The last few days

Sorry for the lack of posts.  I have been meaning to post since Sunday, but internet and power were out for most of the time, so here I am in Amsterdam on my way home putting down the last of my thoughts.

Sunday was an amazing day, in the morning I went to a church service out on the property.  Wasswa one of the little guys that I sponsor was there wearing the new outfit that I had given him.  After the service was finished they serve lunch to the community members in attendance.  Little Wasswa wouldn't let go of my hand, not even to eat.  He wouldn't even get in line for food, so his sister brought him a plate.  He is such a sweetheart and I'm so glad he was there.

After lunch we went to Kako Secondary school for visitation day.  Eagles Wings has some extension students boarding there.  Bill & Ann were gone to another event so there were myself, some other volunteers, some staff and some other locals along.  I got there and met the students and after 5 minutes of knowing Jovia, became her "parent." She gave me a tour of the school, and we got in line to talk to her teacher.  I was signing forms and hearing about her report card!  All after just meeting her.  She was so welcoming though it didn't feel awkward at all.  

Do you remember Peter that I blogged about last year? I didn't think I would get to see him this year since he would already be away at boarding school.  Well, it turns out I did get to see him at visitation day.  It was a nice surprise and I'm so glad I saw him.  He has a hilarious sense of humour and uses North American slang I haven't heard any other Ugandan use.

Monday, Bill & Ann took the volunteers for a day visit to Mburo National Park.  While it is not known as a big game park, we did get to see a lot of Zebra's and Impala's.  That was nice because they didn't have zebra's on the last safari I went on.

Tuesday was my last full day so I tried to enjoy it as much as I could.  I played with Grace & Elisha in the morning, and then when school was out the children asked me to go on an outing with them to a "playground."  I asked them if there were slides at the playground and they gave me a weird look.  It turns out it was a football pitch they were going to (soccer field).  There were two adult teams playing, and a whole lot of school boys running laps around the field.  It was exciting for the children, and I was the only muzungu in a large crowd of people, so generated a lot of attention. Tuesday night I said goodbye to the children.  I'm going to miss them more than I want to think about.  I wasn't ready to leave, I could have easily stayed for another 6 months or a year.  I know I'll return, I'm just not sure when.  I still need to get back to India, so I'm not sure which return visit will come first.

So now begins re-entry.  It is never easy and I'm not looking forward to this part of my journey.  I'll miss the community I had in Uganda.  I'll miss the friends I have there and the beautiful children.  On the other hand, I have so much to tell people at home and there are many ways I can advocate for the children I love.  I can be their voice on the other side of the ocean, and that is an awesome privilege. 

I'll leave you with a few pictures.  Stay tuned for more to be posted on Facebook.  I also think you'll notice I look more African than when I left, but I'll let you decide on that when you see me:)

Some of the girls from Family 2.  Those of you who have been to EWCV will notice how much taller they are.

Me & my friend Peter.  It was such a nice surprise to see him at visitation day for his boarding school.

Visitation day at Kako Secondary School.

Matoke going to market.

 

Some Zebra's at Mburo National Park.

Your donations do make a difference

Sorry, I know I just posted a blog post, but I have been meaning to post construction photos for a while.  Thank you to those people that donated towards my marathon.  The money went towards the Family 3 housing project.  Family 3 is currently living in interim housing and waiting anxiously to move out to the property.  Here are some photos of what your money built. Money raised at the upcoming Benefit concert will go towards this project as well.

The completed dining hut, and partially completed first of two boys huts.

The top of the line eco san toilets.  These are the directors pride and joy.  And I designed them last year on our eMi project trip!  He followed the design and they look good:)

The power of a letter

Today was such a good day.  I worked hard this morning on my pictures for the sponsors and managed to finish them up by early afternoon, so that was a relief.  I was getting a bit worried that I had bit off more than I could chew.  I still have the unsponsored kids to do, but that can be done once I get home.  It was important that I finish up the sponsored kids so I could leave them with the secretary here to send to the sponsors.

Right before lunch I played a wild game of hide and go seek and kick the can with all the kids.  The boys were all trying to protect me and find me the best spot.  It was so sweet.  They would come and tell me where to hide and then spy and give me updates on the status of the seeker. When they thought it was the best time to kick the can, they would scream "Run Auntie Run!" at the top of their lungs.

Another funny part of my day was when Fred, one of the littler guys was walking around holding my hand and all of a sudden looked up at me with his big brown eyes and with the deepest sincerity said "Auntie, you smell good!"

Today Ibra, the boy that I sponsor in Family 3, told me he wanted me to come see his room.  He pulled out a cloth shopping bag that I had given him last year from under his bed, and inside was his most treasured possessions. At the top were all the letters I had sent him, piled neatly, folded back and stored in the envelopes, clearly read and re-read.  For those of us that sponsor children, I don't think we truly understand how much our words mean to the kids we sponsor.  Ibra has told me on more than one occasion that he see's me as his Mom.  What a great and awesome responsibility that is. 

Today after supper, two of the extension students were also discussion letters from their sponsors. The girl, whose sponsors are good friends of mine said they had sent her a bible which she treasures and made her feel special because no one else has one like it.  The one boy said he was heartbroken that he had never heard from his sponsor and didn't know what they looked like.  With a dejected look in his face he looked up and said, "I don't think my sponsor loves me." His friend, then replied, that his sponsors who didn't even know him were sending him money and that in itself was enough to show him they loved him.  His response was that he knew all that, but if only they would send him a letter, he would know for sure he was loved. 

I don't want to get on a soapbox here.  For those of you that sponsor, thank you so much, you are making a huge difference whether you send letters or not.  But taking 5 or 10 minutes to write a simple letter can bring more joy than you know to the one that you sponsor.

A huge shipment of new shoes came in for all the children in Family 1, 2 & 3.  So yesterday was shoe fitting day for the children in Family 3.  They were all so excited.  As they left 6 at a time, one of the little boys was jumping up and down as he waited at the gate to go find a new pairs of shoes.  I asked him if he was excited, and as he continued to jump up and down he said "Yes, Auntie, Yes I am!"  They are all very proud of their new shoes.

 Fitting new shoes.  All these shoes were very generously donated by an organization called (I think) "Souls for Shoes."

 The children were presented with new bibles today.  They all dressed up in their fancy clothes for the ceremony.  They were so excited, as many of them had been wanting their own bible for a long time.

Wahabu plays football with the rest of the boys.

America & Arabia

Today was a tiring day.  We didn't have electricity for yesterday and most of today and now the electricity is on, but the water is not.  It is really not that bad, but I would definitely take no power over no water.

Today my plan was to work on photoshopping the pictures I had taken for sponsors.  Things came up and I ended up watching Elisha and Grace for the day so got less done than I had planned, but still enough to make me satisfied.  My word, I don't know how two 3 year olds could wear me out so much.  Grace is pretty easy, but Elisha is a fireball of energy. I had fun with the two of them, even if it is sometimes hard to referee the arguments they have in Luganda:)

After school today the boys were out playing a game with each other.  It consisted of running around and hitting each other with rags.  I asked them what this game was called, and they started laughing hysterically and said it was called America & Arabia.  From what I gather there are two teams (presumably Team America & Team Arabia?) and you try to get in a slappy rag fight with someone from the opposite team.

Meanwhile the girls were playing a slightly less rowdy game of something they had made up.  It was still high energy and exciting, but didn't involve any sort of slapping rags.  I love how kids everywhere share some of the same qualities, yet how their culture defines them as completely different.  I am constantly amazed at just how Ugandan Elisha and Grace are at the tender age of 3.  And now that I think about it the kids at home are usually quite Canadian by a young age as well.  It doesn't take long at all to conform to the ways of where you live.

I'm digging my heels in trying to get time to slow down, but it's just not.  I'm going to miss so many things about Africa when I'm gone.  I know I'll leave part of me behind.

 America & Arabia (aka run around and hit your brothers with a rag)

The girls playing their game.

Pictures and more pictures

Today I went out to the EWCV property and took individual pictures of all the kids.  If you sponsor a child here, you should be getting an updated picture in the next few weeks.  It was so much fun.  We took pictures all day and still didn't finish, so are going back tomorrow.  We took pictures of both sponsored and unsponsored kids.  We are sending updated pictures to the sponsors and hoping the updated pictures of the unsponsored kids will help find them sponsors at our upcoming benefit concert.

As a result of my picture taking I got to see all the kids I sponsor, plus meet many of the kids that friends and family of mine sponsor.  It was just so great. 

I can't believe how fast my time here is flying by.  I really wish I had longer, so I could get a better grasp of the language and simply just because I love it here.  Some days I am reminded just how out of place I am here, but for the most part it feels like home.

Yesterday I was on sandbox duty.  The three 3 year olds, Elisha, Grace and Trust are the sandbox crew.  They all know the words "It's mine" in a variety of languages, so there sometimes I need to sharpen up my referee skills.  We are currently learning about sharing and playing with toys that are not occupied by others.  Grace was so cute the other day when she was talking about "pussy cats."  She speaks Luganda and English fluently, but tends to use more Luganda in the sandbox with her Ugandan friends.  So it was so cute when we were looking through a book and she looked up at me and started talking about pussy cats, especially since having a pet "pussy cat" is not really something that is common here.

I'm starting to learn a some more of the names of the Family 3 kids, however I still have to ask some of them on a regular basis.  Sometimes I can be sneaky and ask Grace or Elisha who's who. Yesterday as I was playing a rowdy game of duck duck goose with several of the children I looked over at one little girl who had thrown her head back in laughter and realized the miracle of her existence. As a baby her mother had tried to dump her in a pit latrine, but failed.  Here she is today, laughing and playing and going to school.   

 Elisha is such a sweetheart.  I love this little boy, that made death wait.  By all rights, the circumstances he was found in dictate that he shouldn't be here, but he is, and he lives life to the fullest.

I sponsor this little guy Wasswa.  He is so cute, I wish I could pack him up and bring him home in my suitcase.  And he is such a ham in front of the camera.  He kept coming up to me and holding my hand, it was priceless.

Here in Masaka

I made it to Eagles Wings Children's Village.  I'm so happy to be back.  The kids are so much bigger and I'm working hard to remember all of their names.  Coming back has also reminded me that leaving for a year and then returning is not always a seamless transition.  A lot has changed.  The work that is going on here is such an encouragement.  EWCV is helping so many people and it really is inspiring.  I was able to see the building they have done since my last visit. They have built a few of the eco-san toilets I designed last year and I look forward to checking them out in more detail this week.  According to Bill they are the nicest toilets in Uganda, but he does tend to be a bit biased towards eco-san toilets, especially his.  Thanks to those of you who supported my marathon.  I got to see the building that took place as a direct result of your support.  I'll post a picture soon. The kids knew I ran a half marathon for them and some of them have asked me about it.  Many people have thanked me for advocating and raising support on their behalf and that makes it all worth it.  Thanks for those who have supported this cause.  Also thanks to those who donated vitamins and toothpaste.  It was very much appreciated.


However, being here has also reminded me how hard this type of work is.  The cross cultural element of it is never easy, and sometimes challenges arise that seem insurmountable.  Sometime, the people that you are trying to help disappoint you. For those of you who pray, pray hard for the work they are doing here because they need it.

I love it here, there are moments which are hard, really hard, some things I don't understand and I feel like the weight of humanity is on my shoulders, but I wouldn't change being here for anything. An experience like this is hard to put into words, but I try my best.

I'm looking forward to seeing what is in store for me this week.  I know I'll be working on a photography project, but other than that I'm not sure.  I'm enjoying not having too much of a set schedule and being able to go out and play with the children without having to worry about finishing up a design.
 

 Elisha is so much bigger than last year and he is talking so much more.  At the age of three he is fluent in both English and Luganda and will occasionally translate for me in the sandbox.  I wish I had his language abilities.

 Peter!  He is a little acrobat with all his back flips.

 Ibra, Mark, Jonathan, Caleb and Fred.

Elisha loves to play the drum and has excellent rhythm.  He is such a neat mix of Canadian and Ugandan culture.

The boys bury Trust!

Safari

I am off to Eagles Wings Children's Village this morning.  I wanted to post a few pictures from my safari because it was amazing.  Monday I went kayaking in the Nile at Jinja.  It was great.  I took a lesson in the morning and then paddled around with a guide in the afternoon.  No rapids this time, but learning how to roll was so much fun and I want to practice some more.

Murchison falls was beautiful.  I did a game drive, a boat ride and a hike up to the falls.  I met some great people while there.  We got to see every animal there is to see there except a leopard which is extremely rare to see.  It was amazing beyond words to see so many animals.  One night I woke up to a loud crunching sound.  The girl I was sharing a tent with said there was a hippo right outside our safari tent and she could feel it bumping against her.  They told us if we heard hippos to just stay in our tent and they wouldn't bother us.

I took over 700 pictures so choosing a few to post was hard!  I'm not even posting one of each animal I saw.

The people I met were a mix of tourists and aid workers.  Some people were just here for a short time doing tours and safari's.  It really made me realize that what I love about travel is interacting with the local people.  I want to know what it means to be a local.  Some of the people I met didn't have any interaction with locals beyond their tour guides.  I don't think I would enjoy that type of experience.  I'm so happy that I went on the safari, but I'm also happy that the majority of my trip includes living inside this culture.  I love Africa and what it means to be African.  There are a lot of things I don't understand, but the people are patient, and I try my best.  They appreciate it when you make an effort to learn their language and understand their ways.  The messiness of integration is part of what makes it so exhilarating.

I wanted to post these now before I leave for Eagles Wings and have more photos to post!

 We hiked in and around Murchison falls, it was amazing.

 These baby warthogs were hanging around our camp.  All the locals call them "Pumba's"

Here is a photo of me in the kayak.  This is the one I used in the afternoon to tour around. I don't have any pictures of the whitewater kayak I took my lesson in.

Last thoughts on Rwanda

Since I have been out of internet connection for a while I wrote this post a while back with the intent of posting it later.  I wanted to get the experience into words before I forgot what it was like.

The past few days have been amazing.  I haven’t felt yet like I have had time to sit down and write a good blog post.  Hopefully I’ll have some more time in the near future to do so.  Since I wanted to remember everything about the past few days and we don’t have internet access tonight, I’m writing this post for publishing at a later date.

Yesterday (March 2) we had our presentation to Gate of Hope.  I was presenting on the water, sanitation and storm water drainage.  The presentation was translated into Kinyarwanda.  I have done a few presentations that have been translated so it wasn’t a completely new experience to me, however, it still proved to be a challenge.  I noticed that as I was presenting, Paulene’s Mom was laughing so hard she could barely stay in her seat while I was talking about the wastewater system.  I’m not sure what was funnier, the fact that I was talking about toilets, or the fact that I had to find 5 different ways to describe a sewage leach pit before it could finally be translated.  As I was trying to describe the leach pit, people from the audience who were fluent in English were piping up with what they thought the translation would be.  It was like a group effort to translate the toilet language.  Overall though the presentation went very good and the ministry was happy with what they saw.  We got some useful comments from locals that lived in the village, and one of the local government representatives was present.

Today we headed off this morning to come to a hotel and have our closing and decompression time.  Gate of Hope hired a mattatu (van) for us.  After we got about 500 metres down the road, the van stopped.  The driver got out and had a look and then his assistant, grabbed a cooking oil container, and took off on a boda (motorcycle) to the local gas station to get some diesel because the tank was empty.  After he got back they poured a small amount of diesel in the tank.  He pumped the gas pedal and couldn’t get it started.  So he proceeded to take a mouthful of diesel and spit it over the battery (?).  We then rolled backwards down a hill as he tried to do a running start.  It finally started and we were on our way.  One of our local friends turned around and said “This is Africa.”  We all found the situation funny and this is indeed Africa.  So the story isn’t finished.  We got maybe 5 km down the road and the van stopped again.  Perhaps because he only put about half a litre of diesel in it, however the driver said it had no such thing to do with running out of gas and that it was a problem with the carburetor, however none of us believed that tale.  We ended up sitting there until they brought a new taxi at which point the first thing we did was fill up with diesel and we were on our way.  We are staying at a really nice hotel for the night.  Brenna (the other girl intern) and I are sharing a room and just finished raving about the amazing shower we just had.  We also went to this amazing Indian restaurant for supper.  It was really fancy and all the waiters were walking around in what looked like Aladdin costumes.  The food was amazing.  It was great to have such a wonderful closing time with the team, however, I can’t believe this part of my journey is over already.  This team was really amazing and it was wonderful to see how well we worked together and how all our skill sets worked together to accomplish the final product.  It is sometimes surprising to see how these teams somehow end up with people that have just the right skills to get the job done.  This team was probably one of the best examples of that.

In the morning we will leave Kigali at 4:30 AM  to head back to Kampala.  I’ll be on Safari from Monday-Thursday and then I head to Eagles Wings Children’s Village on Friday morning.

I had a hard time picking just a few pictures, but these are a few of my favourites.

 The team with the Gate of Hope family.

 Me & Bella.  She's such a sweetheart.

 Some of the nursery students.

 Some of the locals debate our master plan.

Still alive and well

Quick post from a hostel computer.  I wrote a post about my time in Rwanda that I'll put up later.  My time in Rwanda was amazing.  I'll be off the radar for a few days on my safari but will put up some pictures when I return.

We took the scenic route through the mountains yesterday and it was breathtaking.  I had to pinch myself to make sure it was real.  I'm loving it here.

Anyway got to go,

Jaimee

Texters and Rubbers

I wanted to post a few more pictures.  Work is going really well and I'm enjoying it immensely.  We heard tonight that internet access in East Africa is slowed down because a ship anchor pulled out an internet cable at the bottom of the ocean so I'm not sure if we'll notice the effects or not.

I've been learning about Australian slang after working with Darren.  Today I was educated on Texters and Rubbers (Highlighters and erasers).  Design has been going well and tomorrow is our presentation.

I wanted to write a bit about Gate of Hope, the organization that we are with and the family that runs it.  Pauline who is the head lady, is Rwandan and lives in the US with her husband and 2 children.  She has her PhD and is doing so much for Rwanda.  Her sister Baracka is a counsellor with her masters and this week is running a counselling training session in conjunction with some clinical psychologists and other trainers to train counsellors to look after the well being of the people here.  After the genocide psychological help was overlooked in the midst of so much physical suffering.  Baracka and her team is looking to change that.  It was so encouraging to see all the people in training this week and to know it is run completely by local people.  They have already passed 100 people through the 1 year training program.  Pauline and Baracka are completely Rwandan, yet have a very good understanding of Western culture.  Gate of Hope aspires to eventually expand their existing nursery school and counselling program and training, as well as have a safe house in conjunction with the International Justice Mission on their site.  They will also have a vocational training school.

Currently Gate of Hope has a nursery school, provides counselling, and trains counsellors.  They also train widows skills such as sewing. 

I am really enjoying the team I am currently working with.  Each person brings something unique to the team.  We are working really well together and accomplishing a lot.  I have taken no small amount of abuse about my Canadian accent.  It's all in good fun though.

 I have some mad skills on the machete.

 Performing a perc test.  With the help of some locals we augured some holes 1.5 m and 2 m deep.

 The survey crew has an audience.  The whole village knows we're in town.

 The team at work.

The kids loved touching my hair.