GOOD MORNING UGAAAANDA!!!!!!!!!
Greetings from the town of Jinja at the base of the Nile in Uganda. I have just had one of the most action packed weekends of my life, and naturally love it. Thursday night we arrived at the base of all activities, and also where we stayed most of the time. Friday we were prevented from doing much of anything because of the torrential rains. Saturday was when the real fun began. I woke up bright and early Saturday morning in anticipation of launching myself from a cliff and into a 45 metre free fall. Bungee jumping was surreal. I can't even describe it, because it almost felt like I wasn't falling. Before hand I was oddly calm, and I really didn't have to fight myself when I flung myself into the long drop... Immediately afterwards we went white water rafting, which was not nearly as exhilarating, but was still fun and beautiful. This lasted two days, and we all got pretty beat up from the sun and the occasional capsize (the best part).
One of the guides had a girlfriend from the UK that was actually an AV ten years ago. She currently runs a micro finance organization, organizing groups of people into a loan community where individuals hold each other accountable for their loans. It is sustainable, and slowly but surely the organization has been able to grow. They do a lot of training for work like carpentry and computer. It sounds amazing. Like Dr. Paul Farmer this lady, that goes by the name of Jena, didn't jump straight into the Ugandan community without thoroughly researching first. After having joined several similar organizations, and deciding that they did not have the most efficient and accurate solution, she decided to find out what she thought herself, and lived, cut off from everything else, in an Ugandan community for 9 months. She said that after each month she would come up with a different conclusions and solution for what the community needed.
What I found interesting was that after leaving Uganda as an AV, she knew that she wanted to return. This is something I have been struggling with, because for as long as I can remember, I have wanted to work and live in Africa. However, I feel that the more I am out of the US (this was true of Spain as well), the more I appreciate my own culture as opposed to the culture I'm in. I think the aspect of US culture that I miss the most is feminism. I came to Africa expecting women to be considered if nothing more than less contributing factors in society, and I didn't think that would bother me, especially as it wouldn't be a surprise. Instead, I have found that the form this lack of respect takes does surprise and shock me. Women are disregarded in marriages, because almost every husband cheats on their wives. Like with many problems that poison a society, this unfortunate commonality is true of even the nicest and most considerate men, who, having grown up this way, don't think of it. One of the girls in the eighth grade class told me that the only way for this to be solved is for women to separate themselves from men, working and living on their own, so that wives are in higher demand, and therefore, are treated with more equality. I agree with her. I don't really see women joining together in an uprising commanding attention and a change, although I'm sure that any observer could have said the same of America in the late 1800s early 1900s. Time will tell.
Until a few weeks from now.
Nora.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
How am I adjusting to the Kenyan lifestyle?
I have no exiting motorbike races to capture your attention, so instead I have decided to talk about day-to-day affairs such as eating habits, cleanliness, and maybe more if something else hits me.
My diet currently consists of 10 items: bread, peanut butter, bananas, avocados, onions, pasta, beans, rice, tomatoes, and the occasional egg. This is nothing compared to the 6 item diet of the borders at my school. They have ugali (a bread-like, dense, and grainy Kenyan staple) and scones for breakfast, porridge at tea time, beans and rice for lunch, and ugali and cabbage for dinner. Yum. I have taken quite a liking to ugali. It hasn't got much in the way of taste, but the consistency is nice and it fills a stomach. Food is probably last on the list (which doesn't really exist) of things I am missing from home. I never crave anything in the way of meat, dairy, or baked goods. Some other AVs go crazy over meat on the weekends, but I have enjoyed the vegetarian diet.
Cleanliness here is something else. Despite the fact that it is valued highy here (I have had several people comliment me on the lack of dirt under my nails), it is hard to come by. I have no problem having to use the long drop or even the process of having to use a bucket for a shower. However, I shower twice a week at best because our water supplies are limited and it is a bit of a hassle having to heat water (which was once in the form of rain and isn't really clean anyway). The only parts of my body that recieve a consistant washing are my face, hands, and feet. Yes, my feet are in the equation, because they are the one part of my body that I can't bear to let ferment.
It's interesting to me that things like easy shower, toilet, and food access I thought I would miss so much, but even when they are available it is not a big relief. I think about individuals and culture more than those conveniences (although a dishwasher and clothes washer would be nice).
I cannot believe I almost negected to inform you that I have just finished one of the best boks of all time: The Autobiography of Malcolm X. It's very interesting to have read that hear in Kenya because Malcolm X advocated a renewal of pride as a way to remove the racial barriers. He said that the black man would achieve nothing if he didn't organize with other black men who shared a pride in their race and ethnicity. Pride is something that is unfortunalty lacking here in Kenya. This has become especially apparent to me having finished this book. Two women we met in town were talking about being white in a fashionable sense. Apparently, many women here not only chemically srteighten and soften their hair, but also take chemicals that make their skin lighter. This makes me sad, especially in light of Malcolm X who abhorred this type of thing. I just want to shout at these women that I am proud of being white and they should be proud of being black. It does make me consider, however, that really the same phenomenon is true back home with people ruining their skin and hair trying to make it something that it's not.
Until Next Time (Hopefully, although probably not, next Week)
Nora
My diet currently consists of 10 items: bread, peanut butter, bananas, avocados, onions, pasta, beans, rice, tomatoes, and the occasional egg. This is nothing compared to the 6 item diet of the borders at my school. They have ugali (a bread-like, dense, and grainy Kenyan staple) and scones for breakfast, porridge at tea time, beans and rice for lunch, and ugali and cabbage for dinner. Yum. I have taken quite a liking to ugali. It hasn't got much in the way of taste, but the consistency is nice and it fills a stomach. Food is probably last on the list (which doesn't really exist) of things I am missing from home. I never crave anything in the way of meat, dairy, or baked goods. Some other AVs go crazy over meat on the weekends, but I have enjoyed the vegetarian diet.
Cleanliness here is something else. Despite the fact that it is valued highy here (I have had several people comliment me on the lack of dirt under my nails), it is hard to come by. I have no problem having to use the long drop or even the process of having to use a bucket for a shower. However, I shower twice a week at best because our water supplies are limited and it is a bit of a hassle having to heat water (which was once in the form of rain and isn't really clean anyway). The only parts of my body that recieve a consistant washing are my face, hands, and feet. Yes, my feet are in the equation, because they are the one part of my body that I can't bear to let ferment.
It's interesting to me that things like easy shower, toilet, and food access I thought I would miss so much, but even when they are available it is not a big relief. I think about individuals and culture more than those conveniences (although a dishwasher and clothes washer would be nice).
I cannot believe I almost negected to inform you that I have just finished one of the best boks of all time: The Autobiography of Malcolm X. It's very interesting to have read that hear in Kenya because Malcolm X advocated a renewal of pride as a way to remove the racial barriers. He said that the black man would achieve nothing if he didn't organize with other black men who shared a pride in their race and ethnicity. Pride is something that is unfortunalty lacking here in Kenya. This has become especially apparent to me having finished this book. Two women we met in town were talking about being white in a fashionable sense. Apparently, many women here not only chemically srteighten and soften their hair, but also take chemicals that make their skin lighter. This makes me sad, especially in light of Malcolm X who abhorred this type of thing. I just want to shout at these women that I am proud of being white and they should be proud of being black. It does make me consider, however, that really the same phenomenon is true back home with people ruining their skin and hair trying to make it something that it's not.
Until Next Time (Hopefully, although probably not, next Week)
Nora
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