It’s A Small World

For years, Disneyland has been reminding people of all ages just how small of a world we live in through its 10-minute, 30-second boat ride.

Back in the States I would always encounter individuals who somehow had connections with someone or something from my past, always serving as a constant reminder of just how close of a world this is.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think that my life in America would have connections with my life in Uganda.

Let us rewind to early 2012. 

My dad was out in Point Reyes for a job and like a proud father was talking about his children.  Towards the end of the conversation it got brought up about me going to Peace Corps.

Here is the gist of the conversation…

“Where is she going?”

“She is off to Uganda in May.”

“Oh you get back in here.”

The woman, I believe named Jan, had put a young, Ugandan woman named Gloria through school that her daughter had met during some contract work in Kampala.  Jan helped ease my Dad’s concerns and he came back home eager to share the news and contact information of both Jan’s daughter and Gloria.  Jan also sent home a scarf from Uganda for me and now whenever I see them in country I think of her and her hospitability.

Prior to leaving I decided to communicate with Gloria to find out more of what I could expect from the UG.  She shared some words of advice that were incredibly helpful as I packed my bags and said my goodbyes.

Throughout Pre-Service Training and my first few months at site, Gloria and I kept in contact.  We were able to communicate in Runyankore as her home area is in the Southwest yet she was currently staying Kampala working. 

Time was quickly passing and I was worried that I would never meet Gloria.

Then I ended up sending Gloria an email to check in and see how work was.  I apologized for being lost (meaning that you have been away) and explained that I ended up moving to Kitgum.  I shared with her that while I have been busy and will be up until I leave, that I would love to meet before I left country.

Then she replied back saying that she was now living and working in Gulu!

For those who are unaware, Gulu is a mere 2-hour bus ride away and my closest city. 

Excitedly I wrote back to her saying that next time I was in town, I would call her so we could meet.

Well then I got a mysterious phone call a couple days later.

Low and behold, Gloria was in Kitgum for work.  We ended up meeting after work for dinner and spent hours talking about America, Uganda, our similar life, our different life, our family and friends, the southwest versus the north, Peace Corps, and much more. 

It was a unique experience to sit down with this woman and hear her stories in person rather then read them through my computer screen. 

The world is a small place filled with people that come and go and I am blessed to have been able to share in a part of Gloria’s. 

Oh and Pops. 

If you are reading this tell Jan that Gloria sends her greetings and that without the education that she helped provide, Gloria would not be in the place she is today.

Buggy Burgers

Living in a place where produce is dependent on the season and supermarkets are seldom stocked, you have to be innovative with your recipes. 

Henceforth the white ant burger experiment. 

This time of year you can find these little, dried insects in giant rice sacks spread throughout the market amongst your everyday tomatoes, onions, and bulbs of garlic.  As my friends navigated the stalls, I cleaned up at home and prepared for the bizarre feast we were about to have.

As we minced garlic, diced onions, and rinsed chickpeas, Ellen grinded the white ants with a traditional wooden mortar and pestle.  Once all the veggies were prepared, we mixed everything in a bowl with an egg and some breadcrumbs to help hold the odd mixture together.  We toasted bread, fried eggs, and sliced some peppers as the patties sizzled on the stovetop and soon we were assembling burgers like we were at In-n-Out.

Except we weren’t at In-n-Out and the burgers definitely didn’t have the taste of the west coast burger joint.

I am not going to lie though… They weren’t half bad.

Until about halfway through my burger when I was staring into the eyes of those insects.  It was incredibly gritty and not even the mustard or ketchup could mask the texture.

I quickly lost my appetite and decided to sweep the remnants of ants out of my house while I admired my friends as they continued to eat. 

I challenge Andrew Zimmern to this meal to see if he can stomach the somehow tasty treat.

P.S.  I just Googled white ants to email my Pops a picture.  Fun fact: white ants are also termites.

Swift Safari

I remember when I was little and my sisters and I would beg our parents to take the “Jungle Road” on the way to Grandpa’s house.  As my Dad would twist and turn through the dense area filled with trees, we’d be singing, “Lions and tigers and bears.  Oh my!” thinking that these animals co-habituated together.

Fast-forward to our elementary school days and we quickly learned that these animals are in fact spread out on Planet Earth. 

Well, two weeks ago I was singing a song to the same tune but the lyrics changed to, “Lions and zebras and warthogs.  Oh my!”

A couple friends and I went on a safari where we were able to see some of Africa’s indigenous animals freely roam the vast savannah.  According to our guide, spotted hyenas and lions could be heard roaming through our campground during our stay. 

Thank gosh our mesh windows did the job...

Each day we woke up with the sun and watched as it set behind the mountains and painted the sky and mirage of pinks, yellows, and oranges.  We sat on top of a safari vehicle as it navigated the dirt roads that took us up close and personal to the African buffalo, kobs, ostriches, and giraffes.  We ate lunch in the middle of the park where an ostrich could have had a bite of my hard-boiled egg.  We watched as a pack of lionesses spotted a group of warthogs for lunch.

The warthogs won and the lions went hungry.

We took in the beauty that is Uganda and felt incredibly blessed and lucky to be living amongst these animals in their pristine land.

For more photos visit: Safari.

One of the 2,317 African Buffalo we saw

This little guy is a serval and he roams the land amongst all the other gigantic animals

Just Rwanda(ing)

Uganda borders five countries - South Sudan, DRC, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Kenya - three of which we cannot go to.  I always knew that I wanted to travel but decided to invest my time at my respective sites, knowing that I could always do so once I finish my service.

Well there comes a point in one’s service where you just have to get out. 

I was there and so after COS I decided to embark on a quick adventure before beginning some final projects back in Kitgum.  You can read all about my trip to The Loveliest Lake. 

I knew I wanted to keep my trip on a budget so I opted for a quick visit to Rwanda, where the VISAs are free and the roads are impeccable.

I left from Kabale and managed to score a ride with a new friend in a new, air-conditioned Toyota Corolla that didn’t look like the tires were about to burst. 

Note to readers in the first world: This was a big deal!  Not only are most small cars labeled as Toyota Coronas, yes, like the beer, this car’s speedometer actually worked, his gas tank was full, and there were working seatbelts.

After agreeing for him to take me to the border he said that he was going all the way to Kigali and would be happy to take me.  We established a price of 15,000UGX from Kabale to Kigali, a whooping 6USD, and soon I was asleep as the rolling hills passed me by.  Two hours later and I was in a country’s capital that resembled the first world… 

Motorcycles drivers only allowed to carry one passenger and are required to wear a helmet and provide one.

Roads with painted lines and no potholes.

Sidewalks!

Transport that only sat 1 person per seat.

Customer service!

No increased prices simply because I am white.

I arrived at the hostel to find Meish, who I was traveling with in the land of 1,000 hills.  We decided to venture into the city center for dinner and a movie until her brother arrived that night. 

As we awoke the next day, we found the streets empty.  No motorcycles or taxis speeding away.  No people opening up shop.  The city was dead.

This was when we were told that we were witnessing “umuganda”, which is community work.  Rwandans between 18 and 65 years are obliged to participate in a variety of public works.  As we walked around town we saw people weeding and picking up trash.   Even President Kagame goes to a different community each month to assist in whatever way possible.  Meish and I just looked at each other and thought about Museveni going into a Ugandan community to help pick up trash.

Yeah… Uganda is not there yet. 

After picking up some trash to play a part in the day, we ended up at the very popular Meze Fresh, which is essentially Chipotle in Rwanda.  Burritos, burrito bowls, salads, and tacos were our options to be filled with a myriad of options, including the beloved honey-lime-cilantro dressing.  They even offer mushrooms, which are delicious in a burrito. 

Oh and this can all be washed down with a margarita or ice-cold Corona.

After letting our burritos digest we decided to walk around some more before ending up at the infamous Hotel Rwanda.  Well here is a fun fact… That is not actually the name of the hotel.   It is actually called Hôtel des Mille Collines, meaning Hotel of a 1,000 Hills in French.

We walked through the hotel where 1,268 people took refugee during the genocide.  We decided to sit poolside and realized after sipping our drinks that this was the same pool that provided water to the refugees when supplies become low.  As we sat and made friends with some other expats, I realized just how far this country has come after 20 years of a horrific event in history.

Anyway, the next day we left Kigali to go to Lake Kivu, tucked in the northwest corner of the country.  We found accommodation at a cute lodge called Inzu, meaning house in the local language of Kirwanda. 

The staff was wonderful, the food was delicious and beautifully presented, the tent looked like something out of Potter Barn and the bathing area is exactly what I want for my future home.  No hot water required!

We played Bananagrams, read, and ventured down to the lake where we hiked around the peninsula, played frisbee with the locals, took a boat ride with some new friends from Belgium, and even got hand massages from children at the hot springs.  We even managed to walk towards the DRC when we were spotted a stop sign.  We believe that could have been the border.  Awesome border patrol don’t you think?!

Lake Kivu is one of the few lakes around the world that contains methane, making it an exploding lake. 

Yes, I said exploding.

Read more here as it explains much more than I could.  The Guardian and BBC.  All I know is that we are okay and that they are converting some of the methane into electricity, which seems pretty awesome. 

After two days at the lake, we ventured back into Kigali where we decided to visit the genocide memorial.  Words cannot describe my emotions as I weaved in and out from exhibit to exhibit.  I saw clothing of innocent children, skulls and bones of people who were executed simply because they were Tutsi, and the burial place that held the bodies of over 250,000 individuals. 

I was sick to my stomach and taken aback by the atrocity but realized how far Rwanda had come since 1994.  The people came together, put aside their differences, and ended up building a greater country. 

The memorial was incredibly informative and allowed for a greater understanding as to what took place.  Tucked in the corners of the memorial were faces of the children lost in the war along with pictures from other genocides that have occurred worldwide.  Needless to say, the Kigali Memorial Center has done an extraordinary job remembering what took place.

  

That night we need a pick me up and did so with dinner at New Cactus. 

First time for fondue and escargot!

The next day was our last but before we left we decided to visit two of the churches that Tutsi refugee’s took to as a place of safety and security.  Unfortunately mass murders occurred at these sites and they have been left to view without modification.  Clothes piled on church pews, skulls amounting into the thousands, broken glass from shattered windows, blood from children being slammed into the wall, rosaries from those saying their final Hail Mary’s, bibles left open to the page that the Sunday school students read from and even old jerry cans that once held drinking water.

The sites were well kept and visited by many.

As we watched the 1,000 hills pass from the side mirrors of the car, we had finished our vacation. 

We reached the border, completed our paperwork and were squeezed into a car meant for five people with five others already inside... Which conveniently broke down five minutes later.

While I could simply roll my eyes or get frustrated at the situation I realized that these are the things that make Uganda, Uganda.

I was back and ready for the final stretch.

For more photos visit: Rwanda and Kigali Memorial Center.

The border

Good Morning Rwanda!

1,000 hills

The lake

These boats came out at dusk and stayed out until dawn.  

Nets drape underneath them and are strapped to the long poles.

Market day

Awesome, photogenic waiter during lunch

Mingling lunch

Isambaza : What I had for dinner

Evening on Lake Kivu

City Center

First time for escargot...

...and fodue!

No plastic allowed in Rwanda!

Stained glass

#neveragain