TIA

The mysteries of Matoke, Mephloquine, Muzungus and Mud.

I arrived in Philly and spent Monday night at a very nice hotel, compliments of your tax dollars. The next day our PC (Peace Corps) training was to begin. This is kind of a big deal because once I signed on the dotted line the PC officially became responsible for me. This means I am on their dollar and under their health insurance. What a relief. However, this little celebration was shortly lived. My fellow PCT's (Peace Corps Trainees) and I were informed that "the great snowapocolypse of 2010" was about to descend upon us. So we quickly checked out of that hotel, drove from Philly to NYC and stayed in a hotel near JFK airport. So the afternoon we were supposed to spend going over logistics, how not to get lost, and meeting everyone was spent scrambling to beat the snow. Don't worry; it all came out well in the end. We made our flight the next morning and in 15 short hours we were landing in Johannesburg South Africa. A short layover with the Spring Boks and then a quick four hour flight later found us in Entebbe Uganda.

We were greeted very warmly, both by the weather and the people. We drove to Lweza training center just outside of the capital city of Kampala and then collapsed into our dormitory style housing for a much needed nights rest. The next three days were three quick jabs of Luganda language sessions, getting to know one another, and meeting staff and other PCV's (Peace Corps Volunteers). I had the opportunity to go to Mass on Sunday with some other PCT's. What an experience. Drums, singing, smiles, enthusiasm galore. It was all in Luganda, but we could follow the structure as that is the same everywhere. Our short bout in Lweza was cleaned up by a stiff right hook taking us on a tour through Kampala, the capital city. What an amazing place. I hope I never have to go back there again. I don't even like cities in the US, so this amalgamation of shops, taxies, boda boda (motorcycles), bicycles, and masses upon masses of people left me ill to say the least. I did get a pretty nice shirt though for about $10 dollars. It is hard to describe what it looks like, so I will have to borrow a camera and post a picture. I also purchased some toilet paper which we were advised to bring with us when we travel as many latrines don't have toilet paper supplied.

Monday found us driving to Wakiso town to meet our home stay families. We waited at the RACO training center for the families to arrive. One by one, like puppies in a box on the corner, we were claimed and found a home... except me. After a few hours of watching each PCT greet his or her home stay mothers, brothers, sisters, fathers, grandmothers, and so on I was still left all alone. Then sitting by myself I was informed that my home stay mother was on her way from Kampala. I was still high on being in Uganda and so any amount of waiting wasn't going to bother me. Finally, my home stay mother arrived. I had been practicing my Luganda introduction for the last few hours so I was all ready to use it. However, when I put out my hand and began saying hello, I was promptly stopped by a quick slap to knock my hand out of the way so that she could give me a great big hug. I don't know who was more excited, not that it mattered. Our introduction was enthusiastic and warm.

Our first week in our home stay was filled with sessions on culture, government structure, education, economy, history and other such topics. Not always that exciting, but interesting none the less. Then at the end of the week we were finally told our region of service within Uganda. This was very exciting as it not only gave us some idea of where we were going, but also what language we would be learning to use as our staple. The Luganda we had learned early was just enough to greet people, bargain for prices and ask for directions for when we are in central Uganda and the capital city. Not all of Uganda speaks Luganda, hence the need for learning our regional language. Our regions were decided for us based on our qualifications, interests, and two interviews we had shortly after arriving. During my interview I requested to be as rural as possible. I asked to be sent to the place no one else wants to go to because it is so far out in the bush. It just so happens that they have several secondary schools in the Acholi region which are very far out in the bush and all in desperate need of teachers. I don't know to which village I am going specifically, but I will be in the Acholi speaking area along with four of my fellow PCT's. The Acholi region is in the far north central near Sudan. There are four districts in that region that speak Acholi: Kitgum (farthest north, bordering Sudan), Pader (just south of Kitgum), Gulu (where the largest city in the north is), and Amorro (north west, closest to the Nile). I don't know which district I will be in either, but I am guessing Kitgum. This area of Uganda is sub Sahara, so it has a wet season and a dry season. It is generally hotter and more arid than the rest of the country with a few small mountains and many flood plains. I can't wait to get there.

The past few weeks have been comprised mostly of language sessions in the morning, then tea around 10:00, then a technical or cultural session until 1:00 or so. Lunch is spent talking with each other, eating, laughing, joking, bitching, and the like. After lunch we usually have more specific sessions/lectures. We generally divide up into our three groups: Secondary Education (teaching high school level kids), Primary Educations (teaching soon-to-be teachers at a teachers college), and CHED (Community Health and Economic Development). I am going to be a Secondary School teacher, teaching math and physics. Then from lunch until about 5:00 we are in our groups working on technical training such as how to write on chalk boards, how to interact with students, how to make lesson plans and other such things. Then from training we generally do whatever. Some go to the local "joints" as they are called for a cold bottle of something up lifting, others go for a walk/run, some play sports out in one of the fields, and some go home. It just depends on what you are in the mood for that day and what is going on with other folks. I have the farthest walk/bike ride to training, about 5k (3 mi) so I have little motivation to exercise when I am already sweating through my shirt twice a day. So I either go home, or stop to hang out at one of the pubs. I gave up booze for lent, but it is still fun to shoot the proverbial breeze with friends. On Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday the church choir practices so one of my colleagues and I go to practice with them. It has been a lot of fun singing with them. We have learned a couple songs in Luganda, one in Swahili, and my friend brought her Gather book so we have been using that to teach the Ugandans some songs as well. They really like Agnus Dei and Holy Holy Holy Lord. Then after practice or the pub I have to hurry home because we are supposed to be back by dark. It isn't safe for Muzungus (white people) to be out at night. This wouldn't be bad except we are on the equator so it is twilight by 7:00 pm and completely dark by 7:30 pm. So that really only gives us a two hours of free time each evening. At home we are expected to help with chores, do our laundry, mop our floor, shine our shoes, do home work, eat and/or visit with our home stay family.

Saturdays are usually half days. On one we went to learn how to build a compost pit, an elevated garden, and plant vegetables. It wasn't too different from what we do in the states except they have an all year growing season. So it is kind of like planning for a green house. Then on Sundays we are left on our own. I go to 7:00 am mass and get home around 9:30 or 10:00, (masses last a lot longer here because not only is the homily longer, but then at the close of mass the deacon reads all the announcements that would be in the bulletin because they don't have one). Then I do laundry for the week, mop my floor again, shine my boots, and then help my family with chores/learn how to do chores. Most of the cleaning stuff was fairly easy to learn, but the cooking is not going to so smoothly. Everything is cooked over charcoal on these little mobile clay stoves. I'll post pictures when I get the chance. So because of my lack of heat control I end up burning a lot of stuff.

Ok, now I have divided my thoughts up by subject rather than chronologically so forgive me if things get confusing.

Food: Breakfast is light, generally some bread, a hardboiled egg, and maybe some fruit and of course tea. The tea is pretty good, but surprisingly the coffee is instant, cheap, and crappy even though it is a main export. Morning tea is usually really good, but light. We have somosas (kind of like the innards of a potpie folded into a triangular eggroll shell), French toast egg sandwich things, cassava fries, popcorn, or g-nuts (pea nuts, but they refer to them as ground nuts as they come from the ground, hence the contraction g-nut). Lunch is also good, but that is because the PC provides it. There is almost always matoke, another starch, meat sauce, g-nut sauce, vegetable, and fresh fruit. The dinner here generally consists of a starch, a protein sauce, and then sometimes a vegetable. The starch is almost always matoke. Let me tell out about matoke. It looks like a green banana, and is in the banana family like a plantain. It is always steamed, usually in banana leaves, mashed, and generally tasteless. It is pretty calorie dense, but after being steamed it is almost completely void of any nutrition. You need to slather it in the protein sauce to make it edible because it is pretty dry and solid even though it is steamed. Sweet potatoes are also a staple, though they are not the orange ones you are used to. They are more of a white color with a purplish skin. They also are not nearly as sweet. Irish potatoes, or "Irish" as they are called, are also served from time to time, but not very often except for lunch because the PC knows we like them, especially mashed. Rice is very common and is always white and steamed. They also have cassava, generally diced up and boiled. Again, it is generally tasteless and needs lots of sauce. Finally there is posho. This is the hardest of all for us Americans to choke down. It is bleached corn flour mixed with water and then steamed. It is absolutely tasteless, dry (almost chalky) and really hard to swallow even when soaked in sauce. I eat them all of course because I want to adapt as quickly as possible so that I can be accepted into my community, but it is still hard. Then the sauce is usually a meat that has been boiled until it is soft and reasonably chewable, along with some onions, maybe some peas or carrots too. G-nut sauce is ground g-nuts boiled into a thick sauce, it is ok. My favorite however, is the bean sauce which is like pork and beans minus the pork. It usually has some onions, carrots and a few greens in it too. The vegetables aren't too bad. Usually steamed or sometimes made into a soup. Spices are not used here very much at all. Salt and pepper seldom grace the table and I have never seen anyone put any kind of herb or spice in the food while cooking it, nor have I tasted anything of the like. So the food at most meals is bland at best. However, the street food is pretty tasty. They sell stuff called roll eggs or rolex. It is basically a flour tortilla fried and then rolled up with a tomato, cabbage, and onion omelet. They are greasy and delicious. All of that really isn't anything too exciting; however the fruit here is amazing. I have had some of the sweetest pineapple, jack fruit, mangos, avocadoes, and papayas of my life here. Last weekend we made guacamole with huge avocadoes, fresh tomatoes, onions, garlic, cilantro, and some really tiny local peppers that are about as hot as a habanera. Unfortunately, most people here consider fruit as a treat and produce as a once or twice a week side dish. Both are incredibly cheap and rich in vitamins, but they don't fill you up so people prefer nutritionally void starches. People are changing, but slowly.

Currency: They use the Ugandan shilling (USh). The conversion rate is about $1 USD to 2,000 USh. To give you some reference, a pair of cheap plastic sandals cost me 3,000 USh and a roll of toilet paper is 350 USh. A pineapple is about 1,000 USh, and one of the rolexes I was talking about is around 500 USh. Food and beer are cheap and technology is relatively expensive.

Travel: Most travel is done by matatu. These are about the size of VW mini buses and hold between 9 and 15 people depending upon how many the driver can squeeze into the seats. These are generally used to get from one town to the next, so you just ask the driver where he is headed next then wait till the taxi is full. You get to your destination, and then pay and you are good to go. These are usually for relatively short distances, less than 20 mi. For longer trips like going to the north, there are coach busses, or mail busses. Roughly the same price as the matatu, slower, but much more comfortable.

Mud: In the town of Wakiso, there one paved road and it goes to the capital. The rest are red dirt roads and are about the same as what you would expect in Georgia... 100 years ago. The roads are dirt and clay and do not have good drainage at all, so during the rainy season there are lakes in the low spots and ravines on hilly roads. The clay has this awesome effect of causing a nice slick, thin layer on top of the road so that it is relatively firm, but as slippery as greased ice. This isn't that bad except we are expected to dress "smartly" for training. After one day of walking my pants were completely red from the knee down as were most of my colleagues. The Ugandans however, miraculously only had a few small splashes here and there around the cuff. Then next day I tried my bicycle and the result was only slightly better. The mud has so much clay in it that is will stick to the tires and actually clog up around the fender and brake locking up your bike. This resulted in less total pant leg coverage and more giant chunks of clay all over the inside of my pant legs. I don't know how the Ugandans do it.

Dress: We are expected to dress "smartly" for training. For guys this means trousers (dress pants or slacks), button down shirt, and shined shoes. For girls this is a nice blouse with at minimum of short sleeves (no sleeveless-ness), a long skirt (at least knee length when sitting), a slip, and nice shoes or dressy sandals. Ugandans put a lot of emphasis on your dress as it reflects how important the person you are meeting is. If you dress "shabby" then it means the person you are meeting isn't very important to you. I personally think they put far too much effort and emphasis on protocol and not enough on substance, but I am trying to keep an open mind.

Muzungus: This is a Luganda word barrowed from the Swahili word mzungu which means traveler. However, this has come to mean white person almost exclusively. So every day I walk out of my house I have little kids barely able to talk shouting "Bye muzungu! Bye muzungu!" almost in a chant. It is pretty ridiculous how small these kids are and yet they are shouting at us as we walk down the road. Most children don't learn English until they get to primary school (elementary school), yet they know how to say "Hi muzungu!", "Bye muzungu!" (much more common), "Muzungu, how are you?" (some of the older toddlers). It still doesn't bother me, but I think it might eventually. I don't really care what it means or implies, but having everyone call you "nice person! nice person!" repeatedly every time they saw you would get annoying too.

Mephloquine: This is the malaria prophylaxis most of us get. Not only does it keep you from getting malaria almost 100%, but it also can - and does for me and a few others - cause some pretty gnarly dreams. One of the highlights of the morning when we arrive at training is to share our sweet meph-dreams with everyone. It isn't that the dreams are particularly awesome in anyway, but they are incredibly vivid and real. For instance, a few nights ago I dreamt that Sam Malone and I were going from village to village building a "Cheers" in each one as an economic development project and to boost general morale. Sam was really convinced this would turn Uganda around and get it on the right track. He was incredibly convicting and by the time I woke up I was designating a "Norm" in each village. Even after I woke up I was still completely on board with this idea. I pitched it to the Peace Corps staff and they aren't going for it yet, but I'm working on it. Unfortunately, not everyone gets to have awesome dreams of building Boston style pubs in Uganda to boost the economy. Some people have been having some pretty terrible nightmares about being paralyzed and with bugs crawling all over them. If it keeps up then they get switched to doxy which doesn't have such side effects, but will inhibit your ability to tan. So it’s up to you which you can handle the best. If you stop taking both however, the PC will give you the boot.

Home stay: I am living with a Muslim family and they are incredible. The husband and wife work in the capital city (45 min to 4 hr commute depending on traffic), the three year old son is staying with a relative until May (it is really common to send your kids to live with extended family for months at a time), the 1.5 year old is home all day with the maid, and the father's youngest sister is in elementary school so she lives with us as well so that she can go to a good school. I play with the 1.5 year old toddler, Papa, a lot but he doesn't talk yet. He is really lively and fun but pees on everything and everyone. The elementary school girl, Aisha, is very quiet so we don't interact much. The maid, Auntie, isn't very good at English and I am terrible with Luganda, so I practice basic phrases with her and vice versa. My home stay mom is younger than me so I call her sister. Her name is Sarah and she is awesome. She has an elementary education degree and a certificate in basic computer use. She doesn't teach because teachers here don't make squat for pay, if they get paid. So she works for a shipping company doing invoices and such. Her English is excellent and she is incredibly open about everything. Religion, politics, economics, sex, culture, music, love, racism, and anything else under the sun is easily and candidly discussed with her. She is incredibly progressive and a hoot and a half to talk with about anything. I am extremely lucky to be placed in her home. Her husband is also very "modern" but he is really quiet and doesn't get home until 10:30 at night so we don't talk much. Sister gets home around 7:30 so I get to talk with her while supper is cooking. I will try to borrow a video camera and get some shots of her and my home stay house.

That really sums up all the important things for the time being. I will be happy to answer questions and such whenever I get the chance. I will also reply to any mail I receive, but it takes about 4-6 weeks for it to arrive in Uganda. My address for the time being is:

David Weldon
Peace Corps Volunteer
PO Box 29348
Kampala
Uganda

However, if you send anything there it needs to leave by April 21. After that you will need to send it to my site address which I don't have yet, but I will let you all know as soon as I do. Thanks for reading and I will post more exciting stuff when it happens/I get a chance to write.

In peace, love, and life

David