I've spent the last 9 days at back-to-back Peace Corps conferences. The first was a gathering of all Peace Corps Volunteers in Uganda, meant to provide us a forum for sharing experiences, ideas, etc. The second conference was for the 16 members of my original Peace Corps group. The purpose of this second workshop was to prepare us for readjustment into America, resume writing, grad school and job searching etc.
Our particular Peace Corps group (the same people I entered the country with in Aug of 2007) likes to call itself the "Screaming Eagles." To solidify of our group identity and set us apart from other groups (and also because it's just a damn good idea), we try to organize a wine and cheese party each time the group gathers. The hotel where we are currently staying, however, happens to have a few clusters of monkeys that run around stealing food off peoples' plates. As we prepared the table with the variety of cheeses, bread, crackers, and wine we could scrounge together, about 20 small monkeys stealthily neared our food table. We volunteers formed a human fence surrounding the precious delicacies and attempted giving the 'evil eye' to any primate who dared approach. We were largely successful in defending our bounty despite clever monkeys approaching from above (in trees) and from behind our backs, and were undoubtedly entertained by the whole situation.
One of the things we've been warned about in terms of readjusting back to American life and culture is the lack of humor in everyday, seemingly mundane activities. Here in Uganda I laugh daily at the humor in my day to day life, whether it's because I've been asked to give an impromptu speech at a 300 person gathering, or I made a big cultural manners gaffe, or even I am asked a very strange and funny question about America (like, do we have vegetables? Of course we have vegetables...). In America a trip to the supermarket is fairly straight forward and doesn't provide much room for exception-- things are incredibly consistent. Yet here in Uganda life is inconsistent and a harmless trip to the supermarket can turn into search all over town, an invitation to a funeral, or even a wedding proposal.
Although the inconsistencies of life can at times be incredibly frustrating for a Westerner, they're undoubtedly what keeps life here so lighthearted. When a Ugandan enters the market and the vendors have run out of rice (no rice?!?), she just brushes it off and adapts to an alternative. Instead of becoming angry at an unmet expectation, she deals with the issue maturely and without much complaint. Meanwhile, I stand waiting, frustrated, in disbelief that my planned meal cannot be prepared.
When we planned a wine and cheese party, we had envisioned a relaxed conversational setting. Instead we stood, moderately tense, protecting our goods and not able to let our guards down. Luckily we were all able to recognize the humor of the moment and how adaptations like this had become normal for us in the Peace Corps experience. As we're all experiencing some anxiety over returning home to a place we haven't lived for two years, the humor made me realize that although I'll face some major challenges readjusting, the truth of the matter is that I've learned to adapt to practically anything thrown my way. Monkeys at the wine table are not that big of deal, and readjusting home (although significant) will be doable. It's just a matter of how we choose to deal with it.
For those of you wondering when to expect me home, it seems I may be traveling home in mid-late November. More information to come :)
Thanks for reading my inconsistent blog posts!
Megan
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
World AIDS Day
(blog entry written Tuesday, December 2nd)
Yesterday I had the pleasure of celebrating World AIDS Day here in Rukungiri with friends, coworkers, community leaders, and others who have come to be important people in my life. The day was incredible—an entire day spent commemorating those in the fight against HIV/AIDS with an emphasis this year on ‘Leadership.’ We set up a big party tent, 100 chairs, a speaker system (run by generator) and watched as the crowds arrived. Over 500 people attended, eager to see skits, musical performances, traditional dances, role plays, to listen to personal testimonies from those living with HIV/AIDS, and to hear from the guest speakers. Our own RUGADA team performed a role play to show how HIV affects the human body’s immune system. Women’s groups from all over the area came to present drama shows they had created, to sing songs with clever AIDS-related lyrics, and to dance. For hours the crowds watched as their peers voiced concerns over the effect AIDS has had on their lives, as they spoke of both the hardships and the positive attitude they take towards their illness. It was this positive attitude in fact which carried the mood of the day. A passerby happening in on our event would assume that our gathering signified joy rather than sorrow, hopefulness rather than despair. The song and dance were jubilant, the guest speakers were positive, and the children around were engaged in constant fits of laughter. As the function came to close, one could sense the unity felt among attendees—between those who’ve tested positive for the virus, those who have not, and all of us as a whole who’ve had our lives affected somehow by HIV/AIDS.
In the evening I was given the special privilege to speak on our local radio station, Radio Rukungiri (96.9). As part of RUGADA’s HIV prevention project, we have a weekly radio slot Mondays at 7PM. Our project’s coordinators thought it would be wise to have me on as a guest speaker because of the special day. Along with a few other project staff, I spoke about the importance of leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS—leadership on the individual level, leadership of NGOs, and leadership for those in political and religious positions. Seeing as most people here do not have television, radio programs are widely listened to, and as I witnessed today by the number of comments I received, our program was no exception. Fitting right in with the day’s mood, the show remained positive, with lots of laughter on the air. I’ve categorized my radio debut as a success :)
...
This morning it was back to reality for me. It’s not that yesterday’s events were unreal or idealistic, rather I had almost forgotten the severity of the disease amidst the joy and jubilation of the day. Today I watched a woman, so sick she could not walk, stumbling, clinging to life’s last threads, approach our local TASO (The AIDS Support Organization) center for care. TASO’s other clients, all HIV+, helped the woman off of a motorcycle (how she had been carried in) and into the center where she could be seen by a doctor. I then walked inside to the children’s playroom where I watched a young HIV+ girl, maybe 6 or 7 years old, tie an old babydoll to her back just as Ugandan women carry their children. The girl had a bright smile on her face, a certain innocence, naivety, and as she imagined herself a mother, I myself had to wonder how it can be that she’ll never make it to child-bearing age.
The juxtaposition of joy and sobriety surrounding HIV/AIDS makes all the work worthwhile. From the joy we are motivated and inspired, and from the sobriety comes inspiration of a different sort. We are proud that here in Uganda people can be open about their HIV status without fear of much stigmatization—that they can sing and dance and let their neighbors know they are infected. We are also proud that many infected Ugandans have places to go when they are at their sickest, whether a health center, an NGO, or into a friend’s loving home.
I’ll leave you with that.
Much love,
Megan
Yesterday I had the pleasure of celebrating World AIDS Day here in Rukungiri with friends, coworkers, community leaders, and others who have come to be important people in my life. The day was incredible—an entire day spent commemorating those in the fight against HIV/AIDS with an emphasis this year on ‘Leadership.’ We set up a big party tent, 100 chairs, a speaker system (run by generator) and watched as the crowds arrived. Over 500 people attended, eager to see skits, musical performances, traditional dances, role plays, to listen to personal testimonies from those living with HIV/AIDS, and to hear from the guest speakers. Our own RUGADA team performed a role play to show how HIV affects the human body’s immune system. Women’s groups from all over the area came to present drama shows they had created, to sing songs with clever AIDS-related lyrics, and to dance. For hours the crowds watched as their peers voiced concerns over the effect AIDS has had on their lives, as they spoke of both the hardships and the positive attitude they take towards their illness. It was this positive attitude in fact which carried the mood of the day. A passerby happening in on our event would assume that our gathering signified joy rather than sorrow, hopefulness rather than despair. The song and dance were jubilant, the guest speakers were positive, and the children around were engaged in constant fits of laughter. As the function came to close, one could sense the unity felt among attendees—between those who’ve tested positive for the virus, those who have not, and all of us as a whole who’ve had our lives affected somehow by HIV/AIDS.
In the evening I was given the special privilege to speak on our local radio station, Radio Rukungiri (96.9). As part of RUGADA’s HIV prevention project, we have a weekly radio slot Mondays at 7PM. Our project’s coordinators thought it would be wise to have me on as a guest speaker because of the special day. Along with a few other project staff, I spoke about the importance of leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS—leadership on the individual level, leadership of NGOs, and leadership for those in political and religious positions. Seeing as most people here do not have television, radio programs are widely listened to, and as I witnessed today by the number of comments I received, our program was no exception. Fitting right in with the day’s mood, the show remained positive, with lots of laughter on the air. I’ve categorized my radio debut as a success :)
...
This morning it was back to reality for me. It’s not that yesterday’s events were unreal or idealistic, rather I had almost forgotten the severity of the disease amidst the joy and jubilation of the day. Today I watched a woman, so sick she could not walk, stumbling, clinging to life’s last threads, approach our local TASO (The AIDS Support Organization) center for care. TASO’s other clients, all HIV+, helped the woman off of a motorcycle (how she had been carried in) and into the center where she could be seen by a doctor. I then walked inside to the children’s playroom where I watched a young HIV+ girl, maybe 6 or 7 years old, tie an old babydoll to her back just as Ugandan women carry their children. The girl had a bright smile on her face, a certain innocence, naivety, and as she imagined herself a mother, I myself had to wonder how it can be that she’ll never make it to child-bearing age.
The juxtaposition of joy and sobriety surrounding HIV/AIDS makes all the work worthwhile. From the joy we are motivated and inspired, and from the sobriety comes inspiration of a different sort. We are proud that here in Uganda people can be open about their HIV status without fear of much stigmatization—that they can sing and dance and let their neighbors know they are infected. We are also proud that many infected Ugandans have places to go when they are at their sickest, whether a health center, an NGO, or into a friend’s loving home.
I’ll leave you with that.
Much love,
Megan
Sunday, October 19, 2008
One year down, one to go!
Greetings from Rukungiri! As you can tell by my subject line, there is reason to celebrate—I’ve been sworn in officially and living in Rukungiri for one year now!
Back in June my parents came for almost three weeks to see Uganda. We had a great time and I definitely enjoyed seeing them and seeing parts of Uganda that were new to me. We were able to visit Uganda’s two biggest game parks (saw lions at both!) as well as some lesser known tourist attractions and of course about 5 days at my site in Rukungiri. My parents even helped teach art class at a local primary school! My friends in Rukungiri enjoyed meeting my family and continue to ask, “How are mum and papa? Did they enjoy their stay? Send my greetings!”
Work has been going well. The major projects I’m working on currently include:
1. Monitoring and Evaluation officer for RUGADA HIV Prevention Project. We’re now halfway through this one year grant and have reached over 5,000 people in the district with door-to-door HIV prevention counseling. It’s exciting to see the good work being done and also exciting to think of what the final 6 months of the project holds.
2. Arts & Crafts Teacher at a local primary school. I continue to teach art classes to students of about 3rd-6th grade. We’re having fun and I enjoy letting the kids use the right side of their brain for a small fraction of the school day. I am, however, running out of ideas, so if you have some please share!!!
3. Life skills! Josephine (RUGADA secretary) and I have just begun a new life skills project at our resource center. Quite some time ago I had started teaching baking lessons at the center, but we were really struggling with money for materials and transport. After attending a Peace Corps sponsored life skills workshop, Josephine suggested that we revamp our resource center activities to include life skills and cookery lessons, and I applied for a small grant to do so. We just started last week, with Josephine teaching life skills lessons about things like self-esteem, making good decisions, and reproductive health, while I taught baking (chocolate cake…yum!).
4. The final activity on which I’ve been spending a fair amount of time is ‘hanging out’ at TASO (The AIDS Support Organization). TASO is a huge NGO with one of its 11 national centers located right here in Rukungiri. The organization is very well run and reaches thousands of HIV positive and AIDS infected people in the area with clinical support, counseling, and a variety of other services. I say that I ‘hang out’ there, because mostly I just walk in once or twice a week and observe how things work, make new friends, and learn some tips. Their staff has been incredibly friendly and helpful, so that whenever RUGADA or another group needs advice on designing an HIV/AIDS related program, all one needs to do is walk into their building and ask whoever walks by! Their staff has also helped me to learn some new data management programs so that my monitoring and evaluation work for RUGADA is done more efficiently and accurately. They are a truly amazing organization!
I think that wraps up the major things I do with my days. With my non-work hours I’ve been enjoying exploring Rukungiri, and more recently exploring Japan (on a ten day vacation to visit my good friend Erin) and also celebrating Uganda’s Independence day with the annual Peace Corps gathering, Goatstock (complete with roasted goats, a softball tournament, and costume contest).
I think that’s about it. I hope you folks are still reading my blog despite my highly intermittent posts (sorry!). Also, I’d love to hear from you!
Happy fall to those of you back stateside!
Megan
Back in June my parents came for almost three weeks to see Uganda. We had a great time and I definitely enjoyed seeing them and seeing parts of Uganda that were new to me. We were able to visit Uganda’s two biggest game parks (saw lions at both!) as well as some lesser known tourist attractions and of course about 5 days at my site in Rukungiri. My parents even helped teach art class at a local primary school! My friends in Rukungiri enjoyed meeting my family and continue to ask, “How are mum and papa? Did they enjoy their stay? Send my greetings!”
Work has been going well. The major projects I’m working on currently include:
1. Monitoring and Evaluation officer for RUGADA HIV Prevention Project. We’re now halfway through this one year grant and have reached over 5,000 people in the district with door-to-door HIV prevention counseling. It’s exciting to see the good work being done and also exciting to think of what the final 6 months of the project holds.
2. Arts & Crafts Teacher at a local primary school. I continue to teach art classes to students of about 3rd-6th grade. We’re having fun and I enjoy letting the kids use the right side of their brain for a small fraction of the school day. I am, however, running out of ideas, so if you have some please share!!!
3. Life skills! Josephine (RUGADA secretary) and I have just begun a new life skills project at our resource center. Quite some time ago I had started teaching baking lessons at the center, but we were really struggling with money for materials and transport. After attending a Peace Corps sponsored life skills workshop, Josephine suggested that we revamp our resource center activities to include life skills and cookery lessons, and I applied for a small grant to do so. We just started last week, with Josephine teaching life skills lessons about things like self-esteem, making good decisions, and reproductive health, while I taught baking (chocolate cake…yum!).
4. The final activity on which I’ve been spending a fair amount of time is ‘hanging out’ at TASO (The AIDS Support Organization). TASO is a huge NGO with one of its 11 national centers located right here in Rukungiri. The organization is very well run and reaches thousands of HIV positive and AIDS infected people in the area with clinical support, counseling, and a variety of other services. I say that I ‘hang out’ there, because mostly I just walk in once or twice a week and observe how things work, make new friends, and learn some tips. Their staff has been incredibly friendly and helpful, so that whenever RUGADA or another group needs advice on designing an HIV/AIDS related program, all one needs to do is walk into their building and ask whoever walks by! Their staff has also helped me to learn some new data management programs so that my monitoring and evaluation work for RUGADA is done more efficiently and accurately. They are a truly amazing organization!
I think that wraps up the major things I do with my days. With my non-work hours I’ve been enjoying exploring Rukungiri, and more recently exploring Japan (on a ten day vacation to visit my good friend Erin) and also celebrating Uganda’s Independence day with the annual Peace Corps gathering, Goatstock (complete with roasted goats, a softball tournament, and costume contest).
I think that’s about it. I hope you folks are still reading my blog despite my highly intermittent posts (sorry!). Also, I’d love to hear from you!
Happy fall to those of you back stateside!
Megan
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
A Numbered Update
1. Cooking lessons are on pause for a while.
2. Art lessons are beginning again this week after a month long holiday break. Can’t wait to start up again! And thanks to all of you who have given me suggestions for the curriculum, the kids really love it. Biggest hit so far? Paper-bag puppets. Unfortunately I forgot to bring glue for attaching scrap paper to the bags as clothes, face parts, etc, but the kids didn’t mind- they ran outside and picked a local plant that produces a natural glue from its stem—I was amazed!
3. A new group of volunteers has arrived, trained, and is now working at their respective sites…meaning there’s now another volunteer in my town!
4. I’ve been horrible at writing letters lately—my apologies to all of you who I owe a response!
5. I’m preparing for my parents’ visit—the countdown is down to about 3 weeks! I can’t wait to show them around my new home.
6. Work. Work has really started to pick up. RUGADA was awarded a very large grant for an HIV prevention project throughout the district. The project will last one year (April 08-April 09) and operates through the grassroots level, with RUGADA administering the project. We’ve trained a community educator in each of the 74 communities in the district to be part of the project. They will be going door-to-door and educating people about HIV prevention. The target group of the project is youth 10-24 years who are out of school. Sub-county leaders (11) will help to facilitate the community educators. Our office is making sure the project runs smoothly, distributing funds, and I specifically am in charge of monitoring and evaluation. I’m looking very forward to seeing the project progress!!!
Life’s good—I’m definitely learning a lot and it seems everyday is some type of adventure. Hope all is well!
Much Love,
Kobusingye Megan
2. Art lessons are beginning again this week after a month long holiday break. Can’t wait to start up again! And thanks to all of you who have given me suggestions for the curriculum, the kids really love it. Biggest hit so far? Paper-bag puppets. Unfortunately I forgot to bring glue for attaching scrap paper to the bags as clothes, face parts, etc, but the kids didn’t mind- they ran outside and picked a local plant that produces a natural glue from its stem—I was amazed!
3. A new group of volunteers has arrived, trained, and is now working at their respective sites…meaning there’s now another volunteer in my town!
4. I’ve been horrible at writing letters lately—my apologies to all of you who I owe a response!
5. I’m preparing for my parents’ visit—the countdown is down to about 3 weeks! I can’t wait to show them around my new home.
6. Work. Work has really started to pick up. RUGADA was awarded a very large grant for an HIV prevention project throughout the district. The project will last one year (April 08-April 09) and operates through the grassroots level, with RUGADA administering the project. We’ve trained a community educator in each of the 74 communities in the district to be part of the project. They will be going door-to-door and educating people about HIV prevention. The target group of the project is youth 10-24 years who are out of school. Sub-county leaders (11) will help to facilitate the community educators. Our office is making sure the project runs smoothly, distributing funds, and I specifically am in charge of monitoring and evaluation. I’m looking very forward to seeing the project progress!!!
Life’s good—I’m definitely learning a lot and it seems everyday is some type of adventure. Hope all is well!
Much Love,
Kobusingye Megan
Friday, February 15, 2008
Comfort Food
I've been baking a lot lately. Cake, brownies, breads, cookies...anything that my local ingredients will allow (and where they won't, I improvise). I create a makeshift oven, out of three saucepans and a few small stones, on top of one of my burners and hope for the best. The ability to bake, despite the rarity of me baking in the states, has brought comfort. It has also given me a new opportunity in work-- the secretary from our organization was quite excited to learn that I could bake and arranged for me to teach baking lessons at our resource center. I began this past Wednesday by teaching my ten high-school and older aged female students to make a basic cake. The use of a coal fired "sigiiri" rather than my propane fueled burner made the baking process more difficult and unpredictable, yet was most appropriate based on the means my students would have at their disposal. Another, more humorous challenge, was finding activities to fill our time as the cake was slowly baking. The girls asked that I teach them a song or dance from America and so I taught them the Macarena and Hokey-Pokey, the first things that came to mind. There was much giggling from the students and on my part as I realized how ridiculous this scene must look. After a couple hours of increasing, then decreasing, then increasing, then decreasing again the cooking fire, our cake was finished and we each had a piece to enjoy. I hope to next teach them the wonders of banana bread (did I mention they have bananas here?) , brownies, perhaps chocolate chip cookies, and eventually how to make basic bread.
The activity of baking may seem trivial as a method of development, but at the heart of Peace Corps is the mission to increase human capacity through a variety of creative and innovative means. Dispersing knowledge about things such as baking, therefore, is a means to achieve this goal. Whether the students bake only occasionally but find a feeling of accomplishment in completing the task, or they continue to bake frequently and sell their products, the resulting increased knowledge and self-confidence is building capacity of local people. A Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) friend of mine in the Eastern Uganda is similarly doing things she never expected to do as a PCV--teaching clarinet and flute to Ugandan students as part of a larger effort to create East Africa's largest symphony orchestra. Like baking, the task may seem at first to be a long stretch from development work, and yet almost anyone who has participated in extra-curricular activities can attest to their worth for healthy personal development. Perhaps it no longer seems like such a stretch? In any case, the baking is a side project and soon our organization will embark on a large-scale HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention project. There is a fairly large life-skills component to the project that I hope to play a large role in. More details, of course, to come.
That's it for me here in SW Uganda. Just living with life's inconsistencies: power, water, internet all present or absent at any given time. But life is good, and I'm enjoying the adventure.
-Kobusingye Megan
The activity of baking may seem trivial as a method of development, but at the heart of Peace Corps is the mission to increase human capacity through a variety of creative and innovative means. Dispersing knowledge about things such as baking, therefore, is a means to achieve this goal. Whether the students bake only occasionally but find a feeling of accomplishment in completing the task, or they continue to bake frequently and sell their products, the resulting increased knowledge and self-confidence is building capacity of local people. A Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) friend of mine in the Eastern Uganda is similarly doing things she never expected to do as a PCV--teaching clarinet and flute to Ugandan students as part of a larger effort to create East Africa's largest symphony orchestra. Like baking, the task may seem at first to be a long stretch from development work, and yet almost anyone who has participated in extra-curricular activities can attest to their worth for healthy personal development. Perhaps it no longer seems like such a stretch? In any case, the baking is a side project and soon our organization will embark on a large-scale HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention project. There is a fairly large life-skills component to the project that I hope to play a large role in. More details, of course, to come.
That's it for me here in SW Uganda. Just living with life's inconsistencies: power, water, internet all present or absent at any given time. But life is good, and I'm enjoying the adventure.
-Kobusingye Megan
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Rainy Season in Rukungiri
Perhaps under different circumstances the onset of rainy season would have me a bit disappointed. At the moment, however, I breathe a sigh of relief with each rainfall because for some unknown reason we have run out of water here in Rukungiri. The Ugandans seem un-phased by the absence of this fluid necessity, ever-assuring that this happens from time to time and that it will soon return. I, on the other hand, admit some concern about my water situation and have taken to setting some basins out in the morning to collect rainwater, then later funneling that water (with the upper half of an old water bottle), into a number of 20-liter jugs. Chances are that the water will be turned on again within the week and my current situation will be nothing more than yet another lesson in unpredictability of Peace Corps living, but for now I will stick with my daily collection routine. (I should note that there is no need for those back home to worry—bottled drinking water is plentiful).
Despite the situation above, things are going very well. Work is picking up and I am now doing jobs that I enjoy and find worthwhile. My main work at the moment involves accompanying one of RUGADA’s community trainers out into the villages 4-5 days a week. The trainer, an older, charismatic Ugandan man, trains groups of 20-50 local farmers on how to receive government support for their agricultural pursuits. His task is mobilization, sensitization, and organization (the farmers must form groups, obtain bank accounts, and designate chairpersons in order to receive the government grants). This requires 2-3 visits to each small community (giving me a great opportunity to see much of this district). At the first visit to each community, I follow the trainer’s speech with a lesson in leadership development and good group dynamics. I do this with the assistance of five large posters/story boards I created to help illustrate my points (especially helpful with a partially illiterate audience). On my second visit to each site I do an activity in gender mainstreaming—mostly to get people thinking about roles which are typically designated to specific gender but could be performed by both men and women. Our hope with this activity is to have men and women sharing responsibility for all the farm duties so that their enterprises can grow. Digging and weeding, for example, are duties typically designated only to women here, and therefore are not completed at times when the woman is busy with another task—even if the man is capable and free to complete the duty. The gender activity proves difficult because I’m addressing long-held cultural norms and meet some resistance while doing so. I am hopeful, however, that my participatory exercise is at least inspiring some thought into gender mainstreaming and allowing the women a venue in which to express their thoughts on the matter. As I said before, I find it a truly enjoyable and worthwhile venture.
My personal life is going nicely as well. I feasted on Thanksgiving at the home of an American family living and working at the nearby hospital. The meal was complete with all the proper Thanksgiving components (with cranberry Jello instead of cranberry sauce) and even a few rounds of Thanksgiving BINGO when our stomachs were full. With an oven and refrigerator, the family is capable of making quite a few more dishes than I can on what is a close equivalent to a two-burner camp stove. My feast was followed by another holiday gathering, but this one with fellow Peace Corps Volunteers and on the weekend. As always, it was nice to meet up with the others in my region to relax, converse, and eat some of our favorite American foods. A turkey-day touch football game was even organized, which passing Ugandans watched with a bit of confusion. Although many are aware of the existence of something called ‘American Football,’ they don’t know the rules, nor can they understand why any person would choose to play it over real football (soccer). From the sidelines I laughingly agreed as I watched my fellow PCV’s throw, run, tag/tackle, huddle, and repeat the process again. To each their own…
Anyhow, that’s all for now. I hope you’re all doing well and those of you back in MN are enjoying the snowfall for me!
Megan
Saturday, October 27, 2007
I'm home :)
I owe you all a novel. Truth is, it's been a hectic month- finishing training, moving out of our host families' houses, transitioning and swearing-in in Kampala and, finally, moving to site.
Let me begin two weeks ago.
A fellow trainee, Renee, and I were chosen to MC the 'host family thank-you ceremony.' We both had traditional clothing made for the event (as did many other trainees) and spent the ceremony introducing groups of trainees doing traditional dances and songs they'd learned the last ten weeks. As you might imagine, it was a little challenging to be MC's for an event in another country, without a native-English speaking audience. Let's just say that the typical humor we like to use didn't translate as well as we'd hoped. Nevertheless, our host families seemed thoroughly entertained-- perhaps at our sad attempt to sing and dance as they do. Or maybe it was our training group's performance of the song, "Fifty Nifty United States." The event was followed by a meal blended with both Ugandan and American dishes. Two days later we packed our bags, said goodbye to the families who had so graciously taken us in for the last ten weeks, and left Luweero for Kampala. Our five days in Kampala were a blur--complete with a pool party at the American ambassador's house, a visit to the US embassy, a workshop with our supervisors, shopping for household items only available in the nation's capital, bike shopping, and our very official, symbolic, and emotional "swearing-in ceremony." As or Thursday, October 18th, I am officially a Peace Corps Volunteer (prior I was only a 'trainee'). Amidst the chaos of our days in Kampala we were also saying goodbye to the fantastic training staff who taught us the language, cultural norms, technical knowledge, and countless other things we'll be utilizing for the next two years (and beyond). Even more difficult was saying goodbye to one another- the twenty people I spent 60-70 hours a week with. It will be three months before we're all together again. We're now spread all over the country, with some as close to the Kenyan border in the East as I am to the Congo border in the West. Luckily we all have cell phones and are able to share our successes and challenges with one another via that technology.
On the 19th of October, the six of us heading West hired a taxi van, loaded everything we had and travelled to our sites (and stopped to take pictures at the equator!). That evening I ended in Rukungiri.
It's now been a week since I arrived-- a week full of unpacking, cleaning, finding my way around town, buying odds and ends to make my house more 'homey', experimenting with cooking for myself with limited amenities, starting work, acclimating to the much cooler climate, adjusting to living alone... My house has both power and running water (not drinkable, but at least running). It's nice and comfortable and boasts a gorgeous view of the mountains. Each evening I sit on my balcony with a cup of tea and watch the sunset into green mountains, full of vegetation and spotted with the occasional farmhouse. The elevation here is that of Denver, making my walk to and from the office a bit of a trek. The area is fairly fertile, meaning the market is full of a variety of fresh produce. There I can find tomatoes, onions, potatoes, garlic, eggplant, green pepper, avocado, passion fruit, pineapple, oranges, papaya, mangoes (when in season), and, of course, bananas of all types. A typical trip to the market to buy 2-3 days worth of produce costs less than a dollar, with my favorite deal being fresh avocados for 6 cents a piece (or two for 6 cents if the woman who sells them likes you :) )
I'm excited to get working now. For some time I'll be mostly just observing my organization's activities- trying to get the hang of things. RUGADA is involved in a plethora of activities--from organizing farmer groups to benefit from national agriculture services, working on sustainable energy projects, teaching girls how to sew and tailor, implementing HIV prevention programs, assisting with legal aid for children...the list goes on. Lots of potential for great work!
Oh yeah, and I almost forgot! My host mother gave me a Runyankore name (quite the honor) just a few days before I departed Luweero. The name is Kobusingye (koh-bu-sin-jay), and it means 'peacemaker' or 'peaceful one.' I've been teaching the kids who live near me so that they now yell "Kobusingye!" instead of "Muzungu!" from their yards. It's a nice improvement.
Must get going. It is, yet again, laundry day (as long as the weather holds out), and I need to buy a clothesline! Hope you're all doing well wherever you are!
much love,
kobusingye megan
Let me begin two weeks ago.
A fellow trainee, Renee, and I were chosen to MC the 'host family thank-you ceremony.' We both had traditional clothing made for the event (as did many other trainees) and spent the ceremony introducing groups of trainees doing traditional dances and songs they'd learned the last ten weeks. As you might imagine, it was a little challenging to be MC's for an event in another country, without a native-English speaking audience. Let's just say that the typical humor we like to use didn't translate as well as we'd hoped. Nevertheless, our host families seemed thoroughly entertained-- perhaps at our sad attempt to sing and dance as they do. Or maybe it was our training group's performance of the song, "Fifty Nifty United States." The event was followed by a meal blended with both Ugandan and American dishes. Two days later we packed our bags, said goodbye to the families who had so graciously taken us in for the last ten weeks, and left Luweero for Kampala. Our five days in Kampala were a blur--complete with a pool party at the American ambassador's house, a visit to the US embassy, a workshop with our supervisors, shopping for household items only available in the nation's capital, bike shopping, and our very official, symbolic, and emotional "swearing-in ceremony." As or Thursday, October 18th, I am officially a Peace Corps Volunteer (prior I was only a 'trainee'). Amidst the chaos of our days in Kampala we were also saying goodbye to the fantastic training staff who taught us the language, cultural norms, technical knowledge, and countless other things we'll be utilizing for the next two years (and beyond). Even more difficult was saying goodbye to one another- the twenty people I spent 60-70 hours a week with. It will be three months before we're all together again. We're now spread all over the country, with some as close to the Kenyan border in the East as I am to the Congo border in the West. Luckily we all have cell phones and are able to share our successes and challenges with one another via that technology.
On the 19th of October, the six of us heading West hired a taxi van, loaded everything we had and travelled to our sites (and stopped to take pictures at the equator!). That evening I ended in Rukungiri.
It's now been a week since I arrived-- a week full of unpacking, cleaning, finding my way around town, buying odds and ends to make my house more 'homey', experimenting with cooking for myself with limited amenities, starting work, acclimating to the much cooler climate, adjusting to living alone... My house has both power and running water (not drinkable, but at least running). It's nice and comfortable and boasts a gorgeous view of the mountains. Each evening I sit on my balcony with a cup of tea and watch the sunset into green mountains, full of vegetation and spotted with the occasional farmhouse. The elevation here is that of Denver, making my walk to and from the office a bit of a trek. The area is fairly fertile, meaning the market is full of a variety of fresh produce. There I can find tomatoes, onions, potatoes, garlic, eggplant, green pepper, avocado, passion fruit, pineapple, oranges, papaya, mangoes (when in season), and, of course, bananas of all types. A typical trip to the market to buy 2-3 days worth of produce costs less than a dollar, with my favorite deal being fresh avocados for 6 cents a piece (or two for 6 cents if the woman who sells them likes you :) )
I'm excited to get working now. For some time I'll be mostly just observing my organization's activities- trying to get the hang of things. RUGADA is involved in a plethora of activities--from organizing farmer groups to benefit from national agriculture services, working on sustainable energy projects, teaching girls how to sew and tailor, implementing HIV prevention programs, assisting with legal aid for children...the list goes on. Lots of potential for great work!
Oh yeah, and I almost forgot! My host mother gave me a Runyankore name (quite the honor) just a few days before I departed Luweero. The name is Kobusingye (koh-bu-sin-jay), and it means 'peacemaker' or 'peaceful one.' I've been teaching the kids who live near me so that they now yell "Kobusingye!" instead of "Muzungu!" from their yards. It's a nice improvement.
Must get going. It is, yet again, laundry day (as long as the weather holds out), and I need to buy a clothesline! Hope you're all doing well wherever you are!
much love,
kobusingye megan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
