Boda-Boda’s, Burial, and Theft – my third week in Uganda

It's hard to believe I've been in Bigodi over three weeks now! Here are the highlights from my third week...

1. What can you do about overcrowding in our schools, exam fees, lack of sanitary supplies, lack of text books, academics, etc.. - These are just some of the questions that the headmasters pose to me when I go to visit their schools. I'm in a tough position because the needs are so great but I am just one and was hired to do a very specific job of training teachers in conservation education.

2. God grant me serenity- When the above happens or when I just become overwhelmed by all the needs around me, the serenity prayer brings me a lot of comfort. "God grant me serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can & Wisdom to know the difference."

3. You're Obama’s people- This is how I am often introduced when I go into classrooms. It's interesting that all the children know that Obama is the president of the US, but seldom know who president is of neighboring countries.

4. Attending my first Ugandan burial/wake- My friends "auntie" (really her mom's cousin but many older women are called auntie here) passed away Monday morning so the burial and wake was Tuesday afternoon. I have never been to a wake with so many people, there must have been 200-300 all seated on benches under make shift multi colored tents. Turns out all the people from the village go to the burials and just like at an American wake there was lots of food!

5. Getting money stolen- I had prepared myself long before I left home that I would probably experience at least one theft while I was here. Let’s hope that by getting it out of the way early into my trip that the rest of my stay will be incident free. I had the equivalent of about $100-$150 stolen from my wallet; they were kind enough to leave my small bills. I have to carry a fare amount of cash here because the closest ATM is 45 minutes away in Fort Portal and I often need cash for work.

6. Transportation Ugandan style- Ridding my first boda-boda (motor bike taxi) and being crammed in a taxi with 7 others definitely makes this week’s list. Here most women ride boda-boda’s side saddle, I on the other hand couldn’t figure out how to balance that way so there I was in a skirt straddling the motor bike! It was quite a sight to see.

7. Do you go boozing?- What um booze, you mean drink, yes of course. This is how the conversation went when I was asked out to my first Ugandan bar by one of my teachers. There is a bar just about a five min walk from walk from my house!

8. Best Ugandan pickup line I’ve heard yet- “You’re very large, you must eat a lot.” If I was home in America and somebody said this to me, I’d think they were being rude after all it’s never polite to comment on a lady’s size. However, here being a larger woman is a sign of health and wealth.

9. Trying to help around the house- Sometimes when I try to help here at home, it becomes more of a mess. Turns out I'm not very good at washing clothing by hand or peeling green bananas (we use them to make matokee). In the time it took me to peel one, Sara (one of the daughters’) had peeled eight!

10. A perfect end to a good day- Many times after dinner, the girls will get out the drum and sing wonderful songs. There I am sitting underneath the most amazing star filled sky listening traditional African songs, thinking life is good.

11. Ash Wednesday service- I decided to attend Ash Wednesday service at the local Catholic church here in Bigodi. Good idea, except that is was entirely in Rwterra so I didn't understand a word of it!

12. I’m in love- Don’t worry, I’m not marrying an African prince. Leon, the 16 month old of the Tinka family, has a way of brightening my days with his big smile and beautiful brown eyes.

13. Calls and help from home- I continue to be blessed by amazing friends. This week I had a call from the states, an offer to mail me a care package and found out that one of my friends has organized 3 drives to send things that people need here (like sanitary supplies, playground balls, and books). Thank you!

Getting cheap calling cards to call Uganda

Some people have asked how they purchase a cheap calling card for Uganda. Here are a few links as you can buy them online and you also may be able to get them at a convenience store. The cheapest appears to be about 8-10 cents a min.

Incoming calls for me are free and I pay about 30 -60 cents a min to call the US.

http://speedypin.com/phone/cards/Uganda+-+Cellular
http://www.interscall-cards.com/p/buy.php?idcountry=539&id_from_country=2

Remember from the US my number is +256 0772096551

Overwhelmed by all the needs around me

Sometimes it's hard not to get overwhelmed by all the needs around me. On a daily basis, I see women and children carrying unclean water long distances on their heads, schools without text books, headmasters tell me about girls missing school because they don't have sanitary supplies, or children who can't take exams because their parents can't afford the fees. It's easy to get overwhelmed.

However, the local communities are hard at work to solve many of these issues but could really use help from the US. I know money is tight right now at home but a few US dollars go a long way here. If your civic orgainization, church group, school, co-workers, etc... is looking for an international project to get involved in this year or if you would like to make an individual donation, here are a few ways that you could make a big difference in the lives of many Ugandan’s.

The Water is Life project- We take water so much for granted in the US. Here women and children carry water great distances from unsafe water sources in heavy containers every day. In Bigodi, the village where I am staying, out of the 500 people who live here only one family has a cistern to catch rainwater. The leaders have designed a project to get pumped rain water into the village. They have already raised over $1400 and need just $2100 more.

School Supplies –The schools are terribly under resourced. There are very few to text books so instead there are paintings of the human body, the world, etc.. on the outside of the school walls and the teachers teach from those. Families have to provide children with paper, pencils, books and many can’t afford them. The children don’t have books to discover the joy of reading. Children here make balls out of plastic bags – imagine what joy a few soccer balls would bring these kids. Since books and schools supplies are heavy to ship I’d encourage sending money and we can purchase the supplies here. However, if you can collect children’s books and want to raise the money to ship them – the kids would love books from America. They have been delighted with the few that I brought. Lastly, deflated sports and playground balls can be shipped.

Exam fees- Students here have to pay to take monthly exams that help get them ready for their end of year exams. Those students who can’t afford the monthly exams don’t take them. Students who don’t take monthly exams do far worse on the end of year exams which determine if they continue or not. It cost only $5 for each student to take the nine monthly exams.

Sanitary supplies- I have visited over 20 schools and at nearly every school am told about the need for sanitary supplies for girls. Unfortunately, many girls miss schools while they have their periods because they do not have proper sanitary supplies. Some schools with the help of American charities have started successful programs where girls get their sanitary supplies from school. These programs have drastically reduced absenteeism which is a major problem in schools here.

Donations of any amount would be greatly appreciated. Checks can be made out to KAFRED, the Kibale Association for Rural and Environmental Development, please write the name of the project in the memo line, and send to my address- Jamilyn Cole, Po Box 733 Fort Portal Uganda.

Here are a few examples of how far US money goes here:

$25 will purchase:
basic school supplies (paper, notebooks, rulers, pens, crayons)
Sanitary supplies and underwear for a girl
world maps and atlases
5 books to contribute to a school library (literature, poetry, field guides)
3 text books for a primary class that has none (math, science, reading)
2 text books for a secondary class that has none (math, science, history, geography, English)
1 year sponsorship of a school in the Wildlife Clubs of Uganda

$50 will purchase:
1 set of math, science or English books for Bigodi Secondary School (5-10 books)
science lab equipment for a school that has none (lenses, prisms, magnets, balances, compasses, thermometers, soil test kits, weather instruments)
gardening tools and supplies for 1 school to assist with school grounds improvement projects conducted by students (tree planting, flower beds, vegetable gardens)
musical instruments to assist an exceptional music teacher at Bigodi Primary School with her curriculum (guitar, thumb piano, flutes, drums, xylophone)

$100 will purchase:
materials to build furniture for classrooms without enough seats for each student
1 complete set of geography books for a Bigodi Secondary School
materials to build bookcases for a school library
field guides and binoculars for Kibale National Forest's educational programs for students

$150 will purchase:
1 microscope for a school that has none
1 set of literature books for a secondary school library (approximately 30 books)

$500 will purchase:
the labor to build 1 classroom at Bigodi Primary school
will send a child to a private school for 1 year

$1,000 will purchase:
books, science equipment, microscopes and/or gardening tools for 5 Ugandan schools

$2,000 will purchase:
the materials and labor to build 1 classroom at Bigodi Primary School
water system for the town of Bigodi

Thank you for your ongoing support. For more information on any of these projects, please feel free to contact me at jamilync@yahoo.com

A weekend of firsts

I spent this weekend in Fort Portal with my new friend Edvine. Fort Portal is the closet town to Bigodi and is only about 45 mins away. We've been having trouble charging my laptop of the solar panels at home in Bigodi so I had some work to do in town at the Internet cafe and Edvine had been wanting to have me over.

Firsts for the weekend include

- Ridding my first boda boda or motorbike taxi- there is a driver and you ride on the back. Most women here ride side saddle but I couldn't manage. So there I was in skirt ridding straddling the back of the bike while holding a long African mat, a shopping bag, and my purse! It was a sight to see.

- Ridding in a taxi car with 8 other people- Typically, taxis are actually vans here but today we took a taxi car. However, there were eight of us. Four in the back seat and four in the front, including two in the drivers seat!

- Attending mass in Africa- Actually, we went to two Catholic masses this weekend. The first one on Saturday was in English which was great because I could actually understand it. I was raised Catholic and have wonderful memories of attending mass with my father so it's always nice to return. One great thing about the Catholic church is no matter where you are around the world the service is the same.

-Attending mass in Rweteera- Rwetweera (which I've spelled wrong in earlier post) is one of two languages spoken in this area. While English is the official language of Uganda because there are so many tribal languages people learn their tribal language first. Today's mass was in Rweteera, I understood exactly two words: Alleluia and amen! However, the music was wonderful- instead of an organ there was fantastic African drumming.

- Going shopping in a store- Last weekend, I attempted to buy skirts at a local market in Bigodi which was an experience. Yesterday, Edvine and I went to "real" clothing stores in Fort Portal. There are no changing rooms so you change in a corner in the store.

We have high expectations for you...

Today was the first day that I walked though the village by myself to one of my schools- Bigodi primary to attend a parent meeting. It was great to recognize people and be recognized by people that I actually know and not as just that Mzugna.

When I got to the school the headmaster greeted me and said "we have high expectations for you", I hope I can meet them. The challenges in the schools are so great that I hope I can make a small difference.

On the days when I think - six months seems like a very long time to be here, I just look at the teachers who have put so much faith in me and think I have to find a way to make a difference.

Oberservations and lessons from week 2

1. Many of the children look much younger than they really are due to malnutrition and poor health care. I met a girl selling passion fruit along the roadside who looked like she couldn’t have been more than four but she was nine!

2. I suppose it wouldn't be called a risk if it was easy. It was difficult to leave all my friends, my pets, my home, my job, esstenlally my life and move to a small village on the other side of the world. There are days that are very difficult but I have seen happiness, suffering, faithfulness, and hospitality in there truest form.

3. Who needs an MP3 player when you have the constant sound of birds, cows, goats, and children playing as your soundtrack. There is a women's group who practices their singing just behind my banda in the afternoons they are wonderful!

4. Fish out of water. Due to the cultural differences every day poses a new challenge. Just going to the market to buy skirts was an exercise in flexibility. I thought I could just go on my own but was told I needed to take one of the kids otherwise I'd get the Mzungu price. So Deuce, the 12 yr old who has been my helper went with me. Saturday is market day in Bigodi where people come to sell their wares. So there we were in a stall as I am trying on a skirt and I swear 15 people come to crowd around to watch the mzungu try on clothing!

5. 16 month olds make great teachers. Leon is the second youngest in the Tinka family and is learning to speak his native language, Rutoro. As he is learning so am I. I now know the words for dog, bird, eat, and drink. I do need to increase my vocaboly but it's a start. People here learn English when they go to school as a second language. There are two tribes where I live thus two native languages.

6. I'm beginning to have favorite foods. We don't eat much meat here at home and most of the foods were new to me. Most meals consits of a starchy staple and another vegtable or two. Meals are served outside typically on a mat on the ground. There is tea with every meal. I've discovered that I love warm cabbage salad, avocado salad, sesame sauce, groundnut sauce, Irish potatoes, and matoke (steamed bananas) is growing on me. I don't like millet bread - which is really more like a dough.

7. My headlamp is my new beast friend. Since we are right on the equator here in Uganda, it gets dark about 7:30pm and light about 7:30am. So my headlamp gets lots of use!

8. I don’t bathe after dark. See I bathe outside and I politely refuse to bath after dark. There are two many creepy crawlies who hang out where I bathe. In the last week, I have gotten much more efficient with my bathing and can now wash my hair using only two cups of water!

9. Evenings after dinner are wonderful. Often after dinner there is an improtu net ball game with the kids or the telling of traditional stories.

10. Incoming calls are free. I miss talking to people back home but it's fairly expensive for me to call. However, you can buy cheap calling cards online to call Uganda.

11. Kibale National Park is amazing. I have never seen such density and beauty in a forest till I went to KNP!

Education in Uganda

In the last five days I have visited 19 schools around Kibale National Park in western Uganda. About half of the schools are currently in our program and the others we wanted to see as comparisons. All but one were primary (elementary) schools.

The conditions vary among the schools but we saw many schools with dirt floors, most did not have widows, many were falling down, some were just pavilions not buildings at all, and a few that had mud and thatch roof structures for classrooms. It was not uncommon to see a class with over 100 students and one teacher! In fact we saw many classes with 150 students. You can see it would be difficult to get any teaching and learning done in a class like that. Desks were in short supply, so often we saw nine students crammed in one bench meant for three. In some classes there were no desks or benches so children sat on the floor. Resources are slim- many school “libraries” were in fact simply a cabinet in the headmaster’s office. There are no computer labs, teacher assistants, playgrounds, very few educational supplies, media centers, school busses, auditoriums, etc...- All things we take for granted in American elementary schools. My task is too train teachers in hands on ways of teaching conservation education which will be a challenge with such large class sizes and limited resources.

The students were wonderful and seem so eager to learn. The older classes asked us questions like “What do we eat in America?”, “Are there blacks there?”, “Can we give them a scholarship?’, “What could we do so they weren’t so poor?” Many of the students walk miles each morning and evening to get to school. At some of the schools, hundreds of students would spill out of their classes and surround us as they had never seen a Mzugna (white person) before.

The Ugandan education system has many challenges facing it. As we toured the schools the headmasters shared with us their concerns that after p4 the number of girl students rapdleiy decreases as students get married early or are kept at home for domestic help.