Well, it began in July (a bit early) but seeing as I rarely post in a timely fashion this belated recognition will have to do! This will be my last full rainy season in Uganda. Oh, I definitely won’t miss the mud that clings to your shoes and makes the act of wading through town feel like a particularly strenuous trip to the gym! But who would miss the reprieve from work?! It’s just not logical to move about when it’s heavily raining!

But here I am beginning at the end. Seeing as I’m not a stream of consciousness writer—I tend to lose myself in the telling and thus fail to relate important events—I’ll start at the beginning.

May:

I started the month with a surprising celebration of Cinco de Mayo. The weekend just before the holiday my friend Sarah came for a visit. On her last night at my house we made tacos and found Sangria in my town!! We were even able to have the ladies in the mini-supermarket put the Sangria in the refrigerator for us so that we enjoyed chilled Sangria! It was such an amazing and wonderful surprise to find such a great treat in my village!

In May a new Peace Corps Volunteer arrived in our district. She came just in time to keep our number steady at 3 (because Jackie left in June). Our “Kibaale Bashes” don’t add up to much more than a quiet gathering at one of our houses! Clearly, we keep our noses out of trouble!

At work we were busy making final preparations for the first set of radio programs to be aired on our local radio station. We will be presenting information about HIV/AIDS on a 30min program once a week for the next year. Every now and then I’m a guest presenter but the programs are usually presented in the local language…which I haven’t quite mastered to the point where I could present a whole show!

June:

Jackie, my friend and mentor for the past 1 ½ years, left Kibaale at the beginning of June. In preparation for her departure she had a going away party in her trading center. Jen and I were both there to see her and Ben set off for their new home just outside Kampala.

The other sad news of the month was the loss of my dog. I went for a few days to Kampala and when I returned Ursa was nowhere to be seen. When she didn’t come back after a day I started asking around as to what might have happened. I still don’t know exactly what happened but my neighbors and landlord think that someone either poisoned her or stole her and sold her. Either way, it broke my heart and things just aren’t the same without her around. On the plus side (if there is one), if she was still around I can see leaving her behind in November would have been incredibly difficult. I just hope that wherever she is she’s happy.

Work kept me from dwelling too much on my loss…I had some sad news there as well when I learned my best friend, Rachel, was soon to leave. Her mom enrolled in a nursing program to upgrade from a nursing assistant to registered nurse. At least they come to visit us once in a while. Sunday and I provided more HIV/AIDS training session for Community Health Workers and Traditional Birth Attendants who were being facilitated by a local NGO we partner with on occasion. And this radio program really makes time fly; it seems like every time I turn around we’re talking about preparing and going to record more radio programs! Plus, we doggedly pursued our goal of completing our first strategic planning process. Not easy considering Stephen, Sunday and I are constantly traveling around!

July:

This month found my group of 7 original members—plus our adopted member, Reva—thinking about what it will be like to go home. Yikes! During the 3-day conference we talked about our fears, what we’ll miss, how we’ll cope, etc. Then we reviewed our fears and aspirations from staging. (In Sept 2006!) It’s amazing how similar our fears about going home match the fears we felt before coming to Uganda. At first glance, you would think the 2 experiences—going to a place you know very little about and going home—are completely different. Yet, the same feelings arise: Will I fit in? Will people understand me? Can I cope with missing the people and places I love? Will I find the right path? Can I really do this? Well, you can see the questions go on and on!

Every new experience holds a beginning and an end. There is always some piece of sadness in leaving the old and fear in discovering what is new. Those feelings will always be there; they remind me to always try my level best to enjoy each experience as I live it. These are the thoughts that occupy me during the 12 hours of darkness when I’m holed up in my house!

Ok, now for some excitement! My friend Jen, another Peace Corps Volunteer, and I took a little trip to Rwanda. We spent 1 week going from Kigali to Gisenyi to Ruhengeri then back to Kigali. The highlights of the trip included: relaxing at Lake Kivu, a beautiful crater lake Rwanda shares with the DR Congo and a staggeringly challenging hike up Bisoke, an inactive volcano. The volcano is in the Volcanoes National Park where people go to see the Mountain Gorilla in Rwanda. Sadly, Jen and I couldn’t afford the permits so we decided to take a little walk up Bisoke (3,711m, around 12,000ft) to see a beautiful crater lake. We met some travelers from Denmark who said it was AMAZING! We thought, “Great! A little exercise couldn’t hurt, right?!” Ha! The volcano was one of the hardest hikes I’ve ever done! Ok, so I don’t have a ton of experience but the climb and descent were steep, muddy and intense! By the end, most of us weren’t sure if our legs would hold up. But what an awesome feeling! Overcoming intense fatigue and accomplishing what I set out to do made me fee incredibly good about the pain in my legs! Plus, after looking at the park statistics, I suspect I’ll be one of 900 or so people who see the lake at the top of Bisoke this year.

The other cool thing about Bisoke is that we hiked where Dian Fossey worked! For another $50 and on a different day we could have seen her grave but we didn’t have time for that. The volcano is covered in a cloud so I now understand how they came up with the title for Gorillas in the Mist. You couldn’t see much of anything just a few meters off the path we climbed! A gorilla or buffalo could have wandered out of the mist without us being able to see it until it had entered the path!

The saddest part of the time in Kigali was our trip to the genocide memorial. Such a sobering experience listening to survivors’ experiences and know that you can’t begin to comprehend the horrors they faced. The memorial was a beautifully designed tribute to the victims of the genocide. The exhibit was laid out in a circle with each section depicting different periods that contributed to the genocide, the genocide and the aftermath. The circular layout seemed to show the ever-revolving nature of time. We end where we begin and begin where we end. You can’t come to terms with tragedy and move on by ignoring the past. How can we learn from this experience, and others like it, to prevent it from happening again? Visiting such a place and reflecting on the atrocities human beings can commit against other human beings makes me wonder if humanity is truly the pinnacle of existence. It left me with a lot of think about and too much to write here or this blog post will never end!

To at least end on a happy note (blame Hollywood—I must have a happy ending)… Rwanda is rebuilding and appears to be looking toward the country’s bright future and not mired in the past. While in Rwanda, Jen and I had the chance to meet and hang out with some truly amazing travelers and expats! Every new place we went we made friends from England, Belgium, Cambodia, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada and Germany. One of the best parts about traveling is the people you meet along the way!

Of course, another good part about traveling is the returning home bit. While Rwanda is a beautiful country it made me appreciate Uganda and the level of comfort I have reached here. Spending one week in Rwanda gave me a taste of just how much I’ll miss this place when I leave!

Until next time…be happy and stay safe!!

a good friend told me, "life is busy and sometimes we forget to do the things we mean to do". So, here it goes...

I am trying to complete what is called a Peace Corps Partnership Project. My plan is to bring computers and internet to the village. I'll train the people who work and volunteer at my organization in computer and internet use and trouble -shooting techniques. From there, they will train teachers and People Living with HIV/AIDS how to use the computer and internet. It's a fairly low-budget project so I hope that the funding will come through quickly...with support from viewers like you! (Oh yes, I still remember PBS fundraise-a-thons.) This is your chance to DIRECTLY support a project in Africa that will help a community on the road to development! Helping people learn how to use technology gives them a huge step-up in applying for jobs and keeping their CBOs alive. I'm not just going to dump computers on these people; they'll actully learn how to use and maintain them so the project doesn't end before I've left.

Now, here's the kicker. I want to be home for Christmas!! I've missed the past Christmas for the past 3 years with my family in WI! (Are you crying, yet?) If the project doesn't receive funding within the next month I either have to scrap it or extend...which means I miss Christmas for the 4th year! For those of you who would have given me a present think of donating to my project instead. Being home for Christmas is all the gift I need this year! (Ok, there have to be tears by now!)

Go to www.peacecorps.govcontribute

A little money from a lot of people will go a long way. And that's all I want for Christmas this year!

Stay well!

Christina

Dear family, friends and random visitors...

I am asking for your support in the last 5 months of my service. My organization and I have submitted a proposal to Peace Corps Partnership to provide internet services and computer training to local villagers. The program is expeted to eventually support itself and provide support for People Living with HIV/AIDS.

Peace Corps Partnership works like a fundraising campaign...that is why I'm asking for your help! The project has been posted on the Peace Corps website and awaits donations from friends, family and random do-gooders!

Once all the money has been raised Peace Corps will get the money to me and then I'll be able to start our project!

This is a program that my colleagues have been requesting almost the whole time I have been in Uganda. People recognize the importance of having computer skills these days but have little opportunity to gain them. Plus, a good resource centre should really provide the best and most current information for people...that requires internet!

Here's your opportunity to DIRECTLY impact the lives of villagers in Africa! Please take a moment and go to www.peacecorps.govcontribute. Donate and spread the word!!

Hello friends, family, random visitors!

I am sending our this plea for your help in the last 5 months of my service. My organization and I are trying to bring better services to our resource centre and one of those ways is by bringing computers and installing internet...something sorely lacking in this area. My colleagues also are begging for computer training. With a proposal I have currently submitted to Peace Corps Partnership I can make all of these dreams come true! That is, with support from friends, family and random do-gooders!

Just log-on at www.peacecorps.govcontribute. Search for me by my last name "Beach" and location "Uganda". You'll find a brief description of the project on their website and a place where you can easily donate. Donate...then spread the word! The more people who know about the project, the less money each person needs to contribute!

Please, take just a moment to support a good project!

Peace,

Christina

PS-later this month I hope to have an update on my life!

Wow! Good thing one of my New Year's Resolutions wasn't to update my blog once a month. Looks like I have fallen behind once again! In an effort to keep this somehow short I'll focus on the most important events of the last few months.

Feb:Jackie and Ben had an "introduction" party to introduce his family to her parents when they came for a visit. It was really great to meet Jackie's parents (Pat and Wally) and share Jackie and Ben's celebration with them. His family organized a lot of entertainment for the party. I even had the pleasure of making a speech! With all the public speaking I do here I should never again have a problem getting up in front of people and giving an impromptu speech!

After the "introduction" ceremony a new batch of Peace Corps Trainees entered the country. Amanda and I had the pleasure of pulling out our visual aids and presenting our HIV/AIDS 101 session to the newbies. The nature of our lesson requires that we go at the beginning of their training so we met them on their 4th day in country. It's so hard to remember what it felt like to be new here. We have somehow become veterans. Now they're about to be sworn-in! Eight weeks has gone by in the blink of an eye.

March:

Of course, my birthday was the most important day of this month! I celebrated the actual day with my friend Jackie. We made chocolate cake and tried to eat my chicken but it was laying eggs so we had to modify dinner a bit but still had some great BBQ canned chicken tacos and Ben made some excellent BBQ pork! Live chickens sometimes refuse to cooperate!

That weekend I attended the wedding of a friend in the village. We missed the actual ceremony but the reception was a lot of fun. Being the only non-Ugandan in the crowd the emcee decided that I was a good object to direct his attention at; I had a song dedicated to me as we were waiting for the "bagole" (bride and groom) to arrive and then had to give a short speech once they had arrived!

The wedding forced me to push the celebration of my birthday in the village to the following weekend but that was cool because it coincided with St. Patrick's Day (one of my favorite holidays!). I invited my friends and co-workers from the village to a birthday party at KCRC (my organization). The program was as follows: speeches, eating, dancing. The speeches were basically dominated by Jackie and me. We tried to keep the speeches short because the most exciting part of the day was yet to come! I had the food catered by a local restaurant but I made the birthday cake that everyone enjoyed. Dancing turned out to be basically just Jackie and me dancing to the amusement of the Ugandans. But that's cool. These days we don't really care what we look like anymore!

That night, Jackie and Ben spent the night and we drank green beer to pre-celebrate St. Patrick's Day! (Yes! I made green beer in Uganda!) To celebrate St. Patty's Day I made a spice cake that I shaped like a clover and then covered it in green frosting. I added a little too much water to the frosting, though so it just soaked in to the cake but it was very tasty even if it didn't look exactly like I expected!

Jackie and Ben bought a puppy while at my birthday party and as a result a lost puppy came wandering around to check out the visitor. The puppy (her picture is above) that came around looked on the edge of death; she was incredibly thin, with clumps of hair missing, and eyes bulging out of her head. We gave her some food but doing so I recognized she was probably going to continue to return for more food. I was really worried that I wouldn't be prepared to take care of this poor dog because it's not as if I can run down the street to PetSmart to get food and other necessities! But I decided that I could do something small for her and continue to feed her. So now, I have a somehow dog. I named her Ursa Minor because she responded when I called her little bear! I don't let her come into the house (too many fleas) and she still spends the night at the neighbor's house with their dogs. I think we have a good arrangement because I'm gone too often and thus need her to be somehow independent. We've had our challenges (like she refuses to eat food with the deworming meds in it) but she learns fast and has a very mellow personality. One of these days I'll working on getting rid of the fleas!

Easter weekend brought the going away party for the Peace Corps Volunteers who are at the end of their service. We had a relaxing day by the pool at a local hotel and then dressed up as movie characters for dinner and dancing. It's hard to believe that after people from this group leave the PEPFAR 1 girls are going to be the next group to leave! The end of March saw the door fall off my latrine. I spent a morning putting it back on with nails that were entirely too big! At least it's back on, though!

April:How cool is this?! I went on my first safari this month! There's are National Park near Masindi (north-east of Kampala) called Murchison Falls; I went for a game drive, boat trip and hike to the waterfalls. It was so much fun! I'll post pictures on the Flickr account so you can click the link to the right and see all the animals we got to see. There were a lot of Uganda Kobs, hartebeests, water bucks, crocodiles and hippos. We were incredibly lucky to see lions, lots of giraffes and elephants.

The early morning game drive had us across the water and starting on the drive by 7 am. Early morning and evening are the best times to see animals moving around because those are the coolest times of the day. Animals are smart to hide in the shade during mid-day hours because it got VERY hot in the park! Only silly animals like people move around in the heat!! :)

Murchison Falls was first mapped by Sir Sam Baker on 3rd April 1864 so we were there on the 144th anniversary of his first siting of the falls! Granted Murchison is neither tall nor wide but the space is so narrow at the top of the falls that you really get a feel for the power of the water passing down the falls. When Baker first saw the falls there was only Murchison but in 1962 there was a lot of rain and the excess rain caused the water to find a new route down and that is why in the picutres you see two waterfalls. Murchison Falls is to the right and Uhuru (in Swahili means freedom) Falls is to the left. Uhuru is wider but a shorter drop than Murchison.

And that brings us up to date!

Ok, so my last blog really didn't give any information about life at site. I guess that's because I found myself away from my village a lot during the last few months of the year. Plus, things just don't seem very exciting. When you get into a routine life seems to become fairly mundane and not worth documenting.

I'm trying my level best to help my organization stand on it's own 2 feet. That's always a bit of a challenge considering the lack of technology in our village. But somehow we manage. Stephen (my spervisor) and I usually manage to check and send e-mail once a month so we're able to stay in touch with possible funders. Plus, we have a motivated chairperson on our Board of Directors who has helped us immensly by using his access to interne to investigate funding possiblities. I have a feeling, dim as it may be, that Stephen will have the ability to keep the doors to KCRC open and continue growing even after I leave!

Not only does a lack of technology leave me a bit disconnected, it also give me hand cramps. Not so much from typing but because I have to write everything on paper first then take my handwritten copy to Kampala where I can use a computer to digitize my thoughts! =) Now, there used to be a few places in my village with compters I could type on but viruses from those computers have caused me a lot of pain before and, as they say, "once bitten, twice shy"! (BTW: when I hand wrote this update in the village the place was open but just before coming to Kampala they closed the office! Bambi!)

Issues like that impede our development but not to the point where we're stagnant. (I have lots of notebooks to prove that!) I have to constantly remind myself that it takes time to develop an organization and I think ours' is on the right track. At least, we've taken the time to tap local resources and skills; which I've tried to stress is much better than immediately looking outside for help.

We have a great opportunity to begin 2008 with a bang. A German organization called LandsAid has agreed to support our village HIV Counseling and Testing project for 3 months. This means we can reach those who can't get to Karuguuza or Kibaale For HIV testing! I hope our luck continues with a proposal to develop the Post Test Club and for us to restart our radio program

While I try to stress the importance of capacity building (one of the three Peace Corps goals) to my organization members it's hard to make the theory meaningful when you have nothing to apply it to! So, while I'm not technically at my organization to find funding that's really the first step KCRC and I have to take to ensure it becomes a sustainable organization. We're all learning, together, what it takes to build an organization from the ground up! Let me tell you, it's not easy! While this is not exactly the work I expected to be doing in Peace Corps and I am really happy with all the things I am learning!

But for all of these challenges I do see myself growing everyday. I put things off less and spend more time planning. I used to get so annoyed when things didn't happen as I wanted and now I see it was a direct result of my aversion to making decent plans in advance! Teaching people about the benefit of planning has carried over into my own life. I can honestly say...do as I do!! Who wudda thunk that would be an outcome of my Peace Corps service?! It's all just one surprise after another! In case any of you are worried about my diet I included a couple pictures of Christmas breakfast and dinner. Jackie made cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning breakfast and we had an excellent Christmas dinner! We had chicken, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy and vegetables. It was an incredible meal! If you're curious about how we do our baking take a look at the pictures on my flick account; I posted a picture of my jiko "oven" for all to see!

October and November passed in a blur. A lot happened so I’ll try and be brief. October started with a party to end all parties: Goatstock! Goatstock is the opportunity for Uganda Peace Corps Volunteers to get together, put on costumes, eat goat and dance in the cold of a Sipi Falls Night. Ah, that makes sense, you say; but why costumes? Well, goatstock is not just another excuse for us volunteers to get together but our Halloween celebration. This year the party didn’t coincide so well with the actual date of Halloween but I won’t bore you with the details. Basically, it was a wonderfully fun time. I also had the chance to do some hiking to a couple of the waterfalls and it was all pretty amazing! If you want a point of reference…Sipi Falls is in the East about 5 hours from Kampala.

As I kept myself busy at site by washing mud out of my clothes and off my shoes, among various work-related activities, I found myself going to sleep in October and waking in mid-November. I had no idea how the month passed so fast! On 14th November I found myself being carried away from Uganda and on a 2 week vacation that began in Istanbul, Turkey and ended in Cairo, Egypt.

I traveled to Turkey with Reva, another volunteer. We spent 4 glorious days in Istanbul and 3 amazing days in Selcuk. Where?! Selcuk is a 10 hour bus ride south from Istanbul along the Mediterranean coast. It is close to the ancient ruins of Ephesus (a city that flourished around the same time as Troy—for those not too fond of history think Helen of Troy and the whole reason for the creation of the Trojan horse), Priene and Miletus (also once bustling cities along the Mediterranean coast). Near Selcuk stand the few remaining ruins of the Temple of Artemis (one of the 7 ancient wonders). Our first day in Selcuk we took about a 3 hour bus ride to Pamukkale (meaning Cotton Castle) to see the awe-inspiring travertine and remains of the ancient city of Hierapolis. Unfortunately, the weather conspired against us and limited the amount of time we had to investigate the ruins but the travertine is incredible! Created over millennia by heated water full of calcium the terraces down the face of the cliff look like they’re covered in snow! People can walk in the natural thermal waters that spill over the steps.

The next day we explored Ephesus with the impressive façade of its library and huge Roman theatre. There were even stacks of sections of clay pipes that were used to carry water from the cistern to peoples’ homes!

The third day went to see Miletus, Priene and Didyma. The first two were cities and the 3rd an ancient temple. I can’t even begin to describe how incredible the cities of Miletus and Priene were. First, we were the only people there—Reva, me and 2 French women—who were so nice they even read to us about the cities from their guide books). Plus at Miletus the city the city was in ruins but so many huge marble blocks remained that it felt like you were walking through a marble forest or graveyard!

Priene was in much better shape than Miletus so that we could even walk through what remained of the Roman bath. Didyma was once the place where an oracle sat and people came to hear about their future.

But wait! I’ve started from the end of our week in Turkey. The first 4 days we stayed in Istanbul and had a phenomenal time! We took a boat cruise on the Bosphorus, wandered around Asia, toured the Aya Sofya, Topkapi Palace and the Blue Mosque, shopped in the Grand Bazaar and still had time for a Turkish bath (Hammam). I can’t even begin to describe what an amazing city Istanbul is. The juxtaposition of ancient in the delicate minarets of the mosques you see everywhere and it leaves you breathless. Our hotel, in Sultanahmet, had a rooftop terrace overlooking the Sea of Marmara and so we watched the sunrise there every morning while eating breakfast. I can’t describe Istanbul anymore than that; no words are adequate so you should see it for yourself! If you plan a trip there, write to me, I can give you the name of the hotel we stayed in which was incredible and had very friendly and helpful staff.

After 3 days in Selcuk, Reva and I took off for Egypt where we met some other volunteers and a few other Americans working in Uganda. We stayed in Giza near the pyramids the first night. The next day we went to see the pyramids up close and personal. They are huge! I mean, you can tell they’re huge from TV and pictures but to stand next to them and feel so incredibly small and insignificant is another feeling altogether. Best part of being at the pyramids was taking a 10 minute camel ride beside them! Talk about a terrifying experience as they get up and lie back down again. I wonder how the first person managed to hang on and say now this mode of transport is worth the risk of falling off every time the camel stands up or lies down!

That day we also went to see the Sphinx, Egyptian museum, a perfume shop and a demonstration on how papyrus is made. That night found us on an overnight train to Luxor. It was my first time to travel in a 2 person couchette and it was surprisingly comfortable. I slept on the top bed and didn’t even fall out!

In Luxor we went to the Colussus of Mmenon, the Valley or the Kings where we could enter 3 tombs and some people paid extra to go in King Tut’s. There are still some hieroglyphs on the walls with their original color! Then we went to the Valley of the Queens and saw the Temple of Haatshepsut. We crossed the Nile by boat and went to see the Temple of Karnak and Luxor Temple in the afternoon and early evening. The columns, statues and obelisks are huge!! The size of the temples just boggles the mind. You wander around all of these sites in Egypt and Turkey and just marvel at how people built such amazing structures without modern technology. Then, you marvel at how they’ve withstood millennia and it makes you wonder what we’ve built over the last few centuries that could actually last the way these places have. Then you begin to question your significance…but that’s a topic for another blog!

The next day, in Luxor, Erin (another volunteer) and I wandered around the city and went to visit the Luxor museum—which is much easier to digest than the Egyptian museum in Cairo—and see the mummies on display. That experience was then followed by the sheer bliss of a McDonald’s McFlurry. Hey! Don’t laugh! You’ll understand the significance of the moment when you’ve gone over 1 year without even the option of saying “no” to a McFlurry!

That night we were back on the train and on the way to Cairo. That day in Cairo we went to see Memphis (the first capitol of Egypt) and Saqqara (the oldest cemetery) with the first step pyramid. At Memphis there was a statue of Ramses II laying on the ground and it really helped give perspective of the size of these statues which you know are colossal but don’t really feel they’re size until you stand next to one on the ground. Then we went tovisit the Citadel and Mosque of Salah al-Din which was built as a replica of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

The next day we drove north to Alexandria; another incredible city. We saw the catacombs, the fortress near where the Alexandria lighthouse once stood, Pillar of Bombay and the Alexandria Library. No, not the one that burned down but the new one built 5 years ago and hands down the most impressive modern library I have ever seen! It has room enough for 8 million books and was built to utilize natural light to reduce energy consumption and keep the damaging UV rays out. We watched the sun set on the Mediterranean and on the way back to Cairo stopped at Starbucks which was almost as exciting as the McFlurry although I was a bit disappointed they didn’t have eggnog lattes. So, as you all enjoy your eggnog this holiday season think of me spending my 2nd year without the sinfully, delicious, creamy holiday treat!

The next day we had half a day to explore Cairo on our won. Jon (another volunteer) and I went to spend more time at the Egyptian museum because 1 ½ hours just isn’t enough time and then went to check out Coptic Cairo and Fort Babylon. We saw something called the floating church which had AMAZING mosaics but arrived too late to check out the Fort.

From there it was off to the airport and back to Uganda where we celebrated one year of service at the Jinja Nile Resort for our Mid Service Training.

This is a wicked long post so I think I’ll end here.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday season!!!

Ok, so I didn't manage to write a blog about my vacation and now I have to get back to my house; I hope it hasn't been invaded by furry animals! I just want to wish everyone safe and happy holidays...in the event I don't manage to access internet before they begin. :)

Two months have passed by in the blink of an eye! This won't be a formal post--I'm still trying to figure out how to put down the highlights of the last 2 months--but I wanted to let you know I'm still alive and doing well. I returned to Uganda on Wednesday after an incredible 2 week vacation. I visited Turkey and Egypt for 1 week each and now it's time to get back to work again. The transition to Uganda has been eased by a brief stay at the Jinja Nile Resort for our Mid-Service Training. Today marks the beginning of my final year in Peace Corps. 365 days left until I finish service (if I don't extend) and I know this year is going to fly by. Already I have my hands full with so many projects! I hope to have an update posted before I leave Kampala on Tuesday so keep checking to see my activities of the last 2 months and details of my vacation :)

From food poisoning to a chicken incident a lot has happened since I last updated this blog! And I'm coming up on my 1 year anniversary in Uganda!

In August a new group of trainees arrived in Uganda. Amanda and I had the pleasure of co-facilitating--for the second time--a training on HIV facts and how to teach about HIV in your village. (Or for Amanda: your peri-urban area!) We met the bright group of about 20 trainees during their first week in Uganda. (On the 29th my little goup--9 of us remain--will celebrate 1 year in country. My, time flies...) Their level of excitement and mental state were quite different from that of Amanada and me--by now we're hoary (no, the spelling isn't wrong for those of you you with your mud in the gutter; look up the definition in the dictionary and remember my blog is rated SFA--Suitable For All!) PCVs. For those of you curious about what our HIV training is like keep your eyes open because when Amanada and I finish Peace Corps we're taking our act on the road with Amanada's brother's traveling circus!!

Oh, but I've skipped the food poisoning tale, believe me, this is one you don't want to miss! The lesson learned is most important ! But I'll keep the narrative short seeing as most people don't have the stomach for the horrific details. Long story short: I spent 12 hours one Wednesday night attempting to turn my body inside out from both ends and wishing for a swift and painless death. All because I was lazy about reheating leftovers! Definitely won't be making that mistake, again. As they say: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...can't get fooled again :)

Back to the present...after our sojurn out of chronological order. So, after returning from the training and a relaxing weekend celebrating birthdays in Masaka, I had to prepare for 2 trainees who were coming to visit me. Peace corps sends trainees out to visit currrent volunteers before their 3rd week in uganda so that trainees can get an idea of what Peace Corps is really like...'cuz, let's face it, training isn't the Peace Corps experience. My goal for their 2 and 1/2 day visit was to give thema chance to relax, see my town and eat some "American" food. The first meal I prepared for them involved purchase and slaughter of a chicken. Need I say more?...yes! (If killing of feathery animals makes you squeamish, skip the next paragraph and carry on)!

The Thursday my visitors came dawned bright and clear and I had high hopes of finding a tasty chicken (free range, of course). Alas, clouds began to encroach on my optimistic outlook as my friend John returned from teh 4 homes he knew to have chickens for sale empty-handed. (Yeah, there's no, 'I'll just stroll to the supermarket and pick up what I need'; your timing on things here has to be impeccable!) By the time he came to tell me the last place he and others knew of didn't have chicken for sale the clouds on my horizon were leviathans! My excitement was turning to panic as I tried to figure out what I would make in place of chicken. Then, my neighbor, Julie, came to my rescue and let me buy one of her chickens and John came over to slaughter and clean the bird for me. I realized when John came over with the chicken there was no way I could actually carry out the process my self; but I decided that to be worthy of eating the meat I should at least watch. (Gruesome, I know) But while he was sharpening the knife, in front of the chicken, I began feeling guilty. So, as John prepared to kill the chicken I started apologizing to it and told it by giving up its life it was providing us with sustenance. (Anything to allay my guilty conscience.) John thought I was totally crazy at this point. So, when he got to the business of actually killing the chicken I had to keep myself from crying because I didn't want him to think I was a complete lunatic. (Hey, I'm a lover not a fighter) Even when we started cleaning it I was a bit hesitant to touch it. It just seemed so strange, in the end, that the dismembered body had just--30 minutes before we started--been walking around and enjoying life. (Who's to say if a chicken can or cannot understand the value of life!) :)

For those of you too squeamish to read about the chicken incident, you can now open your eyes! Oh, by-the-by, the chicken turned out EXCELLENT!! The trainees that visited me also enjoyed a tasty chocolate cake and quesadillas with real cheese. I've recently learned that I can still enjoy cheese, even without refrigeration! Thank you to the makes of gouda :)

So, that's life in a nutshell. Work continues to move forward at a sluggish pace due to lack of technology in my town. We have started to find more groups to teach to, mostly on HIV/AIDS and life skills. Plus, we are trying to find partners close to home so we don't have to rely on non-existent internet service!!

This is my house! and if you look at the photos in the Flickr link you will see the back, the inside, the outdoor kitchen and the pit latrine! I kind of went crazy taking the pictures because I wanted it to be like a virtual tour. So now you can imagine what it's like to live in Uganda! Well, the past month has been very eventful. So much so that I hardly know where to begin. Let's start with the sad news. My best friend in Peace Corps Uganda just went home on the 12th of July due to medical reasons. I totally miss hanging out with her at site; life just isn't the same without her around. But I'm a trooper and I'm hanging in there. I'm just really jealous that she gets to eat really good food whenever she wants!! Also this month I have presented HIV information to boda drivers in our town (they carry people on the back of their mopeds rather than cramming in a taxi). It was a great sensitization and they seemed excited to carry on the conversation. I hope to move it to a peer educator model because they don't like to take time away from the stage (that's where they wait for customers) but they have plenty of downtime to discuss HIV and risk reduction behavior while waiting for customers to come and get a lift.Then I went with my counterpart and another local volunteer to a primary school called Alpha and Omega to teach P5-7 students about "Life Skills". Which basically tells students about how to make good decisions, form good relationships in positive peer groups, etc. Basically, the program is meant to help youth avoid things like HIV/AIDS and early pregnancy by giving them more than just knowledge. While the kids have a lot knowledge about STIs they don't really have the skills to say no to sex and make the right decisions so that's what Life Skills is all about!Plus we recorded our radio program on the local radio station and I had a training with Peace Corps this last week. So, I've been quite busy this month. Which is nice so that I don't stop and think about Carrie! I also made an oven so I could bake a cake...it was chocolate with gooey chocolate icing...and banana bread. So, I guess you all in America aren't the only ones eating good food!! :)

Ok, so another month goes by. Some of it exciting, most of it involved a lot of reading! After my last update Carrie and I had an exciting time getting back to our site. See, the roads around us are all made of marram (dirt) and they have been adding marram to make the roads a little less treacherous. The problem with doing this during the wet season is that when it rains (and it rains heavily) the roads become almost impossible to pass on unless you have a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Well, sadly, our taxi was rear-wheel drive and had a problem climbing some of the hills on the way home. So, we got stuck and Carrie and I got out to push...which is a huge deal because most of the people around our town were shocked that we could walk and ride bicycles (they have only seen white people riding through in vehicles). It was great to give my toes a mud bath! It's been a long, long time since I last stuck my feet in the mud and there was a lot of mud to play with! It was a crazy long evening, it took us about 2 hours to push the taxi about 1 km (needless to say we weren't going very fast)! Every time it seemed we were about to get it unstuck the vehicle would slide to the other side of the road and get stuck again...very sad. By the time we reached the 1 km mark, we had blown and tire and the road seemed to b getting worse. Lucky for us, Carrie's organization has 4-wheel drive vehicles so someone came to pick us up...after we walked another km (or so) to meet it on a part of the road that wasn't so bad!

The next week we had an emergency visit to Kampala because Carrie was sick with what seemed to be malaria. Not good! So, I went with her to Kampala for a brief stay and on my way home had my phone stolen! Not exactly a good time because I was looking forward to talking to family and I hate to miss their calls. So, I had to buy a new phone. But the new phone I bought came with a bad battery which was a constant reminder, for one week, that I had been careless and got my phone stolen in Kampala. On the plus-side, at least that's the only thing the guy got because my wallet was just under my phone, phew!

Life at site has exciting moments. Right now we are planning to work with the guys who drive the motorcycles/mopeds and taxis because they want education about HIV/AIDS. I think it will be a lot of fun. Plus we continue to look for ways that our groups can make some money and start to get some good projects going. Right now, we are doing a lot of planning and I hope that in the future we can really build the Resource Centre!

So, life in the village is nothing like life in the Serena Hotel but at least I'm comfortable. Things at the organization have been a little quiet but that's mostly because we can't test people for HIV right now because we don't have any test kits (the entire district is without). January to March we tested a village testing outreach project that was overwhelmingly successful in the villages. My organization has submitted some proposals in an effort to raise money for transport and for allowances for people who provide the services. I hope that we have a chance to implement the project because we tested so many people just by going to them. I assume most people are like me and you know a service is good and you should use it but it's just that much sweeter when that service is delivered to you (it's like on-line shopping)!!

When I returned from the Serena I had to readjust to life with a lantern and a pit latrine but it didn't take long to get used to village life again. April flew by with the drama group coming to practice and the board of directors being redesigned. In May, the drama group performed for local officials at the Labour Day celebration. I hope to have pictures of that on flickr in about a month. And Carrie and I started a collaboration. She goes to villages to train Community Resource Persons (CRPs) about HIV and how to help encourage their community members to go for HIV testing without freaking them out and my organization's drama group goes to present a play, songs, and traditional dances for the CRPs. So far, they have performed at 3 of her trainings and have done a great job!

I continue to present with Stephen on the radio program that we have once a month. And help with the health talk we give to the Post Test Club.

As always, I miss the food from home but I'm beginning to get used to cooking the local food. Mpora mpora (slowly by slowly), I am making my way to preparing things on the local charcoal stove. Haven't quite given up my gas cooker, though!

Evenings are still uneventful. Most of the time I am in my home by 730 pm (that's when it gets dark) and I stay there until the morning! Which means I have a lot of time to read books. I think this is the most I have ever read in my life! But I must be learning a lot...somehow.

but not really! If I have not seen a friend in my town in a long time they say, "Kobuzire!" and I respond "Ndiyo!" Basically they translate to: "You are lost!" (them) "I am there" (me). So, I have been lost and now I am found! 2 months have passed and I haven't updated this blog; you must be thinking there is a lot happening but somehow, there isn't that much going on!

Ok, the end of March and beginning of April found me very busy. The last time I updated this I was in Mukono for a Peace Corps training. When that was finished I returned to my site for just a few days and then returned to Kampala for the Close of Service party that was held for the group who has just completed their 2 years of service. It was such a nice weekend! They held the party at a place called the Kabira Club (a place couldn't even afford back home!) and it didn't cost too much for us to hang out around the pool all day and then have an awesome Indian buffet for dinner. It was so nice to relax and escape from the real world for a few hours! I had a chance to meet a lot of volunteers I hadn't met before and got to say good-bye to the couple (Eric and Ranji) I went to visit during training. They made such incredible food! I have hope, yet, that I'll stop missing the food from home when I can finally start preparing somewhat American meals. So, it was a great weekend.

The following weekend I made another trip back to Kampala because of Alexis' (she was in my training group) birthday. She planned a whitewater rafting trip on the Nile! The event got off to an interesting start because that Thursday (12th April) there was a peaceful demonstration downtown that turned into a riot. I was planning to stay with Amanda, who lives about 30 minutes outside of Kampala, but Peace Corps didn't want me to travel through the riots so Carrie and I spent the evening a the Red Chilli. Which was cool because the organization that plans the rafting trips picked us up at the hostel so we didn't have to wake up early and get to one of the pick up locations!

Whitewater rafting was INCREDIBLE!! even though I thought I was going to die at least 3 times! Out of the 7 or 8 rapids that we went over I managed to fall out on at least 4! And our whole boat flipped over 3 times (obviously we weren't a boat of experienced rafters). For those who know rafting, the rapids didn't go above a class 5 and a majority were class 4. There are more dangerous rapids along the Nile but at least we didn't go on those parts of the river!

After we drank half the Nile they had beer waiting for us at the end to calm our nerves and then took us back to the hostel/campsite for a big dinner. The dinner was called a barbecue but it was typical Ugandan food--which was cool but a little disappointing because the word barbecue got me thinking about brats and burgers :-( We spent the night at the hostel and had a blast dancing with new friends and watching the insanity of the day on a DVD produced by the people who run the rafting.

The next day we left for Kampala and an incredible 2 nights in the Serena Hotel, a luxury hotel in the city. Thanks to Alexis' mom and boyfriend for paying for 2 rooms so that she could enjoy her birthday in style with her friends. I can't even begin to describe what a wonderful and relaxing experience the weekend was. When you don't have access to electricity and running water you really appreciate those things even when you only have an evening or 2 to enjoy them. Oh, I also really enjoyed hanging out in air conditioning for a few days, too! The pool was out of commission while we were there but at least we could enjoy the steam room, sauna, and cold plunge in the most incredible locker room or the most incredible gym I have ever seen! The smells in that locker room were just the most amazing (whoever thought a locker room could smell good!), like walking through the most incredible flower gardens, and the place was wicked clean and the robes were nice and soft. I will remember that weekend forever!

In the next blog I'll update you on life in the village...

(This is a picture from one end of the market in my town)

Wow, two posts in one month?! Who knew that I would be able to access technology so often! :) So after the little bat (yes, I just noticed the typo not a bad but a baT got in my house) incident things have been fairly calm. I am working with my organization to find money but I have been holding off on doing too much until I finish the training I am currently in the middle of.

Yes, the group of trainees who met at the end of September is together again (minus one due to some really bad medical problems)! We are staying near Kampala in a place called Mukono. We spent last week brushing up on language and this coming week we will be dealing with technical issues. Hopefully we'll get some good tips on proposal writing because I good certainly use some good information about that. (Shameless hint: if anyone has tips on proposal writing, send them my way!)

It has been a bit strange to have access to TV all week and to not have bathe with a bucket and not have to light a kerosene lantern to see at night. But believe me, I am not complaining!! A hot shower is one of the best things in the world these days!

So what can I say...

Just before my birthday a new group of trainees arrived (5th March) and I had the opportunity to meet them during the first week they spent in Luweero. Your's truly (and another volunteer from my training group) co-taught a session about HIV/AIDS. The trainees seemed to enjoy our 3 hour session and Amanda and I definitely had a lot of fun teaching them the basics of HIV. Needless to say, a lot of them had a lot of questions but the group seemed to be taking things in stride. They are having a completely different experience than us because there are 50 (yes, 50!!) of them and they're definitely not all female!

Between going to training in Luweero and being in Mukono for training the last 2 weeks of this month, I really haven't been at my site very much. Things are going well. My organization continues to take services to people in the villages. We are testing sooooo many people each month. It's really exciting to see so many people who want to know their HIV status. Lucky for us, things seem to be staying around the expected level of 6%. (Other volunteers are trying to help people in places where the prevalence is 25-30%!) My counterpart and I are trying to keep up with the statistics from our testing so that we can update the district on the state of HIV, at least in our county! Beyond that, it's a struggle everyday to keep things in perspective but one that I think I am beginning to master. As I've said before...mpora, mpora (slowly by slowly)!!

PS-finally have some pics! Check out the link to Flickr!

So, I obviously have very limited access to internet and that is why you see such a gap between postings. It's not that there aren't things worth writing about! Thus far I have had some recent incidences with rodents joining me as roommates without my approval. First, I had a problem with two rats who decided they liked being in my home better than outside. How do I know there were two? Well, I woke up very early one morning to some rustling and daringly picked up my flashlight and left the safety of my mosquito net and found two rats frolicking around my home. I proceeded to jump up and down and shout and they just ran and hid behind some boxes. Now, I think I have addressed the problem with rat poison and some wood to block the large gaps between the bottom of my doors and the floor.

Next fun evening was when a bad slipped into my home and proceeded to fly around and refuse to fly out the two doors that I had opened wide just for that purpose! I chased it around with a broom until I was finally able to knock it down and sweep it out of the house. Talk about quite the wildlife adventure!

Just as exciting but no furry animals involved...About 2 weeks ago I had the pleasure of waking up to an earthquake (5.7 to be exact). Bed trembling, house shaking. I had no idea what to do so I was just laying there until my neighbors shouted, "Christina, get out of the house! It might fall on you!" So, I went running out to hang out with them until all the aftershocks were over. That experience has made me decided that I will never willingly live in an earthquake prone area!

Other than that, I am basically continuing to adjust to life in Karuguuza. Right now I am in Kampala to celebrate my birthday so I hope to be able to check email and the blog a few times over the next few days! If you want to check out pictures go to Carrie's (the other Peace Corps volunteer in Karuguuza) blog...www.carrie-may.blogspot.com

Well, I don’t know if it’s THE life, but it’s mine and I’m happy with it!!

I am sure many of you are wondering about what I do in a typical day. While every day presents unique challenges and moments of pleasant surprises there are some parts of my day that remain the same. Usually, I am awake by 7 am—I don’t have to set an alarm clock because the roosters wake me up! I begin my day by heating a kettle of water so that I can take a warm bucket bath and have some tea or coffee for breakfast. While I wait for that to boil (at least 1 minute to be sure the water is safe) I sweep the four rooms of my house because there always seems to be a lot of dirt and dust! Now, you might be asking “why does she have to make sure the water is safe?” Well, I do not have running water in my home so it has to be collected from a bore hole but you can’t be sure that it is safe because it’s not treated like water back home! Now you’re thinking, “does she collect her own water?!” Always looking for an easy way out I pay someone to collect water for me. Ok, I’m not that lazy but my house is at the top of a very, very steep hill and I would have to carry the jerry can (20 litres) which kills my hands! The people who collect water for my neighbors and me use a bike to push up the cans up the hill-much better than carrying!

Breakfast is usually fairly simple: fruit (usually papaya from one of the trees behind my house) and bread with jam or pancakes or French toast. Breakfast has turned out to be one of the easiest meals for me to make! Once I finish that I leave for “work”…

I take my bike (which doesn’t have a rack to carry water!) or walk to the Resource Centre I have been placed with. It’s about 1 mile from my home but it’s uphill, both ways! Lucky me I don’t have to worry about snow. During this period of adjustment I spend most days practicing the local language with my counterpart. Sometimes people stop in for counseling and testing; other people come in to meet me. Those people usually begin to ask us questions bout HIV/AIDS and malaria and what the Resource Centre is all about. For many, it is their first time visiting us. I am proud to say that our Centre is the first of its kind in the whole of Kibaale District! We offer free voluntary counseling and testing, access to educational materials tat people can borrow free of charge, a club for people who test positive and free condoms. We plan to begin taking information to the villages in the district and testing people from there.

Once the day is over I go home and do some more cleaning—mop the floor, cleaning the pit latrine or check out my garden that my neighbor has helped me plant—or I relax by reading or writing in my journal.

The sun is up for 12 hours so around 7 pm it begins to get dark. I try to begin preparing supper before that time because it’s not that easy to cook by the light of a kerosene lantern or candle! While eating and cleaning up I either listen to the BBC, the Voice of America or the voices in my head! When I go to bed (usually before 1030!) I fall asleep to the sound of a million crickets!

So how is this for incredible? All 12 of us who left Philadelphia managed to stay in Uganda for the 2 months of training! Rarely does an entire training group make it through training without losing any trainees. We have definitely had our ups and downs but we are definitely a strong group of women! So today I can finally call myself true volunteer. We were sworn in at the Ambassador's residence and then released to the care of our Supervisors and our communities around Uganda. I am looking forward to settling in my community in the Western part of the country and beginning work with the clinic and resource centre I have been assigned to.

Ok, continuing my slow transition into the 21st Century I have created a blog. This way I don't have to overwhelm everyone with my infrequent mass emails. I promise to update as often as possible but it definitely depends on how much I have to spend to stay on the internet! I just wanted to post this picture of the group of 12 trainees I came to Uganda with. When I have some more time I will write a little about my site visit and post a picture of my new home! As of the posting of this blog all of the trainees are still here in Uganda and we are having (overall) a great time! Training is of course difficult but we are all looking forward to getting to our sites and starting to work in our communities!