Queen of the Nile

            One would think that I would be pretty sick of rafting the Nile by now, but my fourth time was just as fun as the first.  Plus, it was great that I could go with my cousin, Jane.  We were lucky to have two great raft guides, Alex and Elliot.  Elliot was a “trainee” and it was only his second day on the river.  That is right, I had rafted the river more times than one of our guides.  A little disconcerting to say the least.  Alex, however, was great and more than experienced.  He was also hilarious and danced during every rapid.  At one point in the day, people got out of their boats to swim.  The boys in Jane’s group were in a different raft and they swam over to try and pull us in.  Alex said, “Hey, boys.  If you want to play with my ladies, then you are you going to have to pay me first.”  

We set the tone for a pretty great day with our first rapid, which is the waterfall.  You have to veer to the right in order to go down the waterfall; otherwise, you will go down the back rapid.  We went down and barely missed making it to the waterfall.  However, instead of going down the left, we managed to get ourselves wedged on a rock.  Jane and I were in the front, which was starting to lean over the rock.  We were screaming and laughing because we were staring face down the rock.  Alex yelled, “LEAN FORWARD!”  Jane and I, clearly on the same page, leaned as far back as we could with sheer terror on our faces.  I was thinking to myself, “There is no way he wants us to go down this sheet of rock.  That’s insane.  He must have said lean back.”  Alex yelled, “What are you doing? I said lean forward!”  Fed up with us, he jumped to the front of the boat, and we flew down the rock – shrieking the whole way.  The other boats were cracking up and cheering when we got down.  The boys said that our faces were priceless (pictures to follow).

            I have decided to retire my signature dance move, the worm.  I am probably a few years late in making this decision, but I feel that it is finally necessary.  Saturday night, at NRE Campsite, a bit of a dance party started.  One guy started break dancing, so some people convinced me that I should follow-up and do the worm.  Well, I never back out of a challenge.  Unfortunately, someone had recently dropped a beer bottle and all the glass wasn’t swept off of the floor.  Down my chin went, straight into a piece of broken glass.  I was bleeding everywhere!  Good thing I was with a bunch of med students.  Jane and Kevin cleaned me right up and made sure there was no glass left in my chin.  They also had some butterfly bandages with them, which they used to help close up the gaping hole in my chin.  Pretty sure I am going to have a lovely scar once it heals, so maybe I should think of a different story to tell.  Suggestions are welcome.

            I have said it before, and I will say it again, being an mzungu is like being a celebrity.  When I first got here, I reveled in all the attention.  I was like Miley Cyrus back in the Hannah Montana days, throwing up the peace sign to all the paparazzi.  One year later, I am more of the big sunglasses and pursed lips type of celebrity.  I used to think it was the cutest thing when kids would follow me on my run.  Now, not so much.  I have been leaving earlier and earlier to avoid the thirty shrieking children that will inevitably follow me.  The other day, however, I did not leave early enough.  Some older primary students started to follow me and make fun of me running.  I was annoyed and I decided to have some fun.  I turned around suddenly, lunged at them, and growled.  They all stopped like deer caught in the headlights with looks of sheer terror on their faces.  Then they all turned and ran away screaming.  I did not actually think I would scare them that much, but it made it that much funnier.  Some old ladies were walking along the road and they could not stop laughing either.  Mission accomplished – I was able to run in peace. 

            As many of you may recall, 700-800 books were taken from the Libraries for Life team at the Mbale Port.  We all sort of figured most of them would be sold.  So I was not at all shocked when I saw a guy selling some of the books on the side of the road in Mbale.  Caroline and I kept asking the man, “Are these really your books?”  He kept replying, “Yes! Do you want?  Good price!”  We could not stop laughing – like I was really going to purchase back my property.  Thankfully, I have more than enough books at Namengo.  I guess Libraries for Life also helped to boost the small business sector of Mbale – so many accomplishments.    

             

Jane is ripped

Our "Oh crap" face.  We see what's ahead

Jane and me leaning back, fearing for our lives.  Alex is in the middle of yelling, "LEAN FORWARD!"

"AAAAHHHHH"

Best. Photo. Ever.

Bye Elliot!

Oh...I guess that wasn't so bad.

See ya, Alex!

Going...

...going

GONE!

:(

Professionals

Bye Laura

Elliot just couldn't stay in the boat

Later Vesna!  We followed shortly after. 

Libraries for Life books being sold - The math, biology, and geography books. 

            Here is a video of us white water rafting.  I cut out parts of the video, so it's only the boys' boat and our boat.  As a result, there are some awkward transitions.  Also, the quality isn't that great because I did not want to sit here all day.  Enjoy!

Possessed

            As per usual, Cosmas, my counterpart, has been MIA this term. Despite my countless calls and text messages about the library and my progress, he has refused to respond.   I do not really need his help, but I thought he might like to know my work plan for this term.  Last week, I was in Kampala for my mid-service medical check-up (I am a healthy girl!).  After my 4-hour bus ride back home - sweaty, dirty and longing for a nice bucket bath - I arrived at Namengo Girls to find Cosmas waiting for me.  Of course.  He really does have stellar timing.  Rather than unpack and bathe, I had to meet with him.   He asked me to meet him, again, at Butove Primary the next day so we could give the school feedback on their resource room (over 2 months later!).  He also wanted to go over my progress report.   I was not thrilled about trekking 45 minutes to this school and I really wanted to work on the library.  I figured, however, that I might as well go because who knows when I will have the chance to see him next.
            I met Cosmas at Butove and we discussed “our” progress. Translation, I told him about my progress with the library and teaching life skills so that he could write it all down and take credit for it with his supervisor.   Afterward, we met with the teachers to finally give them their evaluation of the resource room that we filled out back in April.  While we were sitting in the resource room, a girl started yelling in another classroom.  We could see a lot of commotion outside and a bunch of students were crowded around a classroom.  I asked one of the teachers, “Is everything okay? What is going on?”

Teacher: “Oh yes.  That girl does this a lot.  She is possessed by demons.”

Me: “Possessed?”

Teacher: “Yes, you must pray for her.  She is always disturbing us.  She is possessed.”

             I looked outside to see four girls carrying her out of the classroom.  Two girls each had an arm and the other two each had a leg.  It was one of the most absurd things I have seen, and it took everything I had in me not to laugh.   It did not take long for me to figure out that she probably has some form of autism.   I tried to explain this to the teachers, but they looked at me like I was crazy.   Considering my knowledge of autism is pretty slim, I probably did not do the greatest job of explaining it either.  I am not even sure if she was autistic, but I thought that is a better explanation that demon possession.

           I have been working in the library a lot these past few weeks.   I am not really teaching this term because I want to get the library up and running as quickly as possible.  I have logged 34 boxes so far, which turned out to be over 1,500 books.  I have about 20 boxes left and I hope that I can finish them in the next few weeks.   Unfortunately, I saved the children’s books for last and those are the most tiresome to log.  There are over 100 in a box and there are a lot of miscellaneous items that I just have to end up throwing out.
           Logging books is a little monotonous – even when I’m jamming out to my iPod.  The dull day, however, sometimes gets a little interesting when I come across a great book.  With over 50 boxes, there are bound to be some treasures.  Here have been some of my favorites:

1. Potty Time With Elmo: I am sure this book is great for potty training your kids in the US, but I do not see the value in Budaka.  First of all, we do not even have toilets.  The instructions to “sit” and “flush” do not translate well.   Second of all, the book says to wipe with toilet paper, which is a novelty for my neighbors and students.  Most of them use leaves or loose leaf paper.  As you can see, I am sure this book will just be a form of either comedy or confusion.
2. Super Grueso! Yo Pudeo Decir: Mi Dia: For those that cannot tell, a Spanish book.  This is not the first Spanish book I have found either.

           In addition, there have been a few books that have personal photographs, old homework assignments, and notes inside.   They are pretty fun to look through.  My favorite was a Psalm Book that had some notes being passed in it.  Here was the conversation.   I am only sure of one of the names, so I am just going to call the other girl Sara.

Sara: “Hey Dom! Yes they r’, just watch them.   And if I look at Glenn imma laugh.  You look at him”

Dom: “Ok, he got big ears”

Sara: “Ok who u talkin about?   Imma talk sense into Courtney.   Gross”

Dom: “Yep he molded.  No he blown.  She iz 2 pretty for him duh.”

Sara: “Why are we writing on this book.  Dats rude.”

            Things like this make my day!  I also get excited when I come across books like Goosebumps, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Harry Potter, and Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. There have also been books that look interesting for me to read.  I am sure some books will be way to difficult for most of the students and my teachers to read, but at least I will be able to use them!  Plus, if another Peace Corps Volunteer replaces me when I leave, then he or she will have a great selection of books.
            Francis, my neighbor, has taken to only speaking to me in Lugwere.  He has decided that I need to learn the language, finally.  Unfortunately, I have forgotten pretty much everything except for the greetings and food.  At first, I was just responding “kale” to everything he said.  An appropriate response, which means, “okay.”  Francis is no dummy though, and he quickly caught on.  So the other day he asked me in Lugwere, “Do you want to go dig?” (Dig is the word they use for gardening.)  I responded, “Kale.”  He smiled, passed me a hoe, and said, “You just said you wanted to come dig!”   Good one, Francis.  Thankfully, I know how to say, “I don’t want” so I was quickly able to get out of yard work.
             My cousin, Jane, is in Uganda for a World Health Project, which is great!  We are meeting up in Jinja this weekend and we are going to go rafting.  Yes, this is my fourth time rafting the Nile!  The third time since I have been in country.  I guess you can call me the Queen of the Nile.  If I do not get shisto by the time I leave here, then it will be a miracle.  (For those that do not know what schistosomiasis is, Google it. It is rampant in Uganda).

Barn on Wheels

            I went to Kampala last week to try and take the GMAT, again.  For those that do not know, I was supposed to take the exam before I left for Egypt.  Unfortunately, there were “software” issues and I was unable to take the exam.  Needless to say, I was annoyed, but at the same time, not very surprised.  My taxi ride to Kampala was eventful, as per usual.  My friend, Lauren, likes to refer to these taxis as a “barn on wheels.”  There must have been at least 30 chickens in the back, feathers were flying everywhere and the whole taxi smelled like poop.  I was in the front seat and I had to keep picking feathers off of me.  In the middle of the ride the driver turned up the radio full blast because there was some Ugandan talk show playing.  I am not sure what this talk show was about, since they were speaking in Luganda, but I felt like it was the Ugandan version of “Jerry Springer”.  There was a lot of shrill yelling and I thought I was going to go deaf.  I had my iPod on full blast to try and drown out the sound, but to no avail.  I have never wanted a pair of Bose headphones so badly in my life.

            Thankfully, the taxi ride to Kampala was relatively fast because there is not a lot of traffic on Sundays.  I could not check in to my hotel until 3:00, so I decided to be super cool and see a movie by myself.  I decided to see Battleship – Taylor Kitsch in a navy uniform?  As Ugandans would say, “Thank you, please.”  As many of you know, movie theaters are no place for my mother because other patrons manage to annoy her.  Let me just say, a movie theater in Uganda is definitely no place for her.  There was commentary throughout the whole movie; I was even starting to get annoyed.  However, I was entertained for a brief minute when Taylor Kitsch took off his shirt and a Ugandan lady yelled, “Yaaaaaaaa, take me to America.”   I could not help but laugh.  I mean, who can blame her?  As my sister would say, he is so hot it is inappropriate.

            I was able to take the GMAT on Monday and it went relatively smoothly.  The power went out at the very beginning of the exam and my computer shut off.  All I could think was, “Thanks for jinxing it, Ryan”.  (He had sent me a text prior to the exam saying, “Good luck! Hope the power doesn’t go out.”)  Luckily, I had not started the exam, but I was just in the process of agreeing to the rules and regulations.  After that hiccup, the proctor plugged the computer into some extra battery thing and the exam went smoothly.  I am so glad it is over!  I celebrated with room service and endless hours of TV while lying in a king-size bed.

            There have been some life changing events here in Budaka – it only took me a year to acquire the following at site:

A mirror:

You are all probably wondering to yourselves how in the world I manage to look so good without a mirror.  I think it is because I can really pull off the frizzy/sweaty look.  Plus, I would use my webcam to pluck my eyebrows and I had a pocket mirror for special occasions. 

Light bulb:

 I have had light in all my rooms except for my center “washroom.”  The light bulb holder was broken when I moved in and I never had the desire to buy another one.  I finally took the plunge and splurged 2,000 shillings (about $1) on a new holder.  The light has really changed everything – I no longer have to bathe or do dishes in semi-darkness.

Security Lights:

I have two security lights, one in the front and one in the back of my house.  The light bulbs, however, have been dead since I moved in.  I never got around to replacing the bulbs because they are so high and I did not feel the need to have them.  Well, in the spirit of change, I finally bought some extra bulbs and asked my neighbor, Francis, to put them in.  His response, “Ah, finally.” 

House Girl: 

I spent the past year trying to do everything on my own: laundry, fetching water (sometimes), mopping, cooking, and dishes.  Over break, Sauya’s daughter, Eva, asked if she could do some work for me to earn money for school fees.  I happily agreed and I have not been the same since.  I cannot believe it took me so long to get someone to do my laundry!  Not only can she wash my clothes way faster, she gets them significantly cleaner. 

Unfortunately, she went back to secondary school after break and the work was left up to me, again.  My mom said she didn’t think it would take me long to hire another house girl.  Mothers really are always right.  Stephen’s niece, Carolynne, was looking to earn some extra money – HIRED!  I love not having to worry about fetching water or the dirty clothes piling up. 

I’m not sure which is more pathetic, that it took me so long to acquire these “luxuries” and hire a house girl or that they make me so happy.  These were the subjects of quite a few of my texts, including, “Light in my center room. Whooo!!! Life changing.” 

While Francis was putting in my security lights, he looked over at my yard and said, “Wow, we need to have someone come slash your grass.  We have been having some animals.”  I raised my eyebrows and asked, “What sort of animals?”  He laughed and said, “I won’t tell you because you fear.”  Right, like that response would stop me from figuring out he meant SNAKES!!  The rest of the day I ran with high knees to and from latrine in fear of snakes.  Since then my grass has been cut and I no longer walk in fear of the spitting cobra or puff adder. 

I have been really busy setting up the Library – organizing it by the Dewey Decimal System has proved to be no small feat.  Paul, an English teacher/librarian, has been a huge help.  I log the books on excel and he puts on the spine labels.  Some other teachers have also come in to help, which is great because it gives me hope that the library will be sustainable – my ultimate goal.  I’m sure it will be about a month or so until we have the library running.  The shelves are almost done too, which is great!  The teachers are all very excited.  They love to come in the library and flip through the books.  It is a nice pick-me-up when I get burnt out from the monotonous logging of books.  I will be happy when it is finished!