Christmas Staycation

I spent Christmas at my site, in my home, with my neighbors and my friend John. Last year I was not in Kamuge for Christmas and I was curious how the holiday would pass in my village. It appeared to pass just like any other day, but our festivities in my home made it one that I will remember for a long time.

As some of you know I have five neighbor kids whom I get along with really well. So for Christmas we celebrated together. For gifts, I used a lot of the school supplies that had been sent to me from friends and family back home (thank you guys!) as well as some candies I had bought here locally. John purchased cookies and other treats for his contribution.

We created separate "gift zones" for each of the five kids: Junior, Sam, Omolo, Patience and Joann (that's Jo-ahn). We designated a spot for each kid on the table and put their respective gifts there along with a Post-It note with each of their names on them.

Getting the kids organized and together was somewhat of a challenge that morning as they spent a long time preparing for church, bathing, putting clean clothes on, cleaning their shoes, etc. It took a long time. And all the while John and I were telling them that we needed them to get together and come inside the house. So they knew something was up but they were definitely all pretty confused as to what specifically.

Finally, we got them all together and let them in to see their gifts. Their faces immediately turned to huge smiles and they all began clapping and cheering simultaneously in excitement. They were so happy. It was truly a special time for all of us. Just to see their faces light up and explode with joy. And to such minimal gifts. Literally we gave them school supplies (pens, pencils, highlighters, rulers), candies, cookies, and that's it. But it was more than enough for them.

We ate very well that entire weekend. Our meals consisted of huge servings of meat, pork, millet bread, and rice. After our Christmas meal, the kids brought out a huge plate of cookies for dessert. These were the very cookies that we had gifted to them just a few hours ago! And here they were offering them back up to us and each other. Such selflessness! I was and continue to be overwhelmed with the kindness that they show.

It was a great day in Kamuge. But to us Americans, Christmas came and went in a flash. At no point did it ever really feel like the festive season or Christmas at all. Maybe it was the lack of cold weather, Christmas trees/music/movies/lights, egg nog, fireplaces, etc. But we didn't notice or feel it at all. I think that made it easier to be gone away from the states for Christmas. We just didn't think about it. Still, it was a great day and one that I will cherish for years to come.

MAH LAIR EEE UHH

In mid-December, I fell sick. On an ever so enjoyable taxi ride into Mbale Town, I began to feel incredibly cold and weak. This was unusual considering it was at least 80 degrees outside and we had at least 20 people crammed into this taxi that is designed to carry 14. Luckily I was with my friend John who provided his sweater and some friction to try to warm me up. It wasn't very successful.

Upon reaching Mbale, I proceeded to jump out of the taxi, fully don the sweater, and topped it off with my jacket. Sitting in the scorching Ugandan sun. I was still freezing. The problem was I had a fever of 104 F at the same time. We decided to go to the hospital.

After running a urinalysis and blood work. I tested positive for malaria. And I was actually happy that they had figured out what it was. Based on what they had told us about malaria in training, I knew I had an unpleasant 24 hours ahead of me.

The first line treatment they recommend to us for malaria here in Uganda is Coartem. I started my first dose immediately. The next 24 hours consisted of me laying in bed at a cheap hotel alternating between periods of extreme cold and extreme heat. Sweating in bed. Freezing in bed. Taking ice cold showers to reduce my fever and sitting in front the fan almost completely naked, and then bundling up completely with full clothing and two comforters. Shivering uncontrollably. Feeling extremely weak with headache. And then feeling better again.

I guess that's how malaria goes. It gets good then it gets bad again. I started coming out of it during the second night only to come down with stomach problems and more fever. By the third day I was pretty much rid of symptoms, but still weak. One more token Peace Corps experience to check off the list!

BUILDing it Up!

December 4th through the 11th marked the first annual Camp BUILD and second annual Camp GLOW in Uganda. BUILD is an acronym that stands for Boys of Uganda In Leadership Development. And that's exactly what it was, a leadership camp. The female counterpart was GLOW or Girls Leading Our World.

I had the rewarding opportunity to participate in Camp BUILD as a counselor. This meant that I, along with my Ugandan counterpart Lewis, was responsible for leading a team of 10 adolescent males from all different parts of Uganda. The camp consisted of about 150 Ugandan boys nominated by different PCVs throughout Uganda. They were selected based on their academic performance and leadership potential, as witnessed by the PCVs in their respective villages.

The idea was to spend one week with these boys, arming them with the tools and knowledge to be better leaders, and then bring that knowledge and those leadership skills home to their villages and share it with their communities. This experience turned out to be one of the most rewarding and fun weeks of my Peace Corps service. I'm so happy I did it.

Another great thing was that I was able to send six boys and four girls to the respective camps from my village. So they can bring this back home to our school and their villages when all is said and done.

Each day the teams participated in sessions on personal health, conflict resolution, communication, water & sanitation, environmental stewardship, and many others. The idea was that we were BUILDING each one of these areas in Uganda's male youth.

BUILD yourself

BUILD your community

BUILD your health

BUILD your environment

BUILD Uganda

By far my favorite parts of the week were sitting down with my boys and discussing these topics after each session. Together, with my amazing counterpart Lewis, we would sit down and review the important concepts of each topic discussed.

On the second evening, we invited a local drama production to come and do some performances for us. We invited the girls from Camp GLOW over to the BUILD side. The drama had to do with domestic violence and women's rights in the home. The event turned out to be little short of a complete disaster. With the boys pitted against the girls on every little action that took place. The boys erupting in cheers and applause when the man in the play pretended to beat the woman or rape her. While the girls screamed and clapped every time the woman stood up for herself (a good thing).

Needless to say it was not our intent to spur such a competitive and primitive exchange between the two sexes. But what was a great thing to come out of it was the opportunity to sit down the next morning and discuss with our teams what had happened the night before. The opportunity to address these issues face to face with these boys. These are very serious issues and can often times be buried or masked in everyday Ugandan life. Domestic violence and sexual abuse is a huge problem here. And many times it just isn't talked about. The events of that evening exposed just how serious the problem was.

Sitting down and having this discussion with my boys was incredible. Of course none of them admitted that they actually thought domestic violence or sexual abuse was right. And maybe they were telling the truth. I personally think they were. But you can never know. But just to have the opportunity to sit down and motivate and inspire these young men to do better was transcending.

"You, as young men in your communities, have to decide today what kind of leaders you are going to become. Are you going to be a man who accepts and promotes domestic violence in his home? Who rapes his wife? Who beats his children? Or are you going to build a home based on mutual love, respect, and honesty."

Whether these words fell on deaf ears or whether they truly hit home will never be known. But to be a small part in these boys development was more than I needed to feel absolutely thrilled for the week.

And just the small, day-to-day interactions with my boys were awesome as well. The opportunity to encourage them in everything that they did and love on them in a way they hardly ever get in a country where kids are often times treated as second class citizens is by far one of the best things about the week and my service.

At the end I got to participate in a leadership session where we gave a similar talk to all the boys which capped off the week pretty well. You can check out the camp's website at campbuilduganda.blogspot.com. There should be one or two pictures of me floating around on that site (look for the maroon t-shirt).

Keep on Running in the Free World

November 27th marked the annual MTN Kampala Marathon race. Five other Peace Corps volunteers and I decided to participate this year. Five of us ran the half marathon (13.1 miles) while one brave soul opted for the full.

It was a fun and unique experience to be running in a region that continuously fields the best runners in the world year after year (mostly Kenya). Prior to the race, I was very curious about how all the logistics were going to work. How well would it be organized? What would the route be? How would they divert traffic from the roads?

Well, it turns out, to no surprise, that it was pretty poorly organized. The start and finish area seemed to be operating pretty well. But Kampala was a mess. There were potholes (in some cases huge, gaping holes) in our path. There were distance signs at different locations that were grossly inaccurate. The roads were not closed and cars were breezing past us spewing their nasty exhaust into our path. While I was finishing the race (2:02 finish by the way) I had several dozen boda-bodas (motorcycle taxis) running alongside me asking me if I wanted a lift and cutting me off. It was a bit aggravating.

Other parts of the race were organized well. They had plenty of water and sponge (?) stations, which definitely refreshed me throughout the journey. Actually I think I drank too much water (about 4 bottles) because it was so readily available every mile or so. But it was nice to see Kampala come together, sort of. Kampalans united in this event and encouraged one another. Everyone was excited and/or tired but still in high spirits. At the end I felt really great and not too tired, which surprised me. But mostly I just felt lucky to have good health and the opportunity to run in such a unique setting with fast Africans.

Faces of GLOW/BUILD

Here are some pictures that I managed to upload before I got back to site (i.e. painfully slow internet):

The 11 kids I selected to attend Camps GLOW & BUILD: from top left clockwise - Takali Janet, Aloko Evelyn, Otibok Philip, Machali Geoffrey, Owino Mesusera, Nfumbe Ben, Aisu Ben Julius, Mugombesya George, Egolet Ignatius, Acham Margret, Achola Scovia

My team & I at Camp BUILD, go CRANES!!!

My team & I posing in front of Lake Victoria

Two members of my team: Brian (left), Paul (right), aren't they adorable!!

End of Terms & Bridges

The term has ended for Kamuge High. Exams have been given and now just need to be marked and entered into report cards. Thus begins the great long break that exists until Term 1 starts up next year in early February. This was definitely a challenging term for me. But I can look forward to applying lessons learned towards my next and final term here in Uganda. It's crazy to think about how my time is dwindling here.

Bridges are collapsing in Pallisa District! Two bridges on two separate roads out of my village have collapsed due to the incredibly large amount of rain we've been getting. These roads are essentially constructed out of rock and dirt, so they wear away easily when lots of water comes. Locals are trying to repair them but nobody knows exactly when they will be finished.

I had a great visit with a couple (brother and sister) of students last Sunday. They wrote me a formal letter inviting me to their place on Sunday, November 20. It also stated that I was to be picked up at exactly 8:25 am. Sure enough, around 8 that morning some random man showed up at my door to pick me up. He droves us deep into the village until we arrived at this single brick building that was their church. Apparently I had also been invited to the church service that morning.

It lasted 3 hours. Some of it was really good, such as the singing and dancing. I really enjoy those traditions. Other parts were quite boring, such as the sermon. But I picked up what I could from the experience. Afterwards we all travelled to the students' home where we had a delightful meal of matoke, millet bread, rice, and chicken. The whole day took 8 hours, from 8 in the morning til 4 in the afternoon. Afterwards I was just completely exhausted, and I didn't know why. All I had done was sit, talk, and eat. I immediately had to go home and rest.

My birthday and subsequent turkey day went off successfully. I spent a few days up in Gulu with about 40 other PCVs where we had a potluck at an Ethiopian Restaurant that allowed us to use their kitchen. The event was a blast. PCVs are unlike any other group I've met and I've definitely acquired a huge appreciation for my group and the bonds that we've made over the past two years.

This weekend I'm in Kampala for the MTN Kampala Marathon. I'll be running the half tomorrow morning. Wish me luck!

Links to some new Picasa photo albums:

Sex Education

https://picasaweb.google.com/115925164564481520821/SexEd?authkey=Gv1sRgCKWRhvao19ShEQ

Trip to Kenya

https://picasaweb.google.com/115925164564481520821/Kenya?authkey=Gv1sRgCIyj2L7coN26Mg

Nile River Rafting Competition

https://picasaweb.google.com/115925164564481520821/NRERaftRace?authkey=Gv1sRgCOmrgMmK3azspgE

Thanks for reading!

Tear Gas and Eating Disorders

In Peace Corps, certain things that would typically seem odd become the day-to-day norm. These things include:

*during about 50% of meals, consuming food that has a small amount of rocks and sand in it (just to keep the stomach in top shape)

*eating really old and moldy bread, because the nearest resupply point is miles of torturous Ugandan transit away

*eating rotten eggs, see above

*going for days without bathing

*essentially constantly NOT getting a good night's sleep because of the numerous and varying disturbances that is Uganda's essence, I. HATE. ROOSTERS.

Seriously, my neighbors keep two roosters INSIDE their house, which is also my house (we live in a duplex with no ceiling and noise travels freely). Every morning at 5:15 for the past month, the cocks crow every 20-30 seconds for a good hour or two. Horrible. I've pleaded with them, my neighbors. I offered to actually pay them money to slaughter them and enjoy the feast. They refused. They said they were waiting for their mother to return and that's when they would slaughter them. The mother has returned, the roosters still live.

It's funny how your mind adjusts to things over time. A month ago, I was irate, completely furious at the disturbances these little animals cause in my life. Today, it has become a part of my life, and I don't mind it as much. It's amazing what the human body and mind can endure if forced to do so for an extended period of time.

I'm sorry for the lack of pictures on here as of late. The truth is internet has been really bad lately. The only thing my connection allows me to upload is pretty much words. I hope those will suffice for now.

I spent the weekend in Budadiri (lush village at the base of Mt. Elgon) visiting another PCV and working in his school. We met with over 100 boys to discuss sexual education...again. I think I'm enjoying it more and more as I facilitate additional sessions. This time the subject of condom use was brought up. I read the following statement to the boys: "Condoms cause cancers". 100% of the 100+ boys believed this statement to be true. I was pretty shocked. I expected some of them to believe it, but not ALL of them.

So I asked them, why do you guys think this? They told me that they were told by their headmaster and teachers that this was true, that condoms actually did cause cancer. And subsequently they all believed it and considered it a fact. I have several theories as to why they were told this by their teachers. One theory, many Ugandans don't like condoms. They don't like the way they feel and they don't like how they encourage pre-marital sex. I'll abstain (get it... get it) from commenting on either one of those. But the fact that the leaders of the school were making up lies and knowingly telling them to their children is appalling. Again, another reason why containing HIV/AIDS is a challenge here. No protection means, well, no protection.

During that same weekend, a riot broke out a couple hundred feet from the PCV's house whom I was visiting. Don't ask me why they were rioting, I still don't know. In response to the chaos, police and military forces launched several tear gas canisters into the mob, the resulting gas of which proceeded to blow over to the house which I was staying in and into my eyes, nose, and throat. It was not a pleasant experience. Several students and I proceeded to run away as far from the gas as possible, across the football field and towards the school, but the gas had already taken its effect and it made it difficult to see while running. The stuff is effective. I doubt I would continue to riot if it were used on me. I recovered quickly though and all was well after an hour or two.

Ok, I've been writing this entry in pieces throughout the last week. New update. The roosters still annoy. I managed to get my neighbors to slaughter one of them. Now, another has reared it's ugly head and is even more loud and annoying than the first. I'm thinking I'm going to have to get others involved to resolve this issue, I'm confident I can though. I'll keep you posted.

For the past two and a half weeks UNEB (Uganda National Examinations Board) has been conducting nationwide exams on all S4 candidates. This includes our candidates at Kamuge High. Due to lack of space and the need to accommodate all 130 S3 candidates at my school, our Headmaster and Director of Studies decided to send the rest of the students, the S1, 23 and S3 classes, home. So basically very little has been going on at my school. So I've had to find ways to entertain and keep myself busy. In Kamuge, this can be a challenge. Reading helps.