Its been a while! Sorry for the delay, the internet is
sketchy at times but mostly I’m busy enjoying my time here and forget to sit
down and write it all down.
Here are some highlights from the last couple of weeks:
I went white water rafting and bungee jumping on the Nile
River with my friends and it was a blast! I have never seen rapids so big nor
did I think I would be rafting through them. Our guide was named Roberto and he
really took care of the crew. On the calm parts of the river we were able to get
out and swim with the current, it was so cool! I only saw like 2 or 3 crocs
while I was swimming and I think they are friendly in Uganda anyway….
Bungee jumping was truly wild. My good friend Kayla and I
went together. This was nice because we both had someone to squeeze on to. We
went first, so we had no idea what to expect. The guys secured us up and told
us to start inching towards the edge….having your toes on the edge of a bungee
tower knowing you are going to jump off any second is quite the feeling. So
they counted to three and I am pretty sure we jumped. It went by amazingly
fast, and Kayla and I had a chance to chat while we were hanging upside down
over the Nile River…good times!
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| Bungee Jumping! |
Things are awesome at St. Peters CDC where I am doing my
internship! In the past week we have been doing village health inspections
where we go around our town, Lugazi and look at the hygiene and sanitation of
each of our client’s homes. At first it was really hard for me to tell what a
clean home was here in Uganda because the homes look so different. Most of the
homes are 1 or 2 rooms. They will have a curtain separating the living space
and sleeping space and most often people cook outside. The floors and walls are
usually made of cement and the roof is made of metal. At first glance, it can
look dirty but clean is clean anywhere in the world. If the floors are swept,
things are in order, the dishes are done, there is a properly placed latrine
(bathroom) around the home, it’s legit! Many of the homes we visit do struggle
with hygiene because of a lack of resources, education or emotional distress.
A couple of weeks ago, I lead a class and showed 6 mothers
and 1 father how to make bread using the wood fired oven we have at our site. I
was seriously nervous because I had never used a wood fired oven, but after a
little bit of research and a lot of prayer, things went really well! We mixed
the ingredients, kneaded the dough, let it rise and baked it up! The caregivers
were able to take home a few loaves of bread to their families, so now they can
start a mega-bakery and take over the world.
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| Benita and I on a home visit! |
I honestly have grown to love my internship so much! The
people there are just amazing and I love the message we send to our caregivers.
Most of mothers and children we serve are going through vulnerable times in
their lives. Many of the mothers do have husbands, but they are absent, abusive
or unfaithful so they look to each other and their community for support. I
have learned that the African woman is strong. Even where there are many things
working against them such as poverty, oppression and lack of education, they
still prosper and come together as one. I have seen it with my own two eyes! I
am so thankful for the time I have spent at St. Peters, and seriously cannot
believe I only have 3 weeks left…time flies!
Uganda Christian University hosts a lot of international
students. Most of them come from different countries around Africa, so to
celebrate all of the different cultures, last week was International Student
Week. My Uganda besties (Kayla, Kerri and Jordyn) and I sort of got put in
charge of cooking for the day where everyone tasted each other’s food. We
wanted to go all American so we made Mac and Cheese and Dirt Cups (pudding,
fake Oreos and gummy bears). When we arrived with our dish, our presence was
being announced over the PA system and people swarmed our tent. The next 15
minutes was seriously crazy as we were dishing out Mac and Cheese like it was
our jobs…After everything calmed down we were able to try foods from Kenya, Nigeria,
and Sudan. We ended the day with dancing, a whole lot of pictures with people
we don’t know in front of the American flag and just hanging out with our
fellow students.
I only have 1 month left, and its crazy! 2 weeks left on
campus, and then we head to Rwanda for 10 days and back to Entebbe, where I
first met Uganda 3 months ago.
Happy Easter to all, He is risen!!
