As my month here in Uganda comes to a close I’d like to share with you all some of the most memorable moments of our time in Uganda. Now keep in mind that memorable doesn’t necessarily mean best! I hope you all enjoy these
Bungee jumping and rafting the Nile during debrief – I really enjoy being alive….a lot and I’m not really a thrill seeker so both of these were incredibly out of character for me. I was terrified during both of these; the scariest by far was the bungee jumping. I’d gladly go rafting again but please don’t ever make me bungee again… ever….
Bye Bye Mzungu – Everywhere we go around our village children (and adults) call us mzungu. Mzungu means white person but more generally refers to Westerners. When we pass by children they all just sing out bye bye mzungu.
Receiving fruit from a congregation – We spent a couple of days working with a nearby church – Kilinyabigo Full Gospel Church. During our final service with them they presented us with gifts of fruit. Members of the church all just walked up and placed fruit on the front table, we were all so touchedby their generosity.
The running of the dogs – One night while washing up outside near the outhouse with Jen I was startled by a dog running through the yard, what was even more startling was the pack of barking dogs that run through after it. Jen and I both sought the immediate safety of the outhouse and then laughed at the fact that we were hiding together in a squatty potty.
Squatty potty and hideout!
Youth Seminar – We had the opportunity to attend a youth seminar hosted by a local church. We had no idea what the seminar would actually be about, but we didn’t expect the sex talk that we were treated to. There was plenty of giggling and blushing going on, and that was just among our team… I think awkward pretty much sums up the entire morning.
Girl’s night – Our pastor and his wife have four young girls who we’ve loved spending time with. We decided that we would have a special girl’s party for them and it involved all the essentials – cookies, pop, dancing, manicures and Beauty and the Beast.
African drive-thru – One our way back from visiting a church on a Sunday we stopped at what I can only call an African drive-thru, vendors ran up to the car selling cold drink, grilled bananas and beef skewers. I’m happy to say that the beef was absolutely delicious!
Andrew and Ginelove enjoying their beef skewers
The tale of the broken shoe – our internet place is about a 30min walk from the house through torn up dirt roads. One day while walking my shoe broke and I spent the rest of the walk dragging my foot, trying to keep the shoe on while laughing at the absurdity of the situation. A strange man on the street stopped me, walked me to a shoe repair man and I’m happy to say my shoe has stayed together.
Worship under the stars – As a city girl there is something I’ve missed out on: stars. Here in Uganda the night sky has really taken my breath away. This month has offered several opportunities to worship under the stars at night and they’ve probably been some of my favorite moments.
I'm defintely going to miss Uganda but I'm excited to what nxt in Kenya holds!
-Jess
