Last Day

Well, this is goodbye Uganda.  So long, farewell, see you soon.

My time here in Uganda is rapidly coming to a close.  I've been here just over 3 months and it feels weird to be leaving already.  It feels like I only just arrived.

Packed up everything that I have and it all fits in 2 suitcases.  My life in Uganda fits nicely into 2 suitcases.

Brittney and I were struggling a bit with getting our passports back.  Our visas were only issued for 90 days and technically we are in the country for 97 days.  The HR lady at ISU was who we were told to go to to get a renewal for the last 7 days.  At first, she told me that we wouldn't get our passports back until Wed, which is the day we leave.  I was a little worried that we couldn't get them back in time.  Luckily, we got them one day before our journey back home.  Emma, my CT, dropped the passports off to us last night.  I got to say a final goodbye to her and her two daughters.  I started getting teary eyed.

Last night, the girls at the guesthouse took Brittney and I out to Little Donkey for our final goodbye meal.  It was really nice to get to spend more time with the friends that I have made out here.  I feel lucky to have met some truly wonderful, genuine people here.

Currently, I'm at Coffee at Last, using up some free WiFi and hanging out with Phoebe, another wonderful woman that I've met.

It feels surreal to be heading back home to Georgia soon.  It's like that feeling you get at the end of summer camp.  You wanna stay and keep on playing.  However, you know that summer is over and it's time to go home and go back to normal life.

Thanks for reading my blog about Uganda.  Hopefully, I'll have another one full of different adventures.

See you soon.

Last few days approaching quickly

Well hello again.

So, as I'm sure most of you may be aware, I'm quickly approaching my last few days in Uganda.  Friday was my last day at ISU, and it was really hard to believe.  The students made me feel so much joy for having been able to be there teacher for the 3 months that I have lived here.  On the last day, the homeroom teachers surprised me with a combining of all 3 homerooms, sat me in the middle of the room, and had the students tell me all the things they appreciated about me teaching them.  It sunk in, really deeply, that I'm in the right profession for me.

Below are the photos from my last day.  The last picture is all my girl students surrounding me to say goodbye.

Also, another important note to make, is that I celebrated the American holiday of Thanksgiving in Uganda.  It was actually really nice to share a part of my culture, as apparently, us Americans have one.  I spent my time with the girls of the guesthouse that I am staying in.  Below are those pictures.

Happiest American in Uganda, yes, I think I totally was.  I got me some pumpkin pie.  A little slice of home.

To be honest, my last few days are making me homesick.  I know that I will be home very shortly and I think after 3 months away, I'm ready to be back.  The last few days are memories that will stick with me forever.

Thank you to everyone here in Uganda and at home for everything.  

Georgia you are on my mind.

Malaria Test Kits and more

Well, this second to last week in Uganda has been quite an interesting one, I must say.  The week has been fairly good, minus the constant power cuts the last few days and my incredibly sick body.

So, let's talk about this sickness stuff, cause it is quite entertaining.  I have not missed one day of student teaching since I have arrived in Uganda.  That is fairly normal for me, since I rarely call out of work.  However, on Friday, I was feeling absolutely horrible.  Thursday night, I was shivering, upset stomach, mild fever, body aches, and much more.  I ended up being awake most of the night from all of this.  So, likely enough, I missed work on Friday.  Since I had the fever, one of the girls thought that I should get a malaria test kit just to be sure that it wasn't anything serious.  Well, I had one of the doctor girls at the guest house perform the "malaria operation" on me.  Luckily, it came back negative.

So, that's good, right? Not malaria, but then what on earth is wrong with me?! Still, I have no clue.  I ran into my usual boda man and he said that I might need to be de-wormed.

Wait?! What??  De-wormed?  Did I hear this correctly?  Um, yeah, I sure did.  And speaking with the "doctors" that I know, they all were inclined to agree with my boda man.  Needless to say, I am in Africa and any sort of infection is totally possible.  There is a place in Kololo called The Surgery that I need to find time to go to and have a once over.  Just to make sure that I don't bring home any weird diseases that are not easily curable in the States.

However, on a slightly different note, I have a little more than a week left in Uganda.  My time here is quickly flashing before my eyes.  I feel like I have so little time left and so much more that I want to explore.  All of my students keep asking me if I plan on returning and it makes me feel like I've made a positive impact on them.  The fact that they keep asking and then getting upset when I say probably not makes it seem as though they like me.  This is why I wanted to be a teacher, to be popular among 11 year olds.  No, just kidding.

Well, I'll have to keep everyone updated on my strange, African sickness.  Hopefully it is nothing serious and easily curable. That'd be nice.

Until we meet again....

3 weeks left

Hello again,

It's been a few weeks since I've posted an update so I'd thought I'd write one.  Although, the internet is not wanting to cooperate with me today.

It's weighing on me that I only have 3 weeks left in Uganda.  I can remember when I first came, I thought to myself, 3 months is going to be forever.  Now, with only 3 weeks left, I'm sad to leave.

Today in my Grade 6 homeroom, the students mentioned that there is only one month left in the term.  I was reminded that I have 3 weeks left and then one month left until I graduate.

On Sunday, Izzie (a British doctor) and myself took a matatu (taxi bus) to the city of Entebbe.  Matatus are an extremely cheap mode of transportation and only cost 8,000 UGX roundtrip.  That is roughly $3 to go about 45 minutes to Entebbe.  The city itself is cleaner and slower paced than the capital of Kampala.  We ventured to Anna's Corner for coffee and brunch.  Then walked to the Botanical Gardens which has a beautiful view of Lake Victoria.  It is hard not to want to jump right into the water, but there is a nasty parasite called bilharzia (comes from snails) that I do not want to get.  While at the Botanical Gardens, we were chased by black-faced monkeys and a local guy lounging in a shady, grassy area laughed at us.  It felt nice to venture outside of Kampala, even if just for a few hours.

Suddenly, there seems like a lot to do, as I must finish a huge paper, write lessons, buy gifts, and spend time with the friends that I've met here.  Everything seems to all be happening at once and I wish that time would just slow down so I could enjoy it all.

Well, this isn't what I was hoping I would say but it is what was said.

Thanks! and hopefully I'll update with pictures next.

Biking, Rafting, Safari... and more

Well, it certainly has been quite a while since I've updated my blog.  Hmmm... lazy, or just super busy.  Maybe a bit of both, let's be honest.

Alright, well I'll first start with the bicycle tour.  Which, by the way, was absolutely amazing.  I love going for bike rides anyway but I had the chance to go through a village right across Lake Victoria.  Kampala is loud and, well, city like.  Sometimes you just need different scenery.  I wish I knew the name of the area that we biked through but I don't.  I know that we biked up to Ggaba Beach and then took a local boat across the lake.

Our bikes on a local boat to go across the lake.

When we landed on the other side.

A picture of the adorable kids that I ended up playing a game with.  The girls aren't pictured but there were two of them.  I'd turn my head and the girls would creep, ever so slowly, toward me.  Then I'd turn my head quickly and they would run off giggling.  This happened several times but they put a huge smile on my face.

Next, on the blog agenda is, the trip to Jinja.  Which was absolutely incredible!  Jinja is completely different from Kampala.  (Well, I mean it sort of is the same but only in the sense of shops.)  Jinja is just slower and less crowded.  When I was there I went horseback riding and rafting, for the first time ever.  The Nile River is host to class 4 and 5 rapids, which is thrilling and terrifying all at the same time.  My first flip and I was a little panicked but I made it.

First rapid! Oh which, we of course, flipped.  But as you can see, there are kayaks there to help you if you go to far from the boat.  Which I ended up having to utilize.

Our Uganda tour guide, Nathan, abandoning the raft on the last rapid.  I think he left on purpose, what do you think?

The last thing I'll talk about if Murchison Falls.  Another amazing safari trip and the second one that I've taken in Uganda.  Unfortunately, I lost my camera to the depths of the river though.  It's the Nile, I believe, but it's late so I don't exactly remember.  I should confirm that though.

Two giraffes, one of which is stuck in a wire that was put there by poachers.  We, of course, saved the giraffe.

Of course, the highlight was seeing elephants.

Well, I should go eat dinner now.  Thanks for reading! And good night from Uganda.

Feeling touristy

Over the weekend, I was feeling a bit touristy since I feel like I have not gotten nearly enough pictures since I've been here.  Saturday was such a beautiful day so Brittney and I ventured out to Coffee at Last.  Basically that means that we walked down the hill.

And no, the guy next to Brittney is not someone that we know. 

Then met with the American doctor, Lana, and went to an area of town called Kisamenti.  Brittney and I both took bodas out there and I got some pictures of my journey along the way.  I was trying to catch Kampala traffic at its finest.

First thing, must wear a helmet!

Going down a hill, I forget the name of the road but it is a road that I have traveled a lot.

The picture does not show this, but we were zipping through the traffic.  The boda drivers up ahead are coming toward me.  Boda riding is fun but you have to be careful.

Lastly, these are the wonderful women that I've had the chance to meet and then spend Saturday night with.  Left (me obviously), then Phoebe, Brittney, and Lana.  I miss my girl friends back home, but these ladies have been absolutely wonderful and feel already like great friends!

I love life here in Uganda! :)

Test Day for Grade 6

Good morning,

Today is test day for my Grade 6 classes, which is all 3 of them in which I teach.  The test itself is going well and it is allowing me so much needed catch up time.

ISU has really placed a lot of my plate at the moment.  I'm teaching 3 Grade 6 classes, one Grade 7 class, personal assisting a Grade 6 boy for 3 lessons a week, and I have to do a presentation about student motivation and transitions.  Whew.  That seems like a whole lot.

One of my collaborating teachers has been out sick since Wed so I have been planning all of Grade 7 lessons.  I'm teaching a unit on magnetism and where I world normally love to have hands-on activities my Grade 7 has proven to me that they cannot be trusted.  I attempted to let them look at iron filings, bar and horseshoe magnets but they nearly destroyed the materials cause they were playing the whole time.  Each time that I tried to get their attention they would not listen or follow directions.  Needless to say, I'm a bit annoyed, can you tell?

As their punishment for today, they will not be able to have an interactive lesson.  They will be reading from their textbook, listening to me lecture at them (so boring!), and taking notes.  This is the sort of dreaded lesson that I never wanted to have to plan.  However, I cannot let these students disrespect me and the materials.  So, I must put my foot down.

Other than that, my time in Uganda has been going well.  Recently, I planned a trip to go rafting on the Nile in Jinja.  Also, going to Murchison Falls for a safari.  I think I'm going to try to find a walking tour to go on soon.  One of the housemates went on a walking tour and really enjoyed it.  Seeing as I am a social studies major as well, I think that I should see more of Kampala.

Hopefully more pictures soon to come!