Hello to all! I know I've been bad in updating lately, but I'm here and ready to impress you with all the exciting happenings of my life the past month and a half. Ok, maybe not so much on the exciting side, but at least vaguely interesting : )
Something interesting: Swine Flu has started making a dent in Uganda. I know there have a been a lot of people infected with it in the States already, but it is just beginning to get a foot hold here. And, people are terrified! I think it's more because of lack of information about what actually happens upon infection, than of the flu itself. Anyway, the government has been trying to quarantine it to the few spots that the virus has managed to make itself known. This has met with limited success. There were two schools that became infected with it outside of the initial infected area. As a result, all visitation days were cancelled, which caused major difficulties. A large number of students attend boarding schools, meaning they are at school the entire term and only see their families during visitation days, if then. These are important days not only because the students can see a family member but also because they are re-supplied for the rest of the term: pocket money, snacks, essentials (toothpaste, pads, soap) and school fees, among others. As a result of the decree, students were somewhat panicked because they had to make due with the little they had and school were panicked because they were without means of getting owed money. Without the money, some schools may have to close early because they don't have the means of taking care of the students (aka food). It was interesting to me because many of the problems that arose as a result of the canceled visitation days would never have occurred to me. It just shows how one difference can have many repecussions.
The last week of October, I had Life Skills training in Kampala. We were told to bring a counter part from site, so I brought a fellow teacher, Madame Kwaga Godia. I chose her especially because she's an assertive, smart and opinionated woman, whom I thought would get the most out of the training and be most likely to want to use what we learn at our school. I should probably explain what life skills means before going into the details of the training. Basically, when PCVs talks about life skills, we're talking about giving people the ability to use the knowledge and resources available to them to lead a healthy, positive lifestyle. One of the big problems here is not the lack of knowledge, though that can be a contributing factor, but the inability to use the knowledge to make good decisions. If you ask any student about living healthy while in school, they will spout off a whole list things to do or avoid: delay sex until marriage, don't accept gifts, HIV/AIDS kills, complete you studies etc. However, if you were to ask, what would you do if your boyfriend pressures you for sex? Or can you get HIV/AIDS through kissing? Many students would not know. They have a list of facts that have been pushed on them since primary school, but the great majority of them have no idea how to connect the facts with their actual life. The Life Skills Manual, which is made by PC and is an excellent, excellent resource, has a variety of interactive game and activities that tries to bridge this gap. It tells stories culturally, so the target group (primary/secondary students, youths, etc.) understand and asks questions that forces them to think instead of memorize and apply instead of recite. During the training, specific activities were chosen out of the book and the volunteers, with their counterparts, did them. The first day was led by the facilitators and the rest of the week, each of the sessions was led by a different PCV and their counterpart. Godia and I did a session on Danger Signs and rape. It was an interesting session because the Ugandan and American takes on rape are different, both in the judicial sense and cultural sense. For example, what we call statutory rape they call defilement. Here, if someone is actually convicted (which happens rarely), rape is life imprisonment and defilement is death sentence. Yes, an intense subject but enlightening as well. Understanding how things are viewed differently here than in America is an important step in adapting to life. Godia and I each got a copy of the Life Skills Manual and are excited about doing activities at our school.
In the middle of training, Wednesday, we had a Halloween celebration, with a rockstar theme. It was aaawesome! I was dressed as (drumroll please) Hannah Montana! Yeah, I know you all are very surprised at my choice of costume but I like to keep it real. As you may imagine, it was impossible to find a blond wig in this country, so I ended up with pieces of yellow yarn arranged on my head in what I thought was a passable wig. However, upon picture inspection the next day, it was concluded that I looked more like an incomplete, color challenged Raggedy Ann doll. Oh well, I give myself Kudos for tryin'!! Also, Celeste and I were in charge of the music for the night and accepted our DJing post with gusto. On the whole, I'm going to say that our music stylings were highly appreciated and any negative comments were conveniently drowned out by the playing music.
At the end of training, I stayed in Kampala for a few days with my engaged neighbors, Nulu and Hussein. In Uganda, there are several steps that are taken before two people are happily wedded. They each need to be introduced to their families (informally first), the bride price needs to be decided, the dates for the introduction and wedding ceremony agreed upon and then that actual ceremonies need to take place. It is a long, and somewhat laborious, process. I will explain later what happens during the introduction ceremony, but for right now, just know that it needs to take place before there can be a traditional wedding. On the weekend following training, I was invited to attend the meeting that would decide the dates of the introduction and wedding. Hussein's family was supposed to arrive at 1pm (didn't get there until 2:30pm) and Nulu's family spent the whole day cooking. I'm happy to say that I earned my keep and peeled matooke, helped with fruit salad and with making juice. During the actual meeting, which was in Runyolee, I sat on the floor, listened for the occasional English world and tried not to fidget too much. However, the floor is a most uncomfortable place to sit for 2½ hours, so there was a lot of adjusting of the legs whenever they fell asleep, which was quite often. Eventually, I sat cross legged, even though I wasn't sure if that was culturally appropriate. However, since I wasn't flashing anybody and none of the men, all of whom got to have chairs, responded to my mental frustrations and cursings by offering me one, I figured it was ok. In the end, January 10th was decided as the date for both ceremonies and we ended the meeting by stuffing ourselves silly. So, on January 10th, I'll be going to my first Ugandan introduction and wedding.
Upon returning from Kampala, I finished teaching my classes. I use “finish” in a loose interpretation of the word. It was more like I was forced to stop teaching because of the end of term exams. I am far from finished with my subjects and my only goal next year is to have them caught up! So, right now, the students are taking exams and I am contemplating how I'm going to spend my two months (!) of holiday. That is a lot of Rachael time and, as entertaining as I know I can be, I will eventually get tired of having only myself as company. I know. Hard to believe but, trust me, it will happen. So, I'm planning on doing a lot of traveling around Uganda during holiday. There are a lot of PCVs spread throughout the country, so it'll be a nice little adventure. I'll be celebrating Thanksgiving that weekend in Tororo. There's going to be a nice group of us here and I am very excited about the food prospects. I predict it'll be the best meal I've had since getting to Uganda. Not that I'm anticipating too much : ) Personally, I'll be making apple pie. I know it's a big leap, especially considering my cooking history, but you'll be happy to know I'll have access to a toaster oven and will be supervised. So, no fires in the kitchen!
That's all I've got for now! I promise to make a better effort at keeping you all informed of the going ons over here. Love and miss you all and Happy early Thanksgiving!!
~Rachael
PS- Lauren, I got your card and I laugh everytime I open it! You are very much forgiven and thanks for making my day a little more fun : )
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