So there have been a lot of power outages and issues with wireless internet so here are some things I've written about but haven't been able to post, enjoy.
So its been awhile since my last blog, mainly due to power outages, wifi not working and my general laziness (I hope one of the guys just did a salute to that). But here is a jam packed update. This past weekend we spent our time a a rhino sanctuary in the blazing heat. For about $60 we got to roam around the sanctuary, check out 3 rhinos (the youngest of which was named Obama), spend the night and have dinner and breakfast. All in all an amazing weekend with a side of volleyball and yet again sunburn. In our room there were four of us: Mandy, Nathan, Jenni and myself. However the trick with the doors was that each door had a deadbolt which could only be opened with the key. So as Mandy and I are packing to hear Jenni locking the door (ie locking us in the room) the Conversation goes as follows:
Mandy - ...Ummm Jenni why are you locking us in?
Jenni - I’m not locking you in...I’m locking everyone else out.
(I look at Mandy just to see if she did in fact say what she said)
Nathan - (whispers) ummm yeah you have to leave them a key...
Jenni - Wait why?
And it just goes downhill from there, she eventually got the idea. On a similar subject, let’s talk Ugandan beer and alcohol. Uganda has a HUGE nationwide drinking problem due in part to many thinks but here are my ideas. 1) Any country that sells straight alcohol in packets is in for trouble. Imagine a Ramen Noodles packet (I figure everyone can picture the dimensions) filled with your choice of vodka, gin or whiskey. Too lazy to get a flask? Just get a packet. 2) Beers here are twice the size of beers back home and sometimes a bit higher in alcohol percentage. so if you are four beers in chances are you’re having a pretty good night. 3) You can buy glass flask-size containers of alcohol anywhere, they litter the streets basically. Which for those of you who know how the gin and tonic was created, lets just say I’ve been doing my best to fight malaria.
As for school I’ve noticed one thing that separates the US from Uganda... getting stuff done. Now granted I’m probably going to make a request to HNA that they have a 30 minute tea time complete with doughnuts instead of the absurd 10 minute snack-less excuse for a break we have. But the pace of life here is sooooooooooo incredibly slow that it produces an environment where very little seems to get done. There’s a tv in the staff room which takes away from any work being done. The other day a BAD Jean Claude Vane Dam movie was on (Sudden Death for all you Van Dam fans) and out of 28 people in the staff room, only 15 were actually doing some form of work. The other day Speed was on and I couldn’t help but watch a bit.
My first lesson was pretty boring but the kids seemed to be a bit more awake than usual. We talked about the problems the Apostles faced in spreading Christianity...wooo! I was scheduled to teach again yesterday but there was a student teacher, and again today but they decided to have mass instead of the morning classes. So still I have only taught once. I’m trying to fill my time with going to the orphanage and finding other teachers to help out so hopefully soon I’ll have some new news for you.
****
This past weekend we celebrated the fourth of July with some style...on the third of July. But before we get to the actual party, getting ready for it was a hell of an adventure. Mandy wanted to get up early to skype her parents so we walked to this cafe that normally has wifi, but for some reason at this early hour did not (the main reason why I haven’t blogged in awhile). We had to pick up some things in the market because we were on the “snack committee” for the party. The two main things we were trying for were guacamole and mango salsa (Joanne you’d be proud). The market here is really eclectic with a number of older women trying to sell you everything from shallots to handmade knives. On another occasion some people from the group were walking through the market a Jenni says “oh look Africa has read eggs!” The group walks for a moment and then another girl says “ummm Jenni....those are tomatoes.” So all in all the market is a pretty funky experience.
So after racing all around town we ended up making all the food, huge success all around, and could finally enjoy the actual party. We had a performance of traditional Ugandan dancing in the early evening followed by a more western DJ following. But perhaps the highlight of the evening had to do with bottle opening. The night before this we had been sitting in this cafe where Jacob (one of the boys in the Rough Cut IC movie) works when we ordered another beer. We asked for a bottle opener and he says “should I open this with my opener or my teeth?” Instantly I shouted back “TEETH!” He did it like it was no big deal and I was in awe. Now going back to the party, I thought I would see how difficult this process was. Sure enough if you get it in the right spot its pretty easy so when I did it for the first time only one person saw and I was screaming only to have the majority of the party stare at me wondering what the hell I was doing. Now for my parents reading this and worrying about the well-being of my teeth which they invested in, I only did this two or three times and didn’t hurt anything, so I’m good.
However, on the same night that I saw Jacob open the bottle with his teeth, I went to pay for the bill but Mandy said she would cover this one. We walked down to another cafe with the intent of meeting up with people before the Ghana World Cup game. By the time I got there I realized I didn’t have my wallet. Raced back to the 1st cafe, and nothing. Looking back on that it seemed pretty shady, there was a little bit of money, both US and Ugandan so I think once they saw that they snagged it. Regardless Mandy and I went looking for it in the shady street next to the market and couldn’t find anything. I ended up canceling my debit card and everything seems to be all fixed up. The weekend was filled with mixed feelings but I guess thats Uganda for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment