Tour Time

Unbelievably I am now up to Day 13 of my 42 Day tour.  I have really slipped into full on tourist mode and travelling Africa feels like a world away from my time in Uganda.  It is nice to see the tourist side of things, but at times I do find myself missing the volunteering as I most definitely have not got 'under the skin' of the countries I have visited in the way that I did in Uganda.

The tour has 24 people.  Largely Kiwis and Aussies (can you ever escape them?), plus a smattering of Americans and British and a couple from Dutch and Iceland each.  On the whole the group is really good, but there are the inevitable politics associated with a group of 20 plus people bundled on a bus together for long hours at a time.

The tour itself started in Nairobi and we headed straight to Arusha, Tanzania, our base for a trip to the Serengeti.  The Serengeti was incredible, we saw the Big 5 on the first day, plus all sorts of other animals including cheetahs.  Jo (the friend I am travelling with at the moment) and I had a close encounter with a hyena going to the bathroom one night and the whole experience was topped off by seeing part of the annual migration.  There were thousands of zebras and wildebeest as far as the eye could see.  Absolutely incredible.

After the Serengeti we headed to Zanzibar (via a 15 hour bus ride) for a few days of relaxing (and drinking).  Zanzibar was beautiful.  Stone town was lovely and the beaches were amazing too.  My tan is now fairly well developed. 

Christmas morning was spent on Zanzibar and in the afternoon we headed back to Dar el Salaam.  It was a pretty different Christmas for me.  Pizza for lunch, and I missed Christmas dinner as I had to go to the doctor on Christmas night to get antibiotics for an infected toe.  (A whole other blog post will need to be dedicated to medical services in Africa, thus far I have visited the doctor five times in three different countries.  I'm just hoping to avoid the doctor here in Malawi so that I have at least one country where I haven't had to go to the doctor).

Internet access is pretty hard to come by so no promises when my next update will be.  We are currently in Malawi and have three more nights here before heading to Zambia (where I will be ringing in 2013).

On the road again

Tomorrow I begin my six week tour of Africa which will take me all the way from Nairobi to Cape Town.

I have really enjoyed my past few weeks travelling solo, but I'm looking forward to not having to worry about the logistics of getting from A to B. I'm also relishing the prospect of not having to hang around bus stations or matatu stands. (why is it that in every country bus stations are inevitably in a dodgy dark and dingy part of town?)

I'm also happy that I'll no longer have to take solo taxis at night in strange cities with all my belongings - I always feel most vulnerable when in reality I am solely at the mercy of the taxi driver.

I'll try to keep updating on the road, but it will depend on finding Internet access. The next update will most likely come to you from Zanzibar where I will be spending Christmas in 30+ degree heat.

Political rumblings

The next Kenyan election is due to be held in March next year and it is impossible to ignore. There are posters for voter registration everywhere. It is all everyone talks about too.

The last elections were extremely violent. In the aftermath, thousands of people were killed. I went to a really interesting photographic exhibition about the 2007/08 election at the National Art Gallery last week and I couldn't help but think how different the situation is in New Zealand. Arguably the extent of our 'political' violence extends to mud throwing on Waitangi Day and environmental protests (who remembers how quickly the proposal to mine in the National Parks on the Coromandel Peninsula was dropped). In part I believe this is a reflection of having two very central political parties whose policies don't actually differ that much.

It is difficult to say what else sets NZ apart. Both countries are former British colonies after all. The relative lack of poverty in NZ undoubtedly contributes to our stability. The absence of corruption helps too. I saw in a recent article that New Zealand has come out first equal in the latest corruption index (alongside one of the Scandinavian countries, Finland from memory). Corruption is a big problem here. People are reluctant to trust politicians and the state here. I was travelling in a matatu the other day and saw the driver pay off a police officer with my own eyes.

No doubt there are many other contributing factors (and I'm not going to claim to even begin to understand the political position here (or indeed in NZ!))

All that I will say is, hopefully, for the sack of people here, the March election goes much more smoothly. Most people I have talked to have said that the pre-election tension was much worse before the last election. People seem optimistic. It is hard to judge whether or not this is warranted. I met an English couple whose friend is running for Parliament. They told me how two days previously he had been subject to a targeted grenade attack (he wasn't killed, but three others were killed). There were also reports in the radio today of a car bomb plot (with the explosive laden car still on the run).

I suspect that people play down the violence as they don't want to scare tourists away (after all Kenya relies on them a great deal). It is a fascinating country with a lot to offer and I really do hope for the best come March.

Slogan Ts

Second hand clothing rules supreme in East Africa and as a consequence there are a lot of amusing/out of place slogans on display.

Some favourites so far:

- a teenage boy wearing a pink and black tee shirt embezzled with "I love Feminists"

- a guy wearing a Chiefs super 15 rugby jersey in my first week in Uganda

- seeing multiple Vancouver 2010 winter Olympic shirts (2012 Olympic gear doesn't appear to have made it to Africa yet)...

The taxis (and matatus in Kenya) and trucks are also almost always decorated with a slogan. The most popular seems to be "God is good".

The funniest one that I have seen (for fellow law geeks) was on a matatu (= taxi van) yesterday which had "The doctrine of stare decisis" written on it! Unfortunately I didn't have time to whip my camera out to capture it. I haven't figured out exactly why a matatu driver would want to make a statement about the common law and doctrine of precedent on his vehicle...

Meeting the gorillas and Lucy

I have now made it to Nairobi, Kenya after a few long days on the road.

First up was the trip down to Bwindi, Uganda, to trek with the gorillas. The drive from Kampala to Kisoro where we stayed the night either side of trekking was a solid 12 hours each way. The countryside was beautiful. Steep hillsides with terraced farming, lakes and misty skies. It actually reminded me a lot of the Peruvian highlands.

Gorillas in the mist.

The trekking itself was awesome. The gorillas were literally within metres and I couldn't believe just how human their expressions were. I was surprised that the gorillas are usually found on the edge of the forest, they often eat the maize and beans growing on the edge of the forest.

Bwindi is in the south west corner of Uganda and Kisoro is very close to both the Rwandan and Congo borders. The UN has a refugee camp on the outskirts of the town. It was quite confronting to see physical evidence of the conflict and M23 rebel action in the Congo. (Which incidentally appears to be escalating, the borders between Uganda and the Congo are now closed.)

After returning from Bwindi I had a stressful Saturday trying to buy a bus ticket to Kenya and half fainting on a local bus from overheating on an extremely crowded bus. (Sorry Mum, I neglected to tell you that...) anyway, I got the ticket I needed (a mere £17 for a 14 hour bus ride) and endured a rather painful bus ride on Sunday.

The reason for having to be in Kenya Sunday night (and the associated bus ticket stress) was that I had arranged to meet a very special Lucy on Monday. Lucy is the 9 year old Kenyan child who I have sponsored since July 2010. She lives in a village about 2 hours drive from Nairobi. I met her, her mother and the local project partners. It was truly one of the most humbling experiences of my life. Everyone was so grateful, both for sponsoring Lucy but also for visiting her and the project. I would highly recommend the experience of meeting your sponsor child if you one and ever get the chance to visit their country. Lucy was very excited to meet me and apparently she couldn't sleep the night before - she barely stopped smiling all day too!

I'm now in Nairobi where I'll be for the next few days. I've already managed to catch up on all the important news: Wills and Kate are having a baby and England beat the ABs.

Volunteer no more

So my official 'job' title is now 'traveler' until at least 17 April 2013 (the day I land in London) when I'll revert to simply being 'unemployed'. Volunteering is now a thing of the past as I said goodbye to the team at EACO today.

I thought to mark the occasion I'd share the three things I'll miss most about volunteering and life in Mukono and the three things I'll miss the least.

The good (things I will miss)

1. Feeling like I have the opportunity to change a person's life. There were certainly days where I felt my presence was more of a hindrance than a help, but no matter how small the help I have given here, it has been given to organisations that really do change lives for the better, even if my personal contribution doesn't. I got into an argument with a South African guy last weekend whose view was that volunteering is essentially a waste of time. His opinion was that people living in poverty are happier than us, as they don't know any better and helping them results in them realising that they are 'missing out'. Suffice to say that I didn't agree with this view. The people that organisations like EACO and the Real Uganda work with already know there is a big wide world out there that they are missing out on. I also don't agree that people who can't afford to send their children to school or to seek medical treatment are happy. The conversation ended with the said South African telling me that I didn't know anything about Africa and storming off!

2. The children. It was really hard saying a final goodbye to the kids at school. They sung me four songs, unfortunately I can't upload videos - I have a few of them singing which are adorable. I'll also miss having kids from school seeing me down the street and screaming Teacher Lucy. I saw one kid from P4 down in town the other day and he sprinted up to me and gave me a huge hug. I'll also miss the random kids yelling 'bye mzungu' and waving madly and the resultant beaming smile if I talk to them or wave back.

3. Being settled in one place. Next on the agenda is two weeks travelling in Uganda and Kenya and then a further seven weeks travelling overland to Cape Town. I am dreading having to pack up my bag everyday. I'm dreading having to lug it around. I'm dreading having to pitch a tent each day. Volunteering is actually a very settled way of getting to know a country and how it ticks. Being on the move just doesn't give the same opportunities to get to meet people either. I leave Uganda with Ugandan friends.

The bad (things I won't be missing)

1. I'm sick of being a mzungu and the attention that it draws (other than the kids). No I don't want a boda boda. No you can't have my number (I swear that I have had more people ask for my number in the last few weeks than the rest of my life combined). No I'm not going to show you where I live. And please don't yell out 'sister' 'mama' or 'beautiful' at me from across the road, it is not going to make me come and talk to you.

2. I'm looking forward to not spending so much time thinking about all the problems facing the country (and Africa). A big scandal here over the past few weeks has been the unveiling of a large corruption ring in the Prime Minister's office. Billions of shillings of aid given by the Irish government was found in about 10 staff members private accounts. Ireland, the UK, Denmark and Sweden have all pulled aid from being sent to Uganda. I don't like to think about how this impacts the people/causes the aid was earmarked to help. It may sound bad but it will be nice to be back in my safe and comfortable life without having to face the reality of life here on a daily basis.

3. Home comforts (although some of these will have to wait a few weeks yet). To name a few: sit down toilets; washing machines; salads; NZ wine; cheese; hot showers; kitchen sinks with running water... (I could go on).

Next post most likely coming to you from Kenya!

Colonial relics

Last weekend I attended the polo with another volunteer from the Real Uganda.  It was a proper colonial Uganda type experience and there really weren't any other travellers in sight (most people seemed to be wealthy Ugandans or expats).   It was a bit of an insight into life for the well-to-do expat living in Uganda. 

We were definitely punching above our weight and ended up with front row seats next to the Governor of the Central Bank and the Indian High Commissioner (these facts were ascertained as photographers were taking a lot of photos and we managed to overhear someone introducing them).

The polo itself was great to watch, we had great seats and the crowd was small.  Being at the polo reminded me that Ugandan was once an English colony (and the 50th anniversary of independence was in October this year) and it also got me thinking about some of the funny little relics from English rule that exist here which I thought might be interesting to share:

1.  Tea - Ugandans absolutely love to drink tea.  It is a lot more popular that coffee.  Often the hot water will be infused (usually with ginger or mint) before the tea bag is added.  A delicious way to drink tea without milk (milk isn't particularly common, I expect that the lack of refrigeration is largely to blame).

2. The English language - although it is not the first language for most people (there are a number of different local languages - in Mukono it is Lugandan) English is still an official language in Uganda.  From about P3 up, all classes are supposed to be taught in English, although this is not always strictly followed.  The English spoken, it would be fair to say, is not always quite the Queen's English either.  There are a number of funny turns of phrase.  A couple of examples: (1) "we come" means "lets go together" (2) an 'e' sound added to the end of many words, eg the name Jack, is pronounced Jackie, bye is pronounced by-e.

3. Driving on the left hand side - for some reason I was surprised when I realized that Ugandans drive on the left hand side of the road.

4. Sport - people go absolutely mad for the English Premiership here. Everyone asks me which team I support and everyone here has a team that they support (Arsenal seems to be the most popular). I have probably watched more football in the last 2 months than I watched in a whole year living in London.  They also play rugby, cricket and netball.

5. A tendency to boil every single vegetable until it resembles mash - I associate this practice with England and can report that it is alive and well here.  Salads or any raw vegetables are essentially non-existent within the Ugandan diet.  Every vegetable served is boiled to its death - cabbage in particular.

6. Last but certainly not least, beer and gin - the two most common alcoholic beverages.  The most common local beers are Nile Special, Club and Bell.  Interestingly the most common 'imported' beer is Guinness.  It  is advertised absolutely everywhere.  Apparently it doesn't taste the same as real Guinness (but let's be honest surely it can't be worse?).  I put its dominance down to the Irish missionaries (there other legacy is that potatoes are simply called 'Irish' here).  The local gin is pretty nasty stuff - Lonely Planet warns that if enough is consumed it can turn you blind! 

Anyway, that is all I have time for today. I'm busy packing as tomorrow is my last day volunteering and on Wednesday I am off to the south of Uganda to go gorilla trekking.  A final verdict on my experience volunteering is to follow in the next few days.

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink

After two months here, I think the thing that I still find most astounding in Uganda is that, depsite the amount it rains, there is a huge lack of ready access to clean water.

Mukono is a large town, there is access to piped water supplied by the council on some streets, but very few people use it due to the expense. Even the 'apartment' where I live has no running water (and believe me, the standard of accommodation where I am is much better than the houses most people in the community live in).

The water I use is collected from a rainwater tank at the bottom of the apartment complex (I live on the third floor). While the distance it has to carried is much less than most people face, it still means no running water. All water is carried and stored in jerry cans. There is no shower, no sink. Plastic buckets serve as the shower, the kitchen sink and the washing machine.

For me personally no running water isn't a hardship. My water is collected for me. A bucket shower is pretty effective and I have got used to traipsing outside to the pit toilet.

But I can't help think of all the people who have to walk to collect water and the difficulties water collection creates.

1. It can be a long way to walk.  The well that the school that I volunteered at uses is 1km from school.  The distance can be much greater.

2. It takes a long time.  In addition to the walk to the well. there is often a queue before the water can be collected (often hours long due to the demand placed on individual wells and bore holes). Water collection can literally take hours out of the day. It is no wonder that it takes so long for things to happen here in Uganda. Productivity is severely hampered by everyday tasks.

3. In many places the water can be very poor quality.  The murky water in the photo below gives an indication.

4. It is dangerous.  How you might ask? Well often bore holes and wells are at the bottom of valleys surrounded by bush (as this is where the water source is).  Given collection generally has to occur outside school/work hours it is often dark (remember, school doesn't finish until 5.30pm and it gets dark around 6.30pm).  Water collection is a real danger for children targeted for child sacrifice.  Women also get raped on occasion when walking in the dark to collect water.

So, when the water pressure in your shower isn't quite what you hoped today, give a thought for those who don't even have the luxury of running water.

This is one water hole I visited that people collect their water from.

The water stored where I live.

The shower/washing machine.

Photo time

Thus far the entirety of my blog has been written on my iPhone.  It is not exactly ideal for writing long blog posts but I am coping with writing the text itself.  The main disadvantage of using the iPhone is that I haven't been able to upload any of my photos from my SLR camera.  Today I have ventured to the internet cafe to attempt to show you some of my photos (with the added bonus that if I have my camera stolen like I did in South America I will at least have some of my favorite photos backed up).

I have taken a lot of black and white photos since I have been here.  This is just one.  If I get a decent internet connection anytime soon I'll upload some more.

The Nile on a beautiful evening as we overlooked it from the Adrift campsite.  I would seriously recommend the white water rafting, insane fun, especially the 15ft waterfall on the first rapid.

Children here are so photogenic. The half off, ripped tee shirt is a common sight.

This photograph was taken in Katosi, which was the "port" we left from for the trip out onto Lake Victoria.  Cows are literally tethered everywhere in Uganda.  In fact there are two cows referred to as the "rubbish tip cows" as they graze on one of the rubbish tips in Mukono.  Its no wonder that the beef tastes so strong here. 

These were some of the children that mobbed us when we arrived at the first island on Lake Victoria.  They were very intrigued to see photos of themselves on our cameras and couldn't stop giggling and laughing whenever we showed them their photos.

This is a photograph taken through the crack between the wooden boards of our accommodation on the island.  A snapshot of island life early in the morning.

I have hundreds more photos, but unfortunately the internet connection here is pretty slow and for some reason blogger is really slow at loading these.  I will try and load some more photos at some stage.  As the saying goes, a picture tells a thousand words.

Don't eat monkeys

Is one of the pieces of advice being issued by the Ministry of Health following a new outbreak of Ebola.

The outbreak is actually quite close to where I'm living so I'll definitely be taking on this advice (and staying away from dead people).

Ebola outbreaks are always widely reported on internationally (and I only heard about the latest one because I was on the BBC website). While undoubtedly a scary virus given the very high death rate, the numbers can be quickly thrown out of proportion. There was another Ebola outbreak in Uganda earlier in the year that killed 16. This compares to the estimated 5 people killed daily in boda boda accidents. I'm not sure what the figures are, but I guarantee a lot more people are dying daily from untreated malaria, diarrhoea and malnutrition than by Ebola.

Nasty viruses actually seem pretty prevalent here (the is also an outbreak of another haemorrhagic virus, Marburg, at present). Advice for that one is to avoid bat caves...

In fact, any aliment seems to thrive here. I got a small cut on my leg from a school table falling on it four weeks ago. It was actually more like a scrape but it still isn't healed thanks to a superficial infection. I have also developed a nice fungal infection on my feet, charming I know.

The kids at school are like a hot house of infection too, most had a hacking cough when I was last there (which I also managed to acquire). Lice, worms and ringworm are common too. (In fact I have been told to deworm on departure as a precaution...)

The other thing that I have noticed with a lot of children is the extremely extended stomach on small children (almost like a pregnant belly). This is usually attributed to worms or malnutrition. It was also insightful to see the diseases that formed part of the school science curriculum: kwashiorkor (lack of protein) and marasmus (lack of carbohydrates) are two nutrition related diseases I'd never heard of which children here learn about (of course it may just be saying something about my ignorance).

Anyhow, I digress from the Ebola outbreak and avoiding eating monkeys. The moral of the post is that Ebola is bad but so are many other health and nutrition related issues facing the country.

Boda bodas, taxis and the African way of walking

Getting from A to B in Uganda can really be quite an experience. The roads are pretty damn awful, it is hot and every ride in a minibus (called a taxi) seems to involve switching seats at least five times. (And I don't even know where to begin with the boda bodas).

So here goes. A run down on each of the three primary ways of transporting oneself in Uganda.

Walking: certainly the safest option in terms of being in control of how quickly one travels (such control non existent in taxis and almost non-existent on boda bodas). Having said that the general walking pace is slowwww (especially when compared to London walking pace). People really are on African time here.

Walking slowly is also a bit of a necessity given the complete lack of footpaths, street lighting and drainage systems and the complete abundance of potholes. It is really easy to fall over here (and yes I have fallen flat on my face on one occasion). Other hazards I have encountered when walking are crossing the road and the local crazy guy who hits me in the face whenever he sees me.

Taxis: as I mentioned taxis are actually minivans which operate via a 'semi bus like' system. They travel all over the place. To catch one, you flag it down on the side of the road. Once you have (1) checked the taxi is going where you need to go and (2) negotiated the price, the only remaining action is to squeeze yourself in (sometimes easier said than done). The taxis all have a sign painted on saying that they are licensed to carry up to 14 passengers. In reality around 20 are crammed in. The record I have witnessed is 23 (refer to photo taken inside a taxi to give you an indication). Uncomfortable to say the least. Other goods carried include chickens, raw fish, sugar cane and mattresses. The suspension in the vehicles is completely gone (due to the fact the drivers seem to go the same speed on both tar-sealed roads and pot-hole riddled dirt roads). It is possible to hit your head on the roof when the pot holes are particularly violent.

To get off the taxi you pay your fare and ask the conductor to stop at the next stage. Once the passenger has got off, the driver will commence tooting as he drives until the next passenger on the road flags down the taxi. While there is inevitably a lot of changing seats and stopping and starting, taxis do the trick and they are pretty affordable (although many Ugandans would disagree with me). The hour trip from Mukono to Kampala usually costs 2000 shillings (equivalent to 50p).

Boda bodas: finally but certainly not least are boda bodas. Bodas are motorbikes which are found absolutely everywhere here in Uganda. While more expensive than taxis, they are much quicker as you can get the driver to take you exactly where you want to go. They are also much more efficient to take in Kampala as the bodas can wind in and out of traffic to avoid the notorious traffic jams.

Like taxis, people and goods are crammed onto bodas. If I were a boy I'd probably be able to tell you what size engines they have (but I can't) but they aren't large motorbikes and it isn't uncommon to see a driver with three passengers passing by. We often take them with two passengers when visiting smaller villages where taxis don't go which is quite squished enough for me. It is also tricky for a female to ride bodas whilst wearing a skirt (although women here almost never wear trousers). Tradition requires one to adopt a side saddle type approach...which I always find a little nerve racking. The other major downside of bodas is that you either get covered in dust, or if it's raining, wet. I have also discovered that sun glasses are a must just to keep the dust and bugs out of my eyes.

While transport here leaves a lot to be desired, as a traveller I shouldn't complain, it is cheap, I'm not tied to bus timetables and I can get pretty much anywhere in the country. The biggest impediment to getting around easily here is the sorry state of the roads...

Island life

This week involved a trip to a small island out on Lake Victoria to go HIV testing. Wow, what an eye opener - I really feel like I saw how the other half live and Mukono feels like absolute civilisation in comparison.

The trip was organised by the director of a project that another 'The Real Uganda' volunteer is at. In all there were four volunteers and about six Ugandans who went on the trip.

Lake Victoria is huge and it really does feel like the sea. The furtherest islands still within Ugandan jurisdiction are a 12 hour boat ride away. Thankfully the island we stayed on was only 2 hours away.

The lake was pretty choppy on the trip out and the boats we traveled on weren't particularly sturdy (in fact permanent bailing seemed to be required). There were no life jackets and I spent a fair bit of time assessing which landmark I would swim towards if the boat sunk. Most Ugandans can't swim and are very fearful of the lake.

The communities on the islands vary in size, but all are small. There is no electricity, no cars (although of course there may be on some of the larger islands). The houses are what I would classify as shacks. Most people on the islands are fishermen. Not many women and children live out there, although the town we stayed had enough children to support a school. The children were all very excited to see us and they couldn't stop giggling when we showed them photos of themselves.

I think our girlish mzungu ways showed when we all shrieked at the spiders and bugs in our accommodation. In fact the four of us insisted sharing two to a bed rather than face a night alone in a spider infested shack.

The testing itself took place on a different island. We prepared a spiel on HIV for the crowd that gathered which was interpreted for us. It was delivered outside under the shade of a tree (no such thing as a hall/health clinic or school on this island). The testing was then done in one of the little shacks on the island by one of the group. Everyone who tested received post testing counseling by two trained HIV counselors. It was worrying to see how little people knew about HIV, questions from the crowd included people asking whether HIV could be spread by shaking hands.

Seeing the results themselves was also more difficult than I imagined. Of the 80 people who were tested, 9 showed positive results. While 80 tested, many present at our talk did not, fear of HIV is alive and well. I was particularly relived when a small girl and her mother both tested negative.

While there is access to retro-viral drugs here, they are only available in certain places. Given the location of island and particularly the cost involved getting to the health clinics I'd say that it is pretty unrealistic that all those people who did test positive will get the treatment they need.

The public health emphasis here is certainly on containing HIV rather than treating it and you can understand that stance taken by the government. Hopefully one day there will be an effective vaccine.

All in all it was a very insightful trip which once again left me extremely grateful for the life I lead.

The joys of coffee, hot showers, non-African food and Skype

The other volunteers who I normally hangout with in the weekends went to Kigale to go chimpanzee trekking this weekend. (I'm planning on going at the end of my trip as I have ten days to fill in before I head to Kenya.) Left to my own devices I decided to head to Kampala for a weekend of mzungu treats.

High on the priority list was some decent coffee and non-African food. Yesterday I went to a cool little cafe/gallery/farmers market for lunch. Hmm the joys of eggs florentine and carrot cake should not be underestimated! The place was full of expats and it really made me think how different expat life in Kampala is to living out of Kampala (where I am forced to live a much more African lifestyle - bucket showers and pit latrines included).

In terms of African capitals, Kampala is by all accounts one of the better ones. Yes there are areas of slums, but these are relatively contained and the nice areas really are very nice. It is also comparatively safe. I feel happy walking around the city centre (it will be interesting to compare it to notorious Nairobi).

The scariest aspect is the appalling traffic. Taxes on car imports were reduced a few years ago resulting in an explosion of traffic flow which the roads are quite simply not equipped to deal with. The traffic is even scarier when weaving in and out of it on the back of a boda boda (the motorbikes used as the primary means of travel). I avoid using them whenever possible!

I followed up lunch with a joyfully hot shower at the backpackers I am staying at. Washing hair in a bucket of cold water just isn't as satisfying as a hot shower.

I rounded out my Saturday with wood fired pizza and beers out at an Irish pub, (is it some kind of rule that every city in the world must have an Irish pub??) with a bunch of expats I met.

Today I have marvelled at the joys of my iPhone and technology as I have managed to talk to my parents, both my sisters and three friends. The Skype connection was so excellent to NZ I would have sworn I was talking to someone just down the road. It is really awesome being able to talk to people about all my experiences. It helps me to remember that there is a whole other world out there.

On the agenda this week is a trip to one of the islands on Lake Victoria to do HIV testing which should be interesting.

Child sacrifice

As of 8 October 2012 I became an aunty for a third time. Having my new niece born whilst I am in Uganda has inevitably made me think how blessed she is to have been born to the parents she has, and in the country she has been born into, compared to a child here.

This feeling has been exacerbated over the last couple of days as I have discovered more about the occurrence of child sacrifice in Uganda.

While I had certainly heard of witch doctors existing here, and had expected some 'odd' practices to be undertaken by them, I wasn't prepared for the reality that child sacrifice is alive and well. In fact the current child sacrifices occurring in Uganda appear to be a somewhat recent phenomenon (different to historical ritualistic human sacrifices common in Africa).

I had always assumed that if children were being kidnapped and murdered as sacrifices that it would only occurr in the deepest villages in the country. Sadly not. Child sacrifice has turned into a business, whereby people (often businessmen) will pay 'healers' or sham witch doctors money to ensure the prosperity of their businesses or ventures. Sometimes the sacrifice of a goat or other animal will be sufficient, but since approx 2005 there have been a number of cases where children have been abducted by these witch doctors to sacrifice. According to reports sometimes the children are buried alive in the foundations of new buildings. In other cases they are mutilated or blood taken. Of course the 'doctor' who performs the sacrifice charges a significant fee. Hence a so called business in child sacrifice has sprung up over the past few years (a uniquely Ugandan way to take out insurance for a new business).

The numbers of official reported cases are low, about 30 a year. But the figures are thought to be much higher.

I had not expected such practices to occur in Kampala or Mukono as they are both urban and relatively developed. But due to their relative prosperity child sacrifice is reportedly common in these areas (as there are more people building and starting businesses who can afford to pay a healer to make the sacrifice).

There are reports that if a child is scarred or has pierced ears that they are not suitable for sacrifice. I noticed a lot of girls had pierced ears at school and I wonder if this is why? I'll have to ask someone next week.

EACO's most recent program has been to educate communities in the area how to protect against child sacrifice (and hopefully to dispel some of the myths about it). Things like water collection present a real issue given children most often collect water early in the morning or after school when it is dark.

I find it extremely hard to reconcile a practice like this occurring in today's world, particularly where it seems that relatively educated people believe the myths.

If you want to read more about the practice and work being undertaken by EACO check out:
http://www.asafeworldforwomen.org/partners-in-africa/partners-in-uganda/eaco/studies.html

This BBC article is also worth a read: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15255357

Reality check

I got a reality check on what life is really like for many Ugandans living in poverty today. While a lot of children at the school are living in poverty the worst I saw was them having to walk down the road to fetch water and those being sent home for school fees. When in uniform that generally look pretty smart and obviously I didn't see their homes.

My first day with EACO allowed me a glimpse into home life for many. The organisation's work includes training people (often widows) in things like pig and chicken raising and mushroom growing so that the women have a means of generating income (with start up costs either funded through EACO or raised by micro finance).

Today's home visits were to visit four women EACO have trained, but specifically to talk about water and sanitation. The first and last visits were the most memorable.

The first was memorable because she had a lovely tidy home, had put her five children through school, and had particularly healthy looking animals. It was also interesting as I saw the water hole which she collects all her water from (as per photo). Contamination is an issue with this water source as animals also use this water hole. Even where piped water is available people often will not use it due to its expense. Water bores really are needed in so many places still.

The last woman we visited had probably the most harrowing story. While I wouldn't have guessed from the visit, she is a widow with eight children. She is also HIV positive. Apparently when her husband died other family members tried to take her belongings, land and house. She managed to retain them and has subsequently had help to have a proper weather proof house built and training to start a piggery (with very healthy looking pigs). She has also planted an impressive garden (cabbages, eggplants, coffee, passion fruit, cassava, and tamirillos). (This was on the advice of EACO to try and ensure the children received sufficient nutrients in their diet).

The current issue facing the family is a lack of any latrine (at present they are using plastic bags and burying all waste) as the previous one collapsed in. Despite all the hardships she is one of the favourites with the organisation as she always takes on the advice given to her. A very resilient woman. Hopefully some money can be found to help build a toilet for her and her family.

The day really brought home just how huge the gap is between developed countries and developing countries. I also learnt more about the shocking practice of child sacrifice (another thing EACO is working to reduce) which you can expect to hear further about soon.

New job

When I put the word 'job' in the title to this post I don't mean a job of the paying variety (next paying job very much tbc). Instead, I am going to be changing my volunteering project as of 1 November.

I have loved getting to know the kids at school and doing fun stuff with them (today we made masks, complete with glitter glue=insanity) but there isn't actually heaps for me to do. Largely because the kids have final exams in a couple of weeks which they are busy preparing for.

My new project is also in Mukono so I will continue to live where I currently am. The project is called Empower and Care Organisation (EACO) was started in 2004 by a group of young Ugandan graduates. The organisation aims to provide public health information, and entrepreneurship skills to the people of Mukono District. (The activities are targeted towards vulnerable women, particularly widows and those living with HIV/AIDS, as well as vulnerable children, youth, and the elderly.) They also provide some advice on things like land rights, so maybe I'll even be able to put a bit of my legal training into practise.

In addition to hopefully having stuff to do, I decided to change projects as with this one I will get to travel out into the villages more and see that side of Ugandan life.

I'm a bit sad about my last day at school tomorrow, particularly because 14 of the kids were not at school today as their parents still hadn't paid school fees. I'll definitely have to visit the kids all again before I leave Uganda.

The next posts I have brewing are likely to be on religion (it's a big deal here) and transport (but I need to take some photos to give a sense of the 'taxis' and boda bodas which are my primary means of travel).

Foodie heaven?

Uganda is not quite a foodie heaven, but beans and posho is really growing on me.

I think that it would be fair to say that I am a food lover. I enjoy cooking and eating good food! I'm not particularly fussy either, but from what I had heard about Ugandan food before coming here I was quite nervous! Food here has a reputation for being very bland and repetitive. It probably is a fair assessment, but I'm actually not finding it so bad.

My breakfast here is without exception toast, a banana and a cup of fairly average instant coffee. Sometimes I'll have an egg too but the yolks are so pale that I can't help but think of the poor undernourished hens you see everywhere when I eat one. A little off putting.

Lunch at school always includes beans and posho. The teachers receive some other 'dish'. Most often it is boiled cabbage, sometimes matoke (which is stemmed or boiled savoury tasting bananas), sweet potato (which is just like kumara) or 'Irish' potatoes (which are simply referred to as Irish by Ugandans). It would be fair to say that carbs rule supreme here! I also have similar food for dinner, although there is a lot more variety.

I find the servings here enormous. They have learnt at school to serve me smaller portions and even then I always end up giving some of my lunch to the kids.

People here only seem to eat cooked vegetables, and while the fruit is fantastic there doesn't seem to be a lot of evidence of people eating much fresh fruit. I am loving the passion fruit and pineapple even if the locals don't.

Interestingly people don't eat very much meat here. In fact in a month I've eaten meat less than 10 times. Quite different to NZ in that regard. Meat eaten is mainly goat, beef or chicken. You can also get fish which is caught in Lake Victoria. Meat is sold in little road side stalls (like everything here) and every time I do eat meat I can't help but think of the slabs of meat sitting in the sun with flies buzzing around. Dairy products are very uncommon, particularly cheese. Snack foods includes fried chicken and chapattis.

Ovens are almost nonexistent here. Pretty much everything here is either boiled or deep fried over charcoal! Most people don't have fridges, so food is only prepared as needed.

While I am surviving on the food front I'd be lying if I didn't say that I crave western food from time to time. Flat whites, nice salads, cheese, a decent steak, and [insert any other delicious food].

On a final food related note, for those who came to my 'Come dine with me dinner' in London I can personally vouch for the money you gave to the hot lunch program going to a good cause. All the money went directly to the school I am at and £225 goes a long way here. Ensuring that all the kids get lunch is really worthwhile. Apparently before they started the program, parents were asked to give extra money to ensure the children all received food at lunch, but many didn't pay it. While school fees would be paid and uniforms purchased, providing lunch for their children just isn't a priority for parents (who are no doubt been financially stretched in so many directions). The program is one of the best ways of helping people here without setting foot on the continent. If anyone does want to contribute to the program please let me know so I can ensure the money goes to the right person before I leave.

The passionfruit are AMAZING.

Posho and beans

Mzungu food goodness

Bedewed

I am feeling a bit bedewed this week (a nicer way of expressing extremely hot!) It is currently rainy season here (there are two each year) and it hasn't rained for a few days so it is very muggy and humid.

People here are always asking me how I am finding the heat. In truth I have found it fine apart from the last week. It gets to around 27 degrees most afternoons but it cools to a pleasant sleeping temperature of 19 degrees at night.

The humidity has been worse the last week and when combined with a slight fever from a cold it hasn't been ideal.

The classrooms offer some breeze (as evidenced by the photos) but it is pretty limited. It is fair to say by the end of a day spent in close proximity with thirty five 9-13 year olds I have a pretty special aroma (and I have included a photo of the dusty feet, no unfortunately it's not a tan). Luckily the bucket showers have been serving me as well as I could hope.

The value of money

Even in three weeks here it has become all too clear how differently money is valued here. Going from one week working in a London law firm to the next sitting in a school class room where parents can barely scrap together £10 for school fees is probably one of the more extreme changes I will ever witness.

Wages in Uganda are low, even when compared to other Eastern African nations. According to the power of google a primary teacher at a private school might earn,100,000 shillings a month. Additional deductions are sometimes made for food and accommodation often provided by schools. 100,000 shillings is the equivalent of approximately £25. I find it difficult to believe how people survive on such low salaries.

It is almost impossible to leave the house in London without spending £25. In fact I used to think nothing of spending £250 on flights for a long weekend away.

As a result of the low salaries, teachers often have other jobs (it is common for women to sew garments in their spare time). People also take a short term view of money. For example most families will buy rice by the cupful rather than stockpiling it at home. There are shops everywhere where staples such as rice and beans can be purchased in this way. Vegetables and fruit are sold at roadside stalls. Another example is airtime top up. Mobile phones rule supreme here and every adult I have met had one. However rather than topping up, say monthly, people top up 1000 shillings at a time (~25p/50 NZ cents). Yes, top up cards can be purchased for 1000 shillings!

As a westerner, money goes a long way. I have been going to a weekly pork night with other volunteers and Ugandans involved in some of the local NGOs (who as middle class Ugandans are a relatively rare breed). A 500ml beer and pork meal costs less than £2. A coke in a local restaurant is usually less than 50p. Of course Kampala itself is more expensive, but still affordable. Transport is also good value. Definitely don't let the price of things stop you from coming here!

Excitement overload

Happily life in Uganda for me is not all work and no play. This weekend has been particularly action packed.

On Friday the principal of the School, Nansuegh, took me and another teacher out for dinner. Nansuegh is in her 70s or maybe even 80s and she set up Nalusse School when she 'retired'. She is a trained educator (unlike the directors of some similar schools) and really seems to care about the kids. She is very worldly and rather unusually she has travelled, she trained for sometime in Australia and she has also been to England. All in all she is a very interesting person to talk to - there aren't many people her age here (the life expectancy is about 53 years). She obviously lived through the gaining of independence and also Amin which she talks about. It was nice to get the chance to talk to her and very kind of her to take me out.

On Saturday I went to watch Uganda football team play Zambia in the second qualifying match for the Africa Cup. Insane. It was like being on the embankment for the cricket, times about twenty when it came to the intensity of the crowd. I was kind of nervous about going as I had heard lots of horror stories about the crowds. The number of police in riot gear certainly indicated problems in the past. Happily one of the women in our group worked at the American Embassy, and I figured that if there was any intel about problems she wouldn't have gone.

I went to extreme measures to avoid being mugged anyway and so I didn't take my camera and have no photos to share. Even if I had it wouldn't have depicted the atmosphere and the noise of the crowd. You will just have to imagine 40,000 Ugandans and maybe 100 white people shouting and chanting on their feet all dressed in Ugandan shirts, wearing masks, scarfs, and face paint and blowing (what felt like) a million horns for 7 hours straight. (two hours for the game and five hours beforehand). It was intense. At least one goat and one sacrificial chicken (painted in the Zambian colours) were spotted too.

The game itself was really good to watch and Uganda won 1-0. They had lost the other qualifying game with Zambia 1-0 so it went to penalties to determine who qualified. Unfortunately Uganda lost 8-9 in the shoot out. The only good thing about the end result was that it subdued the horn blowing!

I went to the game with about 20 white people and some Ugandans. They were mainly Americans who are here (being Uganda and Rwanda) on fellowships where they work alongside Ugandan fellows in yearlong public health roles. Being such a big group of white people was entertaining because everyone wanted to take photos of us. Some asked outright, others were more surreptitious about it. It was a truly African experience and well worth the £10 ticket price.

The intensity of the football was then followed today by white water rafting the Nile. I went with the two other volunteers currently working on another project for the Real Uganda. (They are an American girl and Canadian guy both finishing/at uni). The other people on the trip were three Brits in their mid thirties working for the British embassies in Uganda and Ethiopia respectively. It was really interesting hearing about diplomatic life in both countries.

The rafting itself was pretty freaky. The first rapid had a 15ft waterfall (and I have a photo of us going over it to prove it) and we tipped out in two of the other rapids. Tipping out and being tossed around in massive rapids, particularly when you don't really know which way is up isn't so fun. But it was a massive buzz! The reminder of the buzz is going to be evident for the next few days thanks to some awesome new short marks - thanks doxycycline for making me extremely sensitive to the sun!

Three new volunteers arrive tomorrow and it is funny to think I won't be the newbie anymore! Next post is likely to be on the value of money here (and the power of the pound!)

Rabbit breeding...

In a continuation of the school life theme, I thought I'd share details of my forays into teaching proper.

I thought with my science background, science would be a good subject to teach. It is the final term of the year here (school holidays are almost bang on the same as the old three term year in NZ) and the only outstanding topic for science in the P4 class is rabbit breeding. It is as tedious as it sounds. I don't think rabbit meat is particularly popular here! Random fact for the day was that one of the five exotic breeds I had to teach the kids about today was the New Zealand White. In my rabbit breeding ignorance I had never even heard of the breed!

Anyway the module it is going pretty well. The most frustrating aspect is the variation of ability in the class. The bright kids follow everything and always get the answers correct. The kids that are behind in class don't even understand the questions on the board (which is all too obvious from the answers written in their exercise books).

The system here just doesn't cater for the slower kids. It breaks my heart that they just sit there carefully writing answers to questions they don't even understand. But who knows, maybe that's life with teaching.

This weekend I'm off to watch Uganda vs Zambia, a big football match. On Sunday I'll be rafting the Nile. It's tough but someone has to do it...

School life

The first couple of days at school were spent in a bit of a haze. I observed lots of classes and my initial impression was that the kids were getting a fairly good education. The class timetable is printed and displayed on the wall had a mixture of classes that I would expect 9-11 year olds to be studying. Maths, english, science, social studies, music, and art. According to the timetable classes run from 8.30 until 3.30. A pretty similar day to a typical NZ primary school day. The P4 teacher is good. She encourages questions which isn't very common here and I wondered what the point of volunteering in a school was when I'm not a trained teacher. My skills could be much better utilised elsewhere.

However having observed for a week the huge differences between education in NZ and Uganda are becoming all to clear, as is the role of volunteers.

First, school starts at 7.45am and finishes at 5.30pm. After school breaks in the evening the kids clean the classroom and fetch water from a nearby well for the next day. Many people here believe the longer kids spend in school the better. However I'm sure you can imagine what a 9 year old is like at the end of a 9+ hour school day.

Second, the children don't ever seem to get the opportunity to be creative. Art or drawing only ever seems to involve copying a drawing from a book. Children learn everything by rote learning. I took an art class yesterday and the kids didn't really know what to do with themselves.

The classes are large (35 or so) and kids that aren't keeping up just don't get the help they need. Likewise the bright kids spend half their time in class just waiting for the other kids to finish their work.

Nalusse School is a good school. It is 'private' in that parents pay fees each term (of up to about £18 for the P7 class). State schools have classes of around 150 kids with one teacher so a lot of schools charge fees where the quality of education is much better. Having said that it is clear some families are struggling. Last week those children whose parents hadn't paid fees for the term yet got sent home until the fees have been paid. Some kids still haven't returned to school.

Caning is another thing that has been difficult to get used to. While I haven't seen any of the teachers properly cane the children (they do hit them if they don't line up properly in the mornings) it does happen. Some of the teachers cane and I am sure some parents to do. I saw a woman caning her toddler in a property just adjacent to the school last week which was hard to watch. It is hard thinking about those kids that will inevitably get caned by their parents if they don't do well at school too. However I can't change these things and one always must accept differences in culture are sometimes hard to accept. Perhaps there are a few kids in NZ and the UK who could do with being caned! (controversial I know, but children here are very respectful, as is the whole society, the problem comes when power is used in the wrong way).

The lack of resources and physical environment that the children work in is probably the most difficult thing to accept as the only thing standing in the way is lack of money. The P4 class of 30+ are crammed into a tiny classroom (I guess about 10 by 5m?). There are no windows, no electricity, a tin roof (which is really loud when it rains). In terms of school resources, most of the books are as a result of volunteers. My portion of the program fee that went to the school was used to purchase a new set of English books for P5. The kids know the reading books off by heart as there is literally one set which are periodically read aloud. They all share exercise books for english and maths between 3 or 4 students. For science and social studies only the teacher has a book. There is no P.E/sports equipment, music equipment or craft materials. Having said that the kids do seem on the whole to be happy. They have the most gorgeous smiles and there is a lot of laughter.

In terms of volunteers, i have decided that they have a number of roles. First they bring money allowing new resources to be purchased. We also bring a different way of thinking and learning, which encourages children to think more laterally rather than just rote learning. We encourage questions. We give children and teachers alike something to be very proud of. People really are proud to have a mzunga teacher. We also bring love and encouragement. Of course, I am learning immensely more from the children here than they are learning from me. But at least we are all learning something.

My day

I know that in my last post I said that I was going to adopt a thematic approach to my blog posts, but three things happened today which I consider worthy of a separate entry.

Being a Saturday I had a sleep in and lovely breakfast of fresh pineapple and passion fruit which I purchased at a roadside market last night.  (The lack of fresh fruit and vegetables in the Ugandan diet is starting to take its toll.)  I then wandered down the road to town (wandering down the road, involves walking carefully alongside the highway which has 40 tonne trucks passing, unfortunately there is no footpath) for a coffee.  I had spotted a cafe earlier in the week called Cafe La Tour.  Taking this as a very good sign, along with the fact that they had a picture of a cappuccino type looking coffee on a banner outside, I was anticipating my first "proper" coffee in over a week.  Sadly it was not to be, they said they weren't serving coffee, and I couldn't even get an instant to quell the caffeine headache.  I ended up having to settle for a coke.  Anyway, they had a newspaper to read.  One of the nice things about living in Uganda is that English is one of the official languages so all the newspapers are in English. On approximately page 3 was the story about New Zealand refusing a visa for Mike Tyson to enter the country.  I was pretty stoked to see news about New Zealand. (Incident 1).  This is mainly on account of how little people know about New Zealand. When I asked the kids as school yesterday whether they had heard of New Zealand they just looked at me blankly.

I haven't even been able to engage with people about a Ugandan winning a gold at the Olympics (which I thought was a surefire small talk conversation).  When I was talking to one of the teachers about it yesterday she thought the Olympics was some kind of game I was going to teach to the kids.

After my coke, I wandered further down the road.  Everyone I have spoken to who has lived here has recommended walking off the main road and onto some of the side streets to get a better appreciation of Mukono which is what I decided to do.  All the side streets here are dirt and I picked a fairly large one with lots of people.  As is always the case here as I walked along lots of people said or yelled out 'Mzungu' (being the word for white person).  I had a couple of kids join me for a couple of minutes just repeating mzungu and trying to talk to me in the local language.  Getting to what appeared halfway back to the other main road I was aiming for, I was faced by a big duck.  As a lot of you are aware I am scared of ducks.  I was so frightened of the duck (it looked particularly manky and was quite large) that I had to turn back and walk up some little side alley instead (while trying to appear cool, calm and collected).  I think the people that saw me thought I was completely mad.  That is right, so far, my most frightening experience has been a big duck in the middle of a random back street.  (Incident 2).

Having navigated my way back to the main part of the town center (and when I write center, I mean T Junction where the road one way goes to Kamapala, the other Nariobi and the other west Uganda) to find some lunch.  After a week of beans and posho/rice/sweet potato for lunch and dinner every day, I decided to hunt out chicken and chips at a restaurant I had been told about.  I went in and ordered what I thought was chicken and chips.  The meal came out and had a piece of chicken (incidentally not fully plucked), and some kind of fried hamburger patties, but no chips.  When I got the bill it had chicken listed and 'chaps' listed.  Chaps being the unidentified meat I was given initially.  Yes apparently, the New Zealand accent faces just the same difficulties here. (Incident 3).

Hopefully there won't be any other incidents today.  I am planning to take some photos soon which I will try to upload and I have a post brewing about school life here.

New home, new job - first impressions

I am now a resident of Mukono Town, Uganda.  My new home for the next two months. 

Today was my first day at the school I will be working at.  It is a primary school of approximately 200 kids located just around the corner from where I am living.  My class is P4, apparently according to one of the kids they are all 11 but I am dubious (they seem a bit younger).

Mukono Town is a relatively large commercial district about 1 hour from the capital Kampala, it is on the main road through to Nairobi, so lots of big trucks passing through and very bustling.

I am planning to adopt a themed approach to my blog posts rather than a day by day account of my time here.  First up, rather appropriately, is five first impressions (no doubt these will feature in later posts...)

1. Smiling/staring.  People do stare.  I am the only volunteer living full time at the guest house in Mukono at the moment so I tend to be wandering around the town alone and there aren't many other white people in Mukono (I've seen two so far, one in the internet cafe and one in the Orange shop buying a SIM card). Consequently people stare at me.  But if you smile they most often break into the biggest smiles back.

2. There really isn't running water.  The kids have to go and fetch it after school.  But Mukono is developed and relatively large, so compared to the villages it isn't too much of a tax (where 4km walks aren't uncommon).  Bucket showers are surprisingly fine, pit toilets less so.

3.  The food lacks variety and vegetables.  Standard is beans and posho.  The beans are actually really delicious, posho less so.  I haven't had meat yet but am a little frightened of it as I walked around the market where everyone buys it from last night.  (a bit smelly)...

4. The kids do seem pretty well educated all things considered (such as having to stop classes whenever it rains as the sound of rain on a tin roof drowns out the teacher, lack of books etc).  I'm not sure me teaching them Social Studies (which I am scheduled to do tomorrow) is going to add much to their education per se, but meeting a foreigner is good for them, and for that alone I suspect volunteering is worthwhile.

5. People are friendly and it feels safe. Lots of people want to talk to me and are always very friendly and interested in hearing about where I am from.  Interestingly, travelling in South America/Central America felt much more sinister. 

Ok, that is all I have time for, for now.  While Uganda is completely different and a world away from London/NZ the culture shock hasn't been too bad so far (and hopefully it stays that way...)

Of no fixed abode (and unemployed)

Once again, with great excitement, and at this stage only a little trepidation, I am of no fixed abode.  I have now moved out of my flat, and as of yesterday I am unemployed.

I have lived and worked in London for just over a year now.  While I have loved many things about London, I feel in need of some time away and I have decided to give up the lawyering for a bit to spend four months in Africa.  

I get the sense that resigning from a perfectly good, well-paid, job (especially during the the Big 'R') isn't necessarily the usual course people follow, especially in England.  However, at the end of the day, London isn't going anywhere and if I don't take the time out now, I might never. 

So, tomorrow I will be flying to Kampala, Uganda for two months of teaching in a school there, followed by two months of traveling, where I will wind up in Cape Town, before flying back to London.

I am still in two minds about blogging and I can't promise that I will keep it up, but long may it last and happy reading.