I know you guys are all super pumped because I’m posting two blogs on the same day. I figure that I’ll have a lot of talk about after rural home stay so I better update on the workings of everyday life before I head out. On Friday I will be leaving for 10 days and be out of contact. I’m excited for the experience.
Lately I have been volunteering at a school called Bishop Tucker Central. This is a primary school (similar to our elementary school) that has 700 students. Its sister school with is right next door also has 700 students. I know that you teachers who are following my blog are going to faint at this next one. Many classes only have one stream, while some are lucky to have two. That means that as a teacher you may have up to 100 students in one classroom. You are in charge of imparting your vast knowledge on all those students. I was wondering what my dad would do with 70 trouble-makers in his classroom. One big headache, if you ask me. My heart hurt for the children who do not get to interact at all with their learning, but rather are forced to listen to lectures they do not understand. Although I would way rather play games with the kids during recess, sometimes I am called upon to teach a class. If any of you teachers have some good ideas as to what I can do, I would totally appreciate some tips!
As for workings within the family… I learned that I have another brother. I didn’t even include him in the first list because I thought he was just a family friend. His name is Brian and is a biological child of mama and papa. He only comes on the weekends, and I didn’t talk to him much until after I learned this little detail. He totally opened up to hanging out with me and was actually quite funny. He loves Hillsong and sings in the choir at his church in Kampala. Rachel is really starting to open up as well. She cracks jokes and busts out random dance moves. Michael recently told Shannon that he cannot understand anything I say because I talk too fast. Usually he just nods his head and laughs. When I learned this we joked about him pretending and now I make a point to talk really slow. It has really sped up our friendship. Amazing what happens when someone understands what you are saying. Joan is an 11 year old who comes with when Faith comes. She is pretty shy but loves when I goof off around her. She loves to laugh and I enjoy having her here. Faith likes me some days and other days won’t let me close to her. Today she wouldn’t greet me or give me a high five, but when Stella told her I loved her, she snuggled on my arm and almost fell asleep. I do not get to see Judith much these days because she stays at school until 10:30 at night preparing for her exams in November. With her stays Julius. Stella is as fabulous as ever. Since Kiersten and I have made Thursdays lunch with Stella day, she gets really excited for them to come. Last week I asked if I could go buy a pineapple for lunch and she told me no because they would rip me off but she couldn’t leave because of Faith. Today when I came home Stella was in town buying a pineapple because tomorrow is Thursday and she knew we were coming home for lunch. She is so great. Oh I forgot to mention Peter who is a cousin (I think) who is also living with us right now. He doesn’t talk much but is usually smiling. Last night he was holding Curly and petting her. I thought that was cute.
As for me I am doing well. I have been very tired lately with the amount of school work this week as it is midterms. I cannot believe how fast it is going and am not looking forward to how fast the rest will fly by. Sometimes I find myself saying, “I cannot believe I am in Africa. I cannot believe I am a part of a new family.” I got a Halloween package from my mom and am having a hard time remembering what the season of fall feels like. Here the season of rain is going strong!
I cannot fail to mention that last weekend I went to a circumcision ceremony which was one of the most unique experiences I have ever gone through. I won’t blog about it to save you from the details. If you want to know more remember to ask me about it when I get home!
Speaking of getting home… I was thinking about how great it would be to see you all. I would love to fellowship with you over a cup of tea and if you know how to make anything fun I would love to learn how to bake or cook a couple more meals (hint hint..) ☺ haha I’m just kidding. I hope you all are doing well. Enjoy Minnesota!
p.s. I tried to fall asleep the other night wearing shorts and a tank top. It didn’t work. I missed my nightgown.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Drinking Apple Cider
Here I am sitting in Africa, missing my home and struggling to understand and comprehend all of the different things that I have been learning. It seems as though my heart is being pulled in more directions than I am able to handle. Judith told me that the half way point seems to be the hardest moment for us, and as that point is today I understand what she meant! As I walked into my room I found the package my mom sent me a couple weeks back and looked inside to pull out the apple cider that I had been saving for a special moment. That moment is now. For those of you who don’t know let me tell you what drinking apple cider means to me… It is one of those drinks that transport you to a different time and place. I remember my mom buying a box and dad and I drinking it within the week. I used to take packets and hide them in my room to ensure I would get some before dad drank them all. For awhile mom tried buying sugar-free for my dad to keep him around longer, but of course he didn’t like those as well! We used to sit together and figure out the crossword puzzle in the morning or after a long day of school and practice. During this time of year I often found myself watching some football, learning about blocking the A and C gaps or taking tackle points. Late at night when dad had gone to bed I would come into the living room to a roaring fire and mom reading on the couch. I remember the moments of stopping my Aerostar van on the way to school to sprint out to the orchard in the dew covered grass to grab some apples to get me through the day. Amazing what a drink of cider will make you think of.
One of the things I am learning here is that you can never fully shake your past. It creates the lens through which you view the world. I have been conditioned into a system of beliefs and practices that are as natural to me as breathing. I am so thankful that I grew up the way I did. I have a perspective on the world that gives me hope instead of disparity, and a view that I am coming to see may be held by a smaller population than I like. It is through this view that I want you to see some of the struggles I am facing here as well as a lot of what I am learning.
Directly connected with the realm of missions comes the reality of hurting. We discussed AIDS in my missions class one day and my instructed told us of a drawing in South Africa. In that drawing Jesus is on the cross and he has the red AIDS ribbon. It is supposed to mean that we as a body of Christ have AIDS. I have AIDS and you have AIDS. What can we be doing? I was hit by the hurt of disease that is so rampant throughout the world. We were discussing what practical things we can do when it comes to such a huge need. People discussed speaking to church leadership and pushing our pastors to be aware of the problem. People brought up their disappointment over never hearing a sermon on AIDS in America. It convicted me to be aware of what organizations such as ‘Acting on AIDS’ is doing in my school. At the same time I wondered what pain and hurt are present within my own community. What is my church doing to reach the people scorned by society? I want to talk with them. Again, how important is to change my direct world? I felt a despair over not being able to reach all the corners of the earth. I cannot be everywhere!
Following closely to AIDS is the reality of poverty. My heart hurts for mothers that are not able to feed their children or provide a warm shelter. We discuss in class the necessity of living simply and capitalizing on our own resources. College life is the perfect example of living in community with one another, sharing material possessions and relying on one another for support. I once again felt the weight of the world on my shoulders in a need to solve world poverty. One of my friends asked about partaking in a fast to which I replied I could not be able to fast if I want to effectively have a difference on my basketball team. Sometimes we are not comfortable with the idea that we are still being good Christians even if we are not selling all we have to live on the streets of Atwater.
Don’t worry, God has pulled through and continued to be faithful to me. One of the most important convictions that I have always held is the importance of working within an organization to make it a better place. One of my classmates was talking about how he attends many different churches because he hasn’t been able to find one that he believes is embodied the body of Christ. What I wanted to say was, “Well duh. Nothing is perfect. Stick with a church and fix the problems.” I believe there is power in a light shining through pushing for improvement. Besides, I and Don Miller agree that if you do something passionately people will follow you. I am beginning to see this rubbing off on my classmates here. One of my good friends here who grew up in rural Iowa and goes to Dordt looked at me the other day and stated, “Kurty, you have inspired me to be passionate about rural poverty.” I did a fist pump and smiled. Great I told him. GO CHANGE YOUR WORLD. (Don’t worry I am doing my best to represent rural living in the midst of city dwellers who do not understand what it would be like to live without make-up for a week or cannot understand when I look at them and say, “Excuse me, but I cannot bike to the grocery store to save on money. It is twenty miles away and I would freeze to death.” This was her trying to tell me how to simplify life. Ha.)
In the light of missions I know that God has called us into the world under his protection. What can be more right than following that call? I will end this blog with one of my favorite quotes that I found while researching the history of women in missions. This was said by a women by the name of Mary Slessor. She was urging women from home to come to the field.
“Don't grow up a nervous old maid! Gird yourself for the battle outside somewhere, and keep your heart young. Give up your whole being to create music everywhere, in the light places and in the dark places, and your life will make Melody. I'm a witness to the perfect joy and satisfaction of a single life -- with a tail of human tag-rag hanging on. It is rare! It is as exhilarating as an airplane or a dirigible or whatever they are that are always trying to get up and are always coming down! . . . Mine has been such a joyous service, God has been good to me, letting me serve Him in this humble way. I cannot thank Him enough for the honor He conferred upon me when He sent me to the Dark Continent."
While I cannot say exactly how I’ve been changing during my time here I know I am. The change is so deep and significant it goes to the very core of who I am. While I miss my family and friends and sometimes shed a tear over the memory of changing leaves, Friday night football, and home-cooked meals, I know that I’m exactly where God wants me. I am drinking apple cider in Africa.
One of the things I am learning here is that you can never fully shake your past. It creates the lens through which you view the world. I have been conditioned into a system of beliefs and practices that are as natural to me as breathing. I am so thankful that I grew up the way I did. I have a perspective on the world that gives me hope instead of disparity, and a view that I am coming to see may be held by a smaller population than I like. It is through this view that I want you to see some of the struggles I am facing here as well as a lot of what I am learning.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations… Matthew 28:19
A starting point for my learning here is the meaning of missions. The students in the IMME program are all taking this class as part of our course requirements. We have spent so much time on talking about what the great commission really means. What is the meaning of a missionary? Can someone be a missionary in their own town or community? We have spent hours discussing the evils of colonization and the failures of our previous Western missionaries to the point of me questioning the point of missions. We have examined the effect of missions on African culture and read accounts after accounts of imposing missionaries. These discussions have left me discouraged and wary of the word mission. A huge question that keeps coming to my mind is wondering if it is more important to reach the world or to improve life around me in my community back home. I see so much potential for healing and love at home that I have a hard time justifying coming half way across the world.Directly connected with the realm of missions comes the reality of hurting. We discussed AIDS in my missions class one day and my instructed told us of a drawing in South Africa. In that drawing Jesus is on the cross and he has the red AIDS ribbon. It is supposed to mean that we as a body of Christ have AIDS. I have AIDS and you have AIDS. What can we be doing? I was hit by the hurt of disease that is so rampant throughout the world. We were discussing what practical things we can do when it comes to such a huge need. People discussed speaking to church leadership and pushing our pastors to be aware of the problem. People brought up their disappointment over never hearing a sermon on AIDS in America. It convicted me to be aware of what organizations such as ‘Acting on AIDS’ is doing in my school. At the same time I wondered what pain and hurt are present within my own community. What is my church doing to reach the people scorned by society? I want to talk with them. Again, how important is to change my direct world? I felt a despair over not being able to reach all the corners of the earth. I cannot be everywhere!
Following closely to AIDS is the reality of poverty. My heart hurts for mothers that are not able to feed their children or provide a warm shelter. We discuss in class the necessity of living simply and capitalizing on our own resources. College life is the perfect example of living in community with one another, sharing material possessions and relying on one another for support. I once again felt the weight of the world on my shoulders in a need to solve world poverty. One of my friends asked about partaking in a fast to which I replied I could not be able to fast if I want to effectively have a difference on my basketball team. Sometimes we are not comfortable with the idea that we are still being good Christians even if we are not selling all we have to live on the streets of Atwater.
Don’t worry, God has pulled through and continued to be faithful to me. One of the most important convictions that I have always held is the importance of working within an organization to make it a better place. One of my classmates was talking about how he attends many different churches because he hasn’t been able to find one that he believes is embodied the body of Christ. What I wanted to say was, “Well duh. Nothing is perfect. Stick with a church and fix the problems.” I believe there is power in a light shining through pushing for improvement. Besides, I and Don Miller agree that if you do something passionately people will follow you. I am beginning to see this rubbing off on my classmates here. One of my good friends here who grew up in rural Iowa and goes to Dordt looked at me the other day and stated, “Kurty, you have inspired me to be passionate about rural poverty.” I did a fist pump and smiled. Great I told him. GO CHANGE YOUR WORLD. (Don’t worry I am doing my best to represent rural living in the midst of city dwellers who do not understand what it would be like to live without make-up for a week or cannot understand when I look at them and say, “Excuse me, but I cannot bike to the grocery store to save on money. It is twenty miles away and I would freeze to death.” This was her trying to tell me how to simplify life. Ha.)
In the light of missions I know that God has called us into the world under his protection. What can be more right than following that call? I will end this blog with one of my favorite quotes that I found while researching the history of women in missions. This was said by a women by the name of Mary Slessor. She was urging women from home to come to the field.
“Don't grow up a nervous old maid! Gird yourself for the battle outside somewhere, and keep your heart young. Give up your whole being to create music everywhere, in the light places and in the dark places, and your life will make Melody. I'm a witness to the perfect joy and satisfaction of a single life -- with a tail of human tag-rag hanging on. It is rare! It is as exhilarating as an airplane or a dirigible or whatever they are that are always trying to get up and are always coming down! . . . Mine has been such a joyous service, God has been good to me, letting me serve Him in this humble way. I cannot thank Him enough for the honor He conferred upon me when He sent me to the Dark Continent."
While I cannot say exactly how I’ve been changing during my time here I know I am. The change is so deep and significant it goes to the very core of who I am. While I miss my family and friends and sometimes shed a tear over the memory of changing leaves, Friday night football, and home-cooked meals, I know that I’m exactly where God wants me. I am drinking apple cider in Africa.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Under the African Sky
There was a moment this weekend when I stopped and thought, “Oh my goodness. There is nothing I would rather be doing right now.” Kiersten, Justin Lane, John Riley, and I were sitting beneath the African stars on a blanket on the edge of Queen Elizabeth National Park. Our campsite was surrounded by hippos and we could hear the sound of wild animals (at one point I am pretty sure we heard a lion kill an elephant). The best part is we were playing Rook and we were winning. It was a great moment in history. Justin paused and said with a smile, “Guys can we just remember what we are doing right now?” Let me tell you he wasn’t so happy four games later when Kiersten and I were still undefeated.
I know that many of you are wondering how my weekend went parading around on the Savanna of Africa. Let me fill you in. It was fabulous. It all started Thursday night. Thursday was Independence Day and therefore the Ugandan students had no class. Unfortunately for us, our USP classes decided to run anyways. Thankfully they gave us Friday off because a safari takes an entire three day weekend. So Kiersten decided to spend the night at my house as my family is much more exciting and inviting than hers. Shannon (my host sister) also had one of the USP students come over as they were planning on hanging out during the weekend.
Kiersten and I were walking home at about 5:00 on Thursday. For anybody that knows me let me tell you I have found a path through the country side that not only cuts off 5-10 minutes of my walk, but also is beautiful and has way less people than the main road. There are parts where I pretend that I’m home in the country, not surrounded by thousands. So Kiersten and I were walking this path and about ten minutes from home we started hearing this loud music. I jokingly said, “Man someone in the neighborhood is having a dance party and I wasn’t invited!!” As we continued towards the house the music got louder and louder. As we came out of the path and I could see my house I noticed that there were about 30 little neighborhood children all standing in front of Shannon and Kaitlin. The music was coming from a HUGE speaker on my front lawn. There was a huge canopy covering tons of chairs. My family had told me they were having the Rotary club over for tea. Ha, little did I know that it was going to be such a big deal.
We headed to the back of the house after saying goodbye to the curious children and found my whole family frantically cooking tons of food! (I guess this explains why we had not been eating much variety at night for supper…) I asked Stella if there was any way we could help and got assigned to the cutting of the pineapple. We cut three huge pineapples and a watermelon while Kaitlin made two salads. It was really fun. Mama asked us if we wanted to serve the food when the time came and we very excitedly agreed.
One thing I want to remind you about Africa is the tendency to not do things promptly. So at about 8:30, I was starving because I didn’t take tea. We waited and waited to serve, but kept hearing, “It is not time.” All of a sudden the family was called out and whisked away. Julius was introducing them to the entire group. As Shannon and I were peering at them through the window he called us out after and specially introduced us to the entire group. So with a huge spotlight in my face (it was dark by now) I smiled and waved. Julius then looked at me, said something in Luganda, and handed me the microphone. It was as if he forgot I didn’t speak Luganda. Laughing I pulled one of the meager few phrases I knew and greeted everyone and handed the mike to Shannon who used the other phrase we know ;). It was great and everyone laughed. The night went on with us serving the food and dancing the night away with the people of the Rotary club. The night was honoring Julius who was handing the presidency of the club over to a new guy for the upcoming year.
The next morning we walked to school at the crack of dawn and loaded into two vans for the eight hour drive to Lake Victoria National Park. On arriving to the park, we saw our first wildlife, the elegant warthog. Naturally we all shouted out, “PUMBA!” Let me tell you Disney did some good working in making Pumba a cute little fella because the real thing leaves much to be desired. I guess it is one of the examples that God does indeed have a sense of humor. When we got to our campsite the task of setting up the tents was first on the list. A couple girls starting making the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches while the boys ran off (as they tend to do when work comes around). One boy tried to say that they should set up the girls tent. I said, “HA! Give me the tent poles.” A couple of us girls and Phil set up our tent and I had a moment of sadness for all the girls in the group who just stood there not knowing what to do. Sigh. Kiersten stood on the roof of the van taking pictures and who-knows-what, probably laughing at me taking an active part in this process. She did come down however when one warthog tried to run away with a backpack. I looked over to see Kiersten guarding with a large stick.
We then took part in our supper. I was smiling as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich had never tasted so good. Amidst the grumblings of the inadequate food supply many whined and said they were going to go hungry all week. I just smiled and looked and Kiersten and said, “A good independent girl never goes far without packing extra food!” (This has been a common theme in my life). Unfortunately our jelly we had brought erupted in the car, but don’t worry- we managed to save about ¼ of the can!
Before heading to bed a hippo wandered into the camp. That was very exciting and set up the stage for our late-night Rook game. We got up at 6 in the morning as our game run was from 6:30-9:30. An hour into the ride we had seen no animals and my face was literally black from all the dirt. I was sitting in the second car and the dust from the first was coming in my window and getting me dirty. Gross. Don’t worry we did end up seeing tons of wildlife from lions to waterbuck to water buffalo to antelope.
As soon as I got back I headed right to the shower. Of course I hadn’t brought a towel and in true camping fashion used a t-shirt. When I got out Kiersten had to rewash my face and neck with wetones because it was still so dirty! We then headed to an extravagant lodge to research for a 7-page history paper that I hadn’t started and was due on Monday! (There comes the cross-culture procrastination problem.) We had a cold pop and I loved every second of it. Oh how I miss ice! Kiersten and I then watched Remember the Titans on her laptop while drinking coffee. I literally cried about five times during the movie. It always reminds me of my dad and good times. I miss football… Two boys came in and laughed. They said, “Kurty, we were talking about you the other day and decided you reminded us of that daughter in Remember the Titans and here you are watching the movie!” I smiled and replied, “I am that girl, and my dad is amazing.” Next up was our second game run.
This was a great run. We got to be in the leading van which had a pop up top so I got to sit on the roof! Kiersten, Megan, and I all had three cups of coffee running through us and were having a fabulous time! At one point about half-way through we moved to the front of the van and sat on the cab part. We were cruising along and all of a sudden there were elephants blocking the road! I wanted to scream, but they say if you scare them they will charge you. When we came to a stop there were literally 35-40 elephants surrounding us on the sides of the road. AMAZING!
All-in-all the trip was really fun.. a little camping.. a little Rook victory.. a little fellowship.. a little football.. and some wild animals. Pretty special.
I’m sorry I don’t have any great toilet stories for you this post.
I little update.. Kiersten and I played John and Justin again this morning in two games of Rook. Now the record ups to 6-0. Our total record for Africa is 9-0 :).
I know that many of you are wondering how my weekend went parading around on the Savanna of Africa. Let me fill you in. It was fabulous. It all started Thursday night. Thursday was Independence Day and therefore the Ugandan students had no class. Unfortunately for us, our USP classes decided to run anyways. Thankfully they gave us Friday off because a safari takes an entire three day weekend. So Kiersten decided to spend the night at my house as my family is much more exciting and inviting than hers. Shannon (my host sister) also had one of the USP students come over as they were planning on hanging out during the weekend.
Kiersten and I were walking home at about 5:00 on Thursday. For anybody that knows me let me tell you I have found a path through the country side that not only cuts off 5-10 minutes of my walk, but also is beautiful and has way less people than the main road. There are parts where I pretend that I’m home in the country, not surrounded by thousands. So Kiersten and I were walking this path and about ten minutes from home we started hearing this loud music. I jokingly said, “Man someone in the neighborhood is having a dance party and I wasn’t invited!!” As we continued towards the house the music got louder and louder. As we came out of the path and I could see my house I noticed that there were about 30 little neighborhood children all standing in front of Shannon and Kaitlin. The music was coming from a HUGE speaker on my front lawn. There was a huge canopy covering tons of chairs. My family had told me they were having the Rotary club over for tea. Ha, little did I know that it was going to be such a big deal.
We headed to the back of the house after saying goodbye to the curious children and found my whole family frantically cooking tons of food! (I guess this explains why we had not been eating much variety at night for supper…) I asked Stella if there was any way we could help and got assigned to the cutting of the pineapple. We cut three huge pineapples and a watermelon while Kaitlin made two salads. It was really fun. Mama asked us if we wanted to serve the food when the time came and we very excitedly agreed.
One thing I want to remind you about Africa is the tendency to not do things promptly. So at about 8:30, I was starving because I didn’t take tea. We waited and waited to serve, but kept hearing, “It is not time.” All of a sudden the family was called out and whisked away. Julius was introducing them to the entire group. As Shannon and I were peering at them through the window he called us out after and specially introduced us to the entire group. So with a huge spotlight in my face (it was dark by now) I smiled and waved. Julius then looked at me, said something in Luganda, and handed me the microphone. It was as if he forgot I didn’t speak Luganda. Laughing I pulled one of the meager few phrases I knew and greeted everyone and handed the mike to Shannon who used the other phrase we know ;). It was great and everyone laughed. The night went on with us serving the food and dancing the night away with the people of the Rotary club. The night was honoring Julius who was handing the presidency of the club over to a new guy for the upcoming year.
The next morning we walked to school at the crack of dawn and loaded into two vans for the eight hour drive to Lake Victoria National Park. On arriving to the park, we saw our first wildlife, the elegant warthog. Naturally we all shouted out, “PUMBA!” Let me tell you Disney did some good working in making Pumba a cute little fella because the real thing leaves much to be desired. I guess it is one of the examples that God does indeed have a sense of humor. When we got to our campsite the task of setting up the tents was first on the list. A couple girls starting making the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches while the boys ran off (as they tend to do when work comes around). One boy tried to say that they should set up the girls tent. I said, “HA! Give me the tent poles.” A couple of us girls and Phil set up our tent and I had a moment of sadness for all the girls in the group who just stood there not knowing what to do. Sigh. Kiersten stood on the roof of the van taking pictures and who-knows-what, probably laughing at me taking an active part in this process. She did come down however when one warthog tried to run away with a backpack. I looked over to see Kiersten guarding with a large stick.
We then took part in our supper. I was smiling as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich had never tasted so good. Amidst the grumblings of the inadequate food supply many whined and said they were going to go hungry all week. I just smiled and looked and Kiersten and said, “A good independent girl never goes far without packing extra food!” (This has been a common theme in my life). Unfortunately our jelly we had brought erupted in the car, but don’t worry- we managed to save about ¼ of the can!
Before heading to bed a hippo wandered into the camp. That was very exciting and set up the stage for our late-night Rook game. We got up at 6 in the morning as our game run was from 6:30-9:30. An hour into the ride we had seen no animals and my face was literally black from all the dirt. I was sitting in the second car and the dust from the first was coming in my window and getting me dirty. Gross. Don’t worry we did end up seeing tons of wildlife from lions to waterbuck to water buffalo to antelope.
As soon as I got back I headed right to the shower. Of course I hadn’t brought a towel and in true camping fashion used a t-shirt. When I got out Kiersten had to rewash my face and neck with wetones because it was still so dirty! We then headed to an extravagant lodge to research for a 7-page history paper that I hadn’t started and was due on Monday! (There comes the cross-culture procrastination problem.) We had a cold pop and I loved every second of it. Oh how I miss ice! Kiersten and I then watched Remember the Titans on her laptop while drinking coffee. I literally cried about five times during the movie. It always reminds me of my dad and good times. I miss football… Two boys came in and laughed. They said, “Kurty, we were talking about you the other day and decided you reminded us of that daughter in Remember the Titans and here you are watching the movie!” I smiled and replied, “I am that girl, and my dad is amazing.” Next up was our second game run.
This was a great run. We got to be in the leading van which had a pop up top so I got to sit on the roof! Kiersten, Megan, and I all had three cups of coffee running through us and were having a fabulous time! At one point about half-way through we moved to the front of the van and sat on the cab part. We were cruising along and all of a sudden there were elephants blocking the road! I wanted to scream, but they say if you scare them they will charge you. When we came to a stop there were literally 35-40 elephants surrounding us on the sides of the road. AMAZING!
All-in-all the trip was really fun.. a little camping.. a little Rook victory.. a little fellowship.. a little football.. and some wild animals. Pretty special.
I’m sorry I don’t have any great toilet stories for you this post.
I little update.. Kiersten and I played John and Justin again this morning in two games of Rook. Now the record ups to 6-0. Our total record for Africa is 9-0 :).
Monday, October 13, 2008
Pictures!!!!!
Lion!
Me and Kiersten
Kaitlyn, Kiersten and Me
Shannon, cousin Stella and Me
Faith
Erwin
Papa Julius
Me and and my sister Judith
Michael
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Bwindi
Well here it is, Thursday morning and I am finally posting about my weekend. I guess time flys when you are in Africa! This past weekend was probably one of my favorite times in Africa. Let me tell you about it!
We went to Bwindi, which is in the way south west corner of Uganda. It was a twelve hour drive to the land of the gorillas. We arrived late at night to a rest camp. This is where the rich tourists come to stay and track gorillas. It was a nice place powered by the sun. The best thing was by far the food!! It was so good, the first night we had spaghetti and I almost started crying. Yum!
The next day we went to a hospital that was started by an American man. Upon starting the hospital he noticed that there was so many more needs in the community besides just medical needs. Specifically relating to the pygmies of the area! The pygmies have recently been pushed out of their homes in the hills, where they lived under rocks. This was to protect the gorilla population. While we were meeting with some leaders, I saw my second monkey! There were two and they were so cute! I got to feed one with a banana and he took it from my hand. They are amazing animals. We loaded into the van and began driving to a path to take us up a mountain. Naturally our van got a flat tire. We walked to our path. The path literally took us up a steep mountain. We hiked for 45 minutes to an hour. It was completely beautiful, although we were all sweating! A women from the pygmy tribe was leading us. She was walking barefoot up the rocks, carrying a baby on her back, and took our jerrycan of water and carried it on her head. I was super impressed. She was only 18. We finally reached a little gathering of pygmy huts where all the neighboors had gathered. When we got there our task was to assist in building a mud house! I have never had so much fun! We worked beside the pygmy people learning to tie bamboo with reeds to but up walls. I worked next to old Bernard, a man who smoked and made fire with sticks! We even got to mud a couple of the walls. The mud comes out of a big pit that has been dug, men stomp on it to mix it all up and then pick up clumps and thrown them along a line of people who put it on the house. I was part of the catching and throwing of the mud clumps. It was great. I turned the color of tan/red/brown. Before we left the pygmies did a dance for us. They have lost their original culture, and instead have adapted the culture of the area, and therefore taught us that dance.
When we were walking down, we stopped at a settlement where the people who don't live in the new village are staying. Many people there are still living in mud huts. We saw one banana leaf house that was lived in by five people, it was smaller that a tent made for four people. Our leaders said that one of the major struggles is convincing the people that development will better their standard of living. They have two members of the tribe about to head to college. How is someone from that background to fit in at UCU? How is that person supposed to relate their experiences to people back in their tribe?
If anyone is interested in looking more into what we did you can visit pygmies.org and donate money to build a house or just learn more about the people and projects concerning them.
The next day (Sunday) We went to chuch. It was a forty minute drive and when we got out of the van we were told that we were going to be walking up another mountain. So we hiked again for an hour. One of the girls almost had an asthma attack. In one of the villages we stopped and sang river of life, and peace like a river to the little kids. It was only Kiersten, two other girls, and I that participated and danced with the kids. By the time we got to the church we were already 15 minutes late for service, but the pastor served us tea. Such is Africa. When we started heading to the church, the drums began to pound and the congregation appeared. We had lunch with the pastor, and then hiked all the way back down. Or I should say slid all the way back down. It had been raining for quite some time, so naturally I got super muddy.
The next day we left at 7am and didn't get home until 1 am. This was because we got a flat tire (In the rain of course) and stopped at our drivers home where lunch was late in coming.
TOILET TRAUMA
If I didn't relate some of my bathroom experiences over the trip I would be leaving out a huge part of the experience. On the way out at the restaraunt we ate at, the bathroom was co-ed. To get to the womens toilet you had to walk past the mens urinals. Awkward...
The toilet in the pygmy village didn't have walls...
The toilet on the way up to church had no hole just rocks and dirt... I went outside.
On the way home from church I had to pee so bad, I had to use a random families toilet in the middle of banana tree forest. They were the celebrities of the village after that..
The toilet at the church had a slit for the hole.. leaves to wipe with.. and a squatty with no walls..
On the way home, we made the bus stop at a random house because the coffee had run through us all
We then stopped at a gas station that had a urinal for females. That means that it is a concrete slab with a drainage pipe. Consequently we all peed on our feet..
Finally on our return journey three people had the runs.. we had to stop my a forest.
There you have it!! Hope you are all loving and living life! I'm going on a safari this weekend so watch the lion king and think of me.
We went to Bwindi, which is in the way south west corner of Uganda. It was a twelve hour drive to the land of the gorillas. We arrived late at night to a rest camp. This is where the rich tourists come to stay and track gorillas. It was a nice place powered by the sun. The best thing was by far the food!! It was so good, the first night we had spaghetti and I almost started crying. Yum!
The next day we went to a hospital that was started by an American man. Upon starting the hospital he noticed that there was so many more needs in the community besides just medical needs. Specifically relating to the pygmies of the area! The pygmies have recently been pushed out of their homes in the hills, where they lived under rocks. This was to protect the gorilla population. While we were meeting with some leaders, I saw my second monkey! There were two and they were so cute! I got to feed one with a banana and he took it from my hand. They are amazing animals. We loaded into the van and began driving to a path to take us up a mountain. Naturally our van got a flat tire. We walked to our path. The path literally took us up a steep mountain. We hiked for 45 minutes to an hour. It was completely beautiful, although we were all sweating! A women from the pygmy tribe was leading us. She was walking barefoot up the rocks, carrying a baby on her back, and took our jerrycan of water and carried it on her head. I was super impressed. She was only 18. We finally reached a little gathering of pygmy huts where all the neighboors had gathered. When we got there our task was to assist in building a mud house! I have never had so much fun! We worked beside the pygmy people learning to tie bamboo with reeds to but up walls. I worked next to old Bernard, a man who smoked and made fire with sticks! We even got to mud a couple of the walls. The mud comes out of a big pit that has been dug, men stomp on it to mix it all up and then pick up clumps and thrown them along a line of people who put it on the house. I was part of the catching and throwing of the mud clumps. It was great. I turned the color of tan/red/brown. Before we left the pygmies did a dance for us. They have lost their original culture, and instead have adapted the culture of the area, and therefore taught us that dance.
When we were walking down, we stopped at a settlement where the people who don't live in the new village are staying. Many people there are still living in mud huts. We saw one banana leaf house that was lived in by five people, it was smaller that a tent made for four people. Our leaders said that one of the major struggles is convincing the people that development will better their standard of living. They have two members of the tribe about to head to college. How is someone from that background to fit in at UCU? How is that person supposed to relate their experiences to people back in their tribe?
If anyone is interested in looking more into what we did you can visit pygmies.org and donate money to build a house or just learn more about the people and projects concerning them.
The next day (Sunday) We went to chuch. It was a forty minute drive and when we got out of the van we were told that we were going to be walking up another mountain. So we hiked again for an hour. One of the girls almost had an asthma attack. In one of the villages we stopped and sang river of life, and peace like a river to the little kids. It was only Kiersten, two other girls, and I that participated and danced with the kids. By the time we got to the church we were already 15 minutes late for service, but the pastor served us tea. Such is Africa. When we started heading to the church, the drums began to pound and the congregation appeared. We had lunch with the pastor, and then hiked all the way back down. Or I should say slid all the way back down. It had been raining for quite some time, so naturally I got super muddy.
The next day we left at 7am and didn't get home until 1 am. This was because we got a flat tire (In the rain of course) and stopped at our drivers home where lunch was late in coming.
TOILET TRAUMA
If I didn't relate some of my bathroom experiences over the trip I would be leaving out a huge part of the experience. On the way out at the restaraunt we ate at, the bathroom was co-ed. To get to the womens toilet you had to walk past the mens urinals. Awkward...
The toilet in the pygmy village didn't have walls...
The toilet on the way up to church had no hole just rocks and dirt... I went outside.
On the way home from church I had to pee so bad, I had to use a random families toilet in the middle of banana tree forest. They were the celebrities of the village after that..
The toilet at the church had a slit for the hole.. leaves to wipe with.. and a squatty with no walls..
On the way home, we made the bus stop at a random house because the coffee had run through us all
We then stopped at a gas station that had a urinal for females. That means that it is a concrete slab with a drainage pipe. Consequently we all peed on our feet..
Finally on our return journey three people had the runs.. we had to stop my a forest.
There you have it!! Hope you are all loving and living life! I'm going on a safari this weekend so watch the lion king and think of me.
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