Jan 28, 2012 BOG, Graduation, All-VOL, Africa Burning, Matatus, Poetry

Happy Birthday to my one in a million Niece!

Board Inauguration – My school is governed by a board of governors (BOG) and we have just had a change over to a new board. This requires getting the new members together along with the Gulu District Education Officer (DEO) who must inaugurate the board. The meeting was scheduled to start at 10am – this means I was ready to take the notes at my post at 10am. However the DEO did not arrive until 11:45 and one of our new members did not arrive until 12:30. Therefore we started 2.5 hours late. No one seemed concerned about this so I just kept practicing my new Zen like breathing technique. Something I am mastering over the course of my Peace corps experience. Everyone who spoke – which is most of the 13 people, started and ended with a prayer and a bible verse. This is the way it is done in Uganda – and it still feels weird coming from the US where this is against the law in most business settings. We ended with a meal of rice, goat stew and cabbage which we ate with our fingers – something I am still not very adept at - and the locals frequently laugh at my poor eating talents.

Graduation – I attended my Counterpart’s Graduation party on Saturday last week. She graduated from Gulu University with her Bachelors in Business Administration. She is a married, fulltime working mom of three and has fit in going to school on the weekends for three years. She is truly the best of African women in my book. Anyway she and her husband hosted a party at her home. I rode there with my supervisor and we arrived at 4:30pm. Upon our arrival we were seated just behind the row of major family important people. There is a serious etiquette to where you sit, and I was surprised to be placed so close to the front of the tent. Being the only Munu (White Person), I suppose that makes you something of a dignitary! So then began the 5 hours of speeches. Even I was asked to say a few words. (We did get a break to eat after 2 hours.)

There were family members from her home in West Nile and the most senior member of her clan had a long pole with something like a goat tail on the end of it. During the speeches he would jump up and wave the “scepter” and hoot and holler and incite the crowd.  At 9:30 the dancing started and I was told we were expected to spend the night there as is the custom in Acholi land. Luckily my supervisor also wanted to sleep in her own bed and not dance all night so we quietly excused ourselves.

My Counterpart

Senior relative celebrating!

Northern PC Volunteer All Vol – I went to Kitgum this last week to listen to various PCV’s speak about projects they have implemented and receive advice on assimilating into our new positions.We met under a Mango tree near a PCV's Hut.  I learned of an NGO here in Uganda implementing alternative forms of discipline (to discourage caning and other abusive practices) as well use positive incentives for behavior change. My Director is interested in learning more about this. I also observed a demonstration on making liquid soap. This soap is for dishes, washing clothes and floors, etc. There is a savings group in my school that is very interested in this skill for an income generating activity – so I have asked the PCV that has been doing this to come train my school and possibly a womens group in another village. My counterpart says she wants to train her mom so she can make soap in west Nile area. I also saw a cool Metal charcoal burning stove that perhaps my school metal working dept can make. So the conference seems to have been very useful. We also learned of several upcoming camps in the Northern region for young men and women – so I plan to volunteer to work those camps in April. I also returned with Moringa  tree seeds that I will plant in the wet season – it is a veritable magical tree with amazing health & nutrition properties. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moringa_oleifera

JoAngel-a friend I made!

Africa Burning – it is the Dry Season – it could also be called the burning season. Every day there is someone nearby burning their fields to clear it for next season. This is called bush burning and it is not good for the environment or for my lungs.  All day little pieces of ash fall from the sky and collect in my bathing area, latrine, in my house, on my desk etc. There are small dark grey smoke columns rising up on the horizon from all directions. Some how they seem to control these fires and keep them from spreading across the landscape, however for the life of me I can’t tell how they are doing it.

Matatus-these are van sized taxis that have 5 rows of seats. The front seat has the driver and is supposed to seat three across. The remaining seats are also 3 across but in Matatus, the minimum across is four people. This means on any given ride there will be between 19 and 28 people squeezed into the “taxi”. Recently My friend Nancy and I took a Matatu from Kitgum back to Gulu after attending the Northern Peace corps All-Volunteer Conference. We were in the 3^rd row and decided to buy three seats to insure we were not crammed in to the fullest. This is an incredibly spoiled American behavior, but I have some limits on my level of African integration. Our driver accepted our requirement of no more than 3 across our row, but that did not stop him from putting up to 6 people in the rows in front and behind us. We were traveling for 3 hours on an unpaved road. It was actually a pretty drive past villages with mud huts with chickens, cattle and goats wandering about for my entertainment!

POETRY

Bone Tired                                                           Dec 14,  2011

Tired in a way that Sleep won’t heal

A boxer depleted on the mat

Trying to will himself back on his feet

Though not sure he wants to try

Afraid he will have the wind knocked out once again

Yet more afraid to give up

An exhausted spirit

With a small intense flame

Hopes to re-ignite a raging fire

Yet also praying for an illness

To surrender into

To justify not continuing to try

For all he feels is

Bone Tired

Just a Long Walk                                              Jan 19^th 2012

I keep reminding myself

It’s just a long walk

It doesn’t take more than one step at a time

One foot, then the other

Really that is not hard

If you take it in small pieces

Breaking it up

So that the magnitude does not overwhelm

So my coming to Africa for 2 years

Is like a long walk

And the only way to eat an African Elephant

Is one bite at a time J

Magic                                                                  Jan 19^th, 2012

Sing praise for the magical powers it has

Beloved by man, and unable to be dissected by science

All races revere, practice, and celebrate it

In it, Babies and elders delight

Youth carry it like armor and fling it at the world

Sad and happy people employ it

Milestones, rites of passage, and years are marked with it

As well as small daily increments

The sun is brighter

The wind softer

The night darker

The run easier

The touch of a lover more loving

All because of the magic of Music

Standing Still                                                  Jan 19^th, 2012

Standing Still, For longer than you imagined

So still, so you can hear your breath, your heartbeat, the world turning

So long that you are off balance, disoriented

 So quiet that you might disappear

You stand, still listening, for answers

Not fully knowing your questions

Hoping both are revealed in time

You left

Searching for clues, signs, smoke signals

To gain perspective, To find meaning

So you stand still, forgetting to breathe

Wondering, Waiting, Watching

Not ready to move just yet

Hoping Goodness and Mercy shall follow

The Stillness

Joy of Running to Water                           Jan 22, 2012

Late afternoon

In the dry season

Tethered to a tree

For hours

Full on Grass

Parched & Dry

Demanding release

Bellowing to anyone

Excitement as a farm attendant arrives

Bringing Freedom

At FULL RUN

Heels kicking

Frolicking with anticipation

Across the football pitch

Over the path

Giddy with happiness

Eyes Singing

Nose plunges into Coolness

Cow Heaven!

Uganda Routine, Chickens as a sign of Respect & Friendship, Bountiful Blessings from USA

Uganda Routine

I am fully settled in at my site. My 3 room home is really comfortable and I am enjoying so much time with myself. I hope I won’t be too boring after all this down time. My days are busy – during the week I rise at 6 have a Starbucks Via and am outside turning on the drip irrigation at 6:30 and then watering my little vegetable garden – since it’s the dry season there is never any rain and it’s hot and sunny all day. Watering requires me to carry 2 5-gallon watering cans back & forth for almost 45 minutes each morning and evening. I estimate I carry 20-24 cans twice a day. So – to my friend Jen, the Goddess of Fitness, my arms are getting very strong.

I try to get to the internet at 7:45 which entails carrying my computer close to the main road to pick up a signal, and am at work by 8. (No internet in my office-BUMMER) Then I work in an office with our accountant and the school director – mostly giving advice and trying to keep the team organized and thinking strategically. I make lots of lists and review them all the time.  I also help them with proposals and grant applications. I share Microsoft Office tips and try to help them increase their productivity. I also spend time coaching the Director on leadership skills and management issues. The group is nice and appreciates my input.

Since I live on the school grounds, I walk home for lunch – almost always a blend of Ugandan Chapati (flat fried bread) – and something from America. I usually read for ½ and hour and then it’s back to the office. I generally leave around 5:30 and get on the internet again and frequently skype the hubby, and then walk to my house and change into my garden clothes. I again run the drip irrigation system and water my vegetables. Around 7pm I bath and then come inside to cook dinner. I have fresh milk every day from our school cows. I must boil it and have become quite addicted to my warm milk with cinnamon before bedtime. I usually save a little for my coffee in the am.

Weekends are filled with chores: clothes washing, weeding, cleaning house and more rigorous garden work. I also go to town when I need to, but have now enlisted my co-workers into shopping for me, so I can skip the bike ride to Gulu Town most weekends. This does mean I don’t have a lot of interaction with non-Ugandans. But so far this has been OK. I do have a week-long training in March with my Peace Corps class – and I am looking forward to that.

Chickens

Seems Chickens are a very popular way to tell someone you respect them and appreciate their friendship. Twice this week I have had to explain that I really don’t want a live chicken, and I would rather they kill it and cook it, and then share the meal with me. One woman said she understands that I don’t know what to do with a live chicken, so she wants to give me a sack of charcoal. Since I use a gas stove,  I also had to turn down this generous gift. SO I am hoping that I have not insulted anyone. I assume they think I am a strange and weak American and give me some slack for my lack of chicken slaughtering skills.

Bountiful Blessings

So far I have received 25 packages and 28 hand written letters since October. I doubt there is another person in the history of Peace Corps who has received more in just 3.5 months at site. I am actually now embarrassed to bring home another package from the post office.  The cost of mailing me one package is equal to the monthly salaries of our 3 farm attendants combined. This doesn’t even count the value of the contents inside. So while I am enjoying tuna, dried fruit, M&Ms, short bread cookies, Crystal Light, iced tea, Almond Roca, etc; my co-workers are eating posho (a white starchy concoction) and beans and drinking water. I burn all the packages and wrappers to hide the evidence. To be fair, I do share some of my gifts – the candies, cookies, drink mixes, etc. but I am still slightly bothered by my immense food supply. My wealth overwhelms me at times!

The message to you is please don’t send me anything else….unless I beg J I have more than enough to last a year or two.

The message to me is I am the most blessed and supported Peace Corps volunteer in the history of the organization. 

In Acholi I say – Apwoyo Matek! (Thank you very much!)

Sister Love, New Year Poems, Webmaster (NOT!)

Happy New Year - I am having a great holiday season and wish you one as well!
My big Sis Gretchen  - an international ballet star - turned 50 on 12-27-2011 - so you will get her poems first.

I have been prolific today - So grab a Coffee - or Tea! Send back your radiant love, and I will catch it off the breeze!

Gretchen, Karla, Grace, Kirby

My Sister

Joy & Power entwined with love envelop you when she enters

Her energy & fitness are palpable

She is the dancer….and the music

There is no separation

Her heart, spirit & body are always on center stage

She is busy creating, designing, choreographing

All the while she is able to encourage, laugh and shine her light 

on all who are blessed to know her

She is my sister, Gretchen!

Gretchen, Kirby, Karla

Karla, Gretchen

Karla top left; Gretchen, Our Dancer, seated right of teacher

Our Dancer, Gretchen

A joyful enthusiastic participant in all she does

A fiery spirit that pierces you with intensity

A protective & gentle mother, lover, wife

A spitfire of movement and grace

A generous heart that shares all

A positive sister & friend

A teacher of dance & life

A rich complex soul

Our Dancer,

Gretchen!

1-1-2012

New Day-New Year- New Decade …..for me

2012 brings my 5^th decade – quite a Surprise to me

When I say it out loud; in my mosquito net, to myself

So what is this year to bring? What does it herald?

None of us ever knows –So, I am resolved to be joyful and open

Not to fear or fret – it has taken me 50 years to learn this lesson

What comes, will come; regardless of my concerns and worries

So I have sent my worries a’ packing!

I live in the present – for today

Placing my future in my faith in God, in the universe, in the goodness of my fellow time travelers

I wish peace, happiness, and freedom from suffering to all earths creatures this Year

What a gift to have the perspective from a different continent

The light is clearer from here.

Dolly 

The New Year is here – I shared it with Dolly Parton. Africa never ceases to surprise me.

Sitting alone – waiting for New Year’s eve to pass

as I am alone, frequently, with myself, my best friend.

Dolly began singing on a nearby breeze. REALLY – wafting across the fields to me.

Dolly – from Nashville – Tennessee – USA from 20 years ago – was singing in Uganda

And no one felt the magnitude of it but me

It made my eyes well up with longing for home. 

I knew all the words.

She will always love me – in her coat of many colors – from nine to five!

REALLY an entire Dolly Album brought me home for almost an hour

So after all it is a happy New Year for me!

African Safari                  

I am on an African Safari – for 27 months – it will change me forever

I pray, for the better – but there are no guarantees

Safari means Journey – for me, a walk about – a vision quest

A chance to connect, To Myself – To Others – To the Universe

I feel it working – I think

I try to think less and feel more

I feel like an observer

Here, but disconnected

Awaiting the outcome

Unknown

No hints, no cheat sheets

I might as well enjoy the ride

and wait for the results with everyone else

Tree Hugger     (Shout out to my Bro Bar-B-Q on this one!)                                                                                                            

So be it – you are a tree hugger

Yep – you love trees

You feel them – Alive, Breathing, Strong, Peaceful

They stand their ground

They watch over you …and all who pass

And you are so grateful for their unbending love

You are in awe of their steadfast presence

Their commitment to their place

Their slow and steady personal growth

As Protector and Guardian

They provide shelter, shade, safety ...to so many

You relish their diversity – rough, smooth, tall, dwarf, bushy, spear-shaped

Large leafed, needle leafed, fragrant, sticky – all magnificent

Of course you cannot help

But hug trees

----------------

...With Optimism for the coming year - Karla

Birthday Blog, White Christmas, Circumcision(?)

Birthday Blog

Today I am 49 – Funny, since in my head, I still feel 30-ish.  I think my mind stopped aging once I hit my 30s. It can’t deny I am an adult, married, and have 2 great sons, but it seems very talented at forgetting I have aged beyond those milestones! (Unfortunately the mirror seems to know exactly how old I am!)

One of my favorite pics of Me!

A wonderful part of life is that you can never predict where it will take you. Four years ago I was celebrating my “half-way to 90” birthday with my beautiful, fit, and inspiring friend Karen. I could not have guessed in 4 years, I would be typing with the aid of a solar lamp, in my house in Uganda while serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer.  The nice thing is that, somehow, I am feeling very happy and up beat with my present situation.

For my Birthday I have received lots of well wishes from near and far – thanks primarily to Facebook. Closer to home, my supervisor & duplex-mate, gave me a lovely new purse and a wooden plaque for my home.

A lovely sentiment !

My new fashion upgrade!

So I am truly feeling the love that surrounds me. A special shout out to Lynn & Gretchen for the nice emails; and Lisa for sending me two separate birthday cards via snail mail – she sent them before thanksgiving to insure they would arrive in time. Obviously she is very organized!

Yesterday I spent 5 hours working in the “garden” (Think fields!).  Most of you know this makes me very happy – then I bagged up 4 kilos of rice to give as Christmas presents to my local buddies here in Koro. I handmade some cards and decorated the plastic bags with “fall leaves” motif Kleenex that some nice person sent in a care package a month ago!  One must improvise in Uganda!

Bathing                

I am growing fond of my outdoor bathing opportunities – I have experienced sunrise bathing, sunset bathing, midday full sun bathing and of course night bathing under the moon.  Only thing left is rain bathing and I don’t think that sounds appealing enough to me yet. But who knows?!

Poem in Honor of my Outdoor Bathing Room – written December 9, 2011                                                           

Bathing
…outside on a Friday night,
….in the soft gentle twilight,
….in the light of the full moon,
….next to fields of papaya and cabbages,
….under peeping starry skies
….beneath the racing wispy clouds
….while listening to distant African music
….and enjoying far away laughter
…. Smiling that I am here,
 Bathing

A White Christmas on the Bus

Last week I went to Kampala for a Peace Corps Volunteer Advisory Committee Meeting – I am one of 3 reps from my “class”. We are tasked with taking praise and complaints from our classmates to the Peace Corps Staff every 3-4 months. Since we are the freshmen class we basically just attend and share our info while the Junior and senior class reps lead us newbies. However the main point of this section of the blog is to talk about the bus ride I took from Gulu to Kampala.

Public transportation in Uganda is sweaty, crowded, exhausting, and constantly surreal. People transport live chickens, milk, bananas, multiple babies in one seat with mom, and a variety of bus food for the journey.  Music or talk radio is played the entire 6-hour ride, all at the discretion of the driver. Once I watched American music videos from the 1980s play over and over again. I now know that Michael Bolton is revered in Uganda…again who knew?  As is Celine Dion, Phil Collins and other soft rock giants of 3 decades ago. 

However, this bus ride was on December 11 – and it’s Christmas time in Uganda. (Ugandans are VERY religious. All meetings open and close with prayer, Really….no law against that here. ) So our driver popped in a 1 hour CD of American Christmas tunes.  Imagine barreling down Kampala highway – only white person on the bus - listening to White Christmas (it is Sunny & 85 degrees), Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and even Felice Navidad! I have to admit I sang the last one out loud, softly to myself. It was just too funny a situation to remain stoic. I was in the middle seat between 2 Ugandan men – one sleeping and the other talking to a guy in the seat across the aisle. This CD repeated 5 more times over the course of our journey. Now, again, I reiterate – surreal. (Refer back to my earlier blog poem on being in a movie/ documentary/ comedy.)

December 16^th was Circumcision Day in Koro

Friday there was a big celebration occurring across the street with loud music, and a public address system. I asked my counterpart if this was a Christmas celebration and she said no – there is a big effort to educate the village about the public health benefits of circumcision and they were having a major celebration while performing them at a reduced rate. We were in the staff room for lunch and this led to a discussion on the pros and cons of getting circumcised. (Refer back to my poem on being in a movie/ documentary/ comedy.) One man vehemently said he was not getting circumcised. His wife was familiar with what he had and she did not want something new to work with. Also he stated that God made him that way, and that way he will stay!  

Update on the Home

My Home is coming along. After 2 months of having no furniture in my sitting room.  I now have a twin sized bed for guests and am expecting a couch/sofa on Monday. Now I will be able to read my kindle in multiple locations and am feeling quite wealthy with my new amenities! Once the furniture is in place my Ugandan Wall Hangings can be hung up and I will be living in high cotton!

Work in Progress

My work is moving along well these days. I have designed a brochure including taking photos of the students & school facilities; I am working with the accountant on next year’s budget; I helped them email the brochure and a new course announcement letter to several hundred NGOs (Non-Government Organizations) to solicit student sponsorship monies, and I am researching potential grants. The school needs to develop other income generating activities because the tuition they charge is approximately 50% of the costs they incur. The challenge is that most don’t seem to worry about this profit & Loss / cash flow challenge. I think this is partially a result of having Aid for the majority of the schools existence. However with the war ending over 5 years ago and the world economy struggling, I don’t think Aid will be available in the same amounts as they have seen in the past.

PLEASE NOTE - I am not interested in getting any monies from my friends, family, or blog stalkers. At this point, I don’t want to be seen as the woman who came with money.  I have explained that I am here as an advisor and to transfer skills and build their capacities. Peace Corps Volunteers don’t bring money – money only lengthens dependency.  However, if the right opportunity arises I will send out a call for your support. Remember I am here until Oct 2013.

****************************************

Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Joyful Divali, Cheerful Kwanza, etc etc

 - whatever works for you I send you my love and support! PEACE - Karla

“There is no Electricity here – Life is HARD in Uganda”

December 3, 2011

“There is no Electricity here – Life is HARD in Uganda”

I’m Back – Sorry but life here in Africa is non-stop work – as my counterpart said the other day as we sat in our office waiting for electricity to come…which it never did – “There is no Electricity here – Life is HARD in Uganda”. And it is. I cannot adequately convey the challenges people face just to complete the basic tasks of daily life. Nothing can be counted upon, and people have little control over their lives. Water may not be available for days; electricity may or may not come on during any given day – imagine trying to run a business without being able to count on the basics of electricity and water. Then throw in Disease- malaria, AIDS, along with gender inequality and mal nutrition and you will agree - Life is hard here!

Last week our site was out of electricity due to a late electric bill – so even when the power was sporadically available – our school was not able to get on the grid – In addition, salaries here have not been paid since mid-October, and in a staff meeting yesterday the Director said she does not see any hope for funds to pay Nov, Dec and most likely Jan salaries. From what I know of their cash flow projections, I can’t see how they will meet Feb salaries…but this is too far in advance for them to think about now.  Needless to say this adds to the difficulty of the already challenging life of our staff. I feel guilty for receiving my Peace Corps Stipend as they all struggle to feed their families.

Millions Fetching Water – My Observations

There are millions of people fetching water from down the road, up the hill, across the fields.

Their day begins with outdoor latrines or the bush, then bathing outside with cold water – if there is enough water for bathing. They wash dishes, clothes, themselves – all outside in plastic basins, using the same bar of soap.

They eat one or two staple foods - daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, …for a lifetime…mostly a bland starch with beans. A tomato or carrot is a celebration, a feast to mark a birth or the beginning of the dry season.

Bugs are part of their everyday life – inside, outside, everywhere. They barely notice them unless they are poisonous.

They can’t read, write, drive, or go to a bank.

Disease is everywhere, mal nutrition a given, death part of every week. They have lost parents, children and siblings to disease or war or both. Purchasing a coffin is a common activity.

Justice and fairness are not concepts to reflect on. They know that these notions have no meaning where they live.

They don’t hurry or fret. They are powerless to affect the majority of their lives. If you aren’t born to wealth or privilege it is impossible to attain. Things are as they are, life is what it is.

Waiting is part of life – life is lived in the waiting periods. Laughing, storytelling, gossip, news is shared as people wait for the line to move, the electricity to come, the rains to fall, the sun to rise and set.

Thanksgiving in GULU with PCV’s

Given the observations above, I am truly grateful for all the blessings large and small in my life. So turn on your tap in the kitchen and praise God! ...oh and be thankful for a drain too! I wish I had one in my Ugandan house.

Well, I finally had some real American R&R to help shed some of the stress and drudgery of the above mentioned everyday challenges in Uganda. We were given a 4-day weekend for Thanksgiving and being resourceful talented PCVs we organized quite a fun weekend.

It began with my weekly bike ride to Gulu town. Unfortunately it was drizzling as I left my school and shortly thereafter it picked up strength. So I had to seek shelter in a Boda Stage (think covered motorcycle taxi stand). It was actually a fun cultural experience as I chatted with one Ugandan man who recognized me from our Open Day with the German Ambassador. I practiced my pitiful Acholi language with the Boda Drivers (Motorcycle taxi drivers) and they smiled at my broken 3-year old abilities, but appreciated my effort. Very few foreigners make the effort to speak the language.

When the rain let up I forged ahead and arrived in Gulu with Mud flying everywhere – from my bike tires, from the truck & car tires, …from every direction all I could see was mud – much of it  on me. Good thing I had a backpack with a change of clothes. I went to the bank to withdraw my PC stipend for Dec and had to wait 30 minutes for the machines to come back on. Then off I pedaled to another PCV’s house to cook 3 packages of brownies – my contribution to the feast – thanks to all my supporters in the USofA.  

Baking is a challenge in Uganda – not many ovens – I have not seen one yet – though I hear rich people have them in Kampala. SO I made Stove Top Browning Scramble. Imagine brownie mix continuously scrambled in a skillet until it turns somewhat solid. I scraped the brownie scramble into a pan and then molded it into brownie bricks which could be cut into pieces. Yes – I felt a great sense of Pride for my accomplishment. It took over 2.5 hours by the way! There were people cooking all over Gulu that day. Iwas with a group cooking a turkey on an outdoor stove with a huge pot placed over the turkey – it turned out very well and I, like most of us, was very surprised!

We carted our items to an Ethiopian restaurant that lent us their facilities for the day – not much biz on Thursday afternoon on Thanksgiving in Uganda. I think there were 50-60 people there mostly PCVs but also other Americans that needed a place to celebrate the American Holiday. It was my first away from Family and I missed my parents, sibs, kids, husband and friends very much but this was a good alternative!

Beer Basting the Turkey! Sorry - No pics of my Brownie Bricks!

Murchison Falls Safari

Friday 12 of us woke at 4am for a 3 hour ride to Murchison Falls National Park to see Animals and ride a boat to the falls where the Nile river gets compressed into a narrow  gorge and then plummets down over a cliff to continue its trek towards Egypt. Unfortunately one of our vehicles broke down 1.5 hours into the trip and we sat by the roadside for a couple hours waiting for a replacement – so we missed the morning game drive and our best chance to see lions. However the day turned out wonderfully and we all enjoyed seeing the giraffes, water buffalo, wart hogs, Ugandan Kobs & Crested Cranes, elephants, baboons, monkeys, crocodiles, hippos, and a gazillion birds! The boat ride was relaxing and the falls a nice site – though nothing like Niagara. We all wished we were staying the night a t the Paraa Safari Lodge – it was luxurious with a pool overlooking the Nile and outdoor bar and lovely rooms and dining facilities – nothing like my home in Koro!

On top of our safari vehicle

Its Mister Baboon to you!

Elephants were all around us near the Nile River

Murchison Falls in the background

Perma-gardening Workshop

My site was selected to host the Northern Uganda Peace Corps training for Perma-gardening; which is organic gardening using locally available resources and materials to create long term sustainable family gardens that provide increased yields by planting complimentary plants together and utilizing varying plant heights to get the most out of smaller family plots. The purpose is to help improve nutrition and food security here in Uganda. So 37 people – a volunteer and their counterparts – came to Koro to learn the process over 2 days. We learned some in classroom settings and a whole lot in the fields doing the practical work. (KICKED MY BUTT!) As I love gardening, I really enjoyed it; and now I am caring for the 9 plots and the Keyhole garden constructed near my house over the 2 day workshop! 

Making and animal barriers out of local materials

Farmer Karla

my fellow co-workers digging beds

Keyhole garden - cent3er for kitchen compost which leeches nutrients into beds 

I love and miss all of you guys - the important things get very real here! So - please treasure your family and friends; and harmony in your homes; as your heart will be with what you treasure!
PEACE - Karla

Big Sky+ Raging Winds = Rainy Season ….and My night buddy, Kindle!

Rainy Season it is! We had amazing amounts of rain the last week – it rains on and off during the day and then in the late afternoon the high winds and heavy rains descend –the sky darkens and the temperature drops to the low 60s, and then it can rain all night. This coupled with lack of electricity in the evening s often leads me to skip my evening outdoor bath – the rain and the unheated water is too uninviting for me to care about my B.O.  I just wash my face in a basin and then cover myself with powder to mask the unpleasant aroma, and I plop right into my mosquito net bed and jump headlong into my Kindle. Rainy Season comes twice a year I am told. This one began in late September and runs through most of December – though I hear the dust is more difficult to manage – I will let you know my preference after living through both seasons here in Koro.

YES – this week I am bragging about my relationship with my electronic buddy who delivers to me the most interesting and exciting adventures – I must also thank my friends the solar lamps that charge all day and then allow me some light at night.   I read Kon Tiki this week along with the Four Agreements (Thanks Chitoka!) I enjoyed them both but the challenges of the 6 men who crossed the Pacific on a raft kept me captivated. The book is like a history lesson / anthropology detective story / adventure novel.  Since it is a true story I found  it that much more interesting.

Poisoning Attempt

Well cooking this week was less successful. I actually got a little depressed with some of my attempts to be creative. Seems they were a bit too creative!!!   While I was Thrashing the waist high grass around my home…thrashing is manually cutting your grass with a machete like instrument with its tip sharpened on both sides and the top third bent at a 90 degree angle so it cuts as you swing your arm….I saw this vegetable like bush. I though it looked like a veggie  had seem in the market and later asked my supervisor if it was edible. She said yes – its Otula. So that night I picked three little buggers from the bush and minced them up nicely in my Mexican/taco seasoned beans along with the usual suspects of onions, bell peppers, and okra. Well The new little veggies didn’t taste so great, but I figured they were good for me and just ate a full plate of beans over rice like a good little Peace Corps Volunteer.   The next day my system was slightly out of sorts but I didn’t think much of it as this can occur every few days here. However at work I mentioned to my counterpart that I didn’t like the Otula and she asked where I got it. When I showed her the bush, she said it was a poisonous plant that all parents warn their children about from a young age!  She was surprised I wasn’t sicker. Later at lunch she told the entire staff about my mistake and everyone was incredulous that I was feeling OK. I must not have eaten enough – or perhaps the Taco Seasoning was an antidote!

I was somewhat successful in roasting my first batch of Groundnuts. Groundnuts are actually peanuts. They are the small red ones you sometimes see in the states – not the large ball park peanuts we get at the Titans games. I walked to our local market which is pretty weak in its offerings and saw that a lady was selling raw groundnuts – so I bought a kilo for about 35 cents and took them home and roasted them over my gas flame and then sprinkled them with salted water – the water evaporated and the nuts were covered in a white salty film. I felt very proud of my little nuts!

Latrine Lizards

Well I have never had a phobia about reptiles, and kind of like lizards, as I grew up with the bright green ones in NOLA.  So when I noticed a couple of them moving into my latrine, I thought they are my allies in killing mosquitos and spiders and their buggy cohorts, so I was not worried. However one night I ventured out around 9pm in the pitch black, misty, rainy night carrying my solar lamp and was greeted by 4 lizards in various locations around me in the 3x3 latrine. I decided not to panic as I talked my way down because I knew they were my allies. However, mid-stream the largest one perched above my head decided to leap to the ground next to my foot, and I must admit this scared the piss out of me! J There was nothing I could do – as I was in mid-stream and unable to change the direction of the process, so I just breathed in and out while he scurried under the door into the night.  So we are still friends but I am less excited about sharing my latrine with them now that I know they can jump like that!

The Road to the Cuk Madit

The Cuk Madit (Choook Madeeet) is the large main market in Gulu (It literally means big market).  The road to Gulu is like a never ending trail of people migrating to and from the market to buy and or sell items, while busses, freight containers on 18 wheelers and every other type of motorized and non-motorized vehicle shares the road.  Well my bicycle and I are part of this scene and yesterday I headed into town for my weekly shopping trip. It was a great ride as I left at 8am and enjoyed cool sunny skies the entire way there.  I yell out a greeting to all those I pass which are about every 15 pedals and most people smile and greet me back. We all speak a mixture of bad English and Acholi but the mood is cheery and it makes me feel I am part of the local scene.

My Bike - lettering says "Egg's House" no idea
what this means, but Brand is normal to Ugandans

On arrival I biked to my friend’s home in town and we headed out to shop. It was very productive as I bought some plastic stackable shelving for my kitchen as well as a grater for my ginger root. (I am enjoying drinking fresh ginger in hot water late at night.) Well the Cuk Madit is large - maybe a half mile deep and wide with sections selling various items. It is a veritable Ugandan experience! There is the egg section, beef section, banana section, pepper & onions section, used clothing section, etc. There are also little Dukas (doookas) / Shops selling plastic ware and other household items like brooms etc.  So I loaded up on my usual list of fresh items. The challenge is always packing my bike for the ride home. I really do look ridiculous – but I think it endears me to the locals who carry much greater loads on their heads and backs on a daily basis.  I arrived home today by 9am and have washed my clothes and cleaned my kitchen and set up my new shelves with all my newly acquired vegetable treasures.

My purchases-powdered milk, eggs, plastic shelves, veggies
galore, TP, Napkins, sugar, bread

Green avocado picked from tree at my friend's home

My new plastic shelves with veggies etc
under calendar of favorite photos from home!

My cooking stove and dish washing station - I wash in the
basin and pour dirty water into the bucket on the far right

My Job

The School is in National testing mode this week as our students undergo their exams on the various vocations they are studying. Out term will end in late Nov and then things should quiet down a little until next term starts in February 2012. I am still working on the Agriculture Business Plan and enjoying the research of pricing and costs related to these endeavors here in Uganda. I hope when the financials are run it will actually be a profitable business plan!

Kisses from Uganda to all my friends, relatives and supporters! Karla

Open Day, Food Successes, Spa Day Poem

November 6^th 2011

First of all – Congrats to my husband on completing the Marine Corps Marathon in 3 hours 58 min!      …..woo – hoo that’s an accomplishment!------------------------------------------------------

School Sign and some Staff

3 Weeks at my Vocational School and each day gets a little more comfortable as I figure out how to live here in rural Africa. It’s definitely a world away from anything I have known in the past.

OPEN DAY

My work is 8-5; 5-days a week – which I hear is different than most of my Peace Corps classmates. I share an office with our accountant and primarily have been preparing for the Open Day event that occurred yesterday with a visit by the German Ambassador to Uganda to officially open our new drip irrigation field – funded in large part by the German People. We are a vocational school that has carpentry, tailoring, brick and block laying, metal working, motor vehicle repair and agriculture. The school’s greatest challenge is that it cannot sustain itself on its tuition fees. It is hoped the drip irrigation will serve as both a demonstration/training facility for the region as well as generate income for crops grown – especially during the dry season. My next assignment is to write a business plan with the 2 agriculture staff to get that project jump started. I am also looking for other income generators to help incrementally add cash to the school. I definitely have my work cut out for me – so say a prayer to send me good ideas.

The event yesterday had approximately 300 invited guests and catered lunch – including about 150 people from our school as well as local dignitaries and agricultural educators. We also had a brass marching band, a local primary school perform a traditional local dance, a drama by our students and we finished the day with a football (soccer) match. Unfortunately we lost. But the day was a success!! We also had at least an equal amount of community members – mostly children – come and watch the entire event. There is little entertainment in Uganda so any event draws a crowd of onlookers.  My biggest contribution was a newsletter I produced after interviewing several successful graduates of the school. It was a fun assignment as I traveled to their respective workshops and places of business to learn about their trade and their business successes.

Marching Band

 Director, German Ambassador, RDC, Bishop

Primary School Dancers

 

For Uganda, this place is run fairly tightly. I must sign in and out daily and if I ever arrive late, I will have to sign in the “dreaded late book”. So far I don’t know the consequences of this book, but it is feared by my co-workers. My other PC classmates frequently arrive at their workplaces around 8:30 or 9 and may be the only ones there. I hear one friend’s office reads the papers for the first 3 hours of each day. My place on the other hand also works all day Saturday – which I explained right off the bat – that I will not be working on!

FOOD

I use Saturday to ride into Gulu Town to purchase food stuffs for my livelihood. The only food items I have located in my village are cabbage, bell peppers, onions, eggplant and okra. Luckily my upbringing in NOLA has prepared me to love these veggies and know how to cook them.  However for variety, I peddle 35-40 minutes on a straight and hilly road to purchase things like eggs, flour, tea, coffee, powdered milk, soap, detergent, fresh ginger, avocado, banana, pasta, rice, beans, potatoes and CHOCOLATE! As Uganda was formerly occupied by the British, we have Cadbury Chocolate here! So far, my favorite it the Mint Chocolate bar! 

As you may recall I have no running water, no drain, no fridge and no oven. My kitchen contains a 2-burner LP gas cooking stove with propane tank, and my new best friend – the electric tea kettle. I use it several times a day when we have electricity - to boil water. I do this for all water I drink as well as for heating water for my bucket bath outside in my bathing room. (This is a 3 foot x 3 foot cement & brick structure with no roof.) It sits next to my pit latrine (Same size but with a roof and a small hole in the floor).

My second best friend is my bottle of Heinz Ketchup, purchased in Kampala, which is the thing that reminds me the most of home. Heinz is an American food icon, and for me, also connects me US football, as it brings memories of seeing the Steelers in Heinz Stadium. The night I made French Fries – called chips here – and opened my bottle of ketchup, I was reading the bottle and realized I had opened it on the exact date it expired – October 28^th, 2011. What are the chances of that!?? Of course I will continue eating it until it really goes bad. Your standards drop a good bit here as your options are severely limited.

Success stories in the food department so far, are the baking of a poppy seed muffin mix my mother sent me, and the cooking of beef in a sauce similar to one for grillades in NOLA. Baking is an improvised process where I place a few small broken brick pieces in the bottom of a larger pot and then sit a smaller pot inside it. The small pot has the sides greased and is filled with the said muffin mix. I then cover both pots – with a frying pan – and turn on the gas and heat this set-up until I smell the mixture baking. Surprisingly it turned out pretty well. I also cooked beef I purchased in the market yesterday. The carcass was hanging in the open air and had flies enjoying it – I asked for ½ kilo for 5,000 Ugandan Shillings (About $2). I then peddled this home and had to cook it immediately as we have no refrigeration. Basically the rule of thumb is you can keep cooked food for 24 hours in a dark cool place. However, you must reheat it before eating it again. So I had this beef mixture over rice today for lunch, and will also have it for dinner tonight.

I must admit that my diet is greatly improved by the packages I have received from the US. Most every day I eat oatmeal and use seasoning and soup mixes shipped here. I found that beans cooked in taco mix is really quite tasty – give it a try at home – it’s a nice meal of Mexican beans. I also drink my Starbucks Vias almost daily – my French press is great but the hassle of cleaning coffee grinds with no sink or running water limits my enthusiasm!!! The drink mixes also brighten up the boiled drinking water. So again thanks to all my support group back in the USofA!

Uganda – Noise pollution

One of the biggest challenges here is the noise pollution. Music is played at the ear splitting levels all day and night. I can handle the daytime, but the night time sometimes goes until 7am the next day. I have resorted to wearing earplugs on the nights when the bass beat it so loud I feel the vibrations in my bed. I still wake up frequently but I get some sleep. Therefore it is a blessing when the electricity is not working. So I often hope for the power to go out just about my bedtime, so I sleep more soundly.

Poem from last weekend - Spa Day in Gulu Town     Oct 30^th, 2011

3 ladies in a foreign land
Peer expectantly into the box.
A magical Box from 7,000 miles away,
The thrill yet to be seen!

This is my box,
Sent with Love.
Received with grateful awe
& now shared with joy!
Here it is impossible to keep
The glittering prizes to myself!

One item at a time -
We Oooooh, We Aaaaaah!
We nod with approval.
Yes – this was well thought out!
Oh this is frivolous!
This is practical! This is comforting!

Then a green soothing packet
Promises a moment of cool & clean
in the midst of heat & dust.

The smooth crisp cucumber facial wipes- in a packet of 10
are too luxurious to describe!

One lady says – “No, you cannot be that generous – to share;
We can all use the same sheet and extend the miracle”

But I am generous & frivolous
I know that waiting for a better day
To enjoy something is Folly!

The day is now! The moment is perfect!
The cucumber facial wipes will never be a sweet.

So with abandon I pass one to each of us!
I am a magnanimous woman of wealth

Giddy with the thrill!

We caress our faces, necks, arms, hands
we are giggling & smiling

Momentarily transported to our own Spa!
A moment of gratitude for the breath of physical comfort

We realize something has happened that will bind us
Together forever.

------

Anyway – right now I am trying to get my bearings and get comfortable with the new routines and faces in my life. I do feel I am on a long personal journey to God only knows where – but I think it will make a difference in my life going forward. It is a real process to become your own best friend and confidant! When you remove all your support structures, you find you must rely on yourself alone. This is both daunting and exhilarating. So keep sending positive energy to me here in Uganda. I do need this kind of support. Visualize me being successful here, and I will continue to try to live up to your visions.

Love your friend and adventurer - Karla