Things are wrapping up with training and we are all so ready to go to our sites. But as I prepare to leave my Home Stay family, I leave with a bit of sadness. I’m attached to this lovely family who have taken in this Mzungu and welcomed me as
We are back from Technical Training – i.e. spending a few days immersed in the types of activities we may be encountering with our own NGO (non profits). It was a 6 hour ride in a bus filled with mostly Ugandans and live chickens. Yes – after a lunch
Today felt a bit like turning a corner. We have 24 days of training left and have had both our personal assessments by trainers and a mock language test. The assessment was excellent and they even want 10 copies of my book (Moving Your Aging Parents) to begin looking at
Contrary to some rumors about my absence over the last two weeks or so, I have not been eaten, mauled by tigers or carried off into the bush. I’ve been off in Acholi Land for Language Immersion and a Future Site Visit to use PC terms (translate as Peace Corps
Pinky is my family’s dog. Dogs are not pets here – they are the functional equivalent of a watchman. They are fed scraps and often (read usually) mistreated. There are wild dog packs that eat livestock and attack people (sometimes) if you dare to venture out at night to
I’m sitting here listening to the sound of soft rain falling on the tin roof as the storm which has been rumbling for the last hour moves away. Muddy red rivulets of water are rushing toward the road, Pinky – the ever faithful dog who has adopted me as part of
Hey everyone, Thanks for all your FB comments. Boy, ya mentioned slicing off the jewels and folks take notice. Richard, you are correct about the Feng Shui positioning of piglets. That certainly should be in the next book. And Agi, that doesn’t surprise me about your learning ALL those things
OK – are you sitting down? Not eating or drinking anything you may choke on when you finish gasping or laughing? Then you’re ready. Today we learned to castrate piglets. Well, to be honest I can’t say we really LEARNED it – that would imply that we had opportunity
Food is a constant source of comment here. As you might imagine, food is different. The good news is Uganda has a rich growing environment. The bad news – for us anyway – is that it’s mostly root vegetables. A traditional Ugandan meal consists of: white potatoes, yams (yes –
Ah – rain. As a Texan who has often prayed for rain – I say ENOUGH! I like rain – the sound of it on a tin roof – it’s comforting. Today, however, I have had enough comfort. Laundry – done by hand in tubs of rainwater was hung with
Hello from the middle of Africa! And in case you’re wondering, “Muzungu” is what white people or foreigners are called, both with affection by children and not-so-much by the Boda-Boda drivers. Boda-bodas are screaming-wild motorcycle taxi’s that Peace Corps Muzungus are not allow to ride for fear of death or
It’s happening – we are loading up. You’ve never seen so much luggage! About a third of the group of 46 is “older” and the age range is probably early 20s to about 70. We’ve been told there will be NO internet or phone access for 2 – 3 weeks