We had a leisurely morning for our last day in Kampala. I spent time with breakfast and packing... and trying to figure out the best way to pack my bags to help expedite security. We anticipated heightened security at the airport with all of the happenings in the national news and with the U.S.A. I checked out of my room and moved my bags into another team members room for the duration of the day. Debbie, Violet, Chuck and I went to one of the markets at noon to do some last minute shopping. It was so fun! I had to cut myself off from buying any more stuff; they are so unique! We returned to the hotel and had downtime until 4:30, when we packed up all our bags onto our bus and left for one last Ugandan meal with Charles and his family. We went to a local hotel and ate by the pool. I decided to have ""authentic Ugandan beef"" in the form of a cheeseburger. Well... it definitely tasted different than American beef... and it didn't have cheese, but it did have cucumbers on it. It was a unique experience for the last meal in Uganda!
It took over an hour for our food to come. We had anticipated leaving from the hotel for the airport at 7p.m. in order to get there in plenty of time for security and our 11:30p.m. flight. We ended up leaving closer to 7:30p.m.... and then we were STUCK in traffic. We did not make it to the airport until closer to 10p.m. Yikes! There was a lot of security, including dogs sniffing cars and checkpoints. When we got to the airport, we hustled in and got checked in. They check your forms first, then you take all your stuff through xray, then you take all your stuff to another checkpoint, then you take it all to the ticket counter where they weigh and check your bags and give you your tickets. You then fill out your form for leaving the country (exit form) and proceed through immigration. That line took a bit. Once at the front of the line, they check your information, rescan your fingerprints (they did this upon entry), stamp your passport for exit and then you go to the gate. We had no time to shop as we needed to hustle to the gate. We made it in time and then boarded the plane for our 11:30p.m. departure to Amsterdam. We safely arrived in Amsterdam at 6:30a.m. local time.
Thank you so much for praying for all of us and safety in our travels! Two more flights to go and we will all be home. What a blessing this journey has been!
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
Monday
This morning, we woke to rain and the news from the USA about the death of Bin Laden in Pakistan. It is rainy season here in Uganda, but this was actually the first day where there was rain during the daytime. Rudy, Dorothy, Violet and I went to visit with Dereck (he runs some ministries that WGLO supports). It was an adventure! We went from his house to see the orphanage (Dereck rode with us so we sat four in the back seat of the rental). There are 170 children being served there. The majority of the parents who died were from AIDS. There are 70 children staying there who have lost both parents. From there, we drove to see the medical clinic that is being built. However... the road to the clinic was too rough for our car to make it... so we walked in the rain and slick mud down to the clinic. I think Ugandans must have great balance to be out walking in that weather on those roads all the time!
We made it back to the hotel at 11:30 (still raining) and cleaned up from the mud. Lunch was pizza at the hotel and then we had some down time until we left for the market at 2p.m. The market was a lot of fun! We all shopped and bought several items to take back with us on Tuesday. There is a second market that we will go to see on Tuesday. I am not the best at asking for the low prices, but Violet was there to help us with our purchases.
There are still a lot of police out in Kampala. There have been different demonstrations over high prices so the police are out to help keep the peace.
We went back to our hotel for a few hours before meeting up with some friends of Rudy and Dorothy for dinner. The sun came out, so I sat outside for a while to enjoy the nice Uganda weather.
We walked from our hotel down to an outdoor restaurant. It was very pleasant to sit outside for dinner. It was interesting to walk down to the hotel... as we crossed a few streets and walked in the darkness. Traffic is crazy so crossing the streets was an adventure!
After dinner, we made it back to the hotel and called it a day. Tomorrow, we will shop, pack and head to the airport at 7p.m. It's hard to believe that our time in Uganda is almost over!
Pray for safety on our last day here and smooth check-in at the airport and safe travel back home...
We made it back to the hotel at 11:30 (still raining) and cleaned up from the mud. Lunch was pizza at the hotel and then we had some down time until we left for the market at 2p.m. The market was a lot of fun! We all shopped and bought several items to take back with us on Tuesday. There is a second market that we will go to see on Tuesday. I am not the best at asking for the low prices, but Violet was there to help us with our purchases.
There are still a lot of police out in Kampala. There have been different demonstrations over high prices so the police are out to help keep the peace.
We went back to our hotel for a few hours before meeting up with some friends of Rudy and Dorothy for dinner. The sun came out, so I sat outside for a while to enjoy the nice Uganda weather.
We walked from our hotel down to an outdoor restaurant. It was very pleasant to sit outside for dinner. It was interesting to walk down to the hotel... as we crossed a few streets and walked in the darkness. Traffic is crazy so crossing the streets was an adventure!
After dinner, we made it back to the hotel and called it a day. Tomorrow, we will shop, pack and head to the airport at 7p.m. It's hard to believe that our time in Uganda is almost over!
Pray for safety on our last day here and smooth check-in at the airport and safe travel back home...
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Sunday in Uganda...
This morning, we packed up our bus with all our luggage before we left for Kawate. We left the hotel at 9:45a.m. to head to the school. We made a few stops on our way and arrived at CCLS around 11:30. We received a rousing welcome again upon our arrival; it was so fun to see the excitement of the children and to see their parents there as well! We participated in the dedication of the new school building; we each had a key and unlocked a door of the new school building. I really should have asked about practicing beforehand... I unlocked the door but then couldn't figure out how to open it. There were many helpful people who came to my aid! Following the dedication, we took our seats under the tent for the worship service and comments. The pastors led worship, the youth choir sang, the drums were playing... it was awesome! It's always amazing to me how much you can pick up in worship even not knowing the language! I recognized some hymns and pieces of the liturgy. It was great to be able to participate. :) After worship, there were several "speeches" from different leaders and recognition of Rudy and Dorothy and the rest of the team. We then had lunch (around 3p.m.) which was prepared for the whole group... and it was a LARGE group! We had beef from a cow that had been butchered at the schoolyard the day before, goat, rice, greens and stew, along with a plantain mixture. . . and orange soda. :) It was a great feast for all the people there, especially since there is famine in the area and lots of hunger.
After lunch, the youth who had completed P7 last year received goats as a gift. Those goats were crazy! I hadn't seen two goats fight like that before; yikes! We did final goodbyes and headed out around 6p.m. We transported some other passengers so we had several drop offs before getting to Kampala at 9:30p.m. We checked in and then got dinner at our hotel at Masa Courts. Tomorrow, Rudy, Dorothy, Violet and I are going to visit another location in the morning and hear about the ministry happening there. It is currently 12:30a.m.... and "The Blind Side" is on TV here in Kampala! It's so crazy to see one of my favorite movies on one of the few channels here at the hotel!
It's hard to believe this journey is almost over; I feel so blessed to be a part of it!
After lunch, the youth who had completed P7 last year received goats as a gift. Those goats were crazy! I hadn't seen two goats fight like that before; yikes! We did final goodbyes and headed out around 6p.m. We transported some other passengers so we had several drop offs before getting to Kampala at 9:30p.m. We checked in and then got dinner at our hotel at Masa Courts. Tomorrow, Rudy, Dorothy, Violet and I are going to visit another location in the morning and hear about the ministry happening there. It is currently 12:30a.m.... and "The Blind Side" is on TV here in Kampala! It's so crazy to see one of my favorite movies on one of the few channels here at the hotel!
It's hard to believe this journey is almost over; I feel so blessed to be a part of it!
Saturday, April 30, 2011
CCLS Kawate Day Three
Today we headed out to CCLS with a plan to go to the market at Kawate in the morning... however... we had the most awesome experience as we came down the road to the school. We made the turn onto the school road... and were greeted with a parade! All the students were coming down the street towards us with branches that they were waving, drums beating and people dancing. It gave me goosebumps! We all climbed out of the van in the middle of the road and joined our welcome parade and danced (yes, we ALL danced!) back to the school. The girls took off their costumes and put them on us as we danced. It was such an awesome and overwhelming experience to have them so excited for us to be back with them. What a great way to start our day!
I helped Dorothy hand out items to the kids who have sponsors back in the USA. The students wrote notes, we took their pictures and then gave them items from their sponsors. After that, I had the priviledge to talk to Sarah (via Violet who translated) about what her life is like as a young teenager in Kawate. We sat on wooden chairs under a tree out in a corn/casava field and she shared what she does on a typical day and what her weekends are like. It was very enlightening and also sad to hear her story. She does not eat lunch on a school day (she is gone from 7:30a.m.-5p.m.) because they can't afford school lunch and there is no food at home. She is a very sweet girl and shared much about her life with us.
After the interview, we walked down to the Kawate market. It was so fun! There were mainly clothes and food items for sale. Violet was our guide/translator. Many were there who also knew Rudy and Dorothy. We walked around and were able to take a few pictures after Violet got us permission. It was HOT out at the market as we had a bright and sunny day. It was great to see all of the items for sale and hear how they came to be for sale at the market. After we finished at the market, Violet and I went to Sarah's house to interview her mother. It was humbling to sit and talk with her in her home. She is a single mother of eight with two children living at home (Sarah is the youngest) and three grandchildren (the parents of those children did not want to keep them so they became her responsibility). She rarely has food at home and work is hard right now as she is sick with AIDS. I was blessed to present her with a quilt that had been sent along from Glendale Lutheran Church and also to give Sarah a purse and dress that was also made for her. It was humbling to see how touched they were by these simple gifts. Keep them in your prayers; their stories are so similar to many in the area.
We made a quick stop at the "source of the Nile" to see where the White Nile River began... and saw a bunch of monkeys up in a tree! I was so excited, as I've been watching for monkeys all trip! :) We left there and went and at at the "Triangle" which was a hotel/restaurant that Rudy, Dorothy, Violet and Charles knew. We started eating outside overlooking Lake Victoria... but the moths chased us back inside where we finished dinner.
We are now back at our hotel in Jinja. Tomorrow, we will pack up and load the bus and head to CCLS one more time for the dedication of the new school building. Following that, we will head to Kampala where we will spend our last few nights in Uganda before heading home. It's hard to believe we are heading into the end of our journey. It's been such a blessing to be here and get to know the people and talk to them and see firsthand what is going on.
Thanks for joining with me in the journey! :)
I helped Dorothy hand out items to the kids who have sponsors back in the USA. The students wrote notes, we took their pictures and then gave them items from their sponsors. After that, I had the priviledge to talk to Sarah (via Violet who translated) about what her life is like as a young teenager in Kawate. We sat on wooden chairs under a tree out in a corn/casava field and she shared what she does on a typical day and what her weekends are like. It was very enlightening and also sad to hear her story. She does not eat lunch on a school day (she is gone from 7:30a.m.-5p.m.) because they can't afford school lunch and there is no food at home. She is a very sweet girl and shared much about her life with us.
After the interview, we walked down to the Kawate market. It was so fun! There were mainly clothes and food items for sale. Violet was our guide/translator. Many were there who also knew Rudy and Dorothy. We walked around and were able to take a few pictures after Violet got us permission. It was HOT out at the market as we had a bright and sunny day. It was great to see all of the items for sale and hear how they came to be for sale at the market. After we finished at the market, Violet and I went to Sarah's house to interview her mother. It was humbling to sit and talk with her in her home. She is a single mother of eight with two children living at home (Sarah is the youngest) and three grandchildren (the parents of those children did not want to keep them so they became her responsibility). She rarely has food at home and work is hard right now as she is sick with AIDS. I was blessed to present her with a quilt that had been sent along from Glendale Lutheran Church and also to give Sarah a purse and dress that was also made for her. It was humbling to see how touched they were by these simple gifts. Keep them in your prayers; their stories are so similar to many in the area.
We made a quick stop at the "source of the Nile" to see where the White Nile River began... and saw a bunch of monkeys up in a tree! I was so excited, as I've been watching for monkeys all trip! :) We left there and went and at at the "Triangle" which was a hotel/restaurant that Rudy, Dorothy, Violet and Charles knew. We started eating outside overlooking Lake Victoria... but the moths chased us back inside where we finished dinner.
We are now back at our hotel in Jinja. Tomorrow, we will pack up and load the bus and head to CCLS one more time for the dedication of the new school building. Following that, we will head to Kampala where we will spend our last few nights in Uganda before heading home. It's hard to believe we are heading into the end of our journey. It's been such a blessing to be here and get to know the people and talk to them and see firsthand what is going on.
Thanks for joining with me in the journey! :)
Friday, April 29, 2011
Day Two at the school
On Friday, we ate breakfast and headed to the school on our bus. The bus is really a "van", with six rows of seats. We stopped at the gas station, market (Violet got a chicken for lunch) and then the grocery store for water. When we got to the school, we were greeted enthusiastically by the students. It was so cool; there were a group of teachers playing the drums and all the students were singing and dancing. I loved it! The desks had arrived for the new classrooms, so during the morning, they were moved in and we could see how they looked in the rooms. The headmaster gave us papers to see how the students were doing in class. Rudy and Dorothy had meetings in the afternoon, so during that time, I got out all the craft beads and string and did necklaces and bracelets with the children. It was fun, and a bit of a challenge. They loved them and wanted more and more beads. I was asked all day by one boy for the necklace I had made and was wearing so he could have more beads. It was fun to do another day of crafts with them!
The students gathered together and I read some of the books our teachers had brought in November. There was a translator there so it worked well. Later on in the afternoon, I read a few more simple books without a translator; a few of the older kids helped read. When the book was over, I said it was finished... and they proceeded to read the "about the author" section. Why not? :)
A group of children were playing drums and other percussion instruments in the back under a tree, so Debbie and I went back there to join them. I tried out the instruments and Debbie learned how to do a dance with the help of some of the girls. It was a lot of fun (and got a lot of attention from the other students!).
We repacked the crafts and books in the storage and left at 6p.m. to head back to Jinja. We had a late dinner and then called it a day. It was a great day!
On Saturday, we are heading to the market on our way to the school. I'm excited to see how the market will be! We will be trying to do "interviews" at the school with students and moms. We are hopeful to get to go to one of the homes to do it there. That would be very interesting to see an actual home up close! Thanks for your continued prayers; I'm having a great time and experience in Uganda!
The students gathered together and I read some of the books our teachers had brought in November. There was a translator there so it worked well. Later on in the afternoon, I read a few more simple books without a translator; a few of the older kids helped read. When the book was over, I said it was finished... and they proceeded to read the "about the author" section. Why not? :)
A group of children were playing drums and other percussion instruments in the back under a tree, so Debbie and I went back there to join them. I tried out the instruments and Debbie learned how to do a dance with the help of some of the girls. It was a lot of fun (and got a lot of attention from the other students!).
We repacked the crafts and books in the storage and left at 6p.m. to head back to Jinja. We had a late dinner and then called it a day. It was a great day!
On Saturday, we are heading to the market on our way to the school. I'm excited to see how the market will be! We will be trying to do "interviews" at the school with students and moms. We are hopeful to get to go to one of the homes to do it there. That would be very interesting to see an actual home up close! Thanks for your continued prayers; I'm having a great time and experience in Uganda!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Time at the school and adventures with the kids
On Thursday morning, we headed into Kawate to CCLS-U. On the way, we stopped by the shop where the school desks and benches were being built. It was fun to see them; our VBS bought one classroom of desks. When we arrived we were greeted by over 120 students who had come to meet us. The school is on break, but there were many students and teachers on hand to greet us. We toured the school and the new building and then started doing some art projects with the classes. They were in their classrooms waiting patiently ... some for over an hour! ... before we got to their group. The young ones were given paper and crayons to make a creation. The older students made watercolors. We did not have enough paintbrushes for all the students so they waited patiently until one was free. It was so fun doing that with them; they were very creative! We had lunch on the bus (the bus stayed with us and the driver watched over our belongings) and then did some songs with the kids and walked around. They had porridge for lunch and a few kids added their crayons to the mix! The teacher caught it in time and dumped out the orange crayon mixture and got them some new porridge. We were able to see the new land that the school is in process of buying.
After lunch we did a puppet play on David and Goliath. It was great fun! We had translators for each of the six characters in the drama. The students had a good time watching us and laughing. We left at 4p.m. to head back to our hotel. We stopped on the side of the road for Violet (our Ugandan partner at the school) to buy some white yams to use for lunch tomorrow. We got back to our hotel, cleaned up and had dinner. We had to move inside because of the storm rolling in (it is rainy season here). Tomorrow will be another great day!
After lunch we did a puppet play on David and Goliath. It was great fun! We had translators for each of the six characters in the drama. The students had a good time watching us and laughing. We left at 4p.m. to head back to our hotel. We stopped on the side of the road for Violet (our Ugandan partner at the school) to buy some white yams to use for lunch tomorrow. We got back to our hotel, cleaned up and had dinner. We had to move inside because of the storm rolling in (it is rainy season here). Tomorrow will be another great day!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Safely in Uganda
We made it into Uganda late Tuesday night. After getting our luggage, going through customs and getting our Visa, we boarded our bus and headed to our hotel in Kampala. The process of getting our luggage went smoothly... although we did have 15 checked bags, in addition to 10 pieces of cary on luggage. Most of the checked bags weighed 70 pounds, so we had quite a load to transport to our bus! Thankfully, they all arrived and we have all the supplies we will need for our days in Uganda. The bus and driver that picked us up will be with us for the duration of our stay in Uganda.
We got into our hotel in Kamapla around 12:30a.m. on Wednesday. It was so nice to finally be able to sleep! We got up the next morning, had a lovely breakfast at the hotel and then packed up the bus and went to Jinja. The drive took over an hour and we stopped at a bank to exchange money and restaurant in Kampala for lunch on our way out. Kampala is a busy place... lots of stores, people and activity. I was amazed at the number of "out of towners" that I saw at the restaurant. We are traveling with Violet and Charles, who are Rudy and Dorothy's connections here in Uganda. They are wonderful people and I know I am going to enjoy getting to know them!
Our drive into Jinja was so fun; I loved seeing all of the scenery, homes and people on our way. I took so many pictures just on our drive! We saw fields of tea, sugar cane, gardens with corn, cabbage and other vegetables and lots of activity. We drove across the Nile River (so cool to see that!) on our drive. I had a fine layer of red dust on my arms and face from having my window open on the drive, but it was well worth it! I'll try to post some of the pictures if the connection holds long enough.
After we arrived in Jinja, we took all of our bags up to our rooms and then boarded our bus and headed to see Bujaguli Falls (part of the White Nile river). It was amazing! There were kids there trying to get us to go for a ride down the falls on their plastic jug for the low price of 3000 shillings. There were no takers in our group!
After several pictures at the falls, we headed back to our hotel to clean up some of the dust before dinner. We had dinner at the hotel - most of us tried the fish and avoided the mosquitos buzzing about with ample bug spray. There were plenty of ghekos scurrying about that I were told like to eat the mosquitos. I considered taking some back to my hotel room with me. :)
After dinner, it was almost 10p.m. and we all wound down from the day. There is a small tv in my hotel room with three channels. It was kind of funny to see what made the late night cut... there was an Uganda "soap opera" (the woman was told her mom has typhoid and AIDS), a soccer game... and the movie "Miss Pettigrue Lives for a Day." Interesting choice to wind down to from the day!
It is now Thursday morning and we are finishing up things at the hotel and will then head to CCLS Uganda in Kawete. We will be taking our many bags of supplies and will be getting ready to meet all the children. Even though they are on break this week, we are told that 500 or so will be there waiting to see us. Can't wait!
We got into our hotel in Kamapla around 12:30a.m. on Wednesday. It was so nice to finally be able to sleep! We got up the next morning, had a lovely breakfast at the hotel and then packed up the bus and went to Jinja. The drive took over an hour and we stopped at a bank to exchange money and restaurant in Kampala for lunch on our way out. Kampala is a busy place... lots of stores, people and activity. I was amazed at the number of "out of towners" that I saw at the restaurant. We are traveling with Violet and Charles, who are Rudy and Dorothy's connections here in Uganda. They are wonderful people and I know I am going to enjoy getting to know them!
Our drive into Jinja was so fun; I loved seeing all of the scenery, homes and people on our way. I took so many pictures just on our drive! We saw fields of tea, sugar cane, gardens with corn, cabbage and other vegetables and lots of activity. We drove across the Nile River (so cool to see that!) on our drive. I had a fine layer of red dust on my arms and face from having my window open on the drive, but it was well worth it! I'll try to post some of the pictures if the connection holds long enough.
After we arrived in Jinja, we took all of our bags up to our rooms and then boarded our bus and headed to see Bujaguli Falls (part of the White Nile river). It was amazing! There were kids there trying to get us to go for a ride down the falls on their plastic jug for the low price of 3000 shillings. There were no takers in our group!
After several pictures at the falls, we headed back to our hotel to clean up some of the dust before dinner. We had dinner at the hotel - most of us tried the fish and avoided the mosquitos buzzing about with ample bug spray. There were plenty of ghekos scurrying about that I were told like to eat the mosquitos. I considered taking some back to my hotel room with me. :)
After dinner, it was almost 10p.m. and we all wound down from the day. There is a small tv in my hotel room with three channels. It was kind of funny to see what made the late night cut... there was an Uganda "soap opera" (the woman was told her mom has typhoid and AIDS), a soccer game... and the movie "Miss Pettigrue Lives for a Day." Interesting choice to wind down to from the day!
It is now Thursday morning and we are finishing up things at the hotel and will then head to CCLS Uganda in Kawete. We will be taking our many bags of supplies and will be getting ready to meet all the children. Even though they are on break this week, we are told that 500 or so will be there waiting to see us. Can't wait!
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