Snapshots.

A few snapshot from our drive around the city. 

The Heat

It feels like the temperature has been increasing over the last few days. When we arrived there were a few days that were quite chilly—we needed sweaters at night and hardly had any desire to lounge by the pool (yes, we have a pool... it is quite luxurious I know). But the last few days have been completely different, and I think this is the norm rather than the exception. The heat mixed with the hills makes trekking around the city quite challenging. But my tan is finally returning which is nice. On Valentines Day we went to a wedding of the brother of my friend Gerald. It was the biggest wedding we had ever been to, 800+ people. It was such an incredible ordeal it was hard to believe we were in Africa. It seems remarkable that in a place that has so much poverty and issues sending children to school, there could be such outrageous ceremonies with 2 wedding dresses, 6 cakes, dancers, food, drinks, and the works (fireworks). But we were told that the bride and groom had been saving for about 5 years for the event, and that the whole community helped raise the funds. It was definitely a site to see, and a great experience! And africans sure do love their speeches! 

Everything is going well. I have been splitting my days between ReachOut and AMICAALL, the two organizations I am volunteering with. I plan on going out to do more site visits in the next few weeks and collect more information to hopefully aid in my senior thesis.

I am just on break for lunch, so I should head back to work. Will try posting pics soon!

a few photos of kampala

Here are some photos of Kampala from the AMICAALL office on the 11th floor. And one of mom in Entebbe when we first arrived.

Kampala.

I am here! In Kampala finally. And it is pretty intense. I've been here for just about a week at this point. Time is flying. We are staying in downtown Kampala, in a suite close to the city center. Most people commute in to the city during the day for work, and go back to the "suburbs" where they live, so it's a little different to live right here, but nice and convenient. 

Kampala is... not exactly what I expected. The people here are incredibly friendly. Everyone asks about how you are, and how your family is, and they are honestly interested. The temperature is fantastic (I don't miss the freezing winter), and there is only a bit of rain every day. It isn't supposed to be the rainy season yet, but apparently global warming even effects Uganda as the seasons have become more unpredictable lately. The city is pretty massive, there are people and cars everywhere. They drive on the other side of the road, and crossing the streets is a little stressful to say the least. We'll just say there doesn't really appear to be any rules when it comes to driving... 

I have already started working at AMICAALL (Alliance of Mayors' Initiative for Community Action on AIDS at the Local Level). I'm working on a project involving getting information and programs about HIV/AIDS available to the vulnerable youth in urban center. It's really interesting, the people are great, and I'm learning a lot. Tomorrow I am starting volunteering at another organization called Reach Out. RO is more hands on. It's located in the slums in Mbuya, and it's a completely different experience from the city. My first official day is tomorrow, I should be working in microfinance as well as with the Roses of Mbuya project. It is similar to the work I did in Guatemala with the women's co-operative of women weavers, so that will be very interesting to compare the two.

Time is definitely moving quickly, and I'm finally just getting settled. I'll try to be better at posting...