I have been here in Natondome Village outside Mbale for over a week now, and I have crossed into a much different reality from my time in Kampala. I’m excited seeing how much potential there is here, but I also see a much fuller picture of the poverty here in Uganda.
I am living in a small, four room brick building that was built by Habitat for Humanity two years ago. Considering this is village life, I think it is perfect. I have two light bulbs when there is power (which is about every other day or less) and one outlet where I can charge everything I need to. There is no running water anywhere in the entire village. The shower area and bathroom are about 10 yards away from my little house. The bathroom is basically a latrine, but they have a little square box over the hole with a western toilet seat glued on top, so I don’t have to squat. The shower is a fenced in area with rocks on the ground. I have a bucket, and I scoop out water and dump it over my head to wash. But it’s private, and the temperature here is so mild that it is actually rather pleasant showering and shaving under the sun. There are goats, chickens, turkeys, and a large cow that are all tied up near my house, and they announce their presence at all hours of the day and night!
When I first arrived at the school, the principal greeted me, and took me for a tour. As I was walking past the kitchen (a crumbling brick hut outside using firewood to cook), I saw a large pot with boiling yellow liquid. I asked what this was, only to discover this was cow piss! I kept asking…could you tell me what that is again? Cow piss. Cow piss. I just couldn’t get it! What?! I kept seeing this yellow liquid, and my brain kept hearing cow piss. Finally, I realized they were saying Cow Peas……..
The school is made up of several concrete buildings, some of which were paid for by the govt. of Uganda I believe, and some that were donated by the Japan embassy. In all honesty, it was a little unsettling seeing the school for the first time. Realistically, I had a fairly clear picture of what to expect, but I still made comparisons with the school I taught at in the States. The disparity between the west and the developing world became more personal for me here, as this will be my home for the next year.
After a day or so, I settled into my surroundings, and my mind started racing with possibilities. I started thinking about trying to get some sort of small computer lab here for the students and staff to use. There is one new computer on the campus, but between the intermittent power and painfully slow Internet connection, it isn’t very useful. There are so many pressing needs here though. The kitchen has fallen apart, and they need to build a new one, but don’t have the funds to finish it. About $350 of the fundraiser $$$ will go to bricks and cement for the kitchen, and hopefully the CEO can get more funds to build the roof. The students are eating the same food everyday, donated by the World Food Program, and really need more variety in their diets. The boys hostel, which is outside the main campus, has no electricity, and none of them have any $$$ for kerosene for their lanterns, so they aren’t able to read at night at all. At least I was able to get insecticide for their beds to get rid of the bed bugs, and paint their rooms (which were filthy) with the fundraiser $$$.
I have spent a bit of time with the principal of the school, Walter Uriek. He is 27 and a graduate of Makerere University in Kampala, one of the better schools in east Africa. He is very pleasant, and I think we will be able to work well together. I have been meeting with each of the teachers and staff to get a feel for what their immediate needs are, so that we can begin purchasing materials with the fundraiser $$$. As I said above, there is so much that needs to be done here that it is difficult to even know where to start. I am trying to look at the school from a holistic standpoint. How can this $$$ be used to best improve the overall educational experience here, and let everyone feel they are benefiting, and also help departments that have revenue potential to grow. For example, the tailoring department makes great African shirts (I bought three so far) so we want to continue to help them bring in $$$.
I have been playing the guitar constantly, and I am starting to write my own music, simple though it may be! I live across from Mayi (Mother) Jessica, who is the mother of the CEO. I really enjoy her…we joke a lot, and get along well. Her family makes all of my meals for me. They have caught on that I can only take so much of the local starchy foods (yams, sweet potatoes, and matoke, a plantain), so I am getting more veggies and rice. My favorite meals are usually greens with peanut sauce, a tomato based sauce with eggplant, carrots, and a few other veggies mixed in, rice that is fried a tiny bit, and pineapple or watermelon for a desert. They also squeeze passion fruit with oranges to make fresh juice. Of course, the Ugandans think it's bizarre that I don't eat meat...a delicacy here.
I am doing a mixture of things here. Today I am going to work on a $25,000 proposal for the Global Fund for Children. I have been spending most of my time here at the school, trying to find the best way to spend the fundraising $$$, and looking at ways to help make the school run more efficiently. In the coming weeks, I will be working with the program director going out into villages where community health work and sustainable agriculture education is done.
There is so much more to write about, but I need to get off the computer…but stay tuned for my next blog, which will describe the ritual circumcision ceremony I went to this weekend! Apparently, I was the first white person who had ever stepped foot in this village, and they were very happy to have a mazungu (white person) present. I felt like I had stepped into pre-colonial Africa. It was insane...but really fun. I've got pictures and video of the festivities, complete with blood, foreskin and freshly cut members! Ayeeee!
Love to everyone! (Sorry no pics....Internet is sooooo slow in Mbale)
Justin
I am living in a small, four room brick building that was built by Habitat for Humanity two years ago. Considering this is village life, I think it is perfect. I have two light bulbs when there is power (which is about every other day or less) and one outlet where I can charge everything I need to. There is no running water anywhere in the entire village. The shower area and bathroom are about 10 yards away from my little house. The bathroom is basically a latrine, but they have a little square box over the hole with a western toilet seat glued on top, so I don’t have to squat. The shower is a fenced in area with rocks on the ground. I have a bucket, and I scoop out water and dump it over my head to wash. But it’s private, and the temperature here is so mild that it is actually rather pleasant showering and shaving under the sun. There are goats, chickens, turkeys, and a large cow that are all tied up near my house, and they announce their presence at all hours of the day and night!
When I first arrived at the school, the principal greeted me, and took me for a tour. As I was walking past the kitchen (a crumbling brick hut outside using firewood to cook), I saw a large pot with boiling yellow liquid. I asked what this was, only to discover this was cow piss! I kept asking…could you tell me what that is again? Cow piss. Cow piss. I just couldn’t get it! What?! I kept seeing this yellow liquid, and my brain kept hearing cow piss. Finally, I realized they were saying Cow Peas……..
The school is made up of several concrete buildings, some of which were paid for by the govt. of Uganda I believe, and some that were donated by the Japan embassy. In all honesty, it was a little unsettling seeing the school for the first time. Realistically, I had a fairly clear picture of what to expect, but I still made comparisons with the school I taught at in the States. The disparity between the west and the developing world became more personal for me here, as this will be my home for the next year.
After a day or so, I settled into my surroundings, and my mind started racing with possibilities. I started thinking about trying to get some sort of small computer lab here for the students and staff to use. There is one new computer on the campus, but between the intermittent power and painfully slow Internet connection, it isn’t very useful. There are so many pressing needs here though. The kitchen has fallen apart, and they need to build a new one, but don’t have the funds to finish it. About $350 of the fundraiser $$$ will go to bricks and cement for the kitchen, and hopefully the CEO can get more funds to build the roof. The students are eating the same food everyday, donated by the World Food Program, and really need more variety in their diets. The boys hostel, which is outside the main campus, has no electricity, and none of them have any $$$ for kerosene for their lanterns, so they aren’t able to read at night at all. At least I was able to get insecticide for their beds to get rid of the bed bugs, and paint their rooms (which were filthy) with the fundraiser $$$.
I have spent a bit of time with the principal of the school, Walter Uriek. He is 27 and a graduate of Makerere University in Kampala, one of the better schools in east Africa. He is very pleasant, and I think we will be able to work well together. I have been meeting with each of the teachers and staff to get a feel for what their immediate needs are, so that we can begin purchasing materials with the fundraiser $$$. As I said above, there is so much that needs to be done here that it is difficult to even know where to start. I am trying to look at the school from a holistic standpoint. How can this $$$ be used to best improve the overall educational experience here, and let everyone feel they are benefiting, and also help departments that have revenue potential to grow. For example, the tailoring department makes great African shirts (I bought three so far) so we want to continue to help them bring in $$$.
I have been playing the guitar constantly, and I am starting to write my own music, simple though it may be! I live across from Mayi (Mother) Jessica, who is the mother of the CEO. I really enjoy her…we joke a lot, and get along well. Her family makes all of my meals for me. They have caught on that I can only take so much of the local starchy foods (yams, sweet potatoes, and matoke, a plantain), so I am getting more veggies and rice. My favorite meals are usually greens with peanut sauce, a tomato based sauce with eggplant, carrots, and a few other veggies mixed in, rice that is fried a tiny bit, and pineapple or watermelon for a desert. They also squeeze passion fruit with oranges to make fresh juice. Of course, the Ugandans think it's bizarre that I don't eat meat...a delicacy here.
I am doing a mixture of things here. Today I am going to work on a $25,000 proposal for the Global Fund for Children. I have been spending most of my time here at the school, trying to find the best way to spend the fundraising $$$, and looking at ways to help make the school run more efficiently. In the coming weeks, I will be working with the program director going out into villages where community health work and sustainable agriculture education is done.
There is so much more to write about, but I need to get off the computer…but stay tuned for my next blog, which will describe the ritual circumcision ceremony I went to this weekend! Apparently, I was the first white person who had ever stepped foot in this village, and they were very happy to have a mazungu (white person) present. I felt like I had stepped into pre-colonial Africa. It was insane...but really fun. I've got pictures and video of the festivities, complete with blood, foreskin and freshly cut members! Ayeeee!
Love to everyone! (Sorry no pics....Internet is sooooo slow in Mbale)
Justin
posted by Justin Silbaugh at 7:40 AM
2 Comments:
While our government fights the "war on terror" by killing innocent civilians, you (one person) are working to *improve* the lives of children in the Natondome Village. I admire you! It sounds like you're adapting well. I look forward to reading more and seeing pictures. I love the cow piss story.
We miss you!
xo,
Rose
Since reading your latest post this morning, I've been trying to cut back on my water use...
;-)
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