December 2004 Archives
First of all, the internet connection here at the hostel is fast enough that Michael was able to upload some photos last night. We apologize for the blurriness, we're still working on getting our camera repaired.
We had a lovely flight from Nairobi to Jo'burg--we even got to sip champagne in first class! (we thought we'd try the honeymoon thing again since on our first flight from Boston to Paris our request was completely ignored and all we got was rude, crappy service).
Arriving in South Africa was a bit of a shock though--just very different from the places we'd been for the last months--smooth roads, speed limits, being more anonymous (just another white couple, not THE white couple), big malls and stores instead of people selling things from the side of the road.
We ended up coming straight to Pretoria from the airport, with the idea that we would look into getting visas for China. We found another great hostel. There seems to be a trend, at least in Africa, towards all-inclusive, "luxury" hostels. This place has a pool table, kitchen, swimming pool, TV lounge, big airy rooms, and they arrange all kinds of tours and shuttle services--a lot different from the hostels I remember staying in in Europe.
We went to the Chinese embassy yesterday and got the info we needed. We should be able to get the visas in a few days when we come back here at the end of our S.A. time. After the embassy, we ended up in a mall and the familiar smell of popcorn (which would normally make me feel a bit nauseated) lured us into a movie theater where we saw the Incredibles. It was a nice treat.
We've got a long train ride ahead of us today--26 hours in 3rd class (that's all they had left, we'll see how it goes!) We're headed to Worcester, near Cape Town, where Kyle and Victor will be expecting us.
We've been seeing some images of the Tsunami on TV, it's really horrifying. I can't believe the devastation reached the way to Kenya and Somalia.
Merry Christmas to all of our friends and family in the U.S. and around the world--in California, Michigan, Massachusetts, Maine, Florida, Colorado, D.C, New York, Austria, Australia, South Africa, France, Greece, U.K., Ghana, and Uganda!
We arrived safely in Nairobi last night. One could describe the 13 hour bus ride as 'bumpy', but that would be a major understatement--we were literally being thrown from our seats. Luckily the bus actually had seat belts. But other than the bumps, the ride was really interesting. We got to experience many major changes in the landscape, including a pine forest and the Great Rift Valley. We even got to see two herds of zebras, some warthogs, gazelles and a rainbow!
We met a really nice young woman on the bus who pointed things out to us and helped us tremendously once we arrived in Nairobi by helping us make a call to the hostel and negotiating a good price for us for the taxi. Thank you Christine!
Thank you so much James and Tabitha for our wonderful time in Uganda! We will miss you both very much.
Our three weeks in Uganda passed quickly. We spent the first few days getting settled into the house that the Minister of Education kindly let us stay in. On Monday the 6th we started teaching a group of about 50 students at the nearby Mwereere Secondary School (where James teaches Art and design). The students were actually already on break, but James made special arrangements for us to teach a small group. Michael and James taught art, while I taught some American geography and culture, as well as English writing. The students were great--very interested and eager to learn from us. They worked hard too--I gave a test at the end of the week which they all did well on. They also drew self-portraits and wrote autobiographical essays , which we displayed together during a special exhibition on Saturday. The students performed traditional songs and dances for us during the exhibition-it was lots of fun!
The following week we were meant to work on James' farm. We went on Monday--it's a beutiful place with lots of fruits and veggies already growing and lots more potential. Unfortunately, I got sick that day and didn't end up going back that week. Michael spent more time there, so maybe he can write more about it sometime.
Last weekend we made the five hour trip to Tabitha's home village for a double "Introduction" for two of her sisters and their fiances. Introductions are special ceremonies/parties given for newly engaged couples to introduce the two families. It was really interesting to experience and we had a great time, both dressed in traditional attire. Tabitha's father was very warm and welcoming, and we quickly became part of the family. We'll post more commentary with the photos as we post them (the camera's still broken, but we still took some zoommed in ones, and also took some with a disposable which we'll scan in).
So instead of going into more detail here, I'll list some of the memories of Uganda that we'll be taking with us:
*The call of "Muzungo" (white people) wherever we went
*Homemade passionfruit juice
*The lush green country side filled with all kinds fruit trees
*bananas and plantains in every form (matooke, gonja, etc..)
*bumpy taxi and boda-boda rides
*battling the fu-fu (dust) while waiting for a taxi
*Tabitha's funny stories about James getting his picture taken with a toothless goat
*"Kuba, Josef, Kuba!"
* Dressing in a Gomez and Kanzu for the Introduction
*Children's smiles and waves
*Tabitha's care and constant prayers
*James' hard work and future plans for the farm
*The good friends we made
We came into Kampala this afternoon after school to take care of some errands. Among other things, we picked up the school's computer that had to be fixed and tried once again to find a place that would fix our camera. The focus hasn't worked since Ghana and the only way to take somewhat recognizable photos is when we zoom in completely. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be anywhere in Kampala to have it fixed, we'll have to wait for Nairobi.
Other than our camera, things are great here. Uganda is a beautiful country! Much greener and more comfortable in climate than we expected. James and his wife Tabitha are taking amazing care of us. They basically put their lives on hold just to be our hosts. Tabitha has been cooking lots of delicious tradional food for us and James continues to return from his farm with all kinds of wonderful fruits and vegetables. The students we are teaching (high school age) have also wanted to make sure that we sample all the local produce--today we tried something called a jark fruit (or I think that's what it is called). And just to make a few of our readers jealous--we are in avocado heaven here! They're huge and everywhere.
We have two more days of teaching left and then next week we'll be helping James on his farm. It's been hard to find time to sit and write at length, since the closest internet to the house is here in Kampala, about an hour's journey, and quite a tiring one. Today we shared a taxi (that's what they call minibuses here) with a bleating goat. We'll try to get that sound clip up soon! On the way back we'll have to get a boda-boda (a moped taxi) for part of the way. Last time that was quite a dusty, dirty adventure, and this time it will be made even more exciting by the fact that we'll also be trying to carry the computer with us.
I only have 10 minutes at the cafe, but just wanted to let everyone know that we're fine. We're at the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia right now. We thought we would have 2 nights here, but it turned out much easier and more relaxing to leave today. By doing it this way, we didn't have to pay for a visa, got a free night at a nice hotel, free dinner and breakfast and got to see a little of Addis from the comforts of the bus. We slept so well last night! It's cold here! Okay, maybe not compared to Austria or Michigan right now, but we got to sleep with blankets last night, it was great.
Our last few days at Buduburam were busy and emotional, we'll have to write more about that later. We miss everyone already!
Our flight to Entebbe, Uganda leaves at noon, we"ll be there at 2:30 and should be getting picked up there by James, our contact there who we'll be working with. Our love to all and there"ll be more soon!
