in the sahara

So.  Got to go on a safari this week.  That was pretty cool.  We went on a cruise on the Nile, did a game drive, stayed at a beautiful hotel, tried to provoke a hippo, and did another game drive the next morning.  I could not keep myself from smiling.  

{ Our view at breakfast }

(Seriously not posing, someone else took this.  Just proof that I was really happy.)

{another check on the bucket list.}

ode to the states

It's late and I have to be up in five hours to leave for the safari, but I just had to quickly write my appreciation for home.  As much as I love it here, it is very, very different from life in the states.  Transportation, communication, public bathrooms, lack of vegetables and milk, etc.  Not that I really expected anything different, but I am continually grateful for the comforts and luxuries that we have back at home.  I cannot even complain for differences here--and honestly, the only thing that is really hard for me is the whole vegetable thing--because I have seen so many who have less . . . but it definitely helps me to appreciate what we have at home.  

Seriously, it is kind of pathetic that it's only been two weeks and we are already struggling with the discontinuities.  On Friday we found a restaurant with normal food and could barely contain our excitement.  We were literally giddy as the waiter brought this out for us. . . .

I have to recognize the fact that we live very different lives.  Just like you would find in comparing any two different countries.  It's not to say that the life we live is any better from what they have here.  (For example, who is to determine the value of a moderately-large home vs. the absence of materialism.)  There are just as many happy Ugandans as there are happy Americans--our measure of happiness is just different.  What it really comes down to is how we choose to live.

Church today magnified these feelings.  Everyone there was so happy to be at church, so happy to be doing what they could to come closer to God.  In Relief Society they were talking about what they could do for activities, especially ones that would not cost any money.  The Relief Society president said, "We could even just do aerobics!"  (She then proceeded to just up and down and wave her arms around.  Really cute.)  "Just as long as we are doing something together as sisters to come to the Lord."  They truly have a sense here of what is most important.  Their love is beautiful.  

I think I am going to be learning a lot more from the people here than what I can bring to them.  A lot more.

the rains in Africa

Oh my. This last week in Gulu was an absolute adventure.  From beginning to end.  

It started at 6:30 a.m. on Monday morning as we made our way to the bus.  We got on a mutatu and just rode. None of us were really sure exactly where we should get off, but luckily people in the mutatu were willing to help.  We finally made it to some obscure bus stop and waited on the bus for two hours before it left.  (Skye asked when we would arrive in Gulu, and the driver said, "Sometime between 2:00 and 7:30.")  As the bus went along, we would make stops in small villages and they would try to sell us things through the window.  One man on the bus purchased two live chickens.  

So yeah, that happened.  It was a beautiful drive though.  I had every intention to work on some reading assignments on the drive but . . . let's be honest, when does that ever happen when combining me and scenery?

We finally made it into Gulu around 4:30, went right to our hotel and started doing interviews with LRA abductees.  Fascinating.  We then found a lovely American cafe and had pizza and passion juice for dinner by lantern light.  (We may or may not have eaten there every night....sometimes for lunch too.)  Great atmosphere, good people, fun conversation, etc.

AND, fell asleep to a rainstorm.  Every night.  It was lovely.  Every day was spent working on research projects all day. (Which included riding on bodas to get from place to place--so much fun.)  And then at night we would go to the restaurant and eat and talk.  One afternoon, though, we got to take a little field trip to the bush.  Dream come true?  Oh yeah.

Along the way, we stopped to look at Kony's church when he was a boy (oh also--we interviewed one of Kony's top commanders) and heard drums . . . went running to find children dancing.  I joined them and looked like a fool, but it was so much fun.

On the 4th, we focused our food efforts on being as American as possible.  (It was the only thing we could do to celebrate.)  So I got a burger and Coke.

We finished our week on Friday with breakfast at the cafe (amazing pancakes and French toast, I was shocked).  After wrapping up everything for research, made the long drive back home.  Which included driving over the Nile and through a baboon sanctuary.  And past a sunflower field.  Pretty neat.

I'll admit, it was a bit hard to come back to the crazy streets of Kampala.