Famous in Mayuge: Tales of a Mzungu in Uganda

One of the coolest parts about my internship is that I get to travel to two countries other than South Africa. As if it wasn't cool enough to be living in SA for 10 weeks, Habitat thought I needed some field experience to really grasp the work they are doing to make my recommendations. As I write this, I am in my hotel in Kampala, Uganda. I am nearing the end of my week touring the eastern part of the country, visiting the two field offices and families in the Mayuge and Kumi districts. 

The week started flying into Entebbe and traveling to Kampala. Ugandans drive like no one I have ever witnessed, they overtake one another at breakneck speeds, dash around giant potholes and narrowly miss hitting a boda-boda (motorcycles). Ugandan roads are not for those that get car sick easily. We began our work week by visiting the National Office to meet the staff and hitch our ride to Mayuge. The Ugandan OVC Specialist, Gilbert, and our driver, Hajji, Annette (the AME OVC Specialist and my boss), and I loaded up in the Toyota Hilux and were on our way.*  Fun fact: Hajji is a term of respect in Islam used for someone that has taken the trip to Mecca. The first stop was the Mayuge district. We pulled up to the field office and I instantly hear "Mzungu Mzungu!!!" I look up from packing up my bag and see twenty kids outside my car door. Staring. "Mzungu means white person" Gilbert tells me. I died out laughing. I get out of the car and give a little wave, they giggle and attempt to follow me into the office. They crowd outside the door and giggle until the field director, Soloman, has to tell them to go away because we are trying to have a meeting.  We discuss how the field office is doing, what the challenges are, and then leave to visit some families. We drive into the BUSH. We are literally on goat paths driving over tall grasses, trying not to hit goats, cows, chickens, or people and dodging huge rivets in the ground. The first thing that happens is the kids notice the truck and start yelling "motocar motocar" then they see me in the front seat and go berserk. They start jumping up and down, shouting, waving. What do I do? I laugh and wave back like I'm Grand Marshall of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. It only gets better when we get out of the car and visit families. The parents are always very reserved, but it becomes a game between the kids of who will be brave enough to talk to the white girl first. I say Yoga! (hello in the Ateso dialect) and they laugh or whisper Yoga noi! (more respectful if you are speaking to someone older than you). I usually get out from them that they are doing fine and that they are in grade X. One of my favorite families had a five little boys that were enthralled with my camera. They loved seeing their picture on my screen. My experience in Mayuge was great, I was happy to be the excitement for the day. It isn't usual that people get so excited just because I showed up. 

Habitat House in Kumi District 

After the field visits we crashed in the hotel and then set off for Kumi the next morning. I had my first experience sleeping under a mosquito net. It was the best sleep I have had since I left home, I think having a princess canopy bed for 10 years  prepped me very well for the mozzi nets. We spent two days in Kumi doing the same routine. Kumi is a little bit bigger, with WAY more white people (NGOs and missionaries stop through here) so the kids were not as impressed I was in the village. The truck stole all the thunder in Kumi. This morning we said goodbye to the field director, as I had a rendezvous with a little body of water known and the Nile River. 

Taking a break from field work with the HFH Uganda Staff 

So my obsession with the visiting the Nile started the week before we left. I figured out that we would be crossing over the Nile to get to Kumi and Mayuge. I dropped hints all week and finally Gilbert told me that we would go to the source of the Nile on our way back to Kampala. Today was the day friends. I was pumped, the 5th grade geography nerd came out in a major way,  but then the buzz kill happened. Hajji told me the proper source of the Nile is a huge tourist trap. It costs 40,000 Ugandan Shillings (which is like $15 USD) and they take you on a boat and you look over a bridge. Never fear! Hajji, being the genius driver that he is, knew a side route that got us really close but we were still separated by a golf course. In the true spirit of travel we did the only thing we could do, we asked the golf course staff if we could cut across the golf course to get to the river. This super nice staff member took us across the golf course and through the bush until we got to a clearing to see the river. Was that enough for the super nerds? Never! We asked if we could take the tiny path down to the water. He looked at us like we were crazy, obviously tourists don't do this very often, but he took us down. Long story short-I hiked through the jungle and washed my hands in the source of the Nile for free!!!! 

Hiking through the jungle

Nile River lovin' 

Uganda has been wonderful. I can't say enough nice things about the people, the scenery, and the work that Habitat is doing. If you have been keeping up with the news, Ebola has struck the western part of the country and there have been isolated cases in Kampala and Iganga (where I was 2 days ago). I'm not worried about getting it (see my post about washing your hands) but say a prayer or send good vibes to the people of this beautiful country. Cases like this have wipeout huge numbers of vulnerable populations in 2007, there is no cure, and when a person is infected they have a 2-90% chance of dying from it. 

Next week...adventures from Malawi!

*A note to the HFH Auditors...you cannot, I repeat cannot, drive a car to visit beneficiaries unless it has 4 wheel drive. Don't be cheap.