Sunday, March 13, 2011

A Trip to Jinja

Tuesday I returned from Jinja! I started my journey Sunday from Entebbe with Robin and her family. We drove through the Mabira rain forest and through Lugazi. Lugazi is the biggest producer of sugar in Uganda. We drove past the tea and sugar fields, then ended up in Jinja 3 hours after leaving Entebbe. They dropped me off and continued to Mbale. I was to meet my friends Julie an Rio in town. I checked into Paradise on the Nile because backpackers was full. I then took a boda boda along the Nile River to Flavours Cafe. Julie and Rio come into Jinja town on the weekends from one of the villages they are teaching at. I met them at Entebbe Backpackers about a month before and enjoyed a day of Botanical Gardens and pizza. I had a mocha and pineapple crumble, the best dessert since I have been here. I returned to my hotel around ten and had the worst sleep. For the price Paradise on the Nile is loud, doesn't have the best view of the river and a mediocre breakfast. I decided to go to Bujagali Falls to rest up.

I took a 30min boda boda ride to Nile River Explorers Backpackers. On the ride we passed on a bumpy road past many little villages set against the beautiful backdrop of red clay dirt and trees. I reached NREB around 10am and reserved a dorm bed for $7. I had the whole dorm to myself! I borrowed a book from the book exchange and read in the sitting area looking over the Nile. As I read The Time Machine by H.G. Wells the Nile River was swooshing over the rocks and birds were calling. NREB has a beach and an outdoor shower looking over the river. I decided to opt out of the shower because the water was cold. I have been spoiled sine being here and have mostly hot showers, even in the village. I continued to read H.G. Wells and tan on the beach, watching the kayakers and swimmers. I swam in the Nile along some very small rapids. You start on the rocks then the rapids take you for a little bit then you float around to the beach.

Later I had dinner and read some more. However, I didn't get a very restful sleep. NREB starts the music around 6pm and doesn't stop until 1am. It was a beautiful location and I would go back and try rafting for the day.

Decided to leave on Tuesday instead of Wednesday and missed the Riots that happened in Kampala on Wednesday. I took a coaster from Jinja to Kampala. The taxi didn't take us all the way to the taxi park so we had to walk all the way from Buganda road to the old taxi park. Then I found a taxi to Entebbe and reached here about 2:30 pm after leaving Jinga around 11am. I took a nap then decided I would eat chapatti for dinner. I walked to Kitooro Market and bought a Chapatti and pineapple for dinner and was satisfied.

They next day I went to work and stayed the night. The language barrier between the two new girls Beatrice and Eve gets a little frustrating. I know they understand some English but just smile at you as if you aren't going to do anything. They are very cute girls but very cheeky. Moses has gained so much weight. Last time I weighed him he was over 7 kilos! He has went from a size 6-9 months to 12-18 months in clothes. Zach is being adopted and we are ready for him to go home. He is crawling rather well and fussing more than anything. Zach's biological father also wants his other son adopted by the same family. They are considering Miracle, but need some tests done before they make a firm decision. Jonathan has been considered by a new organization in Jinja that deals specifically with special needs children. John Mark is gaining more and more everyday and talks all the time. The boys are doing great and are moving to better things.

This will most likely be my last post while I am in Uganda. Thank you for all your support and comments. I have learned a great deal about Ugandan society and how government services work here. I have a better understanding of what will and won't work in a third world country when writing a program. The infrastructure and educational system is vastly different from our own. Implementation of a program would take much longer here and getting people to stay in one place is hard. They need to look for work or go home to vote. Tracking or evaluating the people and the program would take considerable effort.

I am sad to leave all the amazing people that I have worked with and met the past 3months. I am happy to be going home and to share this experience with family, friends and classmates.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Two New Babies!!

Well one isn't quite a baby.

Today Robin, Blessed and I were off to Kampala to pick up two girls from Makerre Community Initiative in Wagenda. M.C.I deals with child rights and doemstic violence. Beatrice (4.5 years) and Eve (1.5 years) are sisters who lived for awhile with their mother but then were transferred to their father and stepmother. The stepmother used Beatrice as a house girl. In Uganda house girls are used for washing, cleaning, cooking, etc. She wasn't beaten very often. However, Eve was beaten for pooping in the bed. The police report also stated that a beating was her daily meal. When we first arrived at M.C.I, Eve was very shy and you noticed how puffy her face was. To me it looked like odema, but her extremities were not puffy at all. She also has a wound on her hand where some blood had pooled and made the top of the hand swollen. So they lanced it and drained the blood. While we were at M.C.I the girls did not talk. Ruth, who is a volunteer with M.C.I, was taking care of them in her home and she made the trip back to Entebbe with us.

We stopped at a restaurant in Kampala and those girls ate matooke, g-nuts, rice and passion juice. They gobbled it all up. When we returned to AcaciaTree the girls got right to playing with toys and talking to eachother. This was the first time in three hours that I had heard either of them talk. They were tickled that there were so many toys to play with. Ruth was shown around the house. She had come to check the place out to make sure it was suitable for the girls. We piled back into the car to drop Ruth off at the taxi park and take the girls to Victoria Medical Services to have a medical examination.

Eve is so puffy in the face but her nutrition is fine. The puffines is most likely due to something with the kidneys. She is 9.3 kg and 73cm tall. Beatrice is also fine weighing in at 15kg and 104cm tall. Beatirce tried to hide behind me as Eve was being examined. So I held her in my lap and she put her arm around my neck.

When we got back from the doctors it was bathing time, then feeding time. Those girls can eat! Beatrice is very pretty and they both look at you with big eyes. It was a little tricky this evening when Beatrice was trying to tell me something in Lugandan, but I really couldn't understand her. I guessed she had to go to the bathroom. I took her in there, sat her on the toilet but didn't hear anything. So I asked Desire to come and ask what Beatrice wanted. By the time Desire got there and asked her she had gotten off the toilet and didn't respond to Desire. Beatrice looked at me as if she needed something else and said something in Lugandan, so I got her a glass of water but she refused. So maybe she just needed to go to the bathroom after all.

Yesterday, Robin's mom asked for my input on how to serve the volunteers better and she gave me insight on how a board of directors work. April, Kendall, and Joe (Robin's mom, brother, and dad) are all on the board of directors for AcaciaTree. I found it helpful and insightful on how they approach the business side of a non-profit. They have much more to think about then an Ecexutive Director and have a plate full of things to do. Not only do they have to be culturally sensitive but they also can't treat employees with kid gloves and let them take advantage. It is always hard in an economy that isn't so much capitalist. I also need to make a medicine chart for the babies so staff know when, how much, and with or without food. If anybody has an idea or knows where I can get a fairly simple one then please post it or email it to me.

John Marks mother also came yesterday to take her baby back. She had come when Robin wasn't home so she had to coem back later. She came back with a fresh set of braids and wanted to see John Mark. She claims to have a job or at least be earning some sort of money and can afford to keep him. She also says that the man she is with now is willing to help with the baby. That was one of the reasons she brought John Mark to us in the first place, because the man she was with didn't want to feed it because it was not his. Hoever, her milk has dried in her breasts and John Mark cannot take cow's milk yet. Robin is trying to avoid having the mother bring him back at one year becasue he is malnourished.

Really this week has been one of the best. Being to go out into the community to see how other organizations work gives me an idea of how to improve upon program ideas and what is feasible for a small organization to handle. I have also realized the resources available to people in Uganda, especially in Entebbe and Kampala. Everytime I turn around there is an organization available to help. The resource guide that is part of The Acacia Project will be beneficial not only for the people in the community that we help but other organizations. AcaciaTree can't really take disabled children, becasue there isn't the funding available to keep up with medical costs. So we had to turn down a boy at M.C.I today. If M.C.I also has this resource guide then they could find a more suitable place for him. Maybe one of the Ministries will have a complete book of registered Community Based Organization and NGO's and other smaller organizations that might not be registered but are heard about through word of mouth. I also read through a Ministry of Health book about Infant Feeding Practices and Feeding Infants with HIV. That is an excellent book to give to every caregiver that we help in the community and once the babies return home. Jessica, if you are reading this make sure that Robin gets more from the Ministry of Health. It would be a great way to reinforce feeding lessons and we can leave something as a refrence.

Yesterday, Robin, April and I were walking through the Kitooro Market. I was holding John Mark. I was holding him facing down so my arms were under his chest. He has a bit of a stuffy nose so he could breath better this way and wasn't fussing. All the Ugandan's at the market were telling me I was holding him wrong, or the men were saying it was their baby. We had a very thin blanket over him to keep the sun off him and because Ugandans would fuss at us if we didn't have him covered because he might get cold, it was 90+ degrees outside. Walking out of the market I saw a woman holding a baby upright facing her with two blankets. One was very heavy. Later Blessed explained that when you don't carry a baby upright with its head held up a bit, then it is dead.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Elections


The incumbent President, Museveni, was announced on Sunday to have won the elections. So there has been amped up soldier patrol. At the market today there were soldiers present and riot officers patroling the streets. I think this is just a precautionary measure. Saturday I was on a Boda Boda going to work and the President's helicopter was landing. It wasn't more than 50ft over head.

Yesterday, Leah, Emily, Blessed and I went to Divine Orphanage in Kitala. Kitala is about half-way in between Kampala and Entebbe. We took a public taxi and walked down a dirt road past a witchcraft shrine that was for many Gods. When we arrived we first looked at the new building being constructed. This would house more children. Then we walked past the Secondary School to Molly's own compound and house. Molly and Aggie (she is only one of two volunteers/staff, who has known Molly since she was a child) gave us a tour of the living quarters for the boys and girls. There are three-four bunk beds in each room where two-three children share a bed. It is very tight quarters. Then there is only one toilet per house for all those children. The childrens ages range from 3-13. The Secondary schoolers help take care of the younger ones and teach them respopnsibility. Then we went on to the playroom and school.

The minute we walked in all the children wanted to touch us and hold our hands. They know very little English, but are learning in the adjacent classroom. All school children in Uganda are taught in English. They want to touch Mzungu hair and hands. They don't want to leave our sides becasue they will tell everyone that they met and touched the Mzungu. We played outside with them and entertained them until nap time.

The orphanage is run by Molly Tabaro. She worked at TASO, which is an HIV/AIDS center, for a little while when she encountered these children being mistreated by their parents. Her heart went out to these children and was trying to figure out a way to help these children survive. She witnessed the paper and stick shelters which were only for sleeping. Molly asked TASO for an advance so she could build one of the families a larger house that had a roof. TASO agreed and Molly helped this one family. However, there were more children to help. So Molly started Divine Orphanage and Secondary School. She has 53 chidlren there with her now. She usess her own money and home to support these children. Most of the children come from the shores of Lake Victoria and some from the same landing site as Moses who is at AcaciaTree.

Molly found Moses at a landing site off of Lake Victoria. At first she thought he was a kitten, but she heard a faint gasp of breath and went in for a closer look. She discovered a baby so thin and malnourished that she thought he wasn't going to make it. So she sought after the mother who was collecting food, and asked when was the last time she had fed him. The mother had only fed Moses in the evening after returning from foraging and to give him a pancake (Ugandan pancakes are dense and bread like). Molly found this unacceptable and took Moses and his mother to the Police so she could get an order to take care of Moses. The Police agreed and Molly took him home. Moses was severly malnourshed and had respiratory problems. This gave Molly concern and she thought that he would not make it through the night. He did and after a little while in Molly's care she thought it best to bring him to AcaciaTree where Robin specializes in malnourished infants.

Moses has gained weight and now has chubby legs and arms. He cannot walk yet, but we have been doing exercises with him. He has been at AcaciaTree for six months now and is ready to move on. We cannot get him adopted yet because there needs to be signatures from both parents (who we cannot find) and a judge has to agree. So he needs to be placed somewhere else.

Molly has also told us that some of the girls that she has come to care for have been raped by their fathers or other men who were entrusted to care for them. This seems to happen frequently here. Robin also had a girl who had been raped by her mothers boyfriend.

If you would like to contact Molly or send her anything you can trust this is not a corrupt organization and all monies or gifts go straight to the care of the children.

Molly Tabaro S.P.
Director
Divine Orphanage and Secondary School
P.O. BOX 55 Baita Ebb, Uganda

Email: mollyorphanage@yahoo.com.uk

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Internet has not been working

So this past week has been terrible for internet. Since Presidential elections were this week there has been less power, water, network and internet connection. Museveni is going to win. He has 67% of the vote so far. Today they should announce the winner.

Robin's family (Mother, Father, and Brother) all came from Texas on Tuesday night. So it is a full house at Robin's. Yesterday, Emily, Leah, Nicky, and I went to 4 points for Indian. Which was so delicious! Although medium spice has the same hotness as mild. Funny how that works. Although, I have found in Uganda it all has the same heat level no matter how hot you want it. We also went to the pool and I burned.

I haven't gotten very much done this week. Desire, she is another one of the mama's at AcaciaTree, went home to Kabale to vote. It has been a little hectic without her, but we have managed.

Jonathan hasn't been doing so well on his ARV's. He is throwing up most of his food after taking his medication. So Robin bought some anti-nausea mediaction to see if it would help.

Friday, February 11, 2011

What a day!






(These two pictures are from the slums in Kampala)


Today was pretty good! I had to pick the girls from on Boda Boda. That was pretty fun, especially with Rayah talking the whole way home. Speaking of Boda Boda's I was on my way home from getting take-away and a Boda Boda clipped my arm. A taxi (public transport van) was coming to the shoulder where I was walking and clipped the Boda Boda who clipped my arm and he fell. I am fine, but my arm is a little sore. However, the boda guy was scrapped up and his Boda had a few bits come off. He said he was alright. All the people who were witness to the crash was telling me sorry for the stupid taxi. I was trying to tell them to take care of the Boda guy.





(This is the new baby John Mark, whose mother wanted to abandon).

Anyway, I got matooke and gnut sauce from a take-away restaurant near Kitoro Taxi park. I was going to get some corn on the cob that had been roasted over coals, but I needed a bit more for dinner. I am going to start eating more take-away and street food because it is so much cheaper than eating at the hostel. The hostel has put a Mzungu price on all the food. The matooke and gnuts from Take-away was only 3,000ush when the hostel charges 7,000 for the same meal.

(This is Blessed's son Paul, Jonathan-he has HIV and Down Syndrome, and Moses-with fingers
in mouth)





Wednesday, February 9, 2011

I drove today!!!

Today I drove on the opposite side of the road!!! There really aren't any rules to follow (I guess I should say they aren't really enforced). It wasn't very scary but a little confusing.

On another note, Robin went for a meeting at the Ministry Health in Kampala. She was given books on the guidelines Uganda wants her to follow for the Malnutrition program. I also need to write a memorandum and update Acacia Tree's project profile, so Robin can give it to the MH and they will give her more material and pamphlets to use and hand out. If we become a malnutrition center recognized by the Ministry of Health then there is a possibilty that we could get free Plumpy Nut to hand out in the community and for our own use.

Other than that, elections are coming up and for the most part are supposed to be peacful but one can never know.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Busy Week

This has been a busy week. It is the first week Robin's girls are back in school, two new volunteers came two days ago, and we got a new baby.

Blessed has been sick most of the week, which sounds like an upper respiratory infection, and needs to rest. So I made my first lunch all by myself. It consisted of home made tortillas, ground beef, rice, passion fruit juice and cabbage with dressing. Everything I made from scratch, even the juice.

Then the two girls, one from Minnesota and the other from Sweden, arrived. They jumped right in. Now there are more people than babies.

Yesterday, happened very fast. When things happen they happen all at once. A young 15 year old mother was sitting outside Robin's compound. Robin had asked her if she needed assistance, but the girl answered no. So Robin sent Blessed and the girl and Blessed talked for a bit. Then her baby was brought in the house and the Local Chair woman was called to handle the sitaution. The teenager had been having a hard time caring for the child although it was not malnourished. She wants Acacia Tree to take it and adopt the boy out. The chair woman, who is sort of a social worker in a way, handles everything from land disputes between land owners and mothers wanting to give their child away. The LC knows Robin's work well and tried to get the story from the girl on who the father is and why she wants to give the child up. The girl was threatened with police if she was found to be lyign to us about the situation.

The next thing I know I was going with Blessed, the LC, the mother and baby on the back of a boda boda to her village on Lake Victoria. We arrived and the village descended on us to tell us what her story was and the hard times she has faced in the month since her delivery. However, the mother did not have the chart of immunization or health card so we waited and she still could not find it. So we left her and the baby in the village so she could return to Robin's the next day with the card.

We took boda bodas to the market where we were to find a woman who was a bit crazy. She lived in the market in a shack that was no wider than my outstreached arms. She and her baby did not sleep there but rather on a slab of concrete infront of a shop. The LC, Blessed, and I went to the Kitoro police post for the market to get them involved since anything could happen. Blessed stayed back with me and I quickly became a distraction and not helpful to the situation. I saw the baby from a distance but left the market just incase. Blessed came back a little bit after I arrived back at Robin's. The baby girl is very tiny amd malnourished. The mother had tried to straighten the baby's hair with a chemical straightner. The mother also doesn't want anyone to take the child, but for the well being of the child she may not have a choice. So we did not ge the child, but the police or the LC of the market might have to steal the child at night and bring the child to us. This sounds horrible but that is what the police suggested. The mother also should not know where Robin lives since there is a chance that the woman could come and attack the compound.

Then last night the teenage mother returned with her son and now Robin has John Mark in her care. He is a very healthy baby, but was going to be dumped in a known baby dumping ground if help was not available to her. She loves her son very much but saw no other alternative.

This was a very good experience for me. I really got to see how Blessed handles these sitauations and the protocol. I also saw that Muzungu's should not be involved in obtaining the babies because this can further antagonize the situation.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

The past week

I guess it has been a full week since I have blogged! Sorry, the internet hasn't been very good this week.

Wednesday Blessed and I went to check on the twins that we did not get. They live in a slum in Kampala that smells like a barnyard. There are chickens and geese running around and children yelling "Hi Muzungu. How are you?" We got there by taking a boda boda and two public taxis. However, the mother and the twins were not home. So we trekked back to the spot where the vaco would pick us up and take us back to the taxi park in Kampala. When I say taxi park I mean public bus park.

Public transportation works differently. A van that holds 14 passengers is called public transport, vaco, or taxi. A taxi like in America is called a special hire and is expensive, about 12,000 ush from Kampala to Entebbe, or to the airport.

So Blessed and I shopped for souveniers and ate some local food at a nearby restaurant. I ate the pillao, which was delicious, but I gave my piece of goat to Blessed. I am not partial to goat. The aunt of the mother called to say that the twins were back home and we could come. So we bussed it back to the slums and met with the mother.

The place where they reside is no bigger than 10ft x 10ft. It consists of boards nailed to two by fours with cracks for ventilation. She lays her head directly under a tree that drops its leaves on the tin roof. When it rains water flows over the dirt flood and creates a muddy mess. She lets the twins sleep on the mattress and she stands all night. The purpose of the trip was to bring clothes and a few blankets to her. She was very grateful and appreciative and was thanking me instead of Blessed for the gifts. I had no part in it, but to accompany Blessed and see how Acacia Tree can help families and when they can stay with families instead of coming to the rehabilitation center.

On the way back Blessed talked to me about helping her get better housing and a bed. I think that is a dangerous raod to head down. Many children grow up in those slums healthy and many of them are happy. Not only does that go outside the scope of Acacia Tree at this time it also makes the families dependent on aid from us. Obtaining better living conditions for someone that has a very limited income means that the Organization would have to keep up the monthly rent.

There is a book I have been told to read and will look for it next time I am in Kampala, When helping hurts.



Friday, Sarah Bella, Rayah and I made chocolate chip cookies! School here starts Monday. I made two spreadsheets and I am working on Robin's filing system. We are on African time so things get done slower and are not expected to be expedited in any fashion. All though I feel that I should have gotten more done over the last three weeks; Robin feels that I have been doing more than expected.

It is almost the end of the month and Blessed and I will be checking on babies in the community again. This is actually my favorite part! I am pleased to see that all of the babies that we visited last time were healthy and with their families. I was especially excited to hear that the grandmother of Anesha is teaching other mothers in her community what Acacia Tree has taught her about feeding and keeping her child at a healthy weight. She isn't receiving any incentive from Acacia Tree, other than the monthly pooridge and sugar that all families on the program get, but is teaching to educate others and share her knowledge. She is a prime example of how we envisioned ATECOP (Acacia Tree Education and Community Outreach Program).


Today, was my day off again. So I decided to hit the pool! It costs 10,000 USH but I have a very uneven burn and wanted to at least be burnt and tan instead of burnt and white. It was a very nice and hot day. The temperature now feels like Africa. Before it felt as if it was a Portland Spring.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

A day of Rest and Relaxation



Picture of Comfort (Blessed's niece and Zach, the boy who we needed a care order for)


Today is R&R day. I finally am just bummn' around backpackers today :)

I was going to go to the pool, but I can just lay outside and start working on tanning my legs that way for FREE!!! I have met quite a few people over the past two weeks. They come and go and I am still here. One man is biking Uganda as a test run from Amsterdam to Capetown! His bike is lost right now, but hopefully will be on the next plane into Entebbe.


While in Kabale I bought 36 yards of fabric. I am going to make some wraps and hope that it won't make my luggage too heavy on the journey back. Also there were tons of bats! The Pictureto the left are bats, bats, and more bats!


The people who run backpackers are very nice and are trying to teach me new Luchiga words. Luchiga is the language that is spoken in parts of Western Uganda and in Kabale. This morning I learned, "Wali ota", which means "good morning". However the spelling might be off. I am also trying to learn Luganda, which is spoken mostly in Central Uganda and Entebbe. I only know "Webale", "Thank you" , "Oli Otya", "How are you" and "Gyendi" "I am fine." I am sure that the staff here will help me with my Luchiga, teaching me new words each day. I need to make flash cards to remind myself.

On another note, Acacia Tree did not ge the twins from Kampala. Robin felt that although they live in a room about 10ft x10ft, the mother is breastfeeding and finding alternate resources and has a small business. The twins are a little underweight but not malnourished, and twins are generally underweight when born. The only trouble would be if they needed injections or antibiotics everyday. There could be funding available for those. Injections at a small little clinic cost around 1,500 USh (exchange rate last time I checked was 2294= 1USD) That doesn't seem very much to Westerners, but to a mom who needs to buy food, water, pay for rent etc. That is a significant amount of money, especially when she only makes 2,ooo USH a day or sometimes for a week. It is hard to draw the line between when helping is hindering the ability to provide for their family and when they truly need the help. (Picture to right- this is part of Blessed's family's land in the village).



A woman came through backpackers travelling from South Africa to Ethipoa, she was in her 70's. She mentioned a book about charity helping or hindering in Africa. She couldn't remember the exact title so if someone knows of it let me know. Walking down the streets here some people as well as kids expect a hand out from Westerners. I feel that since there has been so much involvement of Westerners just providing, not teaching, then leaving then that has become the expecation of all Westerners. I am glad that our ATECOP program is about giving the tools to the community to help themselves and not depend on Western volunteers. What will happen when Westerners decide Africa no longer needs help or is unable to help? Does this mean that the White infrastructure that has been built will fall? Or have Africans been given the tools to continue?

Friday, January 21, 2011

Back From Kabale

Oligambach? (I should ask for the spelling but Whats up Blog readers?) Kabale is beautiful!!!! It looks like Oregon and the climate is similar.

The purpose of the trip to Kabale was to see if Zach (one of the babies in Acacia Tree Uganda's care) would be able to be back with his father. However, when we approached Zach's dad with Zach and Blessed asked in chiga(sp yet again) whether the boy would be taken care of if back with the father, his father essentially said "why did you bring me this boy?" So his father agreed to adoption.

Acacia Tree Uganda really wants the babies to go home and be with their families after reciving care. That is the ultimate goal.

There are limited resources available for the father and he has to take care of Zach's older sibling. The sibling is being sponsored by an organization Compassion, that provides school fees. So at least the sibling is recieving food from school.

So our days in Kabale were long. There was a lot of waiting around for govt. officials to show up or get out of meetings. We needed to get a care order so Robin has legal documentation to care for and get Zach adopted to a family.

When writing our program sping term for Acacia Tree Uganda I can really see where incentives are needed when completing modules. There are very limited resources for these families living in poverty. If there are incentives to finish a module then it is more likely that the parents will stick with the program. However, when parents are HIV+ it adds another dimension to care. The parents are probably not on ARVs and I think that some education resource on where to obtain free ARVs is needed as well as a way of transport. I have noticed that even if people have the information on where to get things, they often lack a means of transport.

On another note I stayed in the village with Blessed's family!!! It felt like I met over 100 people. They were very happy that a Muzungu came to visit their village and would sleep in their house. I used a pit latrine and there wasn't any electricity or running water. I was eaten by mosquitos! All that was fine and felt like camping. I got the feeling that they felt Wsterners are somehow better than they are and that we deserve the best when staying. However, I felt like they should be praised for their extrodinary ability to survive and provide for their family by not being lazy and going to dig Irish for food and money. I felt privleged that they would accept me into thier family so openly.

I just got back today, so I will try and get some pictures up the next couple of days, but no gurantees, we get twins tomorrow!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

I rode a boda boda



Today I rode a Boda Boda!!! They are just motorcycles or bigger vespas that are used sort of like taxis. Really you can get around everywhere in Entebbe on them for about 1,ooo USH. They aren't that scary but you do have to tell them to let you off or they will keep going! I mostly got the boda thos morning because I ate breakfast at backpackers. African time is much slower, expect you food in half hour to an hour.


The little girl who I usually buy my bananas from is sick. Her mom was tending to the stand today. Apparently, the girl told her I was her American friend.


The babies were restless today and weren't very happy most of the day. Good thing for nap time. Most of the day was spent changing diapers. However, next week I am going with Blessed to Kibale to do a home visit for one of the babies. Blessed is from Kibale and is worried that I am not use to sleeping on the ground, using a latrine, and washing outside on some stones. I told her that it would be fine and that is how camping goes in the U.S. sometimes. She probably thinks I am use to those amenities, but really it would be fine. So I am going to stay in a hotel those three days.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

The past three days



I am trying to get pictures up. I will eventually but the internet is a little spotty. The picture above is outside my room.

Robin's girls are bundles of energy and don't really ever stop. Robin and I talked about my role and what I feel comfortable doing. The most important agenda item is to make chages to the program written for class, AcaciaTree Education and Community Outreach Program. She has moved toward the model outlined in the program but hasn't fully implemented it. It is a struggle to get people to adhere to a program when they sometimes are not mentally or financially able to provide food for their babies. So a lot of my job will be to work with Blessed and decide how the program needs to change to be more culturally competent as well as attainable. I will get to see how these goals can be reached when I go with Blessed to do home visits in the village.

Secondly, I need to help Robin get organized. An excel spreadsheet as well as scanning all paperwork into the computer will give her a backup system when she can't find a document when the probation officer is waiting.


Third, I think that I will be helping her with the becoming a Ugandan NGO. She has non-profit status in the U.S. not in Uganda.


Fourth, I play with babies and change them. I will follow the process of one baby for eight weeks. This will also give Robin a way to track progress. I will make a feeding chart and a way to track feeding times for each baby.


That is it in a nutshell.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

I am here!

I arrived in Entebbe Friday night around 9pm. I almost missed my plane in Brussels, but I had two minutes to spare when I got to the gate. Whew!!! That was close. I would have had to stay a day in Brussels airport. However, the ride over wasn't that bad. I had Air Canada until Brussels. They are the best airline. I watched the social network and Eat Pray Love. Their seats are really comfortable and I slept for about 4-5 hours during the trip.

The people I sat with were extremely nice and fairly chatty. The thing about going through Canada is that you get to listen to all the instructions in French and sit next to people who want to chat. I met a guy from the UN who lives in Entebbe and was really helpful with tips about the city. I also sat with a girl who works in Kampala. It seems they sat all us Entebbe people together. Which gave me a chance to pick their brains. This lovely Irish woman I was sitting next to from Brussels to Entebbe lives in Nairobi and was just the most fun chat, good since it was a 7 hour flight.

When I stepped off the plane a sweet smell filled my nostrils and the moist air goosed my skin. The air here is a little addicting. Come to Entebbe and you will not want to leave juat becasue of the sweet air. It hasn't been very hot and mostly cloudy with a few let ups so the sun could shine through. I didn't sleep very much the first night becasue of all the new sounds of crickets and animals around the guesthouse, I also think a wee bit of jet lag. I was up at 5:20 with the rooster and 5:30 for the call to prayer. Then as it gets lighter the birds start in and bodas start roaring by. By the way there is no set speed limit. So I was up and ready to enjoy my first Ugadnan meal . A German girl who I met the night before joined me for breakfast and gave suggestions. I ate chipatti, a bread made without egg and a fried egg. It was absolutly delicious. There are a few mango trees at Backpackers and we split the most sweet mango. I don't think I will enjoy fruit in the states any longer.

My next goal for the day was to get a phone and sim card. I walked to the main road when a Romanian girl was looking for the phone store as well. We joined forces and began to the phone store. We got a little distracted and ended up at the ZOO. Then we finally made it to the MTN store. for $25 (2294 Ugandan shillings= $1 USD) I got a phone, sim card (sold seprately from the phone) and 20,000 airtime minutes. Then we exchanged some money in Entebbe town and looked at the shops. We went back to our hostel and hotel and planned to meet up for the beach later on.

We met out on the road and set off for the beach. We hadn't decided which beach yet, but we were joined by an 11 year old who would help us decide. Peace met the Romanian girl earlier and helped her before in the morning. So they were already friends. Peace taught us about the schooling system and talked about her schooling on the way to the Imperial Beach.

On the weekends there is an entrance fee for the beach and food is pretty expensive. We paid for Peace to join us becasue she wanted to swim and she had already asked permission from her parents. So we laid out on a very popular beach and met a lot of people. Ugandans are very firendly and passerbys will ask say "good morning, hello" followed by "how is your day?" your response is always "Good morning, hello good. How are is your day?" This is unusual in the States but is very nice. Peace swam and made new friends and danced with them while we talked with a British woman, who talked of her film work in the Sudan. The sun was setting and Peace let us know that it was time to go. Which was good since once twilight hits a different type of crowd hits the beach, if you know what I mean ;)

Peace left us once we reached her house and was eager to give her email address. We ate Matooke, smashed plantain, and chicken. It was pretty good.

Today was the biggest day. I met Robin and her family. She runs the baby home where I will be doing my internship. She also hooked me up with another baby home on Mondays and Saturdays and possibly USAIDS. So I am very excited to learn multiple ways of running a baby home. I also can't wait to see how Western views and ideals can't be accomplished but find another option that is accessible to Ugandans.

Okay I will leave some to write another day.