So long camera I [still] love so dear

Well, I am healthy again and don't cringe at the sight of an avocado anymore..but definitely still do not have the stomach to try & eat one yet. Just a week after all that fainting-in-Kampala craziness, the city had something else in store for me:

My bag was stolen on Friday night! A boda boda driver (motorcycle taxi, basically) drove by and snatched it straight out of my hands and then just kept on driving down the street. It was around 8 so it was already dark and he was going too fast for us to even do anything. It took me a couple seconds to even realize what the heck happened, and of course by then it was too late.

At first, I automatically thought about my wallet. I didn't have that much in there, maybe the equivalent of $25 and my IL drivers license (passport was safe at home, thank goodness). Then about 30 seconds later came the realization that my Canon camera was in there too...what I was most worried about in bringing that camera here had happened -it's gone!! Annoyingly, I also had my little digital point & shoot camera in there too cause I was planning to upload some pictures from that camera as well. FML, right?

So while the boda driver is stuffing his pockets with fat wads of cash, I am trying so hard to think on the bright side, to be positive, something... Maybe he has lots of kids to feed, or school fees to pay. Unlikely, I know. It just makes me so upset - I'm back in Kampala today and I can feel myself looking around, untrusting and even angry at times. I don't like that! I don't want to be sad either, so I try to focus on the fact that I still get to be with these kids and that's the reason why I'm here. On the fact the camera itself is replaceable. I realize too that I'm fortunate enough to even think about replacing it, maybe not immediately, but at some point. I am also so glad that I had been able to get most of the pictures off that camera and at least on-line so I can still have access to them. I had planned some cool photo projects for the kids and really hope that is still possible. I think giving them pictures of themselves and with their friends would really be special.

I went back to the police station this morning and they still have hope they will be able to trace my SIM card and track everything down (I thought that's what they said they'd be doing this weekend...but regardless...). Again, sounds unlikely, right? Courtney and Adam's cameras are both still kickin' so I still hope to capture some of what's going on here via their cams. Courtney is even visiting America in December so I'm hoping she can meet my parents to at least get some kind of replacement.

So, yes, this sucks BIG TIME but I didn't need my cameras, IDs or wallet to be stolen to see the obvious lessons here - that I am fine, healthy and things could have been worse. That there are bigger problems right in front of me that I can put my attention to; so many of these kids have issues that I've never had to deal with. Of course I wish this hadn't happened, but I know I can learn a lot without looking through the lens of a camera!

Hope you have a great week!
Heather

So long green fruit I once loved so dear

Just wanted to say hay, so hay...

Things are still rockin and rollin and it's hard to believe it's Oct 1 already, right?

Well, my apologies for falling off the virtual face of the world for a bit. I'm not a trained blogger. I'd much rather put up pics for ya'll to see so I hope you were or are able to check out facebook for the full collection.

In some other news, I fell a bit ill this past week, topping the saga off with a fainting episode in the streets of Kampala. You don't even have to say it, I will: hot.mess.. Not that there is ever a good place to pass out, but Kampala would rank in my Top 5 places to never, ever do it! All kidding aside, I am fine, just wicked dehydrated! I got a nasty infection that I couldn't shake cause my kidneys didn't have enough water. etc etc. I'll spare you other details, but I am on the mend now although still taking it easy. I really think I drink a lot of water, too!

The WORST part of this, you ask? I ate an avocado for lunch on Tuesday before sh*t hit the fan and now I can't even THINK of a 'cado, let alone type it here. WOOF, major bummer there. Hopefully that passes and I can resume eating you-know-whats... :)

Well, back to resting and drinking lots and lots of water. October is shaping up to be busy for work for us. We've connected with 4 other schools and will begin holding trainings on their grounds once a week for the kids. It should be really fun and hopefully we can get some kids more involved in our Center. (Sidenote: Still no further developments on the gov't building going in and us moving out!)

Well, I hope you are all healthy, happy and enjoying FALL! Get creative with those pumpkins and costumes. I'm excited to see some good pics.

Thinking of you,
Heather

Kids Gone Wild

Each Thursday afternoon, the Hope School has its Sports Day and this past Thursday, yours truly was in charge (Court, Adam and I rotate...in hindsight maybe not the best plan, but we'll make it work).

I arrived a bit before 3, when the kids are supposed to be released from class and get their sports on. They soon began pouring out of their classrooms and into the courtyard of the school. Soon teacher Heather became Jungle-gym Heather and I was covered in children, all limbs with 3+ children attached, kids piling on my back. It was great.

I look around for teacher Jakob who I thought I'd be helping run Sports Day with. Of course he is no where to be found so I sort of just stand there for a few minutes talking to the kids about their days and finally, Jakob shows up.

"Okay, get to the pitch!"

"What pitch?" I say, wondering if he really means, "Let's go/I'm coming with you/Won't this be FUN! .........

"Teacher Jakob? Hello? Bueller!?" One of the kids pointed back into the headmaster's office. Sounds about right.

So I asked one (of my favorite kids..shhhh) what pitch they usually go to, and as soon as she pointed, 160 kids take off in every which direction. I still have about a dozen around me, offering to hold my water, carry my backpack or just hold my hand.

So here we are, one happy family: one wide eyed mzungu and 160 little African children running, jumping, screaming, cartwheeling, piggybacking through the fields of Ndejje towards who-knows-what-pitch. Some kids are half naked at this point as they are taking off their uniforms and socks and kicking their shoes off. Well, seems fine to me, I guess. It is hot out! After walking for a bit, we arrive (it seems like all the kids made it) at a large open space surrounded by trees. MANGO trees at that. SWEET, right? Until I noticed like 14 kids climbing in the trees and another dozen or so on the ground hacking at the branches and swinging from the lower limbs. It was insane, but also secretly awesome. I wanted to jump up there with them but figured that wouldn't be the best example to set... I'm not too sure how comfortable I am eating an unwashed mango either-call me a diva.

Eventually I was able to break the kids up into a boys group and a girls group - it's just how it's done here... not something I support, but hey, we got to choose our battles! Thankfully they understand "Stop" and "No sports day" and after a little explanation, each group was playing something that resembled tag. Everyone seemed to be having a grand ol time, if I do say so myself. About 30 minutes in Jakob and a few other teachers came by to join the fun.

All in all, it was a great afternoon and I felt really good with the kids. As crazy as it was, they are really disciplined, most of them, and so respectful. They just wanna have some fun, who can blame them! They sit in those classrooms everyday from 7:30 to 5, often later. That'd make anyone go crazy! Thankfully, everyone had fun and no one got hurt! I'm already looking forward to next time :)

You just can't make this stuff up!

So far, I feel like we've experienced some c r a z y things. Sometimes I just chalk it up to a different way of life, or maybe a cultural tradition. Sometimes though, it's just plain bizarre no matter how you slice it. This time, well you decide...

We had a meeting on Tuesday with the headmaster of Hope to rearrange our schedule and surprising, it went really well. Like a little too well. Then we has class with the P6s (about 6th grade, give or take) and it was so much fun. * I have lots of pictures of the kids, they are so awesome! I'll post those soon!* Anyway, after class we met with another guy about some pretty mundane maintenance issues with our Youth Center. Everything was moving along really smoothly until he, ever so casually, mentions that our new neighbors who are in about week 3 of construction, are with the Uganda government.

"Oh..cool" we all thought and nothing more. That was until we learned by "Ugandan Government" he meant undercover, illegal operations team.. Like "secret service" was the best translation our friend could come up with. The 'house' would look like a house from the outside. Even the inside, should we ever get a peek in, would look like a home but whatever would be happening inside I doubt would be very family oriented.

Our housemate Deo told us there are some other buildings around town like this - one he knows of has a warehouse inside which takes expired condoms and slaps a new date on the package, preparing it for resale. And I thought a lack of education was just the issue ...

"Oh shit" we all thought, our minds racing. On top of this news, our friend says, again very nonchalantly, that we will more than likely need to vacate our Center - it's nothing urgent- but just something to keep in mind. The officials don't want the youth running about. DUDE?

I thought a cow time out during a football game was odd enough. This is just..truly something we couldn't make up, expect, predict. I think I am pretty easy going, but I am definitely learning to adjust my frame of thought and drop any assumptions I may have still carried up to this point. There just seem to be so many issues I feel like we can dissect here and that translate to any of the bizarrOness we experience. One glaring issue is just the plain lack of foresight amongst most people here. It seems obvious enough to us as Americans that, if you don't want kids around, check out the buildings already standing! Don't build near a school! (Hope School is maybe 100 yds away). Then again, this is the Ugandan government and something tells me they don't so much mind who is inconvenienced.

So, as I try to conclude, I am thinking I should have used a code word for 'government' but I guess if I don't post within 2 weeks or so, contact Adam or Courtney. Unless they've been taken by The Man too.. Just kidding Mom.

This is certainly one TO BE CONTINUED

Getting to know Ugandan football

It’s a whole different ball game here… Maybe my African friends in the US can attest to this, or maybe I’m just wildly offending them…if so- sorry!!!! :) You know who you are, and you know I think you are some of the (if not THE) most talented players I know!

Back to the task at hand. Last Saturday we headed to Nelson Mandela Stadium on the outskirts of Kampala to see Uganda take on Angola in the first of 2 qualifying matches for the African Nations Cup in 2012. I assumed this would be a heated match and we would be in for a good night of action…Well, we certainly were, but it was mostly in the stands to be honest! We had an awesome time and I can only imagine now what the World Cup was like… the vuvuzelas, the chants, drums, the water bottles being thrown every other minute (and who knows what else!). It was great fun and even the rainstorm during first half didn’t dampen anyone’s spirit while we all cheered on the Cranes.

Ballers as they are known here (I giggle every time…) are in incredible shape, yet most professional athletes are. These guys are fast though, like…really fast. They can kick the ball really hard, too…but sometimes it seemed like we were watching tennis rather than soccer!! I realize I’m no pro here, but it seemed the caliber should be a bit higher for this level, you know? The strategy of clustering the ball and running straight up and down the middle, that, in America, we try to get out of our kids heads seems to be the strategy of choice here. No one makes runs of any kind, no one really challenges the ball. Ah-ha!! I can hear you say (or at least you, Dad……..) this is where WE come in, Soccer Without Borders. We want to get these young players to think creatively and pro actively. To actually make those overlapping runs and create plays. It’ll be a challenge, but I know we are up for it.

In the end, Uganda came up 3-0. Good times for all. As soon as we squeezed, literally, our way out of the turnstile – others chose the climb on top of another method – we saw the boda (vespa) drivers pulling up all these nice plants outside the stadium!! I asked my friend Jasiri what on Earth they were doing and he told me that’s how to celebrate! You wave these plants around. You stick them in wherever they’ll stick and you run the streets screaming and chanting and cheering. It was crazy. And so awesome.

Getting to know Uganda: Jinja and Sipi style

We arrived in Jinja - the town famed for having 'source of the Nile' - ready and rearin to get out on the river. I was definitely pumped for white water rafting, especially cause it just seemed so cool to be doing it on the Nile River! The three of us were with a fun Danish couple and the other raft was full of Americans...the obnoxious kind that you know give American tourists everywhere that reputation.... And I will say, our raft made it down the 15 ft drop..theirs did not! Just saying..

That was probably in thanks to our guide, a South African native with NO fear. If it were up to him we would have been taking on grade 6 rapids all day! I'd like to say I took most like a champ, but the last rapid was by far the worst and thank goodness it was the last cause I needed to get out!! Being under that raft was NOT were I wanted to be but thankfully the safety kayakers were excellent at their jobs (hi Mom!) It was exhilarating and exciting and everything else rafting is supposed to be, but dang, how’s a sister supposed to stay afloat!!

So after getting thoroughly slapped around by the Nile, I headed out to Sipi Falls in the SE part of the country for a couple days of R&R. Sipi was very serene and peaceful. The people were very welcoming, too, and I really enjoyed getting to know some interesting people. I got to learn how coffee was made too and I even got to take a bag of my own beans home! I planted a tree (bush?), too, so that will be ripe for the pickin in about 3 years…

I got to learn more about the agricultural life throughout the country and just how dependent the people are on their land. They welcome rain, imagine that! :) Looking out over the massive valley in Sipi, it's really cool to see the family's plots, knowing they can identify theirs from probably 2 miles away.

Anyway, I don’t think the pictures quite captured the magnitude of how beautiful it really was in either Jinja or Sipi but I've posted some pics of both below…

This Is Africa

Still adjusting but I'm able to find humor in the little things, thank goodness!!! So many whacky & odd-to-us/totally random things happen everyday and our only fitting response seems to have become "TIA" - This Is Africa:

We're watching a heated, town favorite Arsenal game and right with a few minutes left in the match, the power goes out. No one moves..no one complains.

We walk out of a fruit market and there are 2 policemen with massive AK 47s. Aint no thang. And by fruit market I mean, pretty much any store/bar/establishment.

It's pretty typical to find 3 or 4 of our housemate Deo's friends sitting on our porch at any given time. Deo's not home, and although they are our friends, too, when we open the door they follow us right in like they're our roommates. Maybe to borrow some soap. Maybe just to lounge. My favorite is when they start singing.

We also just added a hammock to our porch, so that is a crowd pleaser and used at all hours. Seriously, all hours..

Our 10am meeting with Hope Schools headmaster and Youth Center volunteer started promptly at 12:15pm. What, you thought 10 meant 10?

At training last week we arrived at the field to find a giant steer with massssssive horns grazing in the middle. He didn't seem concerned with moving any time soon. Kids begin playing around the cow. And during the U-15 boys match on Saturday (some of these "14 year olds" had facial hair..ahem.. TIA) a herd of cows ran onto the field, prompting a total of 3 time outs during the game. So good....mooooooo

Probably one of my favorites is waking up to:
a rooster crow
packs of rabid dogs roaming the streets
Celine Dion music
I can't decide yet.. but Celine really does have some pipes.

Last week though, we learned of some more serious obstacles with our work here, however I still think it deserves a TIA response: There is a nursery school (connected with Hope School, where we work) that took over half of the Youth Center last year and is slowly but surely building it's own space nearby. S-l-o-w-l-y but surely (TIA). It's tricky cause we want our space back, but we want to help the nursery transition. It's been an ongoing issue and now we've inherited it. We had a meeting with a man called Jacques from Hope School and he asked us for a loan to help complete the nursery space. A loan of $1,000! (This was just a few days after he told us how many people in town only see mzungus as having a lot of $. Interestingly, he didn't include himself) The loan discussion didn't come as a shock altogether, but it's still an uncomfortable place, especially such a short time in. Hopefully, we will use this as a learning opportunity and educate Hope School officials about realistic business practices and expectations. My suggestion is to just get out there ourselves and lay bricks!! I'm not sure how that'd go over.

This is the space where the nursery will go..eventually!

This has given us some issues to work through which is good cause we have something to focus on. I am still trying to settle into life here and each day is a new learning experience. Some days are better than others but that's just life! On Sunday, we are heading to Jinga to go white water rafting...it will be awesome to get out and explore . It's supposed to be beautiful!

FYI Courtney is leading the chapatti count with 15. Must eat more.

Thinking of you all.... Be well.

View from our porch


Me, Courtney, Adam