The house in which I am staying is very nice, especially for Ugandan standards. I am sharing a room with Daphine until she leaves for the states in January. Also living in the home is Florence, Noreen, and Sumya. Noreen is an adopted daughter of Florence whom helps around the house and goes to school. Sumya works for Florence and does most of the cleaning and cooking. Both have been so welcoming and friendly; I could not have asked for a better place to stay.
Since being here I have been learning how to take minibuses and boda boda’s. Minibuses are the main transportation I will be taking. They are little vans that drive around going to different places. They are usually between 500 and 1000 shillings which end up being between 25 and 50 cents. Generally speaking they are kind of slow; however they will get you anywhere very cheaply. They often pack 15 or more in to one bus. Boda boda’s have been my favorite thus far, although are the most dangerous. They are little motorcycles that will also take you anywhere. Due to the road conditions and the heavy traffic, they are not very safe. Boda boda’s are good to take when you are in a hurry because the driver’s are crazy and will swerve through anything. It is sort of like riding an amusement park ride, however are much more likely to kill you.
Boda Boda
Mini Bus
Roads here are mostly dirt, and those that are not may as well be because of the pot holes. Florence told me that “if you see a car driving straight you know they are drunk.” This is due to the pot holes. Cars are swerving constantly to miss them. I am absolutely stunned that people are able to get around as much as they do, especially in the rainy season. They manage however, and I have a new sense of what types of roads non-four wheel drive cars are able to handle.
The term used for me here by many people, especially kids, is mazoonga (white girl). Although the official language in Uganda is English, many and most people will frequently speak in Luganda. I have no problem communicating because they all know English, but I will often be in a taxi and hear people speaking. When I hear Mazoonga I know they are talking about me. Daphne is currently doing an internship at a newspaper here, thus she has passes to a lot of events. On my second night here she took me to a press party at a club. I had a fantastic time. They had two performers who are like pop stars come and perform (Julliana and Camilla). While I was there however, the press kept following me around taking pictures because I was the only Mazoonga there. It was very entertaining.
Daphne and I
Katanga, Daphne, Florence, and I
Also, when I arrived Florence had a traditional Ugandan dress called a Gomes made for me. I attended what they call an introductory ceremony with Daphne. It is a pre-wedding ceremony in which the parents are introduced. It was several hours long of dancing and random stuff I could not understand. The boy’s family offered the girls family a-lot of gifts; that of which included a half of a cow, chicken, stove, and lots of other random items.
Any how, these are just a few of the things since I have been here. I will update shortly on more interesting events and experiences.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment