Random thoughts

I admit that I am somewhat confused by Uganda. There is so much beauty standing
shoulder to shoulder with abject poverty. On my ride into Entebbe today as we drove
down the highway I saw large beautiful houses in various stages of completion
situated on red dirt roads next door to hovels made of tin. I don’t understand it.
There is neither rhyme nor reason  to it. Beautifully manicured yards with mature
mango, papaya, and banana trees, next to yards with mounds of piled trash. 

You need four things to drive in Kampala, shocks,

brakes, a horn, and nerves of steel. The streets

are forever crowded with masses of people, cars,

bicycles, and boda bodas-- motorcycles that zoom

out of nowhere, dodging in between cars.

Sometimes they even drive on the wrong side of

the street. If I die here it will be in an automobile

accident. According to Madame Patricia, accidents

involving bodabodas are so numerous that there is

an entire ward in the hospital just for them! 

Riding in a car is like playing chicken with your life. 

I’ve started keeping my eyes closed. I’d rather 

NOT know when I’m about to die! The vast 

majority of the roads are in horrible shape, and ALL 

the roads— good and bad — have excessive 

numbers of speed bumps! On some roads, instead 

of “chicken”, the game you are playing is “dodge 

the potholes”! You can  pretty much buy anything 

you want on the street here. Street vendors are everywhere, selling everything from 

chewing gum and children's toys to floor mats and windshield wipers!

Have I mentioned that it is the rainy season in Uganda? 

I should have brought my water shoes. When it rains— 

and it has a little bit each day— rivers of red muddy 

water flow through the campus. I managed to step in 

quite a puddle on my way to the staff room for lunch. 

You can pick whatever fresh produce you want to eat
here. Everyone owes a small plot of something. And
you will gains a number of crops growing by the side
of theroad. Corn, tomatoes, pumpkin, potatoes,
sugarcane, pineapple, plantains, cassava, beans,
peanuts, collards, and there are jackfruit, avocado, mango and banana trees in
abundance. Tea also grows in abundance.

This morning I mentioned to Ms. Tina, who is the head of the cafeteria and teaches food
and nutrition classes,  that I had fresh jackfruit for the first time this weekend. There are
jackfruit trees on the grounds. So she sent for a jackfruit and made sure to had some fresh
for me at lunch today. Lunch is a leisurely affair here. The teachers all eat together at the
same time in the staff room. It’s supposed to start between 1:00 and 1:20 but it kind of starts
whenever. They also have staff announcements during lunchtime. And they have morning
tea in the staff room every day at 10:20.

               

Tea time!

Fresh melon and jackfruit for dessert