Where in the World are Erin's Pants...

Thanksgiving is a time of giving thanks for all that you have spending time with family and friends and eating easy to much food. I was able to do all of those things without being in America minus spending time with my family…well my real family at least I got to spend lots of time with those who will be my new family for the next two years.

Words cannot even describe how amazing my first thanksgiving out of the U.S was. Myself and about 12 others from my group went to Jinja where the nile river starts. I took on the planning of this trip and can now add event planning to my resume…if you thought planning anything in America was difficult try planning something in another country you are not completely used to yet!

We stayed right on the nile at a little resort with dorm style rooms. Since I was the one in contact with them setting the whole thing up I was given a luxury tent directly on the nile…it was beautiful…completely open my only complaint about the openness is the monkey who stood on the wall outside net to the hammock and watched me take a shower…but I didn’t let the monkey ruin my nice hot shower  (man do I miss hot showers}

(Disclaimer….i really do more than just drink on a regular basis and this post may not make it seem like it…}

On Thanksgiving we had an almost complete thanksgiving dinner turkey stuffing mashed potatoes gravy green beans carrots pumpkin pie apple pie and homemade ice cream it was by far the best meal I have had to date in Uganda. This was followed by way too many captain and cokes and shots of jose (sorry mom for putting you on hold during an international call to take a shot}.

Friday we did not do much during the day some people went into Jinja town shopping others stayed behind and drank (give you one guess as to which I did}…I also got a manicure and pedicure…felt so good to have clean feet for once!! Friday night we went on a sunset booze cruise on the Nile. This was beautiful and we met a group of students from Wisconsin who are currently student teaching in Kenya. The booze cruise was filled with you guessed it booze and games of flip cup were attempted but the wind shot that idea down pretty quickly but the peace corps team did win the one game that we were able to complete.  After the cruise we went back and continued the party at the hotel a great time was had by all!

Saturday a bunch of us went rafting some didn’t go because they were either too hung over or too much of a pussy (sorry for the language but that is the only appropriate term to describe them} to go and raft the nile! Rafting was a blast for the most part minus the near death experience and lose of my fav bathing suit bottoms and shorts (I am thinking they should almost be to Egypt by now}. Lets start this off by saying I am fine and was in no way hurt by the near death experience…After going down a couple of rapids that were a ton of fun even given the 6 meter drop while airborne we reached a grade 5 rapid (the highest level that they allow beginners to raft} they call it “the bad one” I can think of some other terms for this rapid that may be a little more cleaver than that. Well this rapid was not the kindest to myself or to others in our group after flipping over I was sucked under the water while spinning in circles (pretty sure I was in one of those whirpool type things that spin randomly} I could not get back to the top for what seemed like forever (but in reality was prolly a little less than a minute} while spinning I was gasping for breath underwater only taking in water trying to fight my way to the top. The only problem with that was that I could not figure out which way the top was. Light seemed to be coming from the top and the bottom.  While fighting to get out from under the water and becoming quite convinced I was going to die my helmet decided to slip back and start basically choking me I got the helmet off finally and when that went my shorts and bathing suit bottoms decided to go with it. So there I am fighting to get to the top helmetless and pantsless. After finally getting to the top I was out of breath and trying to get as much air as possible when another wave came crashing down pulling me under again! This was not  fun and I was over rafting at this point. A boat finally came over to get me after I got back up above the water and caught my breath. The only problem was I could not get back on the boat because I didn’t have any pants on. A girl on the boat whom we had met the night before (thank goodness for making new friends on the booze cruise} was nice enough to give me her pants to put on before getting onto their boat. That was basically the end of my rafting time I went into the safety boat due to wanting to stay alive to see the age of 25 and not wanting to lose the girls pants as well since they were a little big on me!

Saturday night I was not planning on doing a whole lot of anything as I and a majority fo the others were worn out from rafting but those who know me know I am easily persuaded into having some drinks. Well a couple drinks turned into beer bongs and shots. I was also able to persuade one of the Ugandan raft guides to give me his shirt so I am now part of the rafting crew.  This also lead to the sprinkler lawn mower and shopping cart happening in the middle of the bar!

How many can say that in their life they boozed on the nile...rafted the nile...almost died on the nile...peed in the nile...lost their pants on the nile...and had a blast on the nile river....not many...just adds to the long list of ways i am better than most haha just kidding!

Oh I definitely could not have asked for a better thanksgiving in Uganda and it will definitely have to be repeated.

Ugandan Time

Ugandan time is something that every volunteer has to get used to and readjust to. Everyone is late for everything one has to tell individuals an early time hoping that they show up within three hours of this time given.  A prime example of this would be the day we went to see the Buganda King who was visiting our district. I met Dorothy in Kyotera much early that I would have liked to make sure we got to Rakai town in time to see the king and partake in the festivities. The king was supposed to arrive the day before and have lunch at the nursing school in Rakai Town which just happens to be Aditi’s site. Well Aditi Aaron and Leslie sat there for close to five hours waiting for his arrival he never showed up. The next day it was said again that he was going there for lunch and would also be making a speech in Rakai Town people were gathered from all over hanging in trees and swarming the town just wanting a glimpse of the king. We sat on Aaron and Leslie’s porch for a couple hours since it was supposed to be on his route from one point to another we finally got bored and went into town where everything was going on. We waiting for a while longer and finally left as the king had still not arrived. Dorothy and I both had to head back to site so we could return home before it got dark out. 36 hours had passed of people waiting for the king and I am not convinced he ever showed up. Please also note this was also the week after he was originally supposed to come as they found out the day he was originally going to come that he was not even in the country so obviously would not be attending the event. 

Staring at the Wall

The past couple of weeks have been pretty uneventful. My days have been spent at the school staring at my counterpart and the wall and trying to come up with things to pass the time since she has me there for almost 12 hours a day but does not give me anything to do. I made some spreadsheets to better organize the childrens files and contact info and when i finished those in about 1O min my counterpart was in disbelief that i had already completed it and kept apologizing for having me work. peace corps told our counterparts that we are not supposed to work for the first 3 months so instead she has me go there and just stare at her. I have been trying to plan for next term and working on various projects i can do with both the school and on the side.  


I have also been lucky enough to find the best tutor in the world (please note the sarcasm} my tutor does not let me talk during sessions...hello this is a language class...He is a teacher and here in Uganda students are expected to sit and listen and memorize there are very few if any hands on activities to help the students learn using various learning strategies. I am also hoping on holding training for teachers at the school i am placed with on using different learning strategies. Many of the sessions the past few weeks have been on tenses when i say tenses i meant past present and future such as going to go going and gone (not sure if that is the best example but oh well} well his idea of tenses is present simple/continuous past simple and about 8 other tenses i have no idea what the difference is in English let alone Luganda. instead of teaching me how to say various things in various tenses he would write an example and then i had to put it into the present simple or present continuous categories...this did however brighten my day when he would "stroke" or put a / between simple and continuous and then say "i stroke this because..." i could not help but laugh and he looked at me like i was crazy wondering why i was laughing. I did get to also incorporate some cross culture into this by teaching my tutor the correct way to pronounce the letter g in uganda they say g like it is pronounced in geezer not like gee. 


Last note on the tutor...one day he ran to the wall to unplug his phone when i asked him what the rush was he stated that he did not want the wall to take the power back from his battery since it was about to be full...apparently here in Uganda if you leave things charging too long when they are full the power companies take the power back out of your battery and it goes back into the wall for others to use...only in Uganda would people actually believe this happens...

Things That Annoy Me

Now don’t get me wrong I love being in Uganda and couldn’t have asked for a better country to serve my time with the peace corps…These things also annoy me in the states but happen much more frequently here and this country is starting to turn me into a bitch. Never in my life have a yelled or called out more people than I have the past few months. I created this list while waiting in line at the bank for over 2 hours…so it may be a little exaggerated (most likely not}with my annoyance at the time for having to wait in line for so long.  

•           Waiting in lines…I am used to waiting in lines and have no problem doing so if they were actually necessary. The bank has only one teller window so that is all that will ever be there  were only 3 people in front of me when I began. 2 hours is way to long for only 8 people being helped.  Yes 8 people not 4 like who were in front of me when I got into line… which brings me to my next annoyance…
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•        People cutting in line…not only does/did this happen in the bank but it happens everywhere. Waiting in line at the grocery store people will just walk up and place their items in front of yours (which I have finally begun handing them their items back and showing them where the end of the line is}            Transport…the car isent full until there are at least 15 individuals in it (yes a car meaning a small Toyota corolla}. When I am lucky enough to find a bus passing thru town it always has the same disgusting conductor who collects money who tells me each and everytime if I stick around he will show me his banana later…ill stick to the 15 passenger corollas.
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•       Boda Drivers…Bodas or motorcycle taxis (which we are not allowed to ride} will scream and holler tugenda (we go} or mzungu where are you going in which I reply either ogenda (you go} or not with you when asked those questions.
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•            Public nose picking…I do not go an hour without seeing someone with their finger up their nose…and it will not be a quick trying to hide it pick it will be a few min long really digging kind of pick.
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•              Breastfeeding…I know this is a normal thing but I don’t need to be sitting eating a meal or in the middle of a conversation with you and you decide to whip out your boob to feed your child (not just baby kids are breast fed until around the age of 2 here}. I feel as though the feeding can happen before or after the meal or conversation or at least put a blanket over yourself. Women here will breast feed anywhere and everywhere. While sitting next to a lady in a car one day (basically on top of her not next to her since there are about 15 people in the car} her child decided he was hungry pulled down her shirt and took her boob out and proceeded to have himself a mid afternoon snack…this is when you know its time to stop the breastfeeding.
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•        Ugandan Time…people here are late for everything (reminds me of living with JT} and they do not leave the house if it is raining even sprinkling. I was at a celebration that was being held at the school they ahd to tell the guardians that it started 2 hours before it actually did in the hopes of people showing up on time. 8 came around no one was there 1O one person was there 113O 6 people were there 1pm (when lunch was to be served} everyone magically showed up.

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I could go on all day with this list but will stop here…and I am sure it will be added to in the future.

My First Ugandan Burial

Last week I attended my first burial in Uganda…oh did I feel out of place. I have not attended very may funerals in the states (which is a good thing}. I have a feeling this burial was the first of many while I am here in Uganda.  Burial ceremony’s are a time when the whole community comes together and everyone that has ever met that person attends (or in my case never met them at all}. Burial ceremonies last for hours on end are hot and you cant understand a word they are saying (in my case at least…I didn’t even get to try to understand with my minimal Luganda skills as the ceremony was not even in Luganda. The ceremony was for a former students mother who has passed away. Ceremonies I have heard normally last about 8 hours or so…luckily Deborah (my counterpart} Winnie (children of Uganda social worker} and I went late and got there around 2pm and stayed until it was over around 43Opm. On this day it was one of the hottest days since I have been here and there was no shade as we had gotten there late so all the shaded areas were taken. I was tempted to stead someones seat on the ground under trees when they would get up and peek around the corner to stare at me the only mzungu (white person/foreigner} in attendance. I did not get to see most of the ceremony as we were on the other side of the house but the little bit I did get to see a man give a eulogy (or at least I assume this is what it was as I could not understand any of it} and while giving this he had his finger in his nose the entire time. I wanted to go over and get him a tissue from the bathroom or something because he obviously needed one the full 4O min he was talking.  This lady was buried in the garden of her home next to her late husband who had earlier been moved from another location so that they could be together and in the area where their children are now residing. After the casket was carried off the kitchen table and put into the ground many people in attendance took a handful of dirt and tossed it over the casket. The casket was not completely covered in dirt but rather a piece of tin was placed over the gaping hole and then they will build a tomb over that…I had always assumed the dirt that was taken out was just put back in but either I am wrong or we do things differently in the states.  I can cross burial off my checklist of things to attend while in Uganda…next up will hopefully be a little more joyful occasion like a wedding!

Strange Noises

When first arriving at site there was a strange noise on my roof every night and i could not figure out what it was...I first assumed someone was trying to break into my house and sat in bed under my mosquito net with my flashlight on debating on wither or not to call father,the priest that also lives here since i live with the priests not a made up person (hope that is better joey), about someone breaking into my house.This is also when i start to think why the hell did i sign up for this there is no 911 to call and no where in my house to hind if someone were trying to break in. As many people know (and if not you do now) i am a big chicken when it comes to dark and being alone after dark (hence the calls to her in the middle of the night about strange noises in the house when she was not home all of which turned out to be the water heater).  After many sleepless nights I finally figured out a chicken was living on my roof. From the noises that were coming from my roof i think the chicken was having a party every night up there. Well i finally told father about this chicken and joked that it was going to become my dinner one night. Apparently father ordered that this chicken be his dinner the next night so that it would not cause me anymore sleepless nights. I discovered this when I woke up and there were feathers coming from under my door only to open the door and find a chicken with its head laying next to it in the hallway (not the best thing to see first thing in the morning). Well there is another nocturnal chicken living on the roof and tap dancing the night away. I am afraid to say anything or this chicken may end up without a head outside my door one morning also. 

Site

I will try to make this ost as readable as possible but the right side of my keyboard decided to stop working 3 months after getting my computer. So I apologize for the missing letters in some of the words and lack of commas (not that I use commas anyways} I will send the next 2 years in ssanje working at ssanje Sabina primary school. I have a lot of tasks that they would like me to do including running their clubs including Club Glow (Girls Leading Our World} Club BLISS the boys club Art Club (if they saw my artistic abilities they would want me as far away from this club as possible} and Drama Club (also not a strong suit of mine}. I will also be working with nutrition malaria prevention educating the teachers students and staff on various health topics teaching life skills and holding seminars for teachers on various learning styles and how to teach using the different styles of learning as well as many other things that I have not come u with yet!  So I am excited and hope to help the school in any way possible. I will be working for a nonprofit called Children of Uganda which is an organization that matches orphans and at risk vulnerable children with sponsors in the states who ay for their education. They will be going on Tour of the states holding performances in various cities throughout the United States in January and February  so keep your eyes open for the Children of Light Tour in your area and I strongly suggest going to see a show I can promise you it will be an amazing show!

I have also gotten involved with a formal volunteers old counterpart and met with him today concerning baseball in Uganda. We are going to attempt to start 4 teams in the Rakai district and even hope to get the funding to build a baseball field! I am very excited about this and hope it works out in the long run. Our goal is to first start a training for coaches to teach them how to coach then move on to starting the teams and getting the children involved. 

I am currently in the process of trying to integrate into my community and meet as many individuals as possible as well as reading way to many books and attempting to cook myself dinner. Tonight it was homemade marinara sauce garlic bread and no bake cookies that have not decided to harden yet and probably never will but they are still delicious!