Sorry it has been so long since I've blogged, but life has been very hectic. I am attempting to gather all my thoughts from Rwanda and create a blog post about my trip, but that will take a few days. For now, I will tell about the past couple of days and the start of classes.
Our group returned from Rwanda Sunday night (9/5)right before supper. We had to meet Monday morning (9/6) for our 1st set of classes. My 1st class did not start until 11am, which is amazing :) This class is called Faith and Action and it is a class that the USP program has for us. It will consist of a lot of paper writing and reflections. We meet 2 times a week and 2 hours one day and 1 hour the next. Another class I have is African Literature. My professors name is Patrick and he walks with a cane. Probably the cutest old Ugandan man I have ever seen! For that class we basically introduced ourselves and went over the syllabus. All the professors grade on a 20 point scale here, which makes my life!! Wooo! For example: points from 100 to 80 is an A. I also had my social work class on Monday and I think this will be my favorite. I am doing a practicum while here and I have decided to work at a school called Salama, which is for blind children. Blind children are seen as cursed by most families and most are sent away :-/ I will have to keep journals of my experience there and write a few papers for that class. I am excited for this experience because it will be something so different from anything I've ever done before. I am meeting the leaders of the school on Friday and planning out a schedule of when I can work there. I am sure it will be a roller coaster of emotions, but such a great learning experience for me!
Yesterday (9/7) I didn't have class again until 11am! Africa must love me or something, lol. I had my African Traditional Religion class, which sounds like it will be so much fun! We are going to learn about Christianity in Africa, as well as Islam and Judaism. My professors name is Samuel and he is married to a woman who works for USP. He seems like an interesting man and that he will really challenge me to work hard. After that class, I went to my 1st community worship here, which is similar to a chapel service @ Greenville College. Except, it's more fun-ha! It lasts an hour and we do singing and dancing, announcements, and a speaker. Yesterday they read from Eph. and talked about grace. They have community worship every Tuesday and Thursday from 12-1 and I required to attend 12 of them(I just couldn't escape chapel attendance, even with leaving Greenville!) I met and am friends with a guy who helps out with the worship services and I think I will get to read Scripture some of the times, if I want to. That was my last thing of the day, so the rest of it was spent hanging with friends and meeting new Ugandans. Everyone is still really nice, but it is sometimes hard to tell if people are truly wanting to be our friends or if they think we have money and will give them stuff; as bad as that sounds. This is something I am really struggling with while here, because some students(mostly men) think women are like the movies, which is not good for anyone. However, I am still having a great time and I do have a lot of wonderful friends(guys and girls) from Uganda!
Today I did not have any classes!! I will never have class on Wednesday, but this will be one of the days that I do my practicum once I actually get started. I got to sleep in until 10 which was simply stunning. I went into Mukono town with Loren from USP and Brendah who is one of my Ugandan friends. We shopped around for about 2 hours in the blazing heat! It is soooo hot today and I love it. One scary thing about shopping in town is all the traffic. No one really pays attention to road signs and you will get hit if you don't watch where you are going. I made it safely this time, no accidents required, haha. I bought a scarf/dress thing from my friend Agatha yesterday and wore it as a dress today. It is big enough to wear as a skirt, shirt, dress, scarf, or head wrap; I will be making great use of it! I wore it as a head wrap yesterday and everyone loved it. I felt like a real African haha.
As I've said before, laundry is my least favorite thing in the world. Well, it has proven to continue to hate my life as we speak. Since Monday, I have done 4 "loads" of laundry and just finished washing it all today and getting it hung on the line. I had so many dirty clothes from Rwanda that I could cry, lol. My hands are starting to get dry and crackly already and it is only like my 2nd time doing laundry. We have to wash our hands right after using the laundry soap and put on lotion so my hands won't fall off. I did my jeans and a towel yesterday and let me tell you-worst life choice. It is funny to see how dirty the water is when you ring things out though. The really sad story is laundry has to be done every couple of days so it won't pile up.
There are soooo many students here on campus now and it is a bit overwhelming. They all still stare, but most do that because they are new 1st years and are super scared of everyone, lol. I have met a lot of 1st years during lunch and supper and they all seem pretty nice. At meals it is so crowded that you just have to hope to find a table with anyone, even if you don't know them. So, every meal I am meeting like 6 new people. I shall have 1,000 friends before I return to the states. :) I am still getting along with everyone in USP and Honors college(they are the Ugandan students that live with us and came to Rwanda.) I am finding it very easy to get close with the Ugandan students and we all seem to bond really well.
Well, that is life as I know it now. Rwanda posts will be coming shortly. :-)
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
Rwanda Adventures
Okay, so this is like 1,000 years late but better late than never, right?! This shall be my blog on Rwanda and I was going to be all detailed and fill you in on all the wonderful/not so wonderful things about my trip, but that would take forever. Instead, I am going to give some highlights and also share a poem that I wrote after we got back that helped me to process all of the information I had to take in. First, my poem... it is titled Innocence.
Cry, plead, beg, scream,
Is this pain or is it a dream?
The sword is sharp as blood flows down,
The words won't come as I start to drown.
Raise your hand as you've never done before,
Beat me and shake me till I crumble on the floor.
Who is this man with a voice so proud,
Why are the shrieks of my family so loud?
Where should I go, where should I run?
This game of hide-n-seek was never much fun.
Mommies are dead and daddies are broken,
Who will listen to the words that I've spoken?
Cutting, shoving, bleeding, and sorrow,
Will I live long enough to see my tomorrow?
What is the hate that I see in your eyes,
Who told you an earful of horrible lies?
Look at my face and tell me I'm filthy,
Look in my eyes, could I really be guilty?
Innocence in my soul, youth in my heart,
How has my world suddenly shattered apart?
Is it possible for peace to come back again,
Or will I eternally be punished for the lack of my sin?
This poem was finished a couple of days ago and I wrote from the perspective of a small child in the genocide.
While in Rwanda, we stayed at a church guest house for 2 days and then for 4 days we stayed in another area of Rwanda at a different guest house. The trip there was most uneventful because everyone was sleeping most of the time. The roads were extremely dusty and soooo bumpy! I felt like I could have fallen out of the bus. Overall, it was about a 13 hour drive there and we had to stop at the border of Rwanda which took forever. While there we went to a genocide memorial building that had different exhibits placed throughout 3 floors. There was not only information, gruesome pictures and stories on Rwanda genocide but on 4 others as well. Outside in the back they had mass graves of some of the Rwandan victims. On the top floor of this building, it was dedicated to children that were lost in genocide. There were pictures and stories of how old each one was, their favorite things in life, and how they died. I will not share details, simply because they are hard to talk about. I would gladly share with anyone who asks and feels the desire to know more. That was probably the hardest part of the day for me, because some children were as young as 3 months old. Other rooms has videos of survivors and their stories or rooms with pictures of victims, or bones and clothing from the deceased. It was a lot to deal with in one day, so when we returned to our camp that night everyone was exhausted.
The next day, I thought things couldn't possibly be any harder than that memorial, but I was wayyyy wrong. We went to a church named Nyamata that was actually a site for killings during the genocide. Before we entered, a man talked with us through a translator about what we would be seeing while inside the church. Sometimes he would speak to us in English, but it wasn't very good so he kept with the translator. When we went inside the church, it was immediate disbelief. There were bullet holes all over the ceiling and piles of clothes EVERYWHERE. There were broken pieces of furniture and bullet holes in the walls and doors. Also, I didn't know this at the time, but before we left we were informed that the dark stains on the brick walls were actually blood stains from victims. The back half of the church had clothes that looked too small for adults and we found out that this section was where children 5 and under where sent to get killed. I shall once again spare you the details of this scene, but it was not a pleasant moment in life. We all gathered in the front of the church while Charles(the man telling us about the church) told us he was going to tell us some stories himself without the translator. What occurred next may have been one of the worst/hardest moments in my life. Charles started to tell us that the reason he knew so much about this church is because he was actually there when the genocide was happening. He was in the church and managed to be 1 of 5 people who survived that day. I can't remember the exact number of people in the church that day but it was in the high thousands. He was only 8 years old at the time and had to sit by and watch as his mom, dad, and at least 6 siblings were murdered. He survived because his older brother covered him in blood and bodies so the Hutus would assume he was dead. This is as far as I will go with details on that because it gets a lot worse. I apologize if this offends anyone, but I would like to truly express my Rwanda experience. As Charles kept telling us stories, I had to leave because I was literally sobbing. Everything about the genocide just became so real to me at that moment and I couldn't handle it. Outside of the church they had mass graves and I just couldn't bring myself to even go near them. When we arrived back at our camp that night, I had to go to bed because my body felt physically and mentally exhausted.
Almost the entire week we were in Rwanda I had gotten really sick. Monday-Saturday I had symptoms of just about everything. It hit it's highest point on Thursday when I had a fever of 103 and couldn't keep food in me. So, I was miserably sick on top of taking in all this graphic information. However, the Rwanda trip was an actually amazing experience. I got to know and bond with the Ugandan students who came with us and also get to know my fellow USP students better. We would have little random worhsip sessions most nights that always made me feel better. We also attended a trade fair that had all sorts of crafts and goodies to buy. We went to a place called Ubuntu that was a shelter for widows of the genocide and they make and sell crafts there as well. It also provides schooling for widows and orphans. That was a lot of fun because they put on a dance and little musical show for us. Earlier in the week we got to attend a Rwandan church, which was crazyyy!!! We had to sit up front-awkward and we sang some songs for them and gave a sermon. They had like 5 different choirs and sang about every 5 minutes. haha. It was a really neat church experience and so different from America. We of course couldn't understand a single word that was being said, but I till enjoyed myself. It was a 3 hour service.
I really had a great time in Rwanda and there is no way I could ever tell you about all the things that happened. These are some highlights and I would love to share other stories with anyone who wants to know. I highly recommend going to Rwanda at some point in life and getting a chance to see 1st hand the horror of the genocide but also the reconciliation that is taking place.
Cry, plead, beg, scream,
Is this pain or is it a dream?
The sword is sharp as blood flows down,
The words won't come as I start to drown.
Raise your hand as you've never done before,
Beat me and shake me till I crumble on the floor.
Who is this man with a voice so proud,
Why are the shrieks of my family so loud?
Where should I go, where should I run?
This game of hide-n-seek was never much fun.
Mommies are dead and daddies are broken,
Who will listen to the words that I've spoken?
Cutting, shoving, bleeding, and sorrow,
Will I live long enough to see my tomorrow?
What is the hate that I see in your eyes,
Who told you an earful of horrible lies?
Look at my face and tell me I'm filthy,
Look in my eyes, could I really be guilty?
Innocence in my soul, youth in my heart,
How has my world suddenly shattered apart?
Is it possible for peace to come back again,
Or will I eternally be punished for the lack of my sin?
This poem was finished a couple of days ago and I wrote from the perspective of a small child in the genocide.
While in Rwanda, we stayed at a church guest house for 2 days and then for 4 days we stayed in another area of Rwanda at a different guest house. The trip there was most uneventful because everyone was sleeping most of the time. The roads were extremely dusty and soooo bumpy! I felt like I could have fallen out of the bus. Overall, it was about a 13 hour drive there and we had to stop at the border of Rwanda which took forever. While there we went to a genocide memorial building that had different exhibits placed throughout 3 floors. There was not only information, gruesome pictures and stories on Rwanda genocide but on 4 others as well. Outside in the back they had mass graves of some of the Rwandan victims. On the top floor of this building, it was dedicated to children that were lost in genocide. There were pictures and stories of how old each one was, their favorite things in life, and how they died. I will not share details, simply because they are hard to talk about. I would gladly share with anyone who asks and feels the desire to know more. That was probably the hardest part of the day for me, because some children were as young as 3 months old. Other rooms has videos of survivors and their stories or rooms with pictures of victims, or bones and clothing from the deceased. It was a lot to deal with in one day, so when we returned to our camp that night everyone was exhausted.
The next day, I thought things couldn't possibly be any harder than that memorial, but I was wayyyy wrong. We went to a church named Nyamata that was actually a site for killings during the genocide. Before we entered, a man talked with us through a translator about what we would be seeing while inside the church. Sometimes he would speak to us in English, but it wasn't very good so he kept with the translator. When we went inside the church, it was immediate disbelief. There were bullet holes all over the ceiling and piles of clothes EVERYWHERE. There were broken pieces of furniture and bullet holes in the walls and doors. Also, I didn't know this at the time, but before we left we were informed that the dark stains on the brick walls were actually blood stains from victims. The back half of the church had clothes that looked too small for adults and we found out that this section was where children 5 and under where sent to get killed. I shall once again spare you the details of this scene, but it was not a pleasant moment in life. We all gathered in the front of the church while Charles(the man telling us about the church) told us he was going to tell us some stories himself without the translator. What occurred next may have been one of the worst/hardest moments in my life. Charles started to tell us that the reason he knew so much about this church is because he was actually there when the genocide was happening. He was in the church and managed to be 1 of 5 people who survived that day. I can't remember the exact number of people in the church that day but it was in the high thousands. He was only 8 years old at the time and had to sit by and watch as his mom, dad, and at least 6 siblings were murdered. He survived because his older brother covered him in blood and bodies so the Hutus would assume he was dead. This is as far as I will go with details on that because it gets a lot worse. I apologize if this offends anyone, but I would like to truly express my Rwanda experience. As Charles kept telling us stories, I had to leave because I was literally sobbing. Everything about the genocide just became so real to me at that moment and I couldn't handle it. Outside of the church they had mass graves and I just couldn't bring myself to even go near them. When we arrived back at our camp that night, I had to go to bed because my body felt physically and mentally exhausted.
Almost the entire week we were in Rwanda I had gotten really sick. Monday-Saturday I had symptoms of just about everything. It hit it's highest point on Thursday when I had a fever of 103 and couldn't keep food in me. So, I was miserably sick on top of taking in all this graphic information. However, the Rwanda trip was an actually amazing experience. I got to know and bond with the Ugandan students who came with us and also get to know my fellow USP students better. We would have little random worhsip sessions most nights that always made me feel better. We also attended a trade fair that had all sorts of crafts and goodies to buy. We went to a place called Ubuntu that was a shelter for widows of the genocide and they make and sell crafts there as well. It also provides schooling for widows and orphans. That was a lot of fun because they put on a dance and little musical show for us. Earlier in the week we got to attend a Rwandan church, which was crazyyy!!! We had to sit up front-awkward and we sang some songs for them and gave a sermon. They had like 5 different choirs and sang about every 5 minutes. haha. It was a really neat church experience and so different from America. We of course couldn't understand a single word that was being said, but I till enjoyed myself. It was a 3 hour service.
I really had a great time in Rwanda and there is no way I could ever tell you about all the things that happened. These are some highlights and I would love to share other stories with anyone who wants to know. I highly recommend going to Rwanda at some point in life and getting a chance to see 1st hand the horror of the genocide but also the reconciliation that is taking place.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Oli Otya
Oli Otya is a phrase we learned the other day which is how you greet your peers here. It basically means, "How are you?" and in response you would say, Ggendi, which means "fine." Now you all just learned some Lugandan :-)
I already feel like I have been in Uganda for months and it has only been 3ish days. I am already getting used to the cold showers and mosquito nets. One thing I can never get used to is locking my room and electronics down. We have big dead bolts and actual padlocks on the outside of our doors that we have to lock whenever we leave the room. Also we have a box in our room with a padlock for our money, cameras, computers, etc. for when we aren't in the room. It is just for safety, not that anyone will steal, but just in case.
Today I got to experience washing my clothes by hand. Lets just say I REALLY appreciate my washer and dryer. This may be one of the most tedious and annoying tasks here thus far. You have to fill your not so big bucket with water and add soap. Then, you scrub your clothes as best as you can with your hands and let them soak for an hour. After that, you have to ring them out and make sure all the soap is out which is extremely hard to tell if it is. And.....jeans are the WORST thing to wash ever! They never get rid of soap and suck to get all the water out. Needless to say, I will not be wearing my jeans till I leave...haha. You need to hang dry things on a line when all that stuff is done and as luck would have it, it rained. So, my clothes half dried and I had to iron most of them. I burned my hand twice, which is always fun.
My stomach growled all day today, I think it's finally realizing that it doesn't get to be a fatty like it generally is. I have already lost a couple of pounds because portions are so small. Thankfully though I love the meals we get.
Tomorrow morning or in 5 hours, I am leaving for Rwanda. They are taking all of us there until September 5th to learn more about the genocide there and just experience a different side of Africa. I won't be blogging until I get back, because I can't take my computer. So, I will have many stories when I return and lots of pictures.
Life in Uganda is great minus washing my clothes! I am learning already how materialistic we are as Americans and how much I really need to be thankful for. I take so much for granted and that is really becoming apparent to me the longer I am here. God is already working through me by allowing me to form relationships with the Ugandans easily. I am sooo pumped for what He has in store for me during Rwanda and when the semester starts.
Taui Ra
I already feel like I have been in Uganda for months and it has only been 3ish days. I am already getting used to the cold showers and mosquito nets. One thing I can never get used to is locking my room and electronics down. We have big dead bolts and actual padlocks on the outside of our doors that we have to lock whenever we leave the room. Also we have a box in our room with a padlock for our money, cameras, computers, etc. for when we aren't in the room. It is just for safety, not that anyone will steal, but just in case.
Today I got to experience washing my clothes by hand. Lets just say I REALLY appreciate my washer and dryer. This may be one of the most tedious and annoying tasks here thus far. You have to fill your not so big bucket with water and add soap. Then, you scrub your clothes as best as you can with your hands and let them soak for an hour. After that, you have to ring them out and make sure all the soap is out which is extremely hard to tell if it is. And.....jeans are the WORST thing to wash ever! They never get rid of soap and suck to get all the water out. Needless to say, I will not be wearing my jeans till I leave...haha. You need to hang dry things on a line when all that stuff is done and as luck would have it, it rained. So, my clothes half dried and I had to iron most of them. I burned my hand twice, which is always fun.
My stomach growled all day today, I think it's finally realizing that it doesn't get to be a fatty like it generally is. I have already lost a couple of pounds because portions are so small. Thankfully though I love the meals we get.
Tomorrow morning or in 5 hours, I am leaving for Rwanda. They are taking all of us there until September 5th to learn more about the genocide there and just experience a different side of Africa. I won't be blogging until I get back, because I can't take my computer. So, I will have many stories when I return and lots of pictures.
Life in Uganda is great minus washing my clothes! I am learning already how materialistic we are as Americans and how much I really need to be thankful for. I take so much for granted and that is really becoming apparent to me the longer I am here. God is already working through me by allowing me to form relationships with the Ugandans easily. I am sooo pumped for what He has in store for me during Rwanda and when the semester starts.
Taui Ra
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Uganda
Hi everyone! My first blog from Uganda and unfortunately it is coming a few days late. We didn't get set up with internet until yesterday and our dorm buildings don't have very strong signals. Here is a little bit of what has been going on since I left the U.S.:
I flew form Chicago at 6 am to Philly and then to Washington. I got to Washington around 11:30 am and slowly but surely the group started to arrive. We all had to wait around until 3:30pm to meet and then didn't fly out until 6:30pm. By this point I was already tired from not sleeping the night before. We arrived in Amsterdam after 7 and 1/2 hour flight at 8:10 am-this is with the times changes. Then we flew on another 7 hour flight to Entebbe(Uganda) and arrived at 8:30pm on the 24th! That was wayyyy too much flying for me and I Am happy I don't do it again for 4 months.
Once we arrived we had to drive 1 and 1/2 hours to our school. We got our dorms and roomies and were sent to bed because it was like 11pm here. My roomies name is Jen and she is really nice. She is kind of quiet but we generally talk in the room. She is a music major, vocal, so we like to chat about music. :) Trying to adjust to the time change kind of sucks! I am exhausted all day!
I already feel close to my group and the Ugandan students that are here. There are only athletes here right now and then a few others. My dorm building has about 6 Ugandans staying in it, so we hang out with them mostly and eat our meals with them too. We all like to compare how Americans are and how Ugandans are. There are many similarities, but Ugandans view some things differently like: marriage, divorce, and dating. We learned that dating is super serious here and if someone introduces you to their family, you are basically engaged. Most don't believe in divorce except for adultery. Also, they have a strong opinion on homosexuality and do not tolerate-to put it nicely. However, guys and girls act basically the same at the college age. Boys will be boys and flirt and girls are catty and talk about any and everything. Needless to say, other than our skin color, we fit in wonderfully! Ugandans stare at us like there is no one else in the world. They not only stare for a brief moment, but continue to do so until you are out of sight; it is interesting to say the least.
I met a girl named Jassy the 1st night and I actually got close to her in the 2 days that I've been here. She just graduated, so she left, but we bonded immediately. She called me a "half-cast" which is what they call mixed people, I guess. She said it is not common here at all and people love to see half-casts. They are rare and special, so she said everyone will try and touch my hair and my skin...ha! That's kind of fun. Some Ugandan girls I have met are Ameto or Queen, Esther, Truth, Gloria, and Priscilla. They are all gorgeous with amazing skin! We met some Ugandan men too, but we mostly interact with them at meal time.
Life here is very different than the U.S., obviously. We have cold showers which are not that bad after the initial cold hits you. It wakes me up immediately in the morning on the bright side. Toilets look very similar here, but others are just a hole in the ground. We brush our teeth in the sinks with their water, but otherwise we go to special sinks for drinking water. We have to wash clothes by hand, which will be fun whenever I experience that...ha! We have to hang dry our clothes and then iron them because we were told mango flies could possibly lay eggs on our clothes while they are outside and get into our skin-fun tidbit :)
Meals: Aug. 25
Breakfast: eggs, a piece of bread, banana, pineapple, and tea
Lunch: Rice and meat sauce, putoko(thick, white trianlge of sugar and some other things mixed together), peanut sauce-purple, and water.
Supper: Matoka(fried plantains), half a sweet potato, and some sauce, cabbage and water.
Aug 26
Breakfast: 1 doughnut-not much bigger than a doughnut hole, hard-boiled egg, and water
Lunch: Rice and beans and water.
Supper: Rice and beans, putoka, peanut sauce, and cabbage w/carrots, and water.
Meals are small but surprisingly filling. All of our meals will be mostly these foods and same everyday. Rice and beans are the staple foods.
In the afternoon today we learned Luganda for 2 hours. This is their native language and we just learned how to greet people formally and informally for the day and evening. I am basically a pro ;-). Today we also went to Mukono town and did some shopping. The locals stared us down like we were a diseas..haha. But, we said hi to most and they were extremely nice back. They always ask how you are and smile back. A lot of the places are tiny and cramped together, but have neat things. The dresses here are so beautiful and colorful. The children always waved and said hi to us. Most adults called us "Mzungus," which means white people. On our way back, me and 3 of my friend were crossing the street, which is very dangerous because traffic is fast and unorganized, and a boda boda(motorcycle) hit Esther and I. The man tried to stop, but he was unable to do it in time. He hit Esther who then hit me and I got knocked over but Esther fell and rolled. She cut up her knee pretty bad and has a few cuts and bruises, but everyone is okay! :) It was a crazy little experience but will make for good stories later. It has already been an intense 2 days, but I am loving every minute of it.
Taui Ra
I flew form Chicago at 6 am to Philly and then to Washington. I got to Washington around 11:30 am and slowly but surely the group started to arrive. We all had to wait around until 3:30pm to meet and then didn't fly out until 6:30pm. By this point I was already tired from not sleeping the night before. We arrived in Amsterdam after 7 and 1/2 hour flight at 8:10 am-this is with the times changes. Then we flew on another 7 hour flight to Entebbe(Uganda) and arrived at 8:30pm on the 24th! That was wayyyy too much flying for me and I Am happy I don't do it again for 4 months.
Once we arrived we had to drive 1 and 1/2 hours to our school. We got our dorms and roomies and were sent to bed because it was like 11pm here. My roomies name is Jen and she is really nice. She is kind of quiet but we generally talk in the room. She is a music major, vocal, so we like to chat about music. :) Trying to adjust to the time change kind of sucks! I am exhausted all day!
I already feel close to my group and the Ugandan students that are here. There are only athletes here right now and then a few others. My dorm building has about 6 Ugandans staying in it, so we hang out with them mostly and eat our meals with them too. We all like to compare how Americans are and how Ugandans are. There are many similarities, but Ugandans view some things differently like: marriage, divorce, and dating. We learned that dating is super serious here and if someone introduces you to their family, you are basically engaged. Most don't believe in divorce except for adultery. Also, they have a strong opinion on homosexuality and do not tolerate-to put it nicely. However, guys and girls act basically the same at the college age. Boys will be boys and flirt and girls are catty and talk about any and everything. Needless to say, other than our skin color, we fit in wonderfully! Ugandans stare at us like there is no one else in the world. They not only stare for a brief moment, but continue to do so until you are out of sight; it is interesting to say the least.
I met a girl named Jassy the 1st night and I actually got close to her in the 2 days that I've been here. She just graduated, so she left, but we bonded immediately. She called me a "half-cast" which is what they call mixed people, I guess. She said it is not common here at all and people love to see half-casts. They are rare and special, so she said everyone will try and touch my hair and my skin...ha! That's kind of fun. Some Ugandan girls I have met are Ameto or Queen, Esther, Truth, Gloria, and Priscilla. They are all gorgeous with amazing skin! We met some Ugandan men too, but we mostly interact with them at meal time.
Life here is very different than the U.S., obviously. We have cold showers which are not that bad after the initial cold hits you. It wakes me up immediately in the morning on the bright side. Toilets look very similar here, but others are just a hole in the ground. We brush our teeth in the sinks with their water, but otherwise we go to special sinks for drinking water. We have to wash clothes by hand, which will be fun whenever I experience that...ha! We have to hang dry our clothes and then iron them because we were told mango flies could possibly lay eggs on our clothes while they are outside and get into our skin-fun tidbit :)
Meals: Aug. 25
Breakfast: eggs, a piece of bread, banana, pineapple, and tea
Lunch: Rice and meat sauce, putoko(thick, white trianlge of sugar and some other things mixed together), peanut sauce-purple, and water.
Supper: Matoka(fried plantains), half a sweet potato, and some sauce, cabbage and water.
Aug 26
Breakfast: 1 doughnut-not much bigger than a doughnut hole, hard-boiled egg, and water
Lunch: Rice and beans and water.
Supper: Rice and beans, putoka, peanut sauce, and cabbage w/carrots, and water.
Meals are small but surprisingly filling. All of our meals will be mostly these foods and same everyday. Rice and beans are the staple foods.
In the afternoon today we learned Luganda for 2 hours. This is their native language and we just learned how to greet people formally and informally for the day and evening. I am basically a pro ;-). Today we also went to Mukono town and did some shopping. The locals stared us down like we were a diseas..haha. But, we said hi to most and they were extremely nice back. They always ask how you are and smile back. A lot of the places are tiny and cramped together, but have neat things. The dresses here are so beautiful and colorful. The children always waved and said hi to us. Most adults called us "Mzungus," which means white people. On our way back, me and 3 of my friend were crossing the street, which is very dangerous because traffic is fast and unorganized, and a boda boda(motorcycle) hit Esther and I. The man tried to stop, but he was unable to do it in time. He hit Esther who then hit me and I got knocked over but Esther fell and rolled. She cut up her knee pretty bad and has a few cuts and bruises, but everyone is okay! :) It was a crazy little experience but will make for good stories later. It has already been an intense 2 days, but I am loving every minute of it.
Taui Ra
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Endless Sea
Miles apart and worlds away,I hear you whisper, "please just stay."
Hug me, hold me, tell me good-bye,
Watch the tears fall as I begin to cry.
Kiss my cheek and tell me everything will be alright
Hold my hand until I disappear from sight.
You chase after me to catch one more glance,
You hope your farewell will get once more chance.
Slowly I wade through the cold icy sea,
Desperate to feel just a little more free.
My heart starts to race as I'm dragged down below,
Tangled and webbed in the strong undertow.
I'm tossed and I'm turned like a feather in the sky,
I sink deeper and deeper till I almost feel dry.
No panic or fear will seep through my pores
Only the soft murmur of joy will echo to the shores.
Your face flashes by as all my senses fail,
My body goes numb and turns ever so frail,
Drowning in your sorrow as I'm pushed beyond the bay,
Captured by this endless sea that led your love astray.
>Taui Ra
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
One Month To Go
Hello all! With the help of my very dear friend Lucas Harger, I have gotten this blog ready in order to keep you all up to date with my life in Uganda. I will be staying in Mukono, Uganda at a university. For 3 weeks of my stay I will be with a host family. I will also be doing an internship for social work that is going to be very taxing on me. Internet is never guaranteed simply because there are always power outages. I will hopefully update this everyday so you all know what life is like for me while I am gone!
Your prayers will be greatly appreciated as this will be a brand new experience for me and is going to be a roller coaster of emotions!
Thanks for your support! :-)
Taui Ra
Monday, March 1, 2010
Sometimes
Sometimes I falter and sometimes I fail,
Sometimes I stumble and sometimes I lose the trail.
Sometimes I crash and sometimes I burn,
Sometimes I feel myself take the wrong turn.
Sometimes I scream and sometimes I cry,
Sometimes I wish these wings would allow me to fly.
Sometimes I hurt and sometimes I wanna run,
Sometimes I feel myself slowly come undone.
Sometimes I tremble and sometimes I shudder,
Sometimes I wonder how it feels to be another
Sometimes I'm broken and sometimes I'm scared,
Sometimes my heart seems unprepared.
Sometimes I long for a strong embrace,
Sometimes I feel unworthy of your grace.
Sometimes I feel as if I'm in a constant fall,
Sometimes I feel so far away from anyone at all.
Sometimes I wonder where the light is up ahead,
Sometimes I wonder what I could have done instead.
Sometimes I beg and sometimes I plead,
Sometimes I know that you are all I need.
Sometimes I hate and sometimes I abuse,
Sometimes I do what I know I should refuse.
Sometimes I cower in a corner with fear,
Sometimes I wish someone were near.
Sometimes I know things aren't always as they seem,
Sometimes I know only happiness is a dream.
Sometimes I stumble and sometimes I lose the trail.
Sometimes I crash and sometimes I burn,
Sometimes I feel myself take the wrong turn.
Sometimes I scream and sometimes I cry,
Sometimes I wish these wings would allow me to fly.
Sometimes I hurt and sometimes I wanna run,
Sometimes I feel myself slowly come undone.
Sometimes I tremble and sometimes I shudder,
Sometimes I wonder how it feels to be another
Sometimes I'm broken and sometimes I'm scared,
Sometimes my heart seems unprepared.
Sometimes I long for a strong embrace,
Sometimes I feel unworthy of your grace.
Sometimes I feel as if I'm in a constant fall,
Sometimes I feel so far away from anyone at all.
Sometimes I wonder where the light is up ahead,
Sometimes I wonder what I could have done instead.
Sometimes I beg and sometimes I plead,
Sometimes I know that you are all I need.
Sometimes I hate and sometimes I abuse,
Sometimes I do what I know I should refuse.
Sometimes I cower in a corner with fear,
Sometimes I wish someone were near.
Sometimes I know things aren't always as they seem,
Sometimes I know only happiness is a dream.
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