visas into America. Hopefully he will have one by Tuesday though and he can get into our country to get the much needed operation done and over with. Emma is a very awesome individual and I hope all goes as smooth as possible for him.
Another boy I am becoming better friends with one named Joe. He is actually a little older than most of the kids but I certainly enjoy his company. He is pretty quiet but seems to always be dressing very nice. I let him keep my sunglasses safe today while I played futbol. He rocked em pretty well.
I am feeling that this upcoming week will bring a lot of hard labor either on the farm or at Musana so hopefully that all goes well. I am getting more and more comfortable in this extravagant country. The dirt and funny smells everywhere aren’t bothering me as much.
Cheers to the upcoming week, hope all at home are well.
Sunday brought some much needed rest and I was able to start a book, Matterhorn, which is turning out to be pretty good. I decided not to attend church this morning but will probably go next week.
I did say that there is not a boring day here, but today was touching that line. I am not saying I was bored but I don’t think anything epic happened. It was rather a cold day and I am actually wearing a long sleeve and pants now. Crazy I know, this place has been everything but cold up until now.
I talked to this boy, Emma, today about him getting a visa to get into America so he could get surgery on both of his hips. This kid is a champion for the pain he has and still is enduring. It isn’t a very easy process for men from Uganda to get visas into America. Hopefully he will have one by Tuesday though and he can get into our country to get the much needed operation done and over with. Emma is a very awesome individual and I hope all goes as smooth as possible for him.
Another boy I am becoming better friends with one named Joe. He is actually a little older than most of the kids but I certainly enjoy his company. He is pretty quiet but seems to always be dressing very nice. I let him keep my sunglasses safe today while I played futbol. He rocked em pretty well.
I am feeling that this upcoming week will bring a lot of hard labor either on the farm or at Musana so hopefully that all goes well. I am getting more and more comfortable in this extravagant country. The dirt and funny smells everywhere aren’t bothering me as much.
Cheers to the upcoming week, hope all at home are well.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
June 11th, 2011
June 11, 2011
After waking up from a late night out at the club I felt pretty groggy. We had toast bananas and peanut butter for breakfast, same as every morning. I like to add a granola bar or something to this because I’ve learned a large breakfast is important. It isn’t likely you will get to eat another solid meal until the evening. If I do get another meal it is posho and beans which is what the kids eat. Posho is like a more solid form of grits but a little smoother texture. The beans make the taste much better but you still need a bunch of sri rotcha or hot sauce on it.
It was the first day I walked from the volunteer house to town by myself and then on to Musana, I was nervous but it worked out. Turns out, I didn’t die. I actually liked exploring the area a bit.
I am learning that there is usually never a slow day here at Musana. There was a massive rain storm today, which I ever never seen it rain so hard, and the floor of the dining hall was pretty slippery. Kids started sliding on it and of course it led to this one boy, John Jackson, bustin his chin clean open after slipping and falling on it. I saw it happen and was the first one to get to him. First thing I thought was dayum this kid just wacked himself but he will be alright, but then I saw a bunch of blood seep onto the concrete so I picked him up and took him to the nurses office. Unfortunately today was saturday so the nurse wasn’t in. Claire, Bryan, and I tried to clean the wound and close it up with some tape stuff. This didn’t work so Bryan ended up taking JJ to the clinic so he could get it stitched up completely. This was one tough kid. After the initial session of crying he didn’t really show any signs of weakness. He literally hadn’t this giant cut on his chin like a champ, no doubt much tougher than I was as a kid. I was impressed.
Once back at home we ate and then played a couple rounds of pictionary telephone which brings some good laughs. It was the first time though that I actually dreaded the cold shower, probably because it wasn’t a scorching hot day. I can say I am doing my part in conserving water here. These have been the shortest showers I have ever taken.
Despite a few injuries today was a good chill day with the kids. I also got to eat two Rolexes today so that was pretty titties. We will see what tomorrow holds. I am sure it will be anything but boring.
After waking up from a late night out at the club I felt pretty groggy. We had toast bananas and peanut butter for breakfast, same as every morning. I like to add a granola bar or something to this because I’ve learned a large breakfast is important. It isn’t likely you will get to eat another solid meal until the evening. If I do get another meal it is posho and beans which is what the kids eat. Posho is like a more solid form of grits but a little smoother texture. The beans make the taste much better but you still need a bunch of sri rotcha or hot sauce on it.
It was the first day I walked from the volunteer house to town by myself and then on to Musana, I was nervous but it worked out. Turns out, I didn’t die. I actually liked exploring the area a bit.
I am learning that there is usually never a slow day here at Musana. There was a massive rain storm today, which I ever never seen it rain so hard, and the floor of the dining hall was pretty slippery. Kids started sliding on it and of course it led to this one boy, John Jackson, bustin his chin clean open after slipping and falling on it. I saw it happen and was the first one to get to him. First thing I thought was dayum this kid just wacked himself but he will be alright, but then I saw a bunch of blood seep onto the concrete so I picked him up and took him to the nurses office. Unfortunately today was saturday so the nurse wasn’t in. Claire, Bryan, and I tried to clean the wound and close it up with some tape stuff. This didn’t work so Bryan ended up taking JJ to the clinic so he could get it stitched up completely. This was one tough kid. After the initial session of crying he didn’t really show any signs of weakness. He literally hadn’t this giant cut on his chin like a champ, no doubt much tougher than I was as a kid. I was impressed.
Once back at home we ate and then played a couple rounds of pictionary telephone which brings some good laughs. It was the first time though that I actually dreaded the cold shower, probably because it wasn’t a scorching hot day. I can say I am doing my part in conserving water here. These have been the shortest showers I have ever taken.
Despite a few injuries today was a good chill day with the kids. I also got to eat two Rolexes today so that was pretty titties. We will see what tomorrow holds. I am sure it will be anything but boring.
June 10th, 2011
June 10, 2011
So yesterday Bryan and I made an excellent trip to Ginga, pronounced like ginger so it can be assumed that it is full of white albino people, but no it’s like opposite of that. This place is where a majority of volunteers go if they come to Uganda. There were many more white people walking the streets and there are tons of markets there to buy pretty awesome things unique to Africa. We stopped at a place called The Keep which provided some decent internet access and food that reminded me of America. I had a smoothie called The Island and it was fantastic.
Ginga is a cool place hustlin and bustlin with many people on the grind pretty much like anywhere else here in Uganda. It can be considered and escape away from Iganga when you want a little taste of home. The reason we were there was to search for soccer cleats for the Musana soccer team. Turns out they were pricy and so were team jerseys so we decided to wait for Hareal who could probably get us better deals on everything.
Now today both of us went to the farm to do some bean pickin. It was an experience to see some actual mud huts near the backbone of Uganda. There are roughly 15 acres of farm land that Musana owns. Today Bryan and I got to pick beans for the children’s food. It was basically like pulling weeds across a large stretch of land. We did a lot of work but at the same time we didn’t because there were many more beans to pick when we left. The usual work ends around noon because it gets too hot then everyone picks back up when it cools off around 5 or 6. I had a good time, well as good of a time you can have bending over for a couple hours pulling little weed like things out of the ground. I almost made it to the end of the little stretch of land but ended up cutting the living crap out of my pointer finger on a vine while pulling it up. Never really been cut that deep with that much dirt on my hand. It was interesting the way the blood solidified so fast. I expected a lot more blood to come out. The thing about here is you can’t really clean or treat any wound until you get back to a more civilized place. It worked out cus upon arriving home we all got to take cold showers which have never felt so good.
I am learning more and more the harsh way of life here in Uganda. The thing is that picking beans is the easy work out at the farm. Apparently it gets much harder. You truly get to see the crazy way of life in this part of the world. It is certainly a humbling experience that makes you ever so thankful for being born into a family and country that is much better off than most here.
I have also been thinking that life here compared to life in America is all relative. Natives here don’t know any different. They are born here, raised here, and rarely get to leave here to experience any other kind of life. So to them, everything is fine because this is just the way it is. You deal with minimum electricity, water that you have to pump from a well and carry back to your home, and an average salary of 2 to 6 thousand shillings a day. Life is difficult here but I guess to everyone around here, it’s just the way it is.
To top the night off a bunch of us went to “Desire” which is a club here in Iganga. What an experience. I got in free with my college I.D. somehow, but then had to buy a beer anyway so it was 100% free. It seemed like a similar club to what we have in America with loud music and tons of people. There were only a few white people there at the start but by the time I left I was the only white person in there so that was different. I feel like I fit in ok with my “American” dance moves. Over all I had a pretty excellent time. Still not sure if I will be going back anytime soon.
So yesterday Bryan and I made an excellent trip to Ginga, pronounced like ginger so it can be assumed that it is full of white albino people, but no it’s like opposite of that. This place is where a majority of volunteers go if they come to Uganda. There were many more white people walking the streets and there are tons of markets there to buy pretty awesome things unique to Africa. We stopped at a place called The Keep which provided some decent internet access and food that reminded me of America. I had a smoothie called The Island and it was fantastic.
Ginga is a cool place hustlin and bustlin with many people on the grind pretty much like anywhere else here in Uganda. It can be considered and escape away from Iganga when you want a little taste of home. The reason we were there was to search for soccer cleats for the Musana soccer team. Turns out they were pricy and so were team jerseys so we decided to wait for Hareal who could probably get us better deals on everything.
Now today both of us went to the farm to do some bean pickin. It was an experience to see some actual mud huts near the backbone of Uganda. There are roughly 15 acres of farm land that Musana owns. Today Bryan and I got to pick beans for the children’s food. It was basically like pulling weeds across a large stretch of land. We did a lot of work but at the same time we didn’t because there were many more beans to pick when we left. The usual work ends around noon because it gets too hot then everyone picks back up when it cools off around 5 or 6. I had a good time, well as good of a time you can have bending over for a couple hours pulling little weed like things out of the ground. I almost made it to the end of the little stretch of land but ended up cutting the living crap out of my pointer finger on a vine while pulling it up. Never really been cut that deep with that much dirt on my hand. It was interesting the way the blood solidified so fast. I expected a lot more blood to come out. The thing about here is you can’t really clean or treat any wound until you get back to a more civilized place. It worked out cus upon arriving home we all got to take cold showers which have never felt so good.
I am learning more and more the harsh way of life here in Uganda. The thing is that picking beans is the easy work out at the farm. Apparently it gets much harder. You truly get to see the crazy way of life in this part of the world. It is certainly a humbling experience that makes you ever so thankful for being born into a family and country that is much better off than most here.
I have also been thinking that life here compared to life in America is all relative. Natives here don’t know any different. They are born here, raised here, and rarely get to leave here to experience any other kind of life. So to them, everything is fine because this is just the way it is. You deal with minimum electricity, water that you have to pump from a well and carry back to your home, and an average salary of 2 to 6 thousand shillings a day. Life is difficult here but I guess to everyone around here, it’s just the way it is.
To top the night off a bunch of us went to “Desire” which is a club here in Iganga. What an experience. I got in free with my college I.D. somehow, but then had to buy a beer anyway so it was 100% free. It seemed like a similar club to what we have in America with loud music and tons of people. There were only a few white people there at the start but by the time I left I was the only white person in there so that was different. I feel like I fit in ok with my “American” dance moves. Over all I had a pretty excellent time. Still not sure if I will be going back anytime soon.
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